By Pierre-Andréa Fraile | Sports journalist
A full-fledged character in the NBA microcosm, Shaquille O’Neal has made a habit of delivering sometimes very personal anecdotes about his youth. And one of them, which concerns one of his first times, may seem confusing concerning him.
When some legends of the league opt for discretion once retired and hide in silence, he took the opposite path. Shaquille O’Neal has made sure to stay in the spotlight since his retirement from the courts and has succeeded wonderfully. Whether on the sets of TNT or by other means, he particularly entertains the gallery with his numerous stories, each crazier than the last.
Shaq less precocious than JJ Redick, the incredible revelation
With his own podcast, O’Neal can talk about any subject that concerns him without ever or almost using the slightest filter. And when he doesn’t open up about his private life – or even that of his daughters, he happens to talk about basketball. This is for example what he did with his guest JJ Redick, who, quite crazy, would have performed his first dunk well before him:
JJ Redick : In eighth grade, I had a big growth spurt. I went from 1m68 to 1m90. So, I could already dunk with two hands when I was 13. I am not joking.
Shaquille O’Neal : Nah, there’s no way you dunked at 13, you’re talking nonsense. I didn’t do it until I was 17, when I was already 2m11 tall.
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It’s difficult to know which testimony is more surprising. The fact that Redick apparently hasn’t grown since he was 13 already seems crazy enough. However, Shaq’s assertion that he had to wait until he was 17 and reached the 2m10 mark to dunk sounds even more lunar. Even more so knowing that high school baskets are logically lower than those of the NBA.
Aware of this inconsistency in his speech, Diesel nevertheless tried to explain it with a somewhat traumatic anecdote:
Shaquille O’Neal : I tried to dunk once in the middle of a match, I missed, it was embarrassing and it scared me. (…) Another time, I crossed an opponent and I wanted to finish the action with a layup, but I missed it.
My father, who was a drill sergeant, burst onto the floor in the middle of the match. He said, “Time out. What are you doing ? I said, “I’m trying to play it like Magic…” And before I could say “Johnson,” he slapped me. “Magic Johnson?!” Be Shaq and start dunking! » (…) I was so angry with him that I started dunking all the time and tearing out all the damn circles.
Having had an XXL physique since his youngest years, Shaquille O’Neal would not have dunked until he was 17. Her stepfather eventually made sure to change that and brutally allowed her to catch up afterward.
2024-05-08 12:20:00
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