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4 Years After Calling Himself ‘50 Cent of the NBA’, Shaquille O’Neal Teams Up With Rapper To Purchase $2.7 Billion Network

Raahib Singh
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3 Years After Calling Himself ‘50 Cent of the NBA’, Shaquille O’Neal Teams Up With Rapper To Purchase $2.7 Billion Network

Shaquille O’Neal is one of the smartest men around the NBA. While building an NBA legacy, he also made a business empire for himself and his family to rely upon. He earned $292 Million from his NBA contracts and nearly $200 Million as endorsements while he was playing. Thanks to his success in the NBA, O’Neal is associated with the biggest celebrities. One of them is 50 Cent, who’s getting together with Shaq to purchase BET.

Shaq’s made his $400 Million net worth through his work on and off the basketball court. His NBA Contracts, Endorsements, business investments, and other deals contributed to getting the number to where it is today.

One of the latest investments for the big man is purchasing BET Media Group. However, he won’t be alone in the deal. Rapper 50 Cent and Kenya Barris are joining the 7ft 1″ superstar on the deal.

Shaquille O’Neal once called himself the 50 Cent of the NBA

Shaquille O’Neal is not only a basketball legend, but also a platinum-selling rapper. One of his albums went Platinum, and another went Gold. It comes as no surprise that he also knows 50 Cent. The two had been contact with each other for a long time, but hadn’t met before Access Hollywood arranged it in 2019.

While hosting 50 Cent for an interview, they surprised him by bringing down Shaquille O’Neal to the set. After greeting 50 and the others, Shaq talked about how he had never met 50 before but he was a big fan.

“I didn’t mean to crash, but she[host] said that 50 Cent is here. We’ve never met before, but we have talked about business. I’m a big fan of yours and am so proud of you! You’re doing a great job brother.”

Hearing this, 50 Cent joked that he was trying to stay cool. O’Neal continued and said,

“Every now and then, I have NBA beefs with other guys, and I always tell them, ‘Don’t mess with me, I’m the 50 Cent of the NBA! I’m telling you right now, you mess with me, I’m coming out with a mixtape.’

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It seems like the two have grown their relationship quite a bit since they met 4 years ago. After all, they’re going hand-in-hand while trying to buy a $2.7 Billion worth network.

Shaq, 50 Cent, and Kenya Barris are purchasing BET from Paramount

Paramount owns BET Media Group, which includes BET(Black Entertainment Televison) and VH1. There are a lot of suitors looking to get their hands on the $2.7 Billion worth network. According to Forbes, Tyler Perry, Diddy, and Byron Allen are already in the running to get a majority stake.

According to TMZ, three new players have joined the chase. Shaquille O’Neal, 50 Cent, and Kenya Barris, backed by CVC Investment, are making a bid for BET as well. While it’s not a done deal, sources claim that they’re deep into it, and are very serious about the same.

About the author

Raahib Singh

Raahib Singh

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Raahib Singh is an NBA Journalist and Content Strategist at The SportsRush. A Computer Science Engineer by qualification, Raahib's passion for sports drew him towards TSR. He started playing basketball at 14 and has been following the NBA since 2013. His entry into the basketball world perfectly coincided with Stephen Curry putting the league on notice. Having followed the league for a long time, he decided to use his knowledge to become a sportswriter with The SportsRush in 2020. Raahib loves to put up some shots in his spare time, watch Cricket, Formula 1, and/or read a nice thriller.

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