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Shaquille O’Neal Shuts Down Lying Accusations on Former $11 Million Property

Published 03/01/2024, 5:30 AM EST

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Shaquille O’Neal made for one of the most memorable house tours on MTV’s iconic show, Cribs. After all, who doesn’t want to see Superman’s fortress? Even though the show and some celebrities came under criticism for apparently not showing their real homes on the show, the Big Aristotle stayed true to himself. Shaq is giving his Australian fans a summary of his personality on a local radio show. And he’s letting everyone know his home is as larger than life as he is.

The Zoom host, Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald asked O’Neal if that massive Orlando residence they saw on the MTV show was really his. “Of course! Come on, Fitzy, cut it out,” the 7-footer responded. To be fair, when the Shaq-sized mega-mansion featured on the premiere episode of season 8, it was the Orlando Magic great’s house. The 4x NBA champion sold the estate for $11 million in 2021.

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The highlight of this 31,000 sq ft lakeside property was how everything was big enough to make the 7’1″ backboard-breaker look average sized. As the hosts pointed out the ginormous bed he showed on Cribs, Shaq said it was “big enough to fit 50 people.

True to character, the house has a dozen rooms and bathrooms each, complemented with multiple car show size garages, a custom movie theater, and a sprawling 95-foot swimming pool with waterfalls, It wouldn’t be the Big Diesel’s residence though without ‘The Shaq Center,’ a full-sized basketball court with Superman logos on display

READ MORE: Shaquille O’Neal Got “Jealous” of Louis Vuitton Creation, Drops Honest Confession About Unfulfilled Wish

Unfortunately, the home might not bear any of the classic Shaq architecture any more as it’s now the residence of another family.

Shaquille O’Neal ‘s Orlando ‘Crib’ is not his anymore

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When the Orlando Magic retired his jersey, Shaquille O’Neal recalled at the event that he was racking up thousands in bills staying at the Hilton when he first arrived in the city. His teammate Dennis Scott introduced him to a realtor and he finally became a homeowner in Orlando.

Then, a rookie Shaq bought the mansion in 1993 for $3.95 million. It was like home to him and his six kids even when he played in Los Angeles and Miami. Over the years, he expanded it and added more features to the property.

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He listed it for sale in 2018 for $28 million. The price was dropped to $21.9 million in 2019, and $16.5 million in 2020. It finally sold for $11 million in 2021. The buyers were kept confidential but the realtors revealed they plan to renovate it and take out the Shaq features to make it their family home.

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Shaquille O’Neal doesn’t have any shortage of properties in multiple cities that could fill up an entire Cribs season. But this was a good reminder to rewatch his episode on the show. What was your favorite part of Shaq’s Crib? 

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Written by:

Caroline John

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Caroline John is a senior NBA writer at EssentiallySports. She holds a Masters degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from a reputed university. With 8 years of experience in content writing and after judiciously covering the life of Shaquille O’Neal, she even earned an exclusive interview with the CEO of Shaq’s Big Chicken franchise, Josh Halpern.
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Edited by:

Aakash Nair