Shaquille O’Neal-Karl-Anthony Town interview quickly turns awkward after Knicks win

Not all star players have the same personality.

That became abundantly clear during Shaquille O’Neal’s postgame interview with Karl-Anthony Towns after the Knicks’ thrilling 108-106 comeback win over the Rockets Saturday night at the Garden.

Before Towns scored 25 points in the win, O’Neal, along with Charles Barkley, criticized the Knicks big man’s play, calling him out for playing “soft.”

To his credit, O’Neal admitted that to Towns after the game he criticized his ‘soft’ play because he has seen him play with force many times and wants to see him do so on a consistent basis.

“At the beginning of the game I said you were playing soft because there were times I saw you play great,” O’Neal told Towns on ESPN’s “Inside the NBA” postgame show. “And what you have to understand in New York is that you have to be great to win the championship. These are high ambitions.

“If you win the championship, of course they will talk about it [Jalen] Brunson, but it’s you and your game. You have to be dominant. You responded very, very well. You played well, you played in the paint, that’s how you should play. You always have to play great. Being from Jersey, good isn’t good enough. You played a great game tonight. I’m proud of you.”

If Shaq was looking for an agreement from Towns, he was in for a little surprise.

“No, definitely. But whatever you said, if we win a championship, they can talk about anyone, as long as we all get a ring. That’s the most important thing. I don’t care.”

It was the first reaction from Towns’ team, but Shaq still didn’t believe it and came back with a quick response.

“No, but you have to play great. 1-2 punch, and you’re part of that 1-2 punch,” O’Neal said.

Towns was quick to acknowledge Shaq’s point, but emphasized his point that helping the Knicks win an NBA title is what it’s all about, not individual accolades.

“Yes, but I want to make sure we all understand that the biggest goal, the main goal here, is to win,” Towns said. “It doesn’t matter who gets the credit or whatever.”

But O’Neal tripled his point, replying, “That’s not the point, you have to play great. No, you have to play great to get the credit.”

Sounding like he was ready to end this part of the interview, Towns responded, “I hear you. Legend, I agree with you.”

After the interview with Towns was completed, Barkley told Shaq that Towns is a good player and a nice guy, but it is not in his mental makeup to have a great mentality. He also added that you can’t force a player to be something he isn’t.

Despite the drama, it appears Towns is turning the corner.

Towns – a six-time All-Star – posted his fourth straight 20-point game, his longest streak of the season.