“I’ve learned that the dreams that they have are not ours,” said Shaquille O’Neal’s mother on the promotional tour of her latest venture. “I think that when they express the dream that they have to us, it’s our job to support whatever it is.” Lucille O’Neal’s support story has been told by Shaq at various places whenever he gets the chance. And this time, it is his mother who narrates her end of the story.

The Los Angeles Lakers superstar’s mother alongside Stephen Curry’s mother Sonya have joined hands for a new heartfelt venture. ‘Raising Fame’ will be premiering on July 7th at 10p/9c on TV One. It would dive deep into the sacrifices, struggles, and triumphs of the parents behind the fame. On the promotional tour, she was asked about her emotions after Shaq captured his first championship.

“We don’t have words for it, we don’t have words for it. It took so long to come and we watched the disappointments along the way. And then when I saw Shaquille crying, I was crying too,” Lucille said, via SWAY’S UNIVERSE. She continued how difficult the journey was since Shaq would be blamed for the failures of the team.

“Because I know the journey, how much it took for him to get there and I felt it deep down in here. I was so proud of him as well as happy for him because when it went bad, it was always his fault.” She reminded it was frustrating until that point because the people would always blame her son. Shaq too took it personally but Lucille gave him motivation that his time would come soon.

via Getty

And indeed Shaq’s successful time was for the world to see. Not only did the Lakers capture 3 championship rings back to back, but O’Neal was Finals MVP during that time.

So because of his immense success, he had to show his gratitude for his mother and he did lavishly.

Shaq and his thoughtful present

Before talking about the gift, let’s look at what Shaq had to say to his mother for her latest venture. “Good morning, Mommy. Thank you for being a loving, super fabulous, intelligent, beautiful, and positive role model in the lives of not just me, but our entire family.” O’Neal said as per TODAY’s clip on Jun 18, 2024.

Lucille was a single mother, and the family had certain financial hardships.

So when Shaq’s basketball career took off, he only had one plan in his mind.

The 4x NBA champion did not think twice despite his mother’s initial reluctance to make such a major decision.

Buying for his mother was his main motivation. Since growing up Lucille did not have many things to call her own so Shaq bought her a house worth $800,000.

Before Shaq became a star, Lucile had to sacrifice much and grow to stand on her own financially.

The struggles continued after Phillip’s arrival but they never stopped being a family. Thus, when Shaq earned his first paycheck, he paid off his parents’ debt.