Shaquille O’Neal has always wanted to own an NBA team. Out of the various ventures he can call his own and the businesses he can be proud of building, this would arguably be the crown jewel. The Big Fella has been down this road before, but this time, he wants to do things differently.
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Shaq has declared that he wants to be an owner in the association again. He also has two teams in mind: the Miami Heat and the Orlando Magic, both franchises where he tasted great success.
O’Neal appeared on the Dan Patrick show recently where he admitted to this desire, before quickly adding that in no way would he ever dream of being the sole owner of either organization. He’s happy with just buying into a small part of it.
“In a perfect world, I would love to be part of the Orlando Magic or the Miami Heat, in a perfect world,” the Lakers legend stated. “Just as a limited partner. I would love to have that conversation.”
It’s an enticing prospect. Being a part-owner won’t give Shaq too much power or say in what happens in the organization. But he can flex it, and the team’s success or failures would also feel personal. It’s something Shaq has experienced before, of course, as minority owner of the Sacramento Kings.
Shaquille O’Neal on NBA ownership:
“In a perfect world, I would love to be part of the Orlando Magic or the Miami Heat, in a perfect world….just as a limited partner. I would love to have that conversation.”
(via DanPatrickShow) pic.twitter.com/4AyuCSWahV
— Heat Diehards (@HeatDiehards) December 13, 2025
The Diesel bought into the franchise repping the capital city of California back in 2013, and looked positively thrilled about the idea of being an owner. But in 2021, sadly, he had to give up his shares with an injection of money needed elsewhere. In an interview from that year with Complex, Shaq revealed what exactly happened.
“It was very tough. Actually, heartbreaking. Trying to find loopholes around it, but couldn’t. I’ve always been one to follow the rules,” Shaq said, as he spoke about launching WynnBET, a company he saw as the future of online gambling.
“I have equity in this business and hopefully it does well. Right now, WynnBET is live in six states and we have access to 16 total states and we’re on par with all the other major players in the space…” he added.
Unfortunately, the lofty ambitions Shaq had for WynnBET never quite materialized and the company exited from several states in subsequent years. It still exists, but on a much smaller scale. And with a potential closure of the company or an exit for Shaq himself, he can dream of being an owner in the NBA once again.
This time, however, he doesn’t wanna be in charge of a random team. It’ll either be the franchise that drafted him, or the one with which he won a championship.
