Shaqir O’Neal has decided to play for a guy whom his father had multiple heated playoff battles against.
Shaqir, the son of legendary Hall of Fame big man Shaquille O’Neal, announced to social media this week that he has committed to play for Sacramento State University. The news comes after Shaqir had just entered the transfer portal a few days prior.
Sacramento State is now notably coached by Mike Bibby, the former NBA guard. Bibby, whose hire was only announced last week, is very familiar to Shaq. The two used to be hated rivals when Shaq played for the Los Angeles Lakers and Bibby played for the Sacramento Kings.
Shaqir O'Neal dribbling the ball
Nov 11, 2024; College Park, Maryland, USA; Florida A&M Rattlers forward Shaqir O’Neal (8) drives to the basket against Maryland Terrapins guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie (0) during the first half at Xfinity Center. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images
In the early 2000s, the Lakers and the Kings met in the NBA playoffs twice (in 2001 and in 2002). While Shaq’s Lakers prevailed both times, The Big Diesel especially disdained Bibby’s Kings. He would regularly take public shots at Bibby’s teammates like Vlade Divac and Doug Christie and once even memorably referred to the team as “The Sacramento Queens.”
That said though, Shaq eventually made peace with the Kings and even became a minority owner of the franchise from 2013-22. Now his son Shaqir, 21, is further proving that the hatchet is long buried by going to play for Bibby.
The 46-year-old Bibby enters his new job without any college coaching experience (though he has served as a head coach at both the high school and the AAU levels). But what he does have is a Hall of Famer’s son in Shaqir, who averaged 6.7 points per game last season for Florida A&M, as his first official recruit.