Steph Curry Thanks Shaq For Keeping His Missed Dunk And Airball Out Of Shaqtin’ A Fool

It can be an incredibly gratifying experience to watch a professional athlete, someone that performs superhuman feats so often that it can feel like they belong to a separate species entirely, do something a civilian might. That’s why Shaquille O’Neal’s Shaqtin’ A Fool segment during Inside the NBA, in which the Hall of Fame big man collects a series of videos depicting NBA players engaged in embarrassing miscues, is so great. For a moment, however fleeting, it allows the average hoops fan to say “hey, I too have air-balled a lay-up!”

So when Steph Curry, a very regular-looking human who does otherworldly things multiple times per night on the hardwood, slipped during a breakaway dunk attempt, then got back up, ran to the 3-point line and immediately air-balled a shot during a recent game against the Los Angeles Lakers, it was tailor-made for Shaq’s segment. In fact, the play was even nominated for Shaqtin’ of the Year by the show’s official Twitter account.

But Shaq refused to even include Curry’s blunder in this week’s Shaqtin a Fool, because, in Shaq’s words, “He’s my favorite player. I’m not doing it.” Curry, clearly relieved, responded in kind, thanking Shaq for not including him in his roundup and joking that he was trying to bring down the backboard like Shaq once did back in 1993.

Enough with the pleasantries, you two. We better see this one when the Shaqtin’ of the Year gets handed out at the end of the season, because even though Shaq loves Steph, this will never stop being hilarious.