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Shaquille O'Neal Reveals Why He's 'Scared' for Cavaliers

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Evan Massey | Last updated Mar 13, 2025 5:21 PM ET

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been the best teams in the NBA by record since the start of the season. To this point, they have shown no signs of slowing down.

Right now, they hold a 55-10 record. They are starting to receive a lot of hype as an NBA Finals favorite.

Led by Donovan Mitchell, the Cavaliers have been led the league in scoring with 122.7 points per game. Defensively, they rank No. 10, giving up 111.4 points per contest.

Those numbers are exactly where an NBA Finals contender would want to be.

Shaquille O'Neal recently spoke out with his thoughts about Cleveland. He's actually "scared" for the Cavaliers moving forward into the playoffs.

During a segment on "The Big Podcast," as shared by NBA Central on X, O'Neal opened up about a big potential problem he sees in the future for Cleveland.

“If you shut Donovan down, who’s gonna be the other guy?”

Shaq says he’s scared for the Cavs in the playoffs

“If you shut Donovan down, who’s gonna be the other guy?”

( @bigpodwithshaq / https://t.co/Q4ELGFbbAR) pic.twitter.com/J8sEGBtmlp
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 13, 2025

That is a real question that the Cavaliers will need to answer.

Mitchell has averaged 24.2 points per game so far this season. Behind him, the team has seen both Darius Garland and Evan Mobley both step up.

Garland has averaged 21.0 points per game, while Mobley has chipped in 18.6.

While Garland and Mobley have both played well this season, can they be go-to options in a playoff series? That has not been proven.

NBA insider Brian Windhorst, on the other hand, has a different opinion about Cleveland. He recently boldly recommended Cavaliers fans keep their plans for June open.

At this point in time, Game 1 of the NBA Finals is scheduled to be played on June 5.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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