Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey), or Shaq as he is popularly known, is known as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominant basketball players. O'Neal first played for the Orlando Magic, later signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, and now plays for the Miami Heat. At 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m), 340 pounds (154 kg) and U.S. shoe size 22, he is famous for his physical stature. He has several nicknames, most of which he conferred upon himself, such as "the Diesel", "the Big Aristotle", and "Superman."

Media personality

Shaq is generally liked by the media for his playful tone in interviews and generally eloquent manner in comparison to other athletes. He has been called "the Big Aristotle", a name that was self-given, for his composure and insights during these interviews. Shaq's humorous and sometimes incendiary comments fueled the LA Lakers long standing rivalry with the Sacramento Kings; Shaq frequently referred to the Sacramento team as the "Queens". Shaq also received some media flak for mocking the Chinese language when interviewed about newcomer center Yao Ming, but he was able to downplay the media attention to the event.

Related Topics:
Interview - Aristotle - LA Lakers - Sacramento Kings - Chinese language - Yao Ming

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During the 2005 NBA playoffs, Shaq lamented of his poor play due to injury as being comparable to Erick Dampier, a Dallas Mavericks center that had failed to score a single point in one of their recent games. The quip was not responded to malevolently, but inspired countless citations and references by announcers during those playoffs.

Related Topics:
Erick Dampier - Dallas Mavericks

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On May 24, 2005, when Brian Hill was re-announced as head coach of his former team, the Orlando Magic, Shaq was quoted as saying, "It's good that he's back. When I buy the team in three years, he'll be working for me." Whether or not this will raise speculation of Shaq's life after playing basketball remains to be seen. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/orl-sptmagicreact25052505may25,0,553128.story?coll=orl-sports-headlines

Related Topics:
May 24 - 2005 - Brian Hill

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He is very vocal with the media, and often jabs at his former Laker teammate, Kobe Bryant. In the summer of 2005, when asked about Kobe, he responded, "I'm sorry, who?" and went on about not being familiar with that name.

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Shaq was once a spokesperson for Radio Shack. In one of its commercials, he snapped his fingers and changed the spelling to "Radio Shaq".

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Shaq appeared on the Season 5 finale of Punk'd, MTV's celebrity prank show.

Related Topics:
Punk'd - MTV

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He has also appeared in many other shows such as Saturday Night Live.

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