Shaquille O’Neal’s mother recently opened up about her initial concerns about his relationship with ex-wife Shaunie, expressing doubts about whether it was the right fit after their first meeting.

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Shaquille O’Neal and His Ex-Wife Shaunie

The stories of the NBA world’s high-profile athletes’ are always intriguing. One such story comes from Lucille Harrison, the mother of NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal. She has recently shared her candid thoughts about meeting Shaq’s ex-wife, Shaunie Henderson, for the first time. Her comments offer a look into the complexities of their relationship.

The story started in 1996 when Shaquille O’Neal met Shaunie Nelson, now Henderson for the first time after moving to LA to play for the Lakers. For years, their relationship was going well, and growing. Eventually, they got married in 2002 after welcoming their first child in 2000, Shareef.

However, the exact timeline of when Shaq introduced Shaunie to his mother remains unclear. Recently, a new headline on Lucille sharing her feelings about meeting Shaunie for the first time on a few concerns has made waves in the media.

Lucille’s first impressions of Shaquille O’Neal and Shaunie Henderson

Lucille Harrison recently appeared on the Sway in the Morning show with Sonya Curry, the mother of NBA star Steph Curry. Lucille and Curry were on the podcast with host Sway Calloway to discuss their new podcast, Raising Fame, and their experiences as moms to the biggest athletes in the world.

This was when Lucille was asked about her first impression of Shaunie when Shaq introduced her early in their relationship. Host Sway Calloway asked Lucille how it was when she first met Shaunie and knowing that her son is about to be married and have a new person in his life.

Answering the same, Lucille said, “Before then, I had already gotten to the place where my place is secure. I don’t care who he marries or who he gets with. I know my place, and I’m secure in it.”

Despite this confidence, she agreed that her intuition told her something might be off about the relationship. Opening up about the same, Shaq’s mom explained how she had a feeling that it might not be the right relationship.

She shared, “It’s hard to see them go into a relationship and somehow you may feel maybe that might not be the right relationship. But, you have to step back, and we have to let it happen. And I tell a lot of the mothers that we are going to remain their mothers as long as they live… we are not their girlfriends. So, I’m safe in my place.”

The marriage and divorce story of Shaq and Shaunie

Shaq and Shaunie’s wedding was lowkey, with limited people and limited decoration. However, by 2007, the couple with now four children together, were heading for divorce.

They managed to reconcile and withdrew their divorce petition. However, two years later, in 2009, they decided to separate again and filed for divorce in 2010. Shaunie cited “irreconcilable differences,” and their divorce was finalized in 2011.

Shaq has been open about his role in the breakdown of their marriage. In a 2022 interview, he reflected, “I wasn’t protecting her and wasn’t protecting the vows. Sometimes when you live that double life you get caught up. So I’m not going to say it was all her… it was all me.”

Speaking about Shaunie, he said, “She did exactly what she was supposed to do, gave me beautiful kids, took care of the house, took care of the corporate stuff… it was just all me. Sometimes when you make a lot of mistakes like that you can’t really come back.”

In her memoir Undefeated: Changing the Rules and Winning on My Own Terms, Shaunie shared that while she loved Shaq for being a great father, there were parts of him she didn’t love.

“Looking back, I don’t know that I was ever really in love with the man, but I was in love with the idea of being married to the man I had a family with,” an excerpt from Shaunie’s book said. However, she later clarified that her words were taken out of context.

In 2022, Shaunie married Houston-based Pastor Keion Henderson. Shaq publicly congratulated her during an appearance on The Pivot Podcast, saying, “She’s happy now. She’s about to marry a fine young gentleman, and I’m happy for her.”

Currently, despite their past, Shaq and Shaunie continue to co-parent their 6 children. Shaunie has a son from a previous relationship, and Shaq has a daughter with an ex-girlfriend.