Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-wife, Shaunie Henderson, plans to release her memoir, Undefeated: Changing the Rules and Winning on My Own Terms, later this year. The memoir is expected to share Shaunie’s side of the story, including chapters dedicated to Shaquille O’Neal, with whom she was married for nine years and has four kids. In an interview with People magazine, Shaunie Henderson revealed the portrayal of her ex-husband in her memoir.
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Talking about chapters reflecting on her marriage with the basketball superstar, Henderson says she is “not throwing him [Shaquille O’Neal] under the bus or anything like that.” The couple had been dating since the late 1990s and tied the knot in 2002. However, Shaunie also admitted the sketchy part of her marriage with Shaq, which cost them their relationship.
Shaunie wanted to clear the misconception people have regarding her with this memoir. “I always had a fear of sharing too much and of telling my story that involved anybody else,” shared the 49-year-old, referring to reflective chapters on her 4x NBA champion ex-husband.
She added, “I didn’t want to disrespect someone else’s story, even if it was a part of mine, but as I get older and do more things in the entertainment industry, I found that people have a misconception of who I am.”
One of the main reasons behind Shaq and Shaunie’s failed marriage was infidelity, which Diesel himself admitted to in his 2011 book Shaq Uncut. However, while writing about Shaq, Shaunie was careful not to write anything that would be damaging to Shaq’s reputation. “Despite what our story is, no one ever wants to hear what could come across as not the greatest reputation,” said Henderson, who was glad her ex-husband came clear on his actions.
Shaunie further admitted that she was nervous about sharing her own story and journey, of which Shaq was an integral part. However, portraying her story without causing any damage to the reputation of the Lakers legend was something Shaunie was proud of, as she never intended to harm Shaq’s reputation.
Moreover, Shaquille O’Neal is yet to know what is written inside Shaunie’s memoir, which she plans to reveal with her ex-husband soon, before the publication of the book this year in May.
Shaquille O’Neal and Shaunie Henderson maintained luke-warm relations following their split
Shaquille O’Neal and Shaunie Henderson’s split wasn’t the most amicable one, although both claim to be on good terms with each other. This is evident from Shaunie not inviting Shaq to her wedding to Kion Henderson in 2022. In a VH1 special documentary titled Shaunie & Keion’s Destination “I Do,” Shaunie revealed that she did not want to extend an invitation to her ex-husband for her wedding and that Shaq only received a ‘courtesy invite’ for the sake of it.
However, despite such heavy banter, Shaq still holds his ex-wife in the highest regard. The 4x NBA champion claims to still love and respect Shaunie as if she were his wife. Shaq never suffered the heavy blow of divorce alimony as Michael Jordan did, but the big man still pays his ex-wife $50,000 monthly. This adds to him paying $10,000 in spousal support and $10,000 for each child they share.
Despite breaking their marriage in 2011, both Shaq and Shaunie have been vocal towards displaying their support for each other. Besides sharing four children with O’Neal, Shaunie Henderson is best known for being a successful entrepreneur and producer of the hit reality TV show, “Basketball Wives.”
