A young but fast-growing Shaquille O'Neal announced to his mother Lucille O'Neal and stepfather Philip Harrison that he wanted to be an NBA basketball player – and there was plenty of reason for his optimism.
Because of his size and bulk, O'Neal was the talk of the basketball world at a young age. In 1992, before he entered the NBA, he was considered to be the most promising post prospect since NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Lucille O'Neal told her son that basketball was not enough.
“We told him that it was very important to do more than that,” O'Neal told her son. The mother of the future Hall of Fame basketball player and current TNT NBA analyst will speak at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Toledo program at the Inverness Club at noon, Thursday, October 2. The event is sponsored by the Toledo Ladies for the Clubs.
“Being an athlete, your body can break down on you. If that's all you aspire to be and that happens to you, your career is over,” O’Neal stressed to her son. "If you don't know anything else, then you don't have anything to strive or live for. We encouraged him to get an education. That was something my mother always taught me. We stressed education in our home,” she said.
Education and pursuing your dreams will be themes of O'Neal's message during her address in Toledo. She said when she became pregnant at 17, she struggled with low self-esteem, but a female church pastor sought her out and refused to let her shrink into the crowd, constantly telling her: "Walk like you've got somewhere to go.”
The phrase, which is the title of her book and public speeches, made an indelible mark on O’Neal, constantly reminding her to live with a purpose and to apply meaning to the things she does, even today.
“It was years before I understood what those words meant," O'Neal said. "When I share those words with my children and the young people I talk to today, I tell them to walk with courage; be bold. I'm telling them to take all the steps necessary to chase all the dreams that they have. “I want them to have a lifetime impact on their own lives, as well as the people they come in contact with on a daily basis. I want to tell them to hold their head up and act like you are somebody [ . . . ] because they are,” she said.
‘Raising themselves’
O'Neal credits the Boys & Girls Clubs for providing mentors and structuring her life, emphasizing that organizations like the Boys & Girls Clubs are struggling to find resources just at the time when neighborhood children need them the most.
“Finding resources is always a battle,” O'Neal said. “I grew up in a time when you had that village (the neighborhood) that helped raise children. You don't have that a lot today. The neighborhoods have crumbled. Children are raising themselves. I wish there was a Boys & Girls Club in every school district because they do great things. They really care for people.”
Despite her son’s four NBA titles and his league’s MVP award, the mother of 7-foot-1 O'Neal said she's most proud of her son's degrees from Louisiana State University and Barry University in Florida. After leaving college early for the NBA, Shaquille O'Neal returned to LSU to earn his bachelor's degree, and he received a master's degree (2005) and doctorate (2012) from Barry.
Lucille O'Neal returned to school herself to earn her bachelor's degree from Bethune-Cookman University and master's from the University of Phoenix.
“It's never too late for a new beginning,” O'Neal said of the message she will convey in Toledo. “I feel like I've been given a second chance. Now, instead of retiring, I'm refocusing my life. I want to encourage people to pursue their dreams and live.”
For more information, call 419-241-4258
or go to tlcevent.org.
