He’s Shaquille O’Neal’s stepson, but Myles O’Neal once craved Shaq’s retirement more than his applause. While his half-siblings chased hoops, Myles dropped bass lines, only to discover that being “not related by blood” carried its own weight. But it wasn’t just his career choice that set him apart. Myles recently opened up about his emotional journey growing up alongside a basketball legend, and let’s just say, it wasn’t always highlight reels and warm hugs.

Interestingly, Shaq isn’t a stranger to the music world either. Beyond dunking on NBA defenses, the Big Diesel has released multiple rap albums and even worked with the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. So on the surface, it seems like Myles and Shaq had a pretty solid common ground. But here’s where it gets tricky—Myles isn’t Shaq’s biological son. He’s from Shaunie Henderson’s previous relationship. And while he did take cues from Shaq’s musical interests, things weren’t as smooth as fans might have guessed. In fact, Myles admitted their relationship frayed during Shaq’s prime championship run.

While chatting on the Cheat Codes Podcast, Myles recalled watching Shaquille O’Neal dominate the league and winning a championship with the Heat and secretly wishing his stepdad would just hang it up already. “I think I said after that championship every year like yeah, you can retire,” Myles confessed. He added, “I was like, yeah, we could show well you got that, that fourth ring, like yeah, but he wanted to keep going. God bless his heart, man.” That longing for time together was real, and it stung.

When the interviewer praised Shaq’s work ethic and the opportunity to witness his work up close, Myles didn’t disagree—but he added a twist. “Yeah, I mean, it’s just, it’s kind of like, is he, I, feel like it’s more like for a long time until I started like doing what I do.” Then came the gut punch: “Now, like it was hard for me and my dad to find stuff to like bond over.”

Over time, music became their bridge. Just last December, Myles had fans cracking up on Instagram. His buddy Max Styler held up a giant cutout of Shaq’s face, hilariously mimicking the Diesel’s signature expressions. Myles added rows of laughing emojis, showing that he was finally in on the joke, and loving it.

At the end of the day, that goofy Instagram moment meant more than laughs. It was a quiet celebration of growth. While Myles admits it was tough connecting with Shaq as a kid, things have changed. Once music gave them a shared rhythm, the bond finally found its beat.

Myles finds his own beat with Shaquille O’Neal

While most of Shaquille O’Neal’s kids picked up the basketball and ran with it, Myles O’Neal decided to chase a different dream. Now a successful model and music artist with a net worth of $5 million, Myles has carved a name for himself in fashion and the EDM world. But even with all that success, he admitted during a 2023 interview with IEDM that the journey with his famous stepdad wasn’t always smooth.

“Since I do not play basketball like my brothers and sisters, there were times in my life when it was hard for my dad and I to have something to bond over, until he started DJing,” he said. “I would go on tour with him, and music brought us way closer together, as a father-son relationship. Our music fuses us, which makes me appreciate what I do that much more.”

Clearly, that bond didn’t happen overnight. Myles shared how, before he found his passion in music, there was a real disconnect. But once he got behind the decks, everything shifted. They’ve toured together, and Myles even hinted he’d be down to collaborate with Shaq someday. Even the Big Diesel himself has shown love for his stepson’s grind.

And it’s no surprise why. In 2023, Myles released ‘Superficial,’ which has since amassed over 400,000+ Spotify streams, and hit the road on his Flashlight Tour. From headlining with EDM giants to bonding with his stepdad, Myles proved you don’t need a basketball to make a real connection.