Shaquille O’Neal Digs Into His Archives, Finds an Adorable Photograph to Celebrate His Youngest Son Shaqir’s 22nd Birthday

Shaquille O’Neal has six children, with three daughters and three sons, all born between 1996 and 2006. But it’s in Shaq’s youngest son, Shaqir, that he sees the most of himself. The Hall of Famer has often referred to the former Florida A&M forward as his twin, insinuating the father and son duo have always had a close bond.

Shaqir turned 22 years old today and is being celebrated by his family on social media. Shaq dug deep into his archives to find an adorable throwback photo of him and his boy. In the photo, the Hall of Famer is sitting down in his kitchen, holding Shaqir across his lap while both smile at the camera.

Considering how young Shaqir looks in the picture, it was likely taken soon after Shaq decided to retire from the NBA in 2011. But the Lakers legend wasn’t the only member of the O’Neal family to shower Shaqir with birthday blessings. Me’arah, Taahira, and Shareef all made posts of their own to celebrate their brother.

“Happy birthday blooda, I love you man,” Me’Arah posted over a collage of pictures of the two on Instagram.

Meanwhile, Taahira posted several videos of Shaqir dancing, expressing her disbelief at how old her youngest brother is.

Shareef took a different approach with his birthday message, posting a video of him and his brother dapping each other up before Shareef threw him into a table wrestling-style.

Shaq’s second-youngest child has been busy in recent months. Shaqir recently transferred to Sacramento State University, where former Heat guard Mike Bibby coaches, after spending the 2024-25 campaign with Florida A&M. In his junior season, Shaqir averaged 6.7 points and 3.4 rebounds in just over 18 minutes per game for the Rattlesnakes.

With just one more season of college eligibility, Shaqir is seemingly taking his best path to playing time in what could be his final year of NCAA basketball. He proved to be a capable rotation player after failing to see the court much with his former school throughout his freshman and sophomore seasons.

Shaqir may not boast the frame or talent of his legendary father, but it’s clear he’s doing the best with the hand he’s been given. Not every son of a Hall of Fame athlete is bound to be one themselves, after all.