How Did Shaq’s Sister Pass Away? Deep Dive Into Ayesha Harrison-Jex’s Unfortunate Passing

Los Angeles Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal lost his sister Ayesha Harrison-Jex a few years ago. The sister of the basketball legend passed away on October 24, 2019, due to cancer. The unfortunate and untimely passing of his sister, who looked up to him while growing up, gave Shaq the toughest time of his life which was followed by one more untimely demise.

Ayesha Harrison-Jex was 40 years old when she passed away due to cancer. Ayesha dealt with cancer since her high school days which eventually caught up to her later in life.

Ayesha had often described how Shaquille O’Neal looked after her and helped her as the two were growing up. According to the book Shaq Talks Back, Ayesha once said, “Shaquille taught us how to play basketball. He taught us how to swim. All four of us (siblings) used to just hang together.”

During one of the episodes of Inside the NBA, the co-hosts offered their condolences to Shaquille O’Neal who was not present. Shaq was in Orlando, Florida at the time, spending time with his family amid all this.

Ernie Johnson addressed the tragic news, calling Shaquille O’Neal the biggest kid in the world and how his heart is breaking at the moment. Ernie revealed how Shaq’s world revolved around his brother and two sisters, one of whom was no more. Johnson described how Shaquille O’Neal has been struggling with the passing of his sister. And how that has had a domino effect on the rest of the co-hosts as well, given how close they are to one another. 

Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley too offered their condolences during the show. Barkley also gave a shout-out to Shaq’s mother, Lucille O’Neal who was also a close friend of his mother. Even NBA Commissioner Adam Silver offered his prayers and condolences to Shaquille O’Neal and his family as he appeared on the panel, filling in for the Lakers legend.

Shaquille O’Neal dealt with heartbreaking blows one after another

Shaquille O’Neal lost his sister in October 2019. Within three months, he lost his former teammate and close friend Kobe Bryant in a helicopter crash. The untimely passing of Bryant shocked and stung the entire sports world. But Kobe’s passing had a more everlasting effect on many people apart from his family.

Shaquille O’Neal had once revealed how he had trouble sleeping after he lost both his sister and one of his greatest teammates in a span of four months. 

After suffering such great losses, while on a podcast, Shaquille O’Neal disclosed learning to live in the moment. Shaq’s statement loosely described how life was short and one can never tell what would transpire in the next few moments.

Since then, The Big Aristotle has learned to live every moment to its fullest, giving importance to the people around him and valuing his time left in this world.