Shaquille O’Neal is a basketball legend both on and off the court.
Following a very successful run as one of the greatest players to ever play the game, he embarked on an extremely lucrative career as an analyst on TNT.
Along the way, O’Neal has come to be known as something of a ‘jolly giant’ in the field.
Which probably explains why, this week, fans were so surprised to see how skinny he has gotten recently.
Shaq shows off his weight loss 😳 pic.twitter.com/AOUVLQKKDQ
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) October 8, 2023
NBA fans are a very vocal bunch. Be it for how they reacted to Alicia Keys dancing courtside at a Lakers game or how they responded to Cam Reddish’s penchant for bad plays, they are never shy to offer their two cents.
O’Neal’s massive weight loss proved to be no exception.
Ozempic?
— The Ghost of Geert (@TheGhostOfGeert) October 8, 2023
Shaq should come back out of retirement
— Cr7 Vision (@CR7_Vision) October 8, 2023
This is literally all Kobe asked for. They could’ve had 6 together if he just got it together.
— Khalid (@ImKowabunga) October 8, 2023
Bro lost a good 50 pounds 🤯
— Kyrie’s Hub (@kyrieshub) October 8, 2023
He wants to beat kenny to the board this season. And wants to make Charles look bad at the same time
— Chris Reilly (@C_Reilly5) October 8, 2023
Proud of Shaq wish he would’ve done this when Kobe told his ass too 🤣🏆
— 𝔻𝕦𝕕𝕕𝕒𝕤♛ (@Georgie_Montana) October 8, 2023
Wow I think this was leaner than he was in the league after the magic
— Next Level (@NextLev8) October 8, 2023
It goes without saying that O’Neal often finds himself in the news cycle.
Between the revelations he has made about the drug he took while in the league, his honest confession about his life-threatening issue and his brutal advice to his own son, he is a permanent fixture in the headlines.
But this incredible weight loss is a really special reason to blow up online.
With the NBA regular season rapidly approaching, this probably isn’t the last time in the coming days O’Neal will find himself trending.
Related: Paul Pierce’s Real Reason For Not Liking Lakers’ LeBron James
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
