Why Is Shaquille O'Neal Blasting Shannon Sharpe?

Shaq vs. Sharpe?

Shaquille O'Neal is proud of his status as arguably the greatest NBA big man ever. Shannon Sharpe is a Pro Football Hall of Famer in his own right.

And now both superstars are feuding, using their national TV platforms - Shaq on TNT, Sharpe on ESPN - to joust.

Why?

Shaq is stating that Sharpe's TV style is about "click-baiting,'' seemingly irate in part because Sharpe has suggested that O'Neal might be jealous of Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who just won his third MVP award.

"You took me sticking up for (other players' candidacies) as jealousy of 'Joker,'' Shaq wrote on social media. "Shows how smart you are and how you say anything to get clicks. so here’s some-click bait for you. if you ain’t ranked in the top ten in your profession , then you can’t speak on Me.''

Sharpe is in fact ranked No. 51 on one list of "Top 100 NFL Players of All Time.''

But Shaq, the Lakers icon, didn't stop there.

"Don’t forget, I know what you did to get were you at,'' Shaq wrote cryptically.

What Sharpe has done as far as we know is forge a career as a national media figure in the NFL ... though frankly, he's no Shaq, who has been doing it longer and with a higher profile.

There is some suspicion that this is all a setup, a conflict made for show biz. ... and there is this: Fans - or haters - of both stars are surely to wonder what they'll say next about one another.