Shaquille O’Neal couldn’t resist needling his fellow LSU alum Angel Reese with her own signature celebration during LSU’s 31-13 loss to Alabama at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge.
Reese was filming O’Neal on the LSU sideline and asked him to say something for the camera. Instead, the four-time NBA champion pressed his fingers together and hit her with the “too small” gesture she made famous during the WNBA Finals.
Reese took it in stride, saying “it’s okay, it’s okay” before jokingly shoving her camera in O’Neal’s face as if taking a shot at him.
The “too small” taunt has followed Reese since she first threw it during Game 3 of the WNBA Finals. The Golden State Valkyries ultimately won the series in seven games, beating Reese’s team 68-63 in the decisive contest behind Gabby Williams, who scored 30 points, including 28 in the second half.
After that final game, Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg ran onto the court and threw Reese’s own celebration back at her. The mockery continued into the following week at the Valkyries’ championship parade, where former Warriors big man Festus Ezeli wore a shirt printed with an image of Reese making the gesture and performed the taunt for the crowd.
Despite the public ribbing, O’Neal’s trolling comes from affection — he has become something of a father figure to Reese since her days at LSU. O’Neal played for LSU from 1989 to 1992 and was named National Player of the Year in 1991. He went on to spend four seasons with the Orlando Magic before signing a record-breaking contract with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996, followed by a second deal in 2003.
Reese played two seasons at LSU, from 2022 to 2024, before being selected with the No. 7 overall pick by the Chicago Sky.
