Shaquille O’Neal is one of the funniest people in the world. The former NBA center was extremely competitive on the court, but once that final buzzer hit, he was the coolest person on earth. Right now, he’s the one making a lot of jokes on TNT’s Inside the NBA, but Shaq was and is still the subject of many jokes around the community.
Back in 2003, legendary comedian Chris Rock used him to explain the difference between a rich and a wealthy person, admitting that Shaq was rich, but the person who paid his salary was the wealthy one. This has been explained non-stop by many people, but Rock used the perfect example with the Big Diesel.
Shaq has earned a lot of money during and after his NBA career, but Rock knew there was a big difference between him, a rich person, and somebody considered ‘wealthy’. During a 2003 comedy special, Rock said:
“There are no wealthy black or brown people in America. We got some rich ones, we don’t got no f***ing wealthy. People go, ‘what’s the difference?’ Here’s the difference: Shaq is rich. The white man that signs his check is wealthy. I’m not talking about rich, I’m talking about wealth, ok?” Rock said while the public laughed.
Rock went on to explain that being wealthy is something you can pass down to a generation and nothing will change while being rich can change in summer or thanks to addictions.
It’s unclear if this joke resonated with Shaq, but the player hasn’t stopped trying to get more bread, investing in several companies, doing commercials everywhere, and taking every opportunity he gets to increase his worth. He’s made smart decisions over the years to become wealthy and leave the rich status behind.
People like Michael Jordan and LeBron James might have joined that club and O’Neal is aiming at the same goal.
