“I’m in My $500,000 Car”: Shaquille O’Neal Once Ridiculed Athletes For Using Social Media Wrong

Shaquille O’Neal is one of the most popular athletes in the world. The combination of his ability, personality, and storied career propelled him to superstardom. Not just as an NBA superstar, but as a world-renowned celebrity as well.

To be precise, Shaq became a phenom thanks to his skill, hard work, and likable nature. A stark contrast to the modern-day athlete, who can do the same with a snap of their finger thanks to the internet.

That’s right, the world wide web has changed the way athletes obtain fame. But, the power of social media is not to be contested, and Big Diesel knows this. However, he feels that some of the younger stars have taken it for granted.

Shaquille O’Neal mocks athletes for the way they handle their social media

Social media is a tool that can cause a lot of damage, but can also do a lot of good. As such, to those who revere it, it is something to be used carefully. This is exactly how Shaquille O’Neal looks at it.

Shaq believes that social media should be used wisely. Specifically, to put out a message, sell things, and to even connect with others.

However, it seems as though every athlete is using it for everything but that nowadays. And, Big Diesel isn’t a big fan of it. In fact, in his book, Shaq Uncut, O’Neal made it clear that athletes nowadays “turn him off” due to their unrelenting social media activity.

“You have to be careful how you use the social network. I get really turned off by people who tweet every detail about their lives, even if they are superstars. “I ate a chicken sandwich. It was soggy.” Who the hell cares? If you handle it properly, the social network is a very valuable tool. You can use it to get your message out, you can use it to sell things, and you can use it to communicate with people. If I have three million followers, I’m not going to jam it down their throats how cool I am, how rich I am, how fabulous I am. You’re not going to see me touting, “I’m in my $500,000 car right now,” or “I’m backstage with Beyoncé right now.” Some of the athletes who are out there tweeting are so self-centered it’s a major turnoff.”

To be honest, it’s hard not to agree with Shaq. After all, given the kind of things that are posted on social media now, anyone would find it annoying.

Shaq recently thanked all his followers for their concern after he was hospitalized

As Shaq mentions in his book, social media is a tool to be used to get messages out and to communicate with people. And, he did just that recently, when he reached out to his followers following a hospital scare. The Big Aristotle, who had gone in for hip surgery thanked his fans for their concern via Twitter, showcasing just how much their support means to him.

O’Neal isn’t exactly the perfect human being, and nor does he claim to be. But, if there is one thing he’s doing right, it’s the way he handles his social media presence.