According to wire reports, The Big Aristotle took the mic at a New York club Sunday night and unleased a tirade mocking Kobe for losing to the Boston Celtics in the NBA finals and blaming Bryant for ruining his marriage.

"Kobe couldn't do without me," quote Shaq.

Guess what? I could have done without reading about this stupid story. But of course, ESPN loudmouth Stephen A. Smith latched on to it immediately and asked Shaq for comment.

O'Neal said it was "all done in fun," and that he has "no issue at all" with Kobe.

Alas, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio had an "issue" with O'Neal. Arpaio is the guy who once gave O'Neal a special deputy's badge.

"I want his two badges back,'' Arpaio told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "Because if any one of my deputies did something like this, they're fired. I don't condone this type of racial conduct.''

Wonder what Stephen A. Smith thinks of that.