We have all seen how Shareef O’Neal has been through in an age he is not supposed to. Genuinely, for someone who has to relearn how to walk again, “And we’re going to be in heaven or hell together” is never unreal. That’s not the kind of reassurance most kids would expect when they’re terrified for their lives. But then again, Shaquille O’Neal has always marched to the beat of his own drum—especially when it comes to protecting his family. And he had immense love behind an even more bizarre comforting line he told Shareef O’Neal ahead of the 25-year-old’s heart surgery back in 2018.

Back then, Shareef, only a teenager, had just been diagnosed with a congenital heart defect. It wasn’t something they could put off. Surgery was necessary, and it left everyone around him shaken. Dreams of basketball and bonding between father and son suddenly felt fragile. And Shareef didn’t hold back his fears.

On a recent episode of The Big Podcast, Shaq recalled a moment that still tugs at the heart. Shareef had turned to his father and asked, “Am I going to die?” His fear wasn’t without cause. He had read a chilling comment online claiming, “You know this surgery you know a lot of people don’t wake up from the surgery.” That hit hard. But what Shaq gave him in return was both powerful and oddly poetic.

“If a nobody can influence a somebody, then the nobody wins,” he told Shareef, explaining that his children should always strive to be that ‘nobody’ who stays grounded. It was his way of pushing fear aside and turning it into strength. And then, in true Shaq fashion, came a brutal yet oddly reassuring follow-up. “…I interviewed all the top doctors in the world… He’s the top… And if you don’t wake up, I’m going to be on TV cuz I’m going to k— this m———…” he said. Broken, Shareef needed the confidence. And for him, it was always Shaq, as he explained further.

“I have to teach him not to listen to the outside noise, it’s it’s kind of hard because I don’t understand how you can listen to somebody you don’t know.” Now, if you think this is wild. In a separate interview, O’Neal once stated he told his son he’d become a serial killer if anything were to happen to him.

“If you don’t wake up, I’m coming right behind you because I am killing everybody.” They’re going to kill me because I’m going to be one of the most notorious serial killers. “And we’re going to be in heaven or hell together.” This, however, was an extreme case scenario that Shareef was scared of. As for Shaq, he was quite confident of his son making it through the surgery. His initial approach to assuring his son was to have a good laugh with him over something he said.

Shaquille O’Neal used humor to calm his son down ahead of the heart surgery

As most fans would know, Big Diesel isn’t just remembered for breaking backboards and dominating the paint—his larger-than-life personality off the court is just as iconic. But behind the laughs and charm, he’s also a father who knows exactly how to comfort his children when they need him most. When his 18-year-old son Shareef was preparing for a major heart surgery, fear and anxiety naturally crept in. O’Neal, though, found a way to turn the nerves into a moment of reassurance.

Speaking on the Dan Patrick Show, the Hall of Famer opened up about that difficult time and how he tried to ease his son’s worries before the procedure. “He was very scared. You know, I always said to myself it’s stories that get me to calm down and get me to the next level,” O’Neal said, revealing how Shareef was scared and he had a little tear in his eye. “I told him he should be… But when you go in that room, you’re gonna meet a young lady named ‘Ana Sthesia’ and you won’t remember anything!”

“Her name’s ‘Ana Sthesia’ and she’s gonna kiss you,” Shaq said while laughing, “You’ll wake up and everything will be fine.” And sure enough, Shareef woke up without any memory of what had happened—just like Dad said. O’Neal added that, having gone through ten surgeries himself, his own experience helped give Shareef the strength to face it head-on.