Shaquille O’Neal, the basketball star and game analyst, recently took to social media to clarify the reason behind his hospitalization, which had caused concern among his followers. In a Twitter post recently, O’Neal reassured his fans that he was fine and had undergone a hip replacement surgery, humorously referring to it as “BBL” or “Brazilian butt lift.” The 51-year-old NBA legend had previously shared a photo of himself hooked up to machines in a hospital bed on Twitter, sparking speculation about his health. 

O’Neal’s hospitalization had coincided with the NCAA tournament, during which his colleagues from ‘NBA on TNT,’ including Candace Parker and Nichelle Turner, were covering the games. O’Neal explained on his podcast that he had wanted to create a funny moment in response to the speculations about his health when his name was mentioned during the tournament broadcast. He wanted to assure his fans that he was watching the games and not in grave danger, hence his humorous reference to getting a ‘BBL’ or hip replacement surgery.

Shaquille O’Neal opened up about his health conditions 

Recently, O’Neal jokingly showed off his “pulsating” hips in a tweet, further adding a lighthearted tone to the situation.

However, O’Neal also acknowledged that some fans had speculated about his health and had expressed concern, prompting him to clarify the reason behind his hospitalization. He thanked his fans for their concern and reassured them that he was fine.

In his podcast, Nichelle Turner asked Shaq about his health status. She said, “Let’s check in with you real quick though, because we haven’t been together for about a month. Because, according to you, you were on death’s door, according to the pictures you posted. But in real life.”

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To which O’Neal replied, “I’m watching the NCAA tournament, and you know EJ and Candice, they mentioned my name and wondered if I was watching. So, right before getting ready to go, I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m always watching, then everybody – Oh my God, Shaq’s kidneys are failing and he’s doing this, he’s doing that!”

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Shaq continued, “Like I wasn’t gonna respond, but everybody’s like, ‘Come on, man, you got to say something, you got to say something.’ So, I was like, I wanted to make a moment that people thought was a not serious moment, I wanted to make it a funny moment. That’s why I tweeted this picture that I’m getting my BBL.” After this Shaq showed his next tweet, humorously showing off his hips which are “pulsating”. 

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Meanwhile, when he was not in the public’s eye, speculations also arose that O’Neal had been hiding in his mansion to avoid a lawsuit related to his endorsement of FTX, a now-defunct cryptocurrency company that filed for bankruptcy in 2022. O’Neal was among several high-profile athletes and celebrities named in a class-action lawsuit for their involvement with FTX. His posting of a photo of himself on a hospital bed further fueled rumors, with fans questioning if he had disappeared to evade the legal case.