Shaquille O’Neal has always been a source of inspiration for his children, none more so than his eldest son, Shareef. The 24-year-old has always looked up to his father as an inspiring figure. Shareef revisited one of Shaq’s iconic moments, where Ahmad Rashad taunted him after the legendary center hit a massive dunk.
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The younger O’Neal shared a video of the moment on an Instagram Story. In it, the then-20-year-old Big Diesel was taking on Rashad in a one-on-one matchup that the NFL player asked for. Shaq faced up against Rashad, and the two verbally jousted. This is despite the young star center being destined for the top spot in the 1992 NBA Draft.
Shareef O'Neal looks back at this iconic moment between Rashad Ahmed and his dad pic.twitter.com/8TKU1K0jgq
— What are (W)NBA Celebs Upto? (@NBACelebsUpdate) October 13, 2024
O’Neal broke through the almost non-existent defense and unleashed a dominant backboard-breaking dunk. Most would be stunned by this display, but Rashad quickly taunted the big man, saying, “Is that all you got?” Shaq smiled at the NFL player and sheepishly replied, “Yeah.”
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This gave NBA fans another look at the then-LSU star’s dominant power ahead of the 1992 NBA Draft. Furthermore, it highlighted his position as a top youngster in the basketball scene. It was certainly a dominant display and hinted at the future to come.
Shaq had multiple dominant dunks during his NBA career
Shaq broke more than 10 backboards throughout his time as a basketball player. This includes some big dunks in college and during his time in the NBA. The incident involving Ahmad Rashad was just one of the first displays of the legendary center’s iconic power. He would continue to dominate the paint in the NBA as well.
Shaq broke 2 rims during his time with the Orlando Magic before the NBA stepped in and took action. First, the League introduced backup rims and backboards in case other such incidents repeated themselves. Then, they made the rims and backboards more durable to prevent them from breaking during games.
While the NBA hasn’t seen a shattered backboard since Shaq’s efforts in 1993, we did see a shot clock come off the board after a vicious Dwight Howard dunk against the Cavaliers.
