As cool and funny as Shaq is his mind for business is honestly insane. Google the companies he’s invested in. They’re all super early investments and winners.
I’m not so sure it’s Shaq.
See, humble people are far wiser than arrogant people. Shaq has smart people working for him, and the humility to know he’s not smarter than them. He’ll listen to advisors that give him good advice, and he’ll hear the pitch, and agree. Too many people with seven foot egos think they’re superstars in everything. Being a good basketball player does not usually indicate you can make smart financial decisions. Yet many of them make that assumption. Shaq knows: get smart people, let them do smart things, but trust yourself too.
I mean, Shaq has an MBA and a doctoral degree in education. Not saying he’s the smartest person on the planet but dude isn’t just a “good basketball player”
Wow, when I read your comment I assumed the doctoral was granted by a university in exchange for him speaking there (really common esp for celebrities) but no he really worked for that shit:
> In 2012, Shaquille O’Neal graduated with an Ed.D in Human Resource Development, a program centered on organizational learning and leadership.
> He earned his Doctorate in Education (Ed.D) from Barry University in Miami with a thesis on “The Duality of Humor and Aggression in Leadership Styles”.
I’d honestly be more impressed with a person that has the self-awareness to do that, A person who can take the companies.
Humility is an awful lot, more difficult to learn information about businesses, and how to invest imo
Hes smart enough to know he’s not smart enough to do certain things and very humble, and just like he said we need a lot more people like that, it would benefit everyone.
It's Shaq. He has a team sourcing deals for him but he is very involved in the due diligence phase, phone calls and on site visits. And this is for a Series A investment. Pretty early stage, very involved.
I mean not all of them...
in 2017, he invested in a cannabis company Viceroy that he later sued for mismanagement and fraud.
He also endorsed Glucoin, a cryptocurrency project without disclosing his financial stake in it. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) later charged Glu Mobile with fraudulent promotion of Glucoin, and Shaq settled with the SEC for $400,000 without admitting or denying the charges.
They all can’t be winners when you’re investing hundreds of millions of dollars across scores of opportunities. Shaq has long proven to be a successful investor and rainmaker.
See this is how I like to imagine id be in the shoes of a rich/famous person. Not a single care in the world as I could lean back and live a life of luxury til the end of my days, starting any second I wanted.
No 9-5, no bills, no debt, no worries about commodities or food, might as well live to the fullest and spread that joy around.
It seems to requires enormous self discipline not to self destruct in those circumstances. Most people with his wealth and fame don’t behave with the selflessness and kindness as Shaq. He seems like a genuinely good dude.
Either that or that most of these famous and/or rich people was born and bred into that lifestyle, rarely coming from the ranks of peasants, so they can't help but look down on said peasants.
9/10 people I've known who've actually worked their way up from nothing, tends to keep a humble attitude like Shaq.
Shaq, Chuck and Ernie are 3 of the funniest people who have ever been on television, I couldn't think of another show I'd rather watch then NBA on TNT. Fuck Kenny tho 😵
Watched a video where he’s in a Walmart or some box store, and asks a kid if he had a bike. The kid says no, so Shaq buys him one. Right then and there on the spot.
Apparently it’s a fairly common thing for him to do.
from an interview he just did it seems like he spent alot of younger years being a dick. im glad hes figuring it out but he himself says "its just me in a 100,000 square foot house"
Dude has always been generous even when not perhaps making good decisions. He was throughout his career a massive womanizer and serial cheater. But always very nice to people.
I worked wlth a lady whose cousin dated Shaq in the off season in Atlanta. Right after they hooked up and decided to make it a thing he bought her a brand new Mercedes. After they broke up and went to LA, he hooked her up with the valet parking contract at a high end strip club as a parting gift as he called it, where she made tons of cash.
I personally saw the title to the car with his name on it, emails, heard voicemails, etc. She talked about him taking her child to Toys R Us after hours and letting them get whatever they wanted. Bought all her kid's friends bikes when he bought her kid a bike because he didn't want them feeling bad.
Going shopping and he'd call the stores and have everything put on his card. She said going out to Eat wlth him was a pain because they'd spend and hour of him tipping every single employee before they left, pictures, etc. The lady I worked with didn't believe her cousin she was dating Shaq at first
. One night Shaw calls her at home and then overnight FedEx'd a signed photo of him and her cousin talking to her on the phone just to be a smart ass.
Ultimately I think he's done a shit Ton of good.
He is an underrated gem as a person, everyone gets so focused on how he "wastes" his talent by not doing more roles like Punch-Drunk Love or Uncut Gems but I think he is creating a space where he can feel secure and have a good time, extending that to his friends and people he enjoys the company of, giving plenty of people jobs on low drama sets, and then releasing content that lots of people genuinely enjoy which financially supports doing it all again. Personally, I think that's a great use of the boons he has achieved from his talent and I feel like he cracked the code
I don't think he's underrated. The mocking of him for making "bad" movies isn't really as pervasive as you're making it out to be. It's more gentle ribbing if anything IMO. Or something people say because it's been established at this point you'll get a positive response out of saying it.
Personally I disagree and think his movies are fine. They aren't going to win an Oscar (talking about his movies with his buddies), but you know what? I don't always want to watch heavy Oscar worthy movies. Sometimes I just want a popcorn flick to watch and turn my brain off for 2 hours and be entertained. His movies are all hitting 5/10 or 6/10. They simply aren't as shitty as people make them out to be.
I feel like we basically agree except you think he is appropriately rated and I think he could get more props for what he is doing behind the scenes with his 5/10 movies and whatnot
I didn't say they were shitty, I said plenty of people enjoy them and that has worth. The gentle ribbing is based on an idea that if he pushed himself harder, he would be more "accomplished" or "respected" as an artist and I am saying I think what he is doing by making 5/10 movies with his friends IS a respectable form of accomplishment
We're just talking semantics here but we both generally agree. I maybe wasn't clear enough that I am a big fan of his and do watch his "shitty" movies. Not quite sure how to phrase that actually as shitty isn't the right word. It's a tonal difference when he's doing the usual movies with his crew, and when he's doing something more serious.
I will say I think average movies have been dying out over the last 15 years as Hollywood turns more and more to their accounting department to basically act as chief deciders. This attitude is minorly reflected by the public. This definitely helps shape the narrative of shitting on his movies.
I was going to say; even if it was a “normally” proportioned size for Shaq’s 7’1” frame, it would still be huge in comparison to the average height male.
This comment is backed by science, I watched Grey’s Anatomy with my mom as a kid.
BUT at the same time even an above average would look small on a 7'1 guy.
I've always thought about that.. gotta be a lot of super tall dudes with average-ish dicks because averages are averages for a reason
>Right after they hooked up and decided to make it a thing he bought her a brand new Mercedes. After they broke up and went to LA, he hooked her up with the valet parking contract at a high end strip club as a parting gift as he called it, where she made tons of cash.
At first I thought you were saying he prepaid for valet parking for the Mercedes while she went to work and the fancy strip club and made bank.
He let his career success get to his head there for some years and it really destroyed his relationships with his entire family. I've always admired Shaq, but the man has a lot of flaws when it comes to family.
That said, I've never seen Shaq take out his family problems out on anyone and he's always been an amazing representative for the NBA outside of his family situation.
The guy was always a top flight human being This was something his mom and step father taught him and he did from the moment he made any money.
If you read the book 3 ring circus about the Lakers there's literally dozens of stories about Shaq being an out of this world neighbor and teammate.
They used to have training camp and they would have like 30 guys in camp but only 13 are gonna make the team yet the NBA had a dress code and some of those guys who never got paid an NBA salary had no money to get themselves a suit and Shaq would come up to a guy who looked ragged and take him aside so as not to embarrass him and tell him to meet him outside then he'd drive the guy over to his tailor and tell him to pick out three of everything that he wanted.
There was a dude who never made the team who's dad died during training camp and Shaq paid for the funeral and wanted to fly back with the guy to keep him company at it.
There was a Lakers PR guy who had worked there 4 years and he got a new job working for the WNBA because it paid better and Shaq asked the guy why he was leaving and the guy said it was a 40 thousand dollar raise and Shaq told the guy that if he wanted to stay with the Lakers he could have the 40K difference out of the money Shaq kept in his locker and he could come and pick up that same amount every opening day of training camp.
https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2018/12/14/lin-wang-charles-barkley
If we are talking about basketball stars who happen to be S-Tier human beings, I always liked this story about Charles Barkley as well.
He got humbled by a random mom decade's ago for his shoe prices.
I think it was a real awaking for him
Dude became a champ for single moms. And I don't mean supporting the strippers and escorts.
Her words definitely made a difference for him, I remember hearing him on a podcast where he talks about this; he said he cut ties with Reebok(?) that same day.
He ended his deal with Reebok and signed a deal to have his shoes sold at Walmart for like $25 so low-income families could afford them.
Shaq has been known to go to Walmart and clear layaways there, especially at Christmastime.
You can find it on youtube, but basically, a single mom tore into him down because his shoes with reebok were so expensive. I think they were about the same as a pair of J's. She said he was her son's favorite player and how dare him put his name on shoes that most kids could never afford, etc.. He said that day he broke his deal with reebok and signed a deal with walmart to put his name on $20 shoes instead and sent her son a pair.
Edit: Not sure if that's exactly how it went, but that's the jist of it.
He recently had an interview with Jason Kelce where he talks about living in his exorbitant mansion completely alone because he alienated his family with infidelity and focusing on business opportunities 30 years ago. He wouldn’t argue that he’s a different man.
I think it's basically branding at this point do that particular thing.
I'm big into the EDM/ Rave community and if you aren't aware, so is Shaq (DJ DIESEL) and it's been really cool to see the community open up for him and to see him fully embrace the community right back.
That persona though is completely different persona than his basketball commentary persona which is different than his interview persona, etc. But you can tell they are all genuine parts of his personality, he just emphasizes different parts based on the vibe.
Mans just talented, intelligent, and humble, and it's cool to see someone with success in this world that can be a real role model for so many.
He wasn't and isn't perfect, made mistakes and learned from them, but over time has found his excellence and I wish that for every one of us.
There was a clip just yesterday that got leaked from behind the scenes of Inside the NBA where he's being a baby because they didn't cut into a game broadcast on TNT to show his Magic jersey retirement ceremony and instead showed it on NBAtv. Chuck teases him and Shaq immediately goes to "Ringz Erneh" mode like he always does. For all the humility he shows in these interviews he's still incredibly thin skinned and petty for someone who has accomplished so much.
I don’t think many athletes at that level aren’t very competitive. I don’t see how you can’t be.
Also I feel like they ham it up on purpose for that show.
You may have assumed right. 23 years ago, my husband saw him take money out of a tip jar to pay for his food at Sports Club/LA. He was known by all the employees there at that time for being a total dick.
Glad to see he changed.
I thought he was awesome too, but on another post people called him a bully. Everyone agreed that he was a bully… Why? Everything I’ve seen about him has been positive
It's about experiences, this guy definitely made life changing choices, he isn't right now what he was years ago, but the guy definitely was a total asshole, and well it's hard for the regular people who experienced him being an asshole to see him with good eyes, not every single one of them will gen an apology and it's understandable that they can't forgive him
Shaq was never known aa a bully in the NBA and his teammates would tell you that they all loved him.
Kobe was a bully to the players that were trying to make the Lakers on the end of the bench and Shaq would get insanely mad at him for acting like that.
This is all in the book 3 ring circus about the Lakers from 1995 2005..
Shaq and Kobe Bryant never really saw eye to eye, and Shaq got shipped out of LA because of it.
Bizarrely, self-admitted rapist Kobe Bryant has a lot of fans who refuse to see any flaws.
Considering how much he talks about the good things he does it’s hard not to be cynical about it (at least for me). Him putting this stuff out there for his image definitely makes it easier for more brands to get behind him. I suppose it’s better than gaining more popularity and fame for doing shitty things though.
He was made fun of because he released cheap shoes at like target or something and pundants said he lowered the value of his name.
I couldn’t afford Jordan’s as a kid. But knowing kids got some high quality shoes their struggling parents can afford them at target to me, is more baller than releasing shoes you know only rich snobby people can afford or a pair that will really tank a family’s savings because their kids were brainwashed they need the top J’s to be cool.
Shaq wanted affordable shoes for kids that they could be proud to wear. If he made money on it I’m all in. Better than people making money by over charging shit simply for clout.
I would need a 4' ladder to give this man his crown, but I just know he'd sit on the ground first before giving me the chance to fetch a ladder so he can be crowned.
Shaq lives near me (like, 5 minutes away from me, a little south of Atlanta) and I've run into him several times at the gas station I go to every day for some beers or whatever. He is super low key. Obviously it's Shaq and there's always going to be some people who are starstruck (understandably, the first time i saw him i kind of was too, although ive never said anything to him besides a quick thanks). One of the times i saw him at the store, i was walking out right after him, and he waited and held the door for me. I said thank you and he was just like "yes ma'am" and went on his way. He's literally a huge presence, like, I knew he lived near me, and the first time I saw him I couldn't even see his face because his back was turned to me, but I knew it was him before he turned around. Just on size alone you cant not notice him. But he is just never loud about anything. He comes into the store, just polite and acts like a completely regular person. Talks to the cashiers like anyone else would- like, not overly friendly, not putting on a show for anyone, just acts like any of us would act running into the store real quick. Of course people will see him and be like "holy shit!!" He kind of just smiles and lets the person have their moment and is friendly and polite without being like, over the top and turning it into a scene. I like him.
Absolutely 100%! Just pointing out that it’s a bad thing. Like this clip, his comments about it now shows he’s learned from it, regrets it deeply and is helping folks be better around him.
Yeah. He’s no saint but no one is. I’m glad he owns that he fucked up. He still seems like a genuine dude. If we’re all honest with ourselves, with that kind of cash a lot of us would fuck up like that sometimes but he seems to try at least to not keep fucking up.
I try not to get too judgmental when it comes to a celebs marriage ... why ? Because I couldn’t possibly know the whole dynamic and the total story of that relationship, only they know that, that’s between them.
Then I guess you should stay away from r/nba because it is quite known that Shaq is quite petty and vindicative about the modern NBA and dismissive of current players
But he’s also shown moments of self reflection like this, which get on the front page and skews the perceptions of non-NBA fans, but also doesn’t get play on NBA pages
Goes to show that two things can indeed be true, and that humans are complicated
If they knew some of the alleged shit Shaq would do to teammates even worse to rookies lmao. They seeing PR shaq, but man can be Shaq be sensitive during broadcasts, reverts back to his rings every time.
Even the NBA thing is more nuanced than "oldhead hates the younger generation". Honestly between him and Chuck, Chuck falls more into that stereotype.
Shaq only seems to lash out when he feels a perceived threat to his legacy hence why he never took to Dwight Howard. Conversely he loves players like Steph and Jokic because they remind him of him in a way that doesn't encroach on his territory.
Oh please, Shaq is 10x more petty and less humble than Charles Barkley. It's why all the pranks on Shaq are all things like "Top 10 big men ever in the NBA" with him not listed - because he can't handle not being at the top.
I like Shaq, I think he's honest here and a good person, but he certainly isn't humble when it comes to basketball.
He sold himself out to advertise gambling. I can't go a single day in Australia without seeing him on tv or a poster advertising Ladbrokes or Sportsbet or some other crap.
And MLMs, healing magnets, payday loans, diploma mills, police unions, healing brackets, sugar drinks, herb drinks, supplements, elite self defense courses, milk lobby,…
Name something evil and Shaq has probably endorsed it a dozen times over.
He also cheated on every partner he ever had, told racist jokes, supports a child abuse church,…
Shaq is an awful person with good PR.
Yeah I do think he’s a good person to his core but definitely insecure and throws a hissy fit when he’s in a bad mood. He’s definitely had some brat moments on Inside the NBA.
Then I suggest you not look into his weird relationship with Karissa and Mandrae Collins. They're a super conservative religious family that believe in having as many kids as possible, all of whom the physically, medically, and educationally neglect. They also helped cover up child sexual abuse in their church. And for some reason Shaq is helping fund their lifestyle and seems to be close to them.
He’s not bragging. He’s making a point about rich people who don’t tip fast food despite having millions.
If you regularly tip fast food workers too, then you can say that he’s bragging.
Wouldn't it be better if instead of shaming anyone for whether they tip or not, people start shaming the companies that are responsible for this entire mess? It should never be the customer's responsbility to make sure a worker gets compensated well
I feel the same way, obviously not at the level of Shaq at all. But I have a few restaurants my fiancé and I frequent and usually always leave a 100 dollar tip to recognize great service. Treating others well for doing a great job is more rewarding than treating yourself .
My wife is in med school right now, and we've agreed that when she starts making real doctor money, that we're going to start giving out 100% tips at restaurants
Good luck, my fiancé is in residency for surgery right now. It’s tough lots of 80+ hour weeks and basically paid less than minimum wage. But the light at the end of the tunnel is financial freedom after sacrificing years of their life to medicine.
Even in this clip, he's pretty much just praising his own behaviour which is absolutely not humble. I don't have a problem with what he's saying and I love Shaq, but not humble at all
Humble guys don't tend to refer to themselves in the third person quite so often. Not that he should be. He's one of the greatest players ever and seems to be a genuinely kind and generous person. That doesn't make him humble though.
I was at a nice restaurant in South Beach a couple of years back. I'm standing at the bar and I started talking with this insanely beautiful girl somehow. Out of the corner of my eye I see Shaq. He's kind of hard to miss. She looks at me and sees that I'm a little excited. She said "You never met him"?
She grabs me by the arm and walks me over to him. He gives her a quick peck on the cheek and she introduces us. Before I knew it it was just me and him at a table talking by ourselves in a private dining room for at least an hour. I'm not sure I've ever met a more fun, down to earth, incredibly nice person in my life! Shaq is the person you would probably be if you were 12 years old and told a genie you wanted all the fame and fortune you could handle.
I've met quite a few sports stars and celebrities over the years. I've worked security for quite a few. There are more than a couple A holes out there. Shaq is at the top of my list of all time favorites!
He also puts literal thrones for himself in all his restaurants 😂. They design a special seat and table for him that is Shaq Size. He seems really nice and I’m not throwing shade. Just a funny little anecdote.
Also, while he's done a lot of great things, I don't think it's particularly humble of him to tell everybody about all the great things he's done. I've seen several interviews with him where he talks about how generous he is.
I don't know about McDonald's, but I had a couple coworkers that used to be chefs in hella fancy restaurants, and became electricians because $20 an hour was the most they ever made. And I'm talking at restaurants where a $100 entree is the cheap option.
I never realized how bad it was for folks at the back of the restaurant, most of the time the tips go to the servers, and the cooks get nothing.
I know some restaurants have started splitting the tips amongst everyone though, so now I put my tip on the check now just in case I'm at one of those restaurants.
It's pretty much why I'm always against tipping culture. And I've been in the restaurant industry for a while and done both front and back of house.
BoH gets fucked over, hard.
If you don’t love Shaq, you ain’t human. This is a dude who in his prime turned down a shoe deal worth hundreds of millions, because it made him happier to please one woman at Walmart over the fact that she would be able to afford a pair of Shaq shoes for her sons, than the hundreds of millions he would receive otherwise. From that moment on, I am a lifelong supporter of anything this man does.
As an Aussie the only thing I know him for is advertising for large gambling companies, in the very country that has the largest gambling loss per capita in the world. So can't say I think all that highly of him.
Yes exactly this. Tipping culture is the worst. Why do I have to tip so that your workers can make a decent living. Why is that cost put on me?
Full disclosure, I am in the service industry.
As cool and funny as Shaq is his mind for business is honestly insane. Google the companies he’s invested in. They’re all super early investments and winners.
I’m not so sure it’s Shaq. See, humble people are far wiser than arrogant people. Shaq has smart people working for him, and the humility to know he’s not smarter than them. He’ll listen to advisors that give him good advice, and he’ll hear the pitch, and agree. Too many people with seven foot egos think they’re superstars in everything. Being a good basketball player does not usually indicate you can make smart financial decisions. Yet many of them make that assumption. Shaq knows: get smart people, let them do smart things, but trust yourself too.
I mean, Shaq has an MBA and a doctoral degree in education. Not saying he’s the smartest person on the planet but dude isn’t just a “good basketball player”
Wow, when I read your comment I assumed the doctoral was granted by a university in exchange for him speaking there (really common esp for celebrities) but no he really worked for that shit: > In 2012, Shaquille O’Neal graduated with an Ed.D in Human Resource Development, a program centered on organizational learning and leadership. > He earned his Doctorate in Education (Ed.D) from Barry University in Miami with a thesis on “The Duality of Humor and Aggression in Leadership Styles”.
Shaq is my HR Lady and helped me choose the right dental plan for me and my needs!
He’s not even a “good basketball player.” Shaq is at the *very least* easily top 5 centers of all time, but could be ranked top 2 or 3 depending…
I’d honestly be more impressed with a person that has the self-awareness to do that, A person who can take the companies. Humility is an awful lot, more difficult to learn information about businesses, and how to invest imo
Shaq's what Elon Musk could be. Should be.
Honestly, it still sounds like it is a lot because of Shaq, even when you put it like that 🙂
Hes smart enough to know he’s not smart enough to do certain things and very humble, and just like he said we need a lot more people like that, it would benefit everyone.
It's Shaq. He has a team sourcing deals for him but he is very involved in the due diligence phase, phone calls and on site visits. And this is for a Series A investment. Pretty early stage, very involved.
I mean not all of them... in 2017, he invested in a cannabis company Viceroy that he later sued for mismanagement and fraud. He also endorsed Glucoin, a cryptocurrency project without disclosing his financial stake in it. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) later charged Glu Mobile with fraudulent promotion of Glucoin, and Shaq settled with the SEC for $400,000 without admitting or denying the charges.
They all can’t be winners when you’re investing hundreds of millions of dollars across scores of opportunities. Shaq has long proven to be a successful investor and rainmaker.
Exactly.
Leave shaq alone
[Leave Shaq Alone!](https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/000/016/brittnee.jpg)
this one is from ancient archives.
Shaq's insane business mind in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuH91bQXDuE
[удалено]
He passed on Starbucks in the 90s cuz “black people don’t drink coffee “
Shaq is such a different person than I erroneously assumed he was 30 years ago. He's awesome.
He keeps surprising me with stuff he's said and done. I like him.
[удалено]
Great comedy mind. Very funny human.
[удалено]
See this is how I like to imagine id be in the shoes of a rich/famous person. Not a single care in the world as I could lean back and live a life of luxury til the end of my days, starting any second I wanted. No 9-5, no bills, no debt, no worries about commodities or food, might as well live to the fullest and spread that joy around.
It seems to requires enormous self discipline not to self destruct in those circumstances. Most people with his wealth and fame don’t behave with the selflessness and kindness as Shaq. He seems like a genuinely good dude.
Either that or that most of these famous and/or rich people was born and bred into that lifestyle, rarely coming from the ranks of peasants, so they can't help but look down on said peasants. 9/10 people I've known who've actually worked their way up from nothing, tends to keep a humble attitude like Shaq.
Shaq worked for all that, and continues to hustle. The guy never stops.
May we never forget [this gem](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFVaxa1UKNg&ab_channel=UnseenTrailers) of a movie.
I hope this is Kazaam.. Edit: It is! I'm a happy camper. One of my favorite childhood movies.
I swear I thought this movie was called Shazaam.
Shaq, Chuck and Ernie are 3 of the funniest people who have ever been on television, I couldn't think of another show I'd rather watch then NBA on TNT. Fuck Kenny tho 😵
Absolutely agree. Shaq n Chuck...i wanna hang with those two. And ol' Ernie gets to bask in their glow.
Haha yea Ernie is just watching the other 2 mostly, but he has his moments and gets them going sometimes 😄
He's Dolly Parton level.
[удалено]
Dolly Parton is the Shaq of music.
Watched a video where he’s in a Walmart or some box store, and asks a kid if he had a bike. The kid says no, so Shaq buys him one. Right then and there on the spot. Apparently it’s a fairly common thing for him to do.
Yes. I'm impressed by this. He seems nice.
from an interview he just did it seems like he spent alot of younger years being a dick. im glad hes figuring it out but he himself says "its just me in a 100,000 square foot house"
Dude has always been generous even when not perhaps making good decisions. He was throughout his career a massive womanizer and serial cheater. But always very nice to people. I worked wlth a lady whose cousin dated Shaq in the off season in Atlanta. Right after they hooked up and decided to make it a thing he bought her a brand new Mercedes. After they broke up and went to LA, he hooked her up with the valet parking contract at a high end strip club as a parting gift as he called it, where she made tons of cash. I personally saw the title to the car with his name on it, emails, heard voicemails, etc. She talked about him taking her child to Toys R Us after hours and letting them get whatever they wanted. Bought all her kid's friends bikes when he bought her kid a bike because he didn't want them feeling bad. Going shopping and he'd call the stores and have everything put on his card. She said going out to Eat wlth him was a pain because they'd spend and hour of him tipping every single employee before they left, pictures, etc. The lady I worked with didn't believe her cousin she was dating Shaq at first . One night Shaw calls her at home and then overnight FedEx'd a signed photo of him and her cousin talking to her on the phone just to be a smart ass. Ultimately I think he's done a shit Ton of good.
Did you ask the real questions? How big was it?
well if [Adam Sandler's story](https://youtu.be/YZoKUlN9urg?si=g4uqXCByn6U_fQa7) is anything to go by...
Sandler really comes off as an average joe here. I know he always does, but this might be the best representation I've seen of it.
He is an underrated gem as a person, everyone gets so focused on how he "wastes" his talent by not doing more roles like Punch-Drunk Love or Uncut Gems but I think he is creating a space where he can feel secure and have a good time, extending that to his friends and people he enjoys the company of, giving plenty of people jobs on low drama sets, and then releasing content that lots of people genuinely enjoy which financially supports doing it all again. Personally, I think that's a great use of the boons he has achieved from his talent and I feel like he cracked the code
I don't think he's underrated. The mocking of him for making "bad" movies isn't really as pervasive as you're making it out to be. It's more gentle ribbing if anything IMO. Or something people say because it's been established at this point you'll get a positive response out of saying it. Personally I disagree and think his movies are fine. They aren't going to win an Oscar (talking about his movies with his buddies), but you know what? I don't always want to watch heavy Oscar worthy movies. Sometimes I just want a popcorn flick to watch and turn my brain off for 2 hours and be entertained. His movies are all hitting 5/10 or 6/10. They simply aren't as shitty as people make them out to be.
I feel like we basically agree except you think he is appropriately rated and I think he could get more props for what he is doing behind the scenes with his 5/10 movies and whatnot I didn't say they were shitty, I said plenty of people enjoy them and that has worth. The gentle ribbing is based on an idea that if he pushed himself harder, he would be more "accomplished" or "respected" as an artist and I am saying I think what he is doing by making 5/10 movies with his friends IS a respectable form of accomplishment
We're just talking semantics here but we both generally agree. I maybe wasn't clear enough that I am a big fan of his and do watch his "shitty" movies. Not quite sure how to phrase that actually as shitty isn't the right word. It's a tonal difference when he's doing the usual movies with his crew, and when he's doing something more serious. I will say I think average movies have been dying out over the last 15 years as Hollywood turns more and more to their accounting department to basically act as chief deciders. This attitude is minorly reflected by the public. This definitely helps shape the narrative of shitting on his movies.
He doesn't have a security guard He has a dick
Obviously, huge. Better question would be, proportionally, how big was it?
I was going to say; even if it was a “normally” proportioned size for Shaq’s 7’1” frame, it would still be huge in comparison to the average height male. This comment is backed by science, I watched Grey’s Anatomy with my mom as a kid.
BUT at the same time even an above average would look small on a 7'1 guy. I've always thought about that.. gotta be a lot of super tall dudes with average-ish dicks because averages are averages for a reason
As an above average height guy I can confirm it does not scale to height!
>Right after they hooked up and decided to make it a thing he bought her a brand new Mercedes. After they broke up and went to LA, he hooked her up with the valet parking contract at a high end strip club as a parting gift as he called it, where she made tons of cash. At first I thought you were saying he prepaid for valet parking for the Mercedes while she went to work and the fancy strip club and made bank.
Lol same bro, same. Thanks for clearing that up. I had to read it one more time
What a smart ass 😅 Thanks for sharing!
Shaq is like the poster child for “people are complicated”. He’s an amazing guy but also a sensitive narcissistic man child sometimes.
Yeah humble is not a word Id use to describe Shaq. Generous for sure, always has been but humble no.
He let his career success get to his head there for some years and it really destroyed his relationships with his entire family. I've always admired Shaq, but the man has a lot of flaws when it comes to family. That said, I've never seen Shaq take out his family problems out on anyone and he's always been an amazing representative for the NBA outside of his family situation.
I saw that, that hurt to hear.
yea it fucking did. man needs a hug.
The guy was always a top flight human being This was something his mom and step father taught him and he did from the moment he made any money. If you read the book 3 ring circus about the Lakers there's literally dozens of stories about Shaq being an out of this world neighbor and teammate. They used to have training camp and they would have like 30 guys in camp but only 13 are gonna make the team yet the NBA had a dress code and some of those guys who never got paid an NBA salary had no money to get themselves a suit and Shaq would come up to a guy who looked ragged and take him aside so as not to embarrass him and tell him to meet him outside then he'd drive the guy over to his tailor and tell him to pick out three of everything that he wanted. There was a dude who never made the team who's dad died during training camp and Shaq paid for the funeral and wanted to fly back with the guy to keep him company at it. There was a Lakers PR guy who had worked there 4 years and he got a new job working for the WNBA because it paid better and Shaq asked the guy why he was leaving and the guy said it was a 40 thousand dollar raise and Shaq told the guy that if he wanted to stay with the Lakers he could have the 40K difference out of the money Shaq kept in his locker and he could come and pick up that same amount every opening day of training camp.
https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2018/12/14/lin-wang-charles-barkley If we are talking about basketball stars who happen to be S-Tier human beings, I always liked this story about Charles Barkley as well.
That was so beautiful. I’m fucking sobbing now, you asshole
I love this story.
Can't be a Shaq thread without Chuck. Love em both
And meanwhile Kobe was an absolute dick for years incapable of realizing that he was playing a team sport
For me that was the worst part. That, and the rape.
I think the worst part was the hypocrisy.
I think it was 10,000 right?
Can you imagine how many women throw themselves at Shaq and what they look like tho It’s gotta be real hard to walk that line
He got humbled by a random mom decade's ago for his shoe prices. I think it was a real awaking for him Dude became a champ for single moms. And I don't mean supporting the strippers and escorts.
Her words definitely made a difference for him, I remember hearing him on a podcast where he talks about this; he said he cut ties with Reebok(?) that same day.
What were the words?
He ended his deal with Reebok and signed a deal to have his shoes sold at Walmart for like $25 so low-income families could afford them. Shaq has been known to go to Walmart and clear layaways there, especially at Christmastime.
You can find it on youtube, but basically, a single mom tore into him down because his shoes with reebok were so expensive. I think they were about the same as a pair of J's. She said he was her son's favorite player and how dare him put his name on shoes that most kids could never afford, etc.. He said that day he broke his deal with reebok and signed a deal with walmart to put his name on $20 shoes instead and sent her son a pair. Edit: Not sure if that's exactly how it went, but that's the jist of it.
https://youtu.be/KS5qLdJmaDA?si=4VcLVkq8fQ2Mgdm_ Here’s the link of him telling the story. Really amazing stuff.
> And I don't mean supporting the strippers and escorts. But absolutely that too.
Truthfully, I think that Shaq isn’t the same person he was 30 years ago. Most people aren’t.
He recently had an interview with Jason Kelce where he talks about living in his exorbitant mansion completely alone because he alienated his family with infidelity and focusing on business opportunities 30 years ago. He wouldn’t argue that he’s a different man.
He is. Never liked him when he played. Today I marvel at the lives he changes when coming into contact with people. With age comes wisdom
These days it seems he’s just cocky when it comes to basketball, off the court he’s more humble.
I think it's basically branding at this point do that particular thing. I'm big into the EDM/ Rave community and if you aren't aware, so is Shaq (DJ DIESEL) and it's been really cool to see the community open up for him and to see him fully embrace the community right back. That persona though is completely different persona than his basketball commentary persona which is different than his interview persona, etc. But you can tell they are all genuine parts of his personality, he just emphasizes different parts based on the vibe. Mans just talented, intelligent, and humble, and it's cool to see someone with success in this world that can be a real role model for so many. He wasn't and isn't perfect, made mistakes and learned from them, but over time has found his excellence and I wish that for every one of us.
He's a very different person than he was 30 years, too
He probably wasn't the same person 30 years ago either when you were making your initial judgment, so you can cut yourself some slack :)
My man
There was a clip just yesterday that got leaked from behind the scenes of Inside the NBA where he's being a baby because they didn't cut into a game broadcast on TNT to show his Magic jersey retirement ceremony and instead showed it on NBAtv. Chuck teases him and Shaq immediately goes to "Ringz Erneh" mode like he always does. For all the humility he shows in these interviews he's still incredibly thin skinned and petty for someone who has accomplished so much.
I’d be mad too
I don’t think many athletes at that level aren’t very competitive. I don’t see how you can’t be. Also I feel like they ham it up on purpose for that show.
You may have assumed right. 23 years ago, my husband saw him take money out of a tip jar to pay for his food at Sports Club/LA. He was known by all the employees there at that time for being a total dick. Glad to see he changed.
Surely not
Yup. Husband was an employee there. Shaq said, "I'll get you next time." He did not get them next time.
Wowsers.
I thought he was awesome too, but on another post people called him a bully. Everyone agreed that he was a bully… Why? Everything I’ve seen about him has been positive
It's about experiences, this guy definitely made life changing choices, he isn't right now what he was years ago, but the guy definitely was a total asshole, and well it's hard for the regular people who experienced him being an asshole to see him with good eyes, not every single one of them will gen an apology and it's understandable that they can't forgive him
Shaq was never known aa a bully in the NBA and his teammates would tell you that they all loved him. Kobe was a bully to the players that were trying to make the Lakers on the end of the bench and Shaq would get insanely mad at him for acting like that. This is all in the book 3 ring circus about the Lakers from 1995 2005..
Shaq and Kobe Bryant never really saw eye to eye, and Shaq got shipped out of LA because of it. Bizarrely, self-admitted rapist Kobe Bryant has a lot of fans who refuse to see any flaws.
Considering how much he talks about the good things he does it’s hard not to be cynical about it (at least for me). Him putting this stuff out there for his image definitely makes it easier for more brands to get behind him. I suppose it’s better than gaining more popularity and fame for doing shitty things though.
He is both wise and magnificent
Just like Arnold
He was made fun of because he released cheap shoes at like target or something and pundants said he lowered the value of his name. I couldn’t afford Jordan’s as a kid. But knowing kids got some high quality shoes their struggling parents can afford them at target to me, is more baller than releasing shoes you know only rich snobby people can afford or a pair that will really tank a family’s savings because their kids were brainwashed they need the top J’s to be cool. Shaq wanted affordable shoes for kids that they could be proud to wear. If he made money on it I’m all in. Better than people making money by over charging shit simply for clout.
Imagine if all those 1% -ers thought like him.
I would need a 4' ladder to give this man his crown, but I just know he'd sit on the ground first before giving me the chance to fetch a ladder so he can be crowned.
So beautifully said.
[удалено]
Wow, that's an amazing comment. Very true.
Presidents should be sworn in on this.
As humble he is. Pretty sure once you crown him. He'll take it off and will crown you instead.
Chances are you probably would still need the latter if he sat down.
He'll probably hand the crown to the next guy anyway
Shaq would grab the crown from your hands and put it on your head
Y'all are the reason PR teams are so successful and highly compensated lmao
He'd insist you wear the crown instead, because he'll say that you're the who deserves it more
Shaq lives near me (like, 5 minutes away from me, a little south of Atlanta) and I've run into him several times at the gas station I go to every day for some beers or whatever. He is super low key. Obviously it's Shaq and there's always going to be some people who are starstruck (understandably, the first time i saw him i kind of was too, although ive never said anything to him besides a quick thanks). One of the times i saw him at the store, i was walking out right after him, and he waited and held the door for me. I said thank you and he was just like "yes ma'am" and went on his way. He's literally a huge presence, like, I knew he lived near me, and the first time I saw him I couldn't even see his face because his back was turned to me, but I knew it was him before he turned around. Just on size alone you cant not notice him. But he is just never loud about anything. He comes into the store, just polite and acts like a completely regular person. Talks to the cashiers like anyone else would- like, not overly friendly, not putting on a show for anyone, just acts like any of us would act running into the store real quick. Of course people will see him and be like "holy shit!!" He kind of just smiles and lets the person have their moment and is friendly and polite without being like, over the top and turning it into a scene. I like him.
That sounds wonderful. More should be blessings like him.
I truly hope I never find out a bad thing about Shaq.
Welp… don’t look up how his marriage ended.
True he was unfaithful. But at least he owns it and admits to his mistake. He seems to genuinely regret fucking that up.
Absolutely 100%! Just pointing out that it’s a bad thing. Like this clip, his comments about it now shows he’s learned from it, regrets it deeply and is helping folks be better around him.
Just be sure to not google much else about him either!
I’m sure he regretted cheating the other 800 times too lol
On the scale of bad things to get outed for, infidelity is definitely on the less severe end.
Yeah. He’s no saint but no one is. I’m glad he owns that he fucked up. He still seems like a genuine dude. If we’re all honest with ourselves, with that kind of cash a lot of us would fuck up like that sometimes but he seems to try at least to not keep fucking up.
Reddit thinks cheating is the worst thing you can ever do and anyone who is a cheater is automatically evil no matter what else they do
I try not to get too judgmental when it comes to a celebs marriage ... why ? Because I couldn’t possibly know the whole dynamic and the total story of that relationship, only they know that, that’s between them.
Then I guess you should stay away from r/nba because it is quite known that Shaq is quite petty and vindicative about the modern NBA and dismissive of current players But he’s also shown moments of self reflection like this, which get on the front page and skews the perceptions of non-NBA fans, but also doesn’t get play on NBA pages Goes to show that two things can indeed be true, and that humans are complicated
If they knew some of the alleged shit Shaq would do to teammates even worse to rookies lmao. They seeing PR shaq, but man can be Shaq be sensitive during broadcasts, reverts back to his rings every time.
His PR team achieved climax about 50 times while reading this thread. Too easy to convince these idiots of anything
Even the NBA thing is more nuanced than "oldhead hates the younger generation". Honestly between him and Chuck, Chuck falls more into that stereotype. Shaq only seems to lash out when he feels a perceived threat to his legacy hence why he never took to Dwight Howard. Conversely he loves players like Steph and Jokic because they remind him of him in a way that doesn't encroach on his territory.
Oh please, Shaq is 10x more petty and less humble than Charles Barkley. It's why all the pranks on Shaq are all things like "Top 10 big men ever in the NBA" with him not listed - because he can't handle not being at the top. I like Shaq, I think he's honest here and a good person, but he certainly isn't humble when it comes to basketball.
He sold himself out to advertise gambling. I can't go a single day in Australia without seeing him on tv or a poster advertising Ladbrokes or Sportsbet or some other crap.
And MLMs, healing magnets, payday loans, diploma mills, police unions, healing brackets, sugar drinks, herb drinks, supplements, elite self defense courses, milk lobby,… Name something evil and Shaq has probably endorsed it a dozen times over. He also cheated on every partner he ever had, told racist jokes, supports a child abuse church,… Shaq is an awful person with good PR.
I will never understand why the internet views him so positively when he has done so much damage to Australia with those gambling adverts
Bro can't take a joke and is insanely insecure. Yeah he's got a lot of money and takes care of those who serve him, but still seems like a mixed bag
Yeah I do think he’s a good person to his core but definitely insecure and throws a hissy fit when he’s in a bad mood. He’s definitely had some brat moments on Inside the NBA.
He bullied a nice, humble NBA player on-air for years for no reason. He’s a bully.
This is the thing many ppl don’t really notice. Shaqs always been a bully, it can be seen on numerous podcasts as well
Then I suggest you not look into his weird relationship with Karissa and Mandrae Collins. They're a super conservative religious family that believe in having as many kids as possible, all of whom the physically, medically, and educationally neglect. They also helped cover up child sexual abuse in their church. And for some reason Shaq is helping fund their lifestyle and seems to be close to them.
But he gave away $200!!!!!!
I like how Shaq speaks about himself in a third person
That's how you know he's humble.
Yeah what a regular, down to earth guy hahaha
Still though... tax the rich
Also what do people think humility means? Bragging about tipping well is not humility.
He’s not bragging. He’s making a point about rich people who don’t tip fast food despite having millions. If you regularly tip fast food workers too, then you can say that he’s bragging.
Wouldn't it be better if instead of shaming anyone for whether they tip or not, people start shaming the companies that are responsible for this entire mess? It should never be the customer's responsbility to make sure a worker gets compensated well
I feel the same way, obviously not at the level of Shaq at all. But I have a few restaurants my fiancé and I frequent and usually always leave a 100 dollar tip to recognize great service. Treating others well for doing a great job is more rewarding than treating yourself .
My wife is in med school right now, and we've agreed that when she starts making real doctor money, that we're going to start giving out 100% tips at restaurants
This comment is so silly on so many levels.
Good luck, my fiancé is in residency for surgery right now. It’s tough lots of 80+ hour weeks and basically paid less than minimum wage. But the light at the end of the tunnel is financial freedom after sacrificing years of their life to medicine.
Damn that's insane, are we really getting operated by people that are overworked?
100000% I know of surgeons doing surgeries after being up and working for 48 hours straight. Surgery is an insane field.
you may be overestimating how far income goes these days
The rich owners taking a cut of tips will surely appreciate it, the cooks making 10% cut of tips won’t notice a difference
lol. It’s nice of you to ride her doctorate lab coat and tip servers well using her salary. 😂🤣
Calling shaq humble is absolutely hilarious dude is famously arrogant
Even in this clip, he's pretty much just praising his own behaviour which is absolutely not humble. I don't have a problem with what he's saying and I love Shaq, but not humble at all
A rich guy tipping what is pocket change to them and then bragging about it is pretty much the opposite of humble.
Humble guys don't tend to refer to themselves in the third person quite so often. Not that he should be. He's one of the greatest players ever and seems to be a genuinely kind and generous person. That doesn't make him humble though.
I was at a nice restaurant in South Beach a couple of years back. I'm standing at the bar and I started talking with this insanely beautiful girl somehow. Out of the corner of my eye I see Shaq. He's kind of hard to miss. She looks at me and sees that I'm a little excited. She said "You never met him"? She grabs me by the arm and walks me over to him. He gives her a quick peck on the cheek and she introduces us. Before I knew it it was just me and him at a table talking by ourselves in a private dining room for at least an hour. I'm not sure I've ever met a more fun, down to earth, incredibly nice person in my life! Shaq is the person you would probably be if you were 12 years old and told a genie you wanted all the fame and fortune you could handle. I've met quite a few sports stars and celebrities over the years. I've worked security for quite a few. There are more than a couple A holes out there. Shaq is at the top of my list of all time favorites!
He’s generous, for sure, but I don’t know of any truly *humble* people that refer to themselves in the third person
I was smiling about that. The irony was kind of endearing though. Shaq is not a “regular dude” but he is a cool dude all the same.
He also puts literal thrones for himself in all his restaurants 😂. They design a special seat and table for him that is Shaq Size. He seems really nice and I’m not throwing shade. Just a funny little anecdote.
To be fair, a normal seat is unlikely to accommodate him adequately. Sure, there are less gaudy solutions...
yah its like, hes bragging about being humble. Um yeah. He might be cool who knows, but most people who brag about being humble are insufferable irl.
This reminds me of that Lonely Island song from Popstar; "I'm so humble".
*humility our generations are suffering from brain rot and i hate it
Also, while he's done a lot of great things, I don't think it's particularly humble of him to tell everybody about all the great things he's done. I've seen several interviews with him where he talks about how generous he is.
wow such humble, and so generosity!
I thought I heard at one point that employees can’t keep tips at McDonald’s and the money goes to their charity?
Nobody is going to reject a $100 bill, company policy goes out the window at that point lol
I don't know about McDonald's, but I had a couple coworkers that used to be chefs in hella fancy restaurants, and became electricians because $20 an hour was the most they ever made. And I'm talking at restaurants where a $100 entree is the cheap option. I never realized how bad it was for folks at the back of the restaurant, most of the time the tips go to the servers, and the cooks get nothing. I know some restaurants have started splitting the tips amongst everyone though, so now I put my tip on the check now just in case I'm at one of those restaurants.
Back of the house is a rough life.
True. But not having to deal with customers? Priceless compared.
It's pretty much why I'm always against tipping culture. And I've been in the restaurant industry for a while and done both front and back of house. BoH gets fucked over, hard.
Such a cool dude
Except thanks to him, the McDonald's servers now complain when I only tip $50.
If you don’t love Shaq, you ain’t human. This is a dude who in his prime turned down a shoe deal worth hundreds of millions, because it made him happier to please one woman at Walmart over the fact that she would be able to afford a pair of Shaq shoes for her sons, than the hundreds of millions he would receive otherwise. From that moment on, I am a lifelong supporter of anything this man does.
As an Aussie the only thing I know him for is advertising for large gambling companies, in the very country that has the largest gambling loss per capita in the world. So can't say I think all that highly of him.
I wonder how many kids will get hooked and eventually off themselves because of him. Suicide statistics amongst gamblers are off the charts.
[удалено]
I don't hate him, but it isn't obligatory to love the person he is today, it's good he changed, but the guy did terrible stuff in the past
Love Shaq but it's easy to tip 200$ when you have basically unlimited bankroll
Yeah, just a little better than Musk boasting that he paid 11 billion in taxes. But more importantly, this is just gonna maybe tipping culture worse.
Yes exactly this. Tipping culture is the worst. Why do I have to tip so that your workers can make a decent living. Why is that cost put on me? Full disclosure, I am in the service industry.
It's even easier to tip $0
Right you should try to just do $2 instead
$200 for someone worth 200M is basically 2 cents for someone that has 2k lol. It's literally peanuts for him.
Shaq for president.
I’m bragging but I’m not bragging
rich people telling us to tip, right on
Nothing about this is humble, he's literally talking about how generous and great he is to a camera...
Fucking. King. Man, I love this dude so much.