“The guy just messed up”: Shaquille O’Neal, who backed out of $40 million Reebok deal, revealed Papa John’s buyout story

Legendary Lakers center Shaquille O’Neal, who picked Walmart over a $40 million deal with Reebok, revealed a Papa John’s story

Shaquille O’Neal is probably one of the most recognizable faces in NBA history. The 7’1″ center dominated the league for well over ten years and cemented his legacy as one of the greatest to ever play.

The Los Angeles Lakers legend was one of the highest-paid athletes of his era. He made a whopping $120 million in his 7 years with the gold and purple. O’Neal used much of his fortune to build an even bigger empire.

The Big Diesel has an estimated worth of $400 million. He is built such an umpire with some impressive business decisions.

Shaquille O’Neal once described the ideology behind his investments. He claimed to only put money into products that have the potential to change people’s lives. Apparently, Shaquille O’Neal learned this trick from Jeff Bezos.

O’Neal: “I heard Jeff Bezos say one time [that] he makes his investments based on if it’s going to change people’s lives. Once I started doing that strategy, I think I probably quadrupled what I’m worth.”

Shaq famously backed out of a mega deal with Reebok. He claimed to have come across an old lady who called him out for the cost of the shoes. The Lakers legend vowed to create more affordable shoes after that altercation.

O’Neal: “I had $2,000 in my pocket. I said, ‘Lady I don’t make the prices. Here you go,’ and she smacked the money out of my hand, [and said], ‘Why don’t you motherf***ers make a shoe that’s affordable?'”

Also read: LeBron James has massive dilemma between Russell Westbrook, Dennis Schroder. and Patrick Beverley, Twitter left wheezing

Shaquille O’Neal replaced Papa John’s founder on the board of directors

O’Neal’s success as a businessman is no mystery. He has numbers to prove how great of an entrepreneur he really is.

A lot of his wealth comes from investing in other companies. In 2019, Shaq replaced John Schnatter on Papa John’s board of directors. The Big Aristotle revealed in an interview how the company was bought.

Shaquille: “Papa John’s is a good brand. The guy just messed up. But he had to pay for that. He sold it to us. So now that he sold it to us, I’m just gonna make sure it’s right, slowly but surely.”

The Pizza company’s founder stepped out as the chairman after Forbes alleged he had made racial slurs in a conference call.

Shaquille O’Neal also signed an endorsement deal with the brand and invested in nine of their Atlanta based restaurants.

Also read: “Kevin Garnett would feed off players with ‘mental health’ issues”: Former Wizards All-Star criticizes today’s athletes who have an easier way of not showing up