Shaquille O’Neal is widely regarded as the most dominant big man in the history of the NBA.

The former Los Angeles Lakers superstar’s illustrious career includes four championships, three Finals MVPs and 15 All-Star selections.

Yet, O’Neal is rarely involved in debates about the Greatest of All Time. Of course, he would love to be in that conversation, but he wants another icon there as well – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – aside from the three obvious names.

Shaquille O’Neal says Kareem Abdul-Jabbar should be mentioned in GOAT debates

If you go up to most basketball fans on the street and ask them to name the greatest player of all time, the obvious responses would include Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James.

All three are icons of the sport and definitely deserve to be in the conversation, but there are a few others who probably should get a mention as well.

O’Neal is arguably one of them and has admitted that it hurts at times that he is not spoken of in the same breath. But he thinks he knows why.

“The answer is yes and no,” he told Variety when asked if not being in the GOAT conversation bothers him.

“I could remember crying to my mom one day about being the best athlete in my high school, but I didn’t win Athlete of the Year. My mom grabbed me and said, ‘Baby, nobody roots for Goliath.’ And I said, ‘What does that mean?’ And she said, ‘When you’re big, they expect you to do certain things, but the little guy will always get the praise.’”

O’Neal is adamant that this is the case even today, which is why the likes of Jordan, Bryant and James are most people’s picks for the GOAT title. But he has pleaded for another name to be included: Abdul-Jabbar.

He continued: “And I’m seeing it now because when you’re talking about the GOATs, it doesn’t matter who you pick, but please mention Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

“Yet they always go for the little guy – ‘Ooh Mike,’ ‘Ooh Kobe,’ ‘Ooh LeBron.’ So, do I feel underappreciated? Yes. But nobody roots for Goliath.”

Abdul-Jabbar is a six-time NBA champion, record six-time NBA MVP, and 19-time All-Star. He played 20 seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers, retiring with a then-record 38,387 career points.

O’Neal is probably right. Even if Abdul-Jabbar isn’t the GOAT, he deserves a mention.