Imago
Image Credits: Imago
Imago
Image Credits: Imago
Everyone knows how legendary Shaquille O’Neal is in Los Angeles. With the Lakers, the Diesel captured a three-peat and was the centerpiece of one of the most dominant teams in the league. However, things might be changing, and the most significant indication comes from the big man himself.
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Recently, O’Neal appeared on a debate show with Overtime to promote his new Shaq-a-Licious gummies and was presented with an interesting perspective from one of the participants.
“Shohei Ohtani, what he is doing right now, will never be done in any sport ever again,” he told O’Neal, who was sitting face-to-face.
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“You are one of the greatest LA icons of all time, unquestionably… What [Ohtani] is accomplishing in the game of Major League Baseball has never been done in 150 years.”
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The setup was interesting. The participant spoke as a lifelong LA native, crediting Shaq for everything he meant to the city, but then turned. Ohtani is more than great; he’s unprecedented, doing things no athlete in any sport has ever done, with LA as his stage.
O’Neal’s reaction said everything before he even spoke. Hands in his face, face sulking, as he admitted:
“I hate to say it, but he’s correct. One reason only. There’s a lot of people in Japan.”
O’Neal contextualized his reasoning with an NBA example. Back in the early 2000s, he regularly led centers in All-Star voting, which meant that he would start during the All-Star games. However, that changed when Houston Rockets star Yao Ming came in.
Ming, due to being the most well-known Chinese player at the time, had the support of an entire nation behind him, instantly leading the fan voting amongst centers in 2002-03, which meant that O’Neal came off the bench during All-Star weekend.
However, this isn’t the only surprising admission O’Neal has made about Ohtani.
The $700 million contract that finally put Shohei Ohtani on Shaquille O’Neal’s radar
Most fans were already familiar with Shohei Ohtani before he joined the Los Angeles Dodgers, especially with his outstanding play with the Los Angeles Angels and in Japan. However, Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t someone tapped into the cultural phenomenon, and asked one of his cohosts on an episode of the Big Podcast:
“I’m not really a baseball fan. Is [Ohtani] as spectacular as I see in his highlights?”
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Baseball: Dodgers vs. Pirates Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates with teammates after hitting a solo home run in the third inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 2, 2025, at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. PUBLICATIONxINxAUTxBELxBIHxBULxCZExDENxESTxFINxFRAxGEOxGERxGRExHUNxISLxIRLxITAxLATxLTUxLUXxLIExMKDxNORxPORxPOLxROUxSVKxSUIxSRBxSLOxESPxTURxUKxUAExONLY A14AA0004815576P
His cohosts quickly filled in the gaps, talking about the “miraculous things” spectators at Dodger Stadium are used to seeing. They struggled to believe that O’Neal wasn’t familiar with the four-time MVP.
However, what ultimately broke through to O’Neal was Ohtani’s contract. The former Lakers center admitted that Ohtani’s greatness truly registered when he saw the numbers on the screen.
“That 750 [million],” he said. “I was in the kitchen one day, and it said ‘$750 million.’ I thought it was a typo.”
The deal that O’Neal was referring to was a 10-year, $700 million affair, the largest in professional sports history at the time, and reframed the Dodgers player for O’Neal. Add in the unprecedented decision to defer most of the money so he only makes about $2 million per year for now, and Ohtani has become more than a baseball star. He’s a global figure.
Written by
Edited by
Shreya Singh