Candace Parker Schooling Shaq on Modern Basketball Is an MMA Mood (Patreon)

By Sam (@StuffFromSam)

This isn't necessarily about combat sports but at the same time, it is. People have all these simplistic ideas about strategy with zero awareness for game theory. Shaquille O'Neal is still better than the "it's whoever wants it bad enough," "Mike Tyson is the greatest," "you can tell Bruce Lee was GOAT from just watching his movies," "MMA isn't that great if we fought to the death," "why don't they just check the calf kick," or the Joe Rogans of MMA.

It also speaks to how great athletes don't always make the best coaches because the athlete only needs to be strategic for their era and with their own body, whereas the coach needs to be strategic for multiple eras with multiple bodies, while also anticipating what's coming down the pike.

To summarize their back and forth in MMA terms:

Shaq: "Just check the kick."

Parker: "But if you check the kick you're gonna get taken down."