Shaq's not exactly the brain trust. I remember reading an interview with him after his first pro season, just after a team trip to Europe. The interviewer asked him if he got to visit the Parthenon, and Shaq replied, "I don't remember the names of the clubs we went to."
A lot of the people who are dismissing him know that he's not all that up there, but it doesn't make it any better.
It was a damned ignorant comment, and he should apologize. But because athletes at any level are often given chances that the general population isn't, don't hold your breath. It's kinda like that Fuzzy Zoeller comment after Tiger won the Masters.