NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, celebrated for his fun-loving persona and sheer dominance on the court, is the father who has chosen a very different parenting style from the one that raised him. Unlike his much-documented strict upbringing, the former Orlando Magic chose a more relaxed method of raising his children.
Advertisement
O’Neal has six children, four of whom are with his ex-wife Shaunie O’Neal: sons Shareef and Shaqir and daughters Amirah and Me’arah. He also has a daughter, Taahirah, from a previous relationship and a stepson, Myles, from Shaunie’s prior relationship.
In a candid segment during an episode of his The Big Podcast, Shaq stated that he takes a more laid-back approach with his offspring, announcing that “A lot of stuff that they did, I would get in trouble for; it would just be funny to me.”
O’Neal then recounted an incident involving his son getting into a fight at school. While Shaunie advocated for punishment, O’Neal took a different route. “I remember one time, one of my kids came home, and my ex-wife was like, ‘He got suspended for fighting.’ So, I was like, ‘Okay, and?’ I went to the school the next day,” he recalled.
Knowing that he wasn’t going to discipline his son outright, Shaq’s playful side emerged, and he proceeded to pretend to admonish his child. Shaq continued, “I said, ‘Just go along with it. “Hey, man, next time you fight at school, I’m going to come down there. After we got in the car, I was like “Where do you want to go? You want to go to Hooters?”
O’Neal’s approach stems from his belief in open communication rather than strict discipline, some of which he attributes to his upbringing under his stepfather, Army Sergeant Phillip Harrison, stating, “His discipline is not allowed to be used today.”
Although O’Neal adopts a more lenient overall parenting style, he is admittedly much stricter with his sons than with his daughters. In a 2023 interview on the Jennifer Hudson Show, Shaq told the one-time Oscar-winning actress and talk show host, “They call me for money every now and then, I’ll be like I ain’t got it, Daddy broke.“
Later, in conversation with his children, O’Neal admitted to his double standards.
“I want my two other daughters to hear. I want them to be lawyers. I kind of have to bribe them to be lawyers. I had a conversation with the boys and the girls,” he said. “The boys [were] kind of upset [and] they [were] like you, treat the girls different, and I was like, “You damn right I do!”
Despite their past differences, O’Neal and Shaunie have maintained a highly collaborative co-parenting relationship since their divorce in 2011. Prioritizing their children’s well-being and frequently discussing and agreeing on parenting decisions.
