"My favorite player, actually, growing up is LeBron, and my dad knows that" - Shaquille O'Neal's son reveals his favorite player growing up
Shaquille O'Neal is one of the greatest players to ever play the game. It's natural for Shaq's son, Shareef O'Neal, to idolize his Hall of Fame father. However, Shareef revealed in his pre-draft news conference that his favorite player growing up was LeBron James.
The 22-year-old O'Neal had a workout for the LA Lakers on Tuesday in the hope of getting selected in Thursday's draft. Shareef was asked by reporters about his childhood and what it was like to grow up as the son of a legendary player. He also explained how he looked up to his dad but named "The King" as his favorite player.
"When I come to the Lakers game, I always had the yellow 34 jersey," Shareef said. "I still got my Kobe (Bryant) jersey. My favorite player, actually, growing up is LeBron, and my dad knows that. Out of my dad and Kobe, for sure, my dad. I was my dad's biggest fan when I was a little kid."
He added:
"I used to go to every single game seeing him and Kobe do that. Seeing them win championships; I used to go to the parades and all that stuff. I've been around this franchise for a long time."
Shareef was just born when Shaquille O'Neal he won his first championship in 2000. O'Neal won two more titles with the LA Lakers before winning his fourth in 2006 with the Miami Heat. Shareef followed in his dad's footsteps at LSU and is now looking to make it to the NBA.
However, Shareef's journey has not been easy. He was one of the top high school players before undergoing heart surgery in his first year in UCLA. After 13 games in his freshman season, he transferred to LSU for his sophomore and junior year. He averaged just 2.9 points and 2.1 rebounds last season, though.
Shaquille O'Neal did not want Shareef to enter NBA draft
Shareef O'Neal revealed in a video conference (h/t ESPN) that Shaquille O'Neal did not want him to enter Thursday's draft. Shareef explained that he butted heads with his father regarding the same.
The young O'Neal, though. wants to carve his own path and become a better player.
"We kind of bump heads about this process," Shareef said. "He wanted me to stay in school. I wanted to better myself through this. He knows I'm working out with teams, but I'm not going to lie; we ain't talked about this. I'm kind of just going through it."
New story: Shareef O'Neal donned a Lakers practice jersey on Tuesday as part of a pre-draft workout, just like his father wore decades ago. But it wasn't some grand family moment. "He didn't want me to do this," Shareef said of Shaquille. es.pn/3OawB2Y
According to Koki Riley of Yahoo! Sports, Shareef O'Neal is expected to go undrafted on Thursday. Shareef is still a raw prospect who needs to gain muscle. He does have some defensive potential but lacks the shooting needed in today's NBA.
However, Riley did note that a team like the Houston Rockets could show interest in O'Neal. In addition to the LA Lakers, Shareef has also worked out with the Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks, Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards.