Shaunie Henderson and Shaquille O’Neal faced numerous marital hurdles during their time together, which paved the way for a divorce in 2011. O’Neal’s extravagant NBA lifestyle played a huge role in defining their tumultuous relationship.
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While both Henderson and O’Neal have admitted that the latter’s extramarital affairs played a huge role in their split, Shaunie believes that her ex-husband was tackling a complicated situation.
In her memoir From Undefeated: Changing the Ways and Winning on My Own Terms, published in May 2024, Shaunie acknowledged that Shaq’s wild lifestyle was a result of his superstar status in the NBA.
She admitted that her ex-husband was juggling marriage, children, and his life as a multi-millionaire athlete, which is not an easy thing to do. There were a lot of people who were desperate to be in the orbit of a successful NBA player like Shaq.
Unsurprisingly, many women sought physical relationships with him as well. She recognized that having such level of fame can easily affect marital relationships.
“I stress that I’m not blaming Shaquille for what happened to our marriage. He did the best he could with the tools he had. So did I. He was trying to be a world- famous, thirtysomething multimillionaire with thousands of women throwing themselves at him, and people in general begging just to be in his presence, while being a husband and a father at the same time,” Shaunie wrote.
“How could anyone possibly know how to do that?”
Henderson acknowledged that despite such distractions, they both tried their best to keep their marriage together. However, it wasn’t meant to be.
Therefore, in retrospect, she refuses to put all the blame on Shaq for their divorce in 2011.
In her memoir, Henderson also confessed that she may not have been in love with Shaq at all. However, she relished building a family with him while cherishing the little time they spent together.
Shaq, who has taken accountability for his failed marriage, showed that he still holds his ex-wife in high regard. After coming across Henderson’s confession about not loving him, he posted a heartwarming response.
On his Instagram handle, Shaq displayed appreciation for Henderson’s feelings. He posted a picture with the text, “I understand… I wouldn’t have been in love with me either. Wishing you all the best. All love, Shaq“.
He captioned his post, “trust me i get it”
While their marriage failed, both Shaq and Shaunie recognize that not everything was under their control. They have moved on from each other, but have developed mutual respect in recent years.
This narrative proves how difficult it is for NBA players to keep their marriages intact despite giving their best.
