Who Is Shaq And When Did He Retire? | The US Sun

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BASKETBALL has given birth to numerous great players throughout the sport’s long history.

Among the NBA legends is Shaquille O’Neal – who continues to immerse himself in basketball even after his retirement.

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Who is Shaquille O’Neal?

Shaquille ‘Shaq’ Rashaun O’Neal was born on March 6, 1972, in Newark, New Jersey.

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He is a former professional basketball player who stands tall at 7-foot-one and is often regarded as one of the sport’s greatest players.

During the course of his 19-year career, Shaq has played for six NBA teams and won a total of four NBA championships:

• Orlando Magic (1992–1996)
• Los Angeles Lakers (1996–2004)
• Miami Heat (2004–2008)
• Phoenix Suns (2008–2009)
• Cleveland Cavaliers (2009–2010)
• Boston Celtics (2010–2011)

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Shaq won three consecutive championships with the Lakers (2000-2002) and one while playing for Miami in 2006.

His many awards include:

• Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award (1999–2000)
• NBA Rookie of the Year award (1992-93)
• 15 All-Star Game selections
• Three All-Star Game MVP awards
• Three Finals MVP awards
• 14 All-NBA team selections

In 2000, he made history as one of three players in the league to win NBA MVP, All-Star Game MVP and Finals MVP all in the same year.

The only other players to do so are Willis Reed and Michael Jordan.

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Shaq was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2017.

The NBA legend shares four children with his ex-wife, Shaunie Nelson: Shareef, Amirah, Shaqir and Me’arah.

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Shaunie has a son, Myles, from a previous relationship, while Shaq has a daughter, Taahirah, with his former girlfriend Arnetta Yardbourgh.

The pair tied the knot in 2002 but got divorced seven years later in 2009.

When did he retire from the NBA?

Shaq retired from the sport of basketball after the 2010–11 season.

The recent Boston Celtics player finished his career with a total of “28,596 points (the seventh-highest total in NBA history at the time of his retirement),” according to Britannica.

According to an interview with SportsCenter in 2011, Shaq explained that one reason for retiring was because “Father Time has caught up with [him].”

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“I’m going to miss the competition. I’m going to miss, you know, the chase for the ring. You know, I’m actually going to miss everything,” he told the outlet.

Since his retirement, the basketball superstar has taken up duties as a commentator on TNT’s Inside the NBA – an award-winning basketball analysis/commentary show.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for ABC and ESPN, but I felt that Turner and TNT was the place for me. It’s always been my favorite show,” Shaq told the Boston Globe back in 2011.

“I’d love to be up there hanging with Charles and Ernie and Kenny. I thought that was the best pick for me. It was a deal that I couldn’t resist.’’

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Did Shaq and Lebron James play together?

LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal paired up together while playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2009-10 season. 

At that time, the 37-year-old Shaq and 25-year-old Lebron “reached the Eastern Conference semi-finals in the 2009-10 season but lost the series to the Boston Celtics in six games,” according to Sportskeeda.

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