When it comes to mastering the art of basketball, Shaquille O’Neal is someone with considerable expertise. The Hall of Famer was an artist in the paint and had a set of nimble moves to go with his dominant physical tools.
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Naturally, an opportunity to be trained by the Big Diesel himself is a huge deal. And that is the fortune afforded to Shaquille O’Neal’s children.
Also read: Shaquille O’Neal’s Son Shaqir O’Neal Touches $1.1 Million in NIL Valuation Ahead of NCAA Debut
With elder son Shareef O’Neal making his way to the G-League, it’s the turn of the next in line – Sharif O’Neal. The 6’7 sophomore Texas Southern Tigers forward becomes draft eligible in 2025 and is hopeful of making the NBA.
Naturally, mastering a few tricks of the trade from Papa O’Neal makes sense for the NBA hopeful. And from footage that has been made available, it would appear Shaqir is in for some tough loving from Shaq.
In typical Shaq fashion, O’Neal makes his point to Shaqir and teaches him some post moves. With the Big Diesel’s inputs, Shaqir must definitely be hoping that he does one up on his brother and has a more straightforward path to the league.
What do Shaq’s training methods look like with Shaqir?
Shaq is pictured training Shaqir on his post moves. While Shaqir doesn’t have the frame of his father, there is still time to fill in his wiry frame. Once he does, it is certain that the rip-through move O’Neal appears to be teaching Shaqir would serve him extremely well in his pro career.
The Big Diesel appears to be teaching Shaqir the Steve Smith half-spin move to get to the basket. The legendary big man is getting his new protege to master the fundamentals of the post-game with some savvy moves.
Shaq also seems to be pushing his son to adapt to the modern game. Shooting practice seems to be an important part of Shaq sessions despite his record as a poor shooter himself. Moving on with the developments of the game evidently is in Shaq’s mind for Shaqir.
Big Diesel is also seen making it clear how he values his time and tells Shaqir to make his time worth it. Shaq, further, makes it clear how physicality still matters in the game and tells Shaqir to go for the rip-through move with enough strength to break a hand.
Quite the intense session indeed, by the looks of it. After the unfortunate series of events that led to Shareef’s struggles, Shaq appears hell-bent on getting his kin into the league. Will Papa Shaq’s rigorous methods get Shaqir to the promised land?
How highly rated a prospect is Shaqir O’Neal?
Heading into his college recruitment, Shaqir was a 3-star prospect ranked 52nd in his position. While that does not bode well, prima facie, it isn’t all too bad either.
After all, we have seen multiple NBA stars come from even humbler beginnings in terms of ranking and recruitment. The likes of Stephen Curry and Russell Westbrook are examples of former 3-star recruits who attained superstar status in the NBA.
With a recent growth spurt also raising the intrigue around Shaqir, one can hope to see another O’Neal in the NBA. Especially if the Shaq sessions keep piling on in time and impact.
The young forward definitely has the size and physical tools to succeed in the NBA. Skill development and filling out his frame would certainly be on the agenda for future development too.
3 years is a considerable period for Shaqir to develop into an NBA-ready prospect. With project O’Neal well underway, hopefully, there are new O’Neal jerseys for sale in the NBA soon.
Also read: 325 lbs Shaquille O’Neal slammed down trolls picking on Shareef O’Neal and Shaqir O’Neal
