Most NBA fans know Shaquille O’Neal for his dominance throughout his career. Due to his hard work, he is now one of the most successful players to come out in the NBA. Even after his retirement, O’Neal has made smart investments to further grow his wealth. However, even the Big Diesel had some rough times at the start.

Shaq didn’t have the best childhood. Growing up in New Jersey, his biological father struggled with drug addiction. Shaq held many hard feelings for his father through the years. He considers his stepfather, Phil, to be his real dad.

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Coming from a military background, Shaq did not grow up in a rich household. He opened up about how he was always bullied as a kid and had to go through tough times.

In a recent interview, Shaquille O’Neal narrated his tough childhood and spoke about the various difficulties.

Shaquille O’Neal started rough

In today’s day, the Big Aristotle comes to be a successful man. He has a great family and has raised his kids with strict morals. However, Shaq did not get the childhood like he offers his children.

He said, “I’m not a kid that was a valedictorian. I’m not the kid that was the smartest. I was the kid who had to wear the same pair of jeans three times in a week, had raggedy sneakers, got picked up on and had to fight, and got bullied.”

“I was him, I was you, I was the same kid that you come home, your dad ain’t there for a while. Your mom and your dad going through some things.” 

While Shaq didn’t have the best upbringing, his growth spurt gave him a big opportunity in the sport of basketball. From there, he worked relentlessly to become one of the most dominant. Unlike his childhood, Shaq dominated the NBA like no other. He was a true freak of nature and averaged 23.7 points for his career.

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O’Neal kept making history and is regarded as one of the best centers in NBA history. He is a living example of how having rough beginnings doesn’t hold anyone back from success. He has only grown in every stage of his life and is currently a successful entrepreneur with major investments in companies like Google.