Shaquille O’Neal is extremely concerned about the city where he won his first championships and is home to family, including his son. Southern California is gripped by devastating wildfires and it’s affected more than a few famous names. Even Candace Parker was unable to return for the first TNT Tuesday of the season. While his kids and his ex-wife have been rallying support for Angelites, Shaq spoke about the situation with ExtraTV and once more on TNT.

At least Myles O’Neal is a California resident while most of Shaq’s kids are in Florida or Texas. Myles’ updates show he’s safe but O’Neal had a small update on his loved ones in California. “A couple of really close friends lost their home. My heart goes out to them and their families.” He further said, “It’s devastating to watch, my heart goes out to everyone.”

Shaq is seeing a small positive in this crisis. He’s happy to see the unity in Californians to help each other through this. “I know the people of LA will stand by their comrades and we’ll definitely get through this.”

O’Neal is one of the many Angelites who will lend a hand, but quietly. “I’ve never felt comfortable in times like this, getting on my Instagram, showing you what I’m doing. I rather just do most of the work unseen.” The LA Port Authority officer also gave a shoutout to the firefighters and first responders in this crisis.

He said some of his colleagues have lost their homes. He doesn’t specify whom but maybe he’s referring to Candace Parker among them.

California disaster hits close to Shaq’s TNT home

Shaquille O’Neal’s TNT colleague and Los Angeles Sparks star, Candace Parker has remained quiet about her circumstances so far, but has been sharing regular updates about the situation on Instagram. She is also absent from the first TNT Tuesday premiere of 2025.

Adam Lefkoe announced it on the pregame show along with pledging the thoughts and support of the entire TNT family to Parker and the Southern California community. Shaq once again repeated the sentiment for his friends there who lost their homes before hailing the people helping out in this time of need.

“Kudos to all the real heroes that are volunteering and helping risking their lives. Hopefully this tragedy will be over very, very soon. You know, all the firefighters, police guys, regular people that are donating their time, donating their money, risking their lives to help those in need, kudos to you guys.” 

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TNT duties keep O’Neal in Atlanta and he’s a North Texas resident too, but still does his part for LA. Even his kids and their mother have been actively supporting California’s efforts to rebuild and are praying for everyone’s safety there. TNT has been aiding efforts through NBA Cares on the league website.