When you think of Shaquille O’Neal you often think of a larger-than-life exuberance and joy that made the NBA legend such an unstoppable force in the worlds of media and commercials.
Of course, there’s the person one presents themselves as and the real person lurking underneath the surface. Recently, O’Neal has been very forthcoming with details about his romantic life and how things haven’t turned out the way he’d hoped (he divorced ex-wife Shaunie Henderson in 2011). Now he’s sharing that he doesn’t see much hope for a long-term relationship as he grows older.
“I’m gonna end up alone, ” Shaq said this week on Angel Reese’s Unapologetically Angel podcast. “I already know it. Because y’all be making rules up as you go along. There is no handbook on how to be the perfect man or perfect husband … and y’all be making sh*t up without telling us.
“If I’m not physically seeing somebody — me, the Diesel — and I’m with you every day and you know my schedule, it shouldn’t matter what I’m doing on my phone. It’s not cheating and then you can’t tell me that’s worse than cheating. It’s not. I just don’t understand that.
“I already know I’m going to end up being alone … Nobody can understand me because I’m weird.”
The Inside the NBA analyst added that he’s putting his focus on work, especially now that he’s in a position where his future employment is very up in the air. And he sees that as a complication when he tries to be in a relationship with someone.
“I always tell people, men should always be focused on three things: protecting, providing, and loving. But the problem with women is, you all want it in the order that you want it in.
“You date me, you want the love first. ‘Aw, let’s go here.’ No, I don’t got time for that right now. I’m a provider first. I only got 18 summers left and I’m gonna be 70. I’m not going to be doing podcasts at 70, I’m not going to be getting deals at 70. So, I’m trying to know all of this sh*t out now.”
O’Neal and Henderson separated in 2009 before finalizing their divorce in 2011. They have four children while O’Neal also has a daughter from a previous relationship.
The Pro Basketball Hall of Famer previously said that he blamed himself for the failure of his marriage. In his 2011 memoir, “Shaq Uncut: My Story,” O’Neal said he was living “a double life” and that infidelity played a role in his split.
At least he’ll always have Chuck.
