In Shaunie Henderson’s book Undefeated, Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-wife talked about how she met him for the first time at the premiere of Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace in 1999. Working as a staff member for the premiere, Shaunie was in charge of checking in special guests as per the guest list.
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Despite not having his name featured on any list, Shaq still showed up and gained admission because of how beloved he was in LA. Shaunie’s supervisors let Shaq enter the theatre, but she recalled how he didn’t care much for the movie being screened. Instead, he spent most of his time outside the theatre, talking to her. She wrote about how he made her laugh and enjoyed his company.
“I also wasn’t into basketball at the time, so while I knew who he was, I was anything but starstruck. But he was just so charming and funny that I couldn’t help but enjoy his company. At one point he pulled up a folding chair and sat there, and we just chatted. He kept me laughing the entire time, and eventually he asked me to dinner.”
Apprehensive of NBA players and their reputations for fooling around with multiple women, Shaunie rejected Shaq at first. However, Diesel wasn’t one to be deterred so easily. He chatted with her for another hour and a half before leaving and asked for her number. She obliged his request, thinking she’d never hear from him again, but, to her surprise, he messaged her the very next day, asking to meet for lunch.
Despite her busy work schedule, Shaunie found time to meet for lunch, but it was what Shaq did between that had her surprised.
How Shaq won Shaunie over
When they first planned to meet for lunch, Shaq was surprised to find out that Shaunie couldn’t just leave her office for a few hours to meet him. She recalled in her book,
“I told him I had a full-time job and couldn’t just leave my office for a few hours to have lunch, which was hard for him to get his head around.”
But after they found common ground for a time, they could both be available, Shaq turned the real charm on. Shaunie revealed how Shaq would send her a lot of songs and sweet messages, something that didn’t really match the reputation of NBA players she’d come to expect.
“Finally, we found a time to meet, and in between he sent me songs, texting me super sweet and charming stuff. I just kept thinking, Who is this guy?”
In the end, despite his imposing frame, Shaq’s charisma and soft demeanor were what eventually won Shaunie over.
