Shaquille O’Neal has never been one to shy away from bold opinions, and on the latest episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq, the NBA legend made it clear where his loyalties lie when it comes to family. During a fan Q&A segment, co-host Adam Lefkoe read a question from a surgeon named Dr. B in Chicago.
The fan described a troubling situation where his mother had accused his fiancée of being a gold-digger, and now the relationship was spiraling after he tried to downplay it.
Adam Lefkoe: “This comes from Dr. B in Chicago, and they write: ‘Shaq, I’m a surgeon, and I got engaged nine months ago to my longtime girlfriend. My mom has been telling me to call off the wedding, saying my fiance only wants me for the money.”
“Well, my lady overheard my mom saying this to me and asked me about it. I denied it to keep down the drama, but now she’s mad at me because she says I lied to spare her feelings. Shaq, what should I do to fix this, and am I wrong for trying to protect her from being hurt by my mom’s behavior?”
Shaquille O’Neal: “I’ve actually heard people say this, and I can understand both sides. Some people choose their wives over their mothers, and then there are guys like me who would choose my mother over my wife.”
“I don’t know what type of person he is. So if you’re choosing your mother over your wife, then your wife has to go. But if you’re choosing your wife over your mother, then you probably have to have a conversation with your mom.
“‘Mom, I know what I’m doing, blah, blah, blah,’ and hopefully they can come together. Like me, when I was married, my mother came first. And every now and then, there would be some conversation.”
Adam Lefkoe: “There’s no way to reconcile this, though?”
Shaquille O’Neal: “No. My mother’s first. Period.”
Adam Lefkoe: “No, I’m not saying you have to pick one or the other.”
Shaquille O’Neal: “I had a conversation one time, and I told someone that I pick my mother over my kids. And they had a fit. My mother is first. Then my kids. They said, ‘No, it should be your kids, then your mother.’ I said, ‘For you, maybe. But for me, it’s my mother first, then my kids.’”
“Again, different thought processes for different people. But if you don’t want to make your mom unhappy, you probably have to do something else. If you don’t want to make your wife unhappy or your mom unhappy, I can’t really answer that.”
“But me? If my mama doesn’t like you? You f***ing gotta go.”
Adam Lefkoe: “What about getting them to talk to each other?”
Shaquille O’Neal: “Nope. There’s nothing to talk about.”
Adam Lefkoe: “Even saying, ‘Hey, it seems like there’s a misunderstanding’?”
Shaquille O’Neal: “You know what? My mother has never been wrong.”
Adam Lefkoe: “Oh, so you’re saying there’s something about your mother’s intuition?”
Shaquille O’Neal: “Yeah. Like women can look at other women and go… ‘Meh.’”
Adam Lefkoe: “They know right away.”
Shaquille O’Neal: “Yeah. I used to bring women to the house. My mom would just go, ‘Hello,’ and I’d be like… ‘Oh s**t.’”
Shaq didn’t hesitate to weigh in with a brutally honest response.
According to Shaq, there’s no middle ground or room for negotiation. Even the idea of reconciling the two important women in his life didn’t appeal to him.
Shaq’s unwavering loyalty to his mother highlights the unique family dynamic that shaped him and reinforces his belief in maternal instinct above all else. To him, the hierarchy is crystal clear: “My mother’s first. Period.”
Shaquille O’Neal’s Personal Life
Shaquille O’Neal’s larger-than-life persona extends well beyond the basketball court. Born on March 6, 1972, in Newark, New Jersey, Shaq was raised primarily by his mother, Lucille O’Neal, and stepfather, Phillip Harrison, an Army sergeant.
His bond with his mother remains unshakably strong, as he recently reiterated, she’s the most important person in his life.
Shaq has six children four biological and two stepchildren. His children are: Taahirah O’Neal (from a previous relationship with Arnetta Yardbourgh), Shareef, Amirah, Shaqir, and Me’arah O’Neal with his ex-wife, Shaunie Henderson (formerly Shaunie O’Neal).
He also helped raise Myles, Shaunie’s son from a previous relationship. Shareef has followed in his father’s footsteps into basketball, while Me’arah is an emerging talent in women’s hoops.
Shaquille was married to Shaunie from 2002 to 2011. Their relationship, which began during his peak Lakers years, was heavily publicized and faced its fair share of ups and downs. The two officially divorced in 2011 but have maintained a relatively respectful co-parenting relationship since. Shaunie has since remarried.
Outside of that, Shaq has been romantically linked to several women over the years, but has never remarried. He’s kept most of his personal relationships private, often joking about them on air or in interviews but rarely offering deep details. His public stance on loyalty to his mother over any romantic partner has drawn both admiration and criticism.
Today, Shaq is a media mogul, businessman, and larger-than-life pop culture figure, but at his core, he’s a family man who still lives by the lessons his mother taught him.
