Arenas: Shaq trying to push, not hate on young players

Shaquille O'Neal's criticism of NBA players has been interpreted by some as him being a hater, but Gilbert Arenas has a different perspective on the matter.

The former Washington Wizards point guard came to O'Neal's defense on a recent episode of Fubo Sports' "No Chill with Gilbert Arenas," explaining how the Hall of Famer's critical comments are meant to motivate younger players.

"What Shaq said to Donovan (Mitchell) on TV, I went to Donovan's DMs, said, 'You know what, don't mind that,'" Arenas said, referring to O'Neal's recent criticism of Mitchell on a TNT broadcast. "I said, 'He comes from an era where the Jedi, reverse psychology is how you push a player' ... and that's Shaq."

Arenas was joined on the show by former Miami Heat star and current TNT analyst Dwyane Wade, who noted that delivery has a lot to do with how their comments are interpreted.

"We have this microphone and our job for the NBA is to talk about the NBA, to uplift players, and do all those things. But you gotta be critical at times, right? This is your job, to talk about what you see," Wade said. "It's all in the delivery. ... We know what Shaq was trying to do. The way it was delivered, I understand why everybody was like, 'Oh, he hating again.'"