Right from his LSU days, Shaquille O’Neal was destined for great success and riches. The world of professional basketball quietly awaited his arrival, holding all the money they could possibly offer him. Growing up broke in a military household with too many people, money was certainly an essential factor for O’Neal.
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But his nature as a spendthrift isn’t a secret now and it wasn’t a secret then. Even at his college campus, his shenanigans with pretend car phones and big wads of cash all pointed at a lifestyle of excesses.
So, when O’Neal began making money he knew he had to put some checks in place to keep him from going broke by the end of his career. If he did go broke, it wouldn’t be new or rare. Many NBA players before and after him have faced similar fates.
Having run through his first $1 million check on multiple Mercedes surprisingly fast, he knew he needed advice on how to manage his financials. Fortunately, Shaquille O’Neal realized, while talking to his accountant, there was something he could do to not go broke after his career ended.
Shaquille O’Neal sought his accountant’s help to not go broke after 40
In his book Shaq Uncut, O’Neal wrote about his accountant Lester Knispel in detail. Shaq revealed how, as a budding athlete, he was curious about Lester’s wealth. He asked his accountant how he had managed to do so well in life. That is when Knispel educated O’Neal about the benefits of annuities.
O’Neal was so impressed by Knispel’s secret to wealth, he immediately included it in his own financial planning. And though he knew he would reap the benefits of annuities by the age of 40, Diesel was comfortable knowing the money would still be incoming then.
Shaq: “He was very successful and he had saved a lot of money, so I asked him how he and his family did so well. He told me, “We have annuities.” I asked, “What the hell is that?” He explained to me, “It’s when you pay a life insurance company a single premium, which they will pay back years later in the form of a fixed sum.” That sounded like something I needed. When I started making all the big bucks and I had more money than I could spend, I put big hunks of it into annuities. I bought them for myself, my parents, for my brother, and for my two sisters. What it meant was when I turned forty years old, which back then seemed like light-years into the future, I would receive a nice monthly sum for the rest of my life that would keep me in excellent financial shape. Thanks, Lester.”
O’Neal clearly doesn’t need the annuities anymore
Working with Lester has clearly turned Shaquille O’Neal into a financial genius. The 7ft 1″ former NBA superstar is now one of the most successful NBA players turned businessmen.
He has amassed a fortune of at least $400 million until now. Most of his wealth has come from his NBA salary and various endorsements. But with such an empire now, he certainly doesn’t need all those annuities anymore.
