When Shaquille O’Neal started making it to the news cycle, his mother, Lucille O’Neal had a warning for him. She said, “Hey beware, once you get this money everybody coming.” It seems Mama O’Neal was right all along as the first in line to reach out was Shaq’s biological father Joe Toney. However, the manner in which Toney reached out left the four-time NBA champion puzzled and angry.

Shaquille O’Neal was born to Lucille O’Neal and Joe Toney. However, Joe Toney was absent during Shaq’s childhood. Lucille O’Neal then married Philip Harrison who Shaq states is his real father. With that said, once Shaq became a household name, his family matters were made public.

Shaquille O’Neal on the move made by his biological father

One day, Shaq was strolling down the streets of Chicago when a stranger came up to him. With Shaq’s status as an NBA player, people walking up to him was normal. But instead of an autograph or photo, the stranger said, “You shouldn’t do that to your father, you should give him a second chance.”

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Puzzled by this statement, Shaq dialed his mother’s cell and asked her if his father had done something. While being aware that Shaq was referring to Philip Harrison, Lucille said, “No. But Joe Toney (Shaq’s biological father) went on the Ricki Lake Show.”  This left Shaq even more puzzled.

Shaq’s biological father, Joe Toney, went on-air and claimed to have been shut out of Shaq’s life. He stated that he was absent from Shaq’s life because of getting in trouble with the law. However, after he had served time, he claimed he did his best to reach out to Shaq. Toney said that his efforts were in vain. He then made a public plea for Shaq to give him some time.

Shaquille O’Neal’s response

As per Shaq and his mother, Toney never reached out to them. In fact, as a kid, when Shaq wanted to meet his biological father, Lucille even made it happen. But after meeting Toney, Shaq realized that Phillip was his “daddy.” 

This incident was brought up once again in the documentary ‘Shaq‘. After detailing the situation in the documentary, the Los Angeles Lakers legend had a simple question in his mind for Toney – “When I was trying to get some shoes, where were you?” On the other hand, Lucille O’Neal strongly believed that Toney went on air because “it was probably burning him inside that he missed everything.” 

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Shaq later responded to Toney’s interview by releasing a song about his stepfather, Philip Harrison. The lyrics read, “Cause he was the one who took me from a boy to a man. So as far as I’m concerned, he is my father because my biological didn’t bother.” The music video featured Shaq and his stepfather Philip.