The highly anticipated match-up between two literal giants — the L.A. Lakers’ 7-feet-1 Shaquille O’Neal and Houston Rocket Yao Ming, measuring 7-feet-5 — at a Jan. 17 game in Houston was partly overshadowed by a series of remarks made by the wisecracking O’Neal that some Asian Americans didn’t find too funny.

It started with a June 28 interview on Fox’s “The Best Damn Sports Show.” When asked if he had anything to say to the Chinese Ming, O’Neal replied, “Tell Yao Ming, ‘Ching-chong-yang-wah-ah-soh.’”

A barrage of e-mails, letters and phone calls have been directed at the NBA and the Lakers to protest O’Neal’s remarks. More than 6,200 people have also signed onto Petitiononline.com to voice their complaints. Before the Jan. 17 game, some Asian American community organizations held a press conference to denounce O’Neal’s comments.

In response to the accusations, O’Neal issued his version of an apology: “I’m a comedian and it was meant as a joke,” he said. “Sometimes I’m funny, and sometimes I’m not. I’ve apologized. Yao Ming is my brother. The Asian people are my brothers. It was unfortunate that one idiot writer tried to start a racial war over that.”

Ming accepted O’Neal’s apology and invited the Laker center to his home for dinner the night before the game, which O’Neal declined due to prior commitments.

Perhaps Ming had the last laugh, though. The three-time defending champion Lakers lost to the Rockets in overtime, 108-104. After the game, O’Neal hugged Ming, who clinched the win with a dunk.

“He’s a great player,” O’Neal said. “He’s another challenge I have to face.”

Meanwhile, O’Neal’s comments have burned up Internet lines, as Asian American Laker fans have debated whether his behavior qualifies as racist or not. Some expressed deep disappointment in a player they once considered a favorite, while others cautioned that O’Neal, known for his trash talkin’, should not be placed in the same category as a Trent Lott.