Shaquille O’Neal is a basketball player at heart but is also a big fan of the theatrics. The glitz and glamor of the celebrity life have enticed O’Neal throughout his NBA career and retirement, notably at his 33rd birthday party. O’Neal’s team reached out to a renowned poker company to sponsor the event. While he seemed to have a good time, Pokestars.com did not.
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In 2005, Shaq was preparing to celebrate his first birthday in Miami since the Lakers traded him. To suit the South Beach lifestyle, the Hall-of-Fame big man went all-out, asking Pokerstars.com to sponsor the bash for $135,000, an opportunity too good for the company to pass up.
At the time, Pokerstars.com was the number two poker platform in the world. The chance to market themselves in front of A-list celebrities should have been the breakthrough that they needed. They agreed to be the main sponsor but found an unpleasant surprise the day of the event.
Hennesy was a sponsor as well. This development wasn’t good business for the poker company. They figured they needed a way to stand out and focused on the birthday boy himself.
Pokerstars.com made it their top priority to get a photo of Shaq at their tables. They scoured the crowd all night trying to find the 7-foot-1 big man, but getting to the Heat star proved more difficult than expected, and they didn’t get their hands on him until 2 a.m.
O’Neal finally got to playing but lost all his chips in his first hand. The representatives couldn’t afford to let Shaq leave before they got a picture, so they rigged the game to keep him at the table—then they couldn’t find a camera.
Eventually, they called in a photographer who snapped a pic, but, unfortunately, the photo never got into the hands of the poker company. Their efforts to promote their brand in front of the biggest stars fell through.
Shaq wasn’t the only one on Pokerstars.com’s radar. They also sought eventual President of the United States Donald Trump. But, unlike Shaq, they weren’t successful in getting the business mogul to play a game of poker.
Shaq isn’t one to gamble
Shaq doesn’t hesitate to make bets, especially on TNT’s Inside the NBA. However, he has never been known to gamble. It seems like he’s worked on his skills since his 33rd birthday, though, as he came out victorious in a friend’s poker tournament.
Inside the NBA host, Kenny Smith held a poker tournament with Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley and Shaq. Barkley seemingly had the game won with a full house, but then Shaq turned the tables on him by laying down a royal flush.
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O’Neal’s poker skills have certainly improved over the years. If he were to do another photo op with a poker company, it seems like they wouldn’t need to rig the game in his favor.
