When comedian Bill Burr sat down on The Big Podcast with Shaq, most people expected sharp comedy and sharp exchanges. What they got was all of that, plus a full-on flat earth debate with one of basketball’s biggest legends.
The conversation began during a game of “White People or Black People,” where Burr and Shaq were joking about conspiracy theories. Then Shaq casually posed a question that immediately caught Burr off guard.
“You don’t think the earth is flat?” Shaq asked.
Burr looked surprised.
“What?” he replied. “My question is, what is the advantage the people in power have that if it’s actually flat? I’m thinking it’s round.”
Shaq then explained why he remains skeptical. Drawing from his experience as a frequent traveler, he pointed to something he has never observed while flying.
“I just said I fly a lot,” Shaq said. “One time I took a 25-hour flight and the plane never did this,” he added while mimicking a downward tilt. “I stayed up the whole time looking out the window just to make sure.”
The comment immediately drew a reaction from co-host Adam Lefkoe. “That’s not how it works,” he said.
Burr agreed and jumped in with a correction. “But you also realize that this isn’t north. That’s up,” he said.
Trying to explain the science behind air travel, Burr referenced instrument navigation and how pilots historically relied on ground-based signals that become accessible only when aircraft are within a certain range.
“They’re phasing these things out because they have newer technology,” Burr explained. “But when you fly instrument, they have these things on the ground called VORs. That’s how, if you’re in the clouds or above them, you get from point to point without messing up. If you’re too far away, if you’re at a lower altitude, you can’t get the signal because the earth is round. It’s going like that, and you’re coming around like this. It’s not until you get within a certain distance that you can hear it when you fly over to Europe.”
The explanation did little to change Shaq’s mind. His argument remained simple: if the world map places countries in different locations around a globe, why does a plane never appear to dip downward during long-distance flights?
At that point, Adam brought up another memorable moment from Shaq’s past. “I just remember that you thought the moon was closer than LA,” he said. “So now it all makes sense.”
Shaq quickly disputed the characterization.
“That’s not what I said,” he replied. “I looked up and you could see the moon. How far is the moon from Earth?”
“Millions of miles,” Adam answered.
“Right,” Shaq said. “So how come when I look to the west coast, I can’t see LA and it’s only 2,000 miles?”
As the discussion drifted further into conspiracy territory, Burr shifted back into comedian mode. Referring to one of Shaq’s business ventures, he jokingly questioned how the NBA legend planned to promote a cereal brand while arguing against basic science.
“How are you going to promote this cereal?” Burr asked.
He then delivered the line that effectively summed up his view of the entire debate.
“You’re going to determine whether it’s round or flat by looking out the window?” Burr said, struggling to contain his laughter. “What are the scientists wasting all their time with all of these apparatuses? Just look out the window.”
