Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (nicknamed Shaq) was born on March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey. He is one of the most dominant basketball players today and currently plays for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association.

O'Neal was named "Shaquille Rashaun" ("Little Warrior" in Arabic) by his biological father, Joseph Toney. His mother, Lucille, would marry U.S. Army sergeant Phillip Harrison shortly after Shaquille's birth. At 7'1" and 325 pounds, he is one of the largest NBA players. O'Neal led the Los Angeles Lakers to three consecutive NBA titles (2000, 2001, 2002). He was named MVP of the NBA Finals all three times and has the highest scoring average for a center in Finals history. He was also voted the 1999-2000 regular season Most Valuable Player, almost becoming the first unanimous MVP in NBA history. O'Neal was the youngest person named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History; he has been selected to the All-Star Game every year since his rookie season in 1993 (except for the 1999 lockout season). O'Neal has also improved into one of the league's best defenders, receiving All-NBA-Defensive honors in 2000, 2001 and 2003.

Shaq lived a good part of his childhood in Germany, where his step-father Harrison was stationed with the U.S. Army. It was there that he learned to play basketball. He first gained national attention as a star at Robert G. Cole Junior-Senior High School in San Antonio, Texas. As a young man, he attended Louisiana State University, where he first became known by many basketball fans around the globe. In 1992, he was chosen by the Orlando Magic, and he helped the team to 41 wins that year, missing the playoffs by a single game. He further raised his fame that year with two infamous dunks which broke the supports holding the basket and backboard, both on national television: the first coming against the Phoenix Suns, the second against the New Jersey Nets.

In the 1993-94 season, Shaq helped the Magic to their first playoff ever. He also went to Hollywood, and released a rap CD, named Shaq Diesel and appeared in a movie Blue Chips, with teammate Anfernee Hardaway and Nick Nolte.

In 1994-1995, O'Neal and Hardaway helped their team reach the NBA Finals, but they were swept in four games by the Houston Rockets. After the 1995-1996 season, Shaq, asking for $120 million over seven years, left Orlando to join the Lakers. He and teammate Kobe Bryant created one of the most effective guard-center combinations in NBA history, forming the core of three championship teams.

In 2004, following a NBA Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons, O'Neal said that he would not return to the Lakers, asking instead to be traded. On July 14, he was officially traded to the Miami Heat for Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant and a first-round draft pick.

O'Neal married long-time girlfriend Shaunie Nelson on December 26, 2002; they have 3 children: Shareef Rashaun, Amirah Sanaa, and Shaquir Rashaun. He also has a daughter, Taahirah, by ex-girlfriend Arnetta Yardbourgh.

Filmography

Kazaam (1996)

External links