Shaquille O’Neal is known these days for his incredible acts of generosity and often-hilarious insights on basketball and everything pop culture. But before he was analyzing the game on Inside the NBA, Shaq was one of the greatest on the court, winning four championships in his 19 seasons with the NBA. A career like his can take a toll on the body, and it turns out the former Laker has been in the hospital taking care of some of that wear and tear. After fans expressed concern about the Hall of Famer, O’Neal provided them with an update and confirmed that he’s OK.
The Kazaam star worried his followers Sunday, when he posted a photo of himself lying in a hospital bed to Twitter. Shaquille O’Neal followed that pic with an update Monday night, telling fans he’d undergone a hip replacement and assuring them that he was on the mend. It should come as a surprise to no one that he did so in such hilarious fashion, tweeting:
to all the people who are worried and concerned. first off , let me say thank you. And lastly no need to worry, just had to get some BBL WORK AKA #hipreplacement. Thanks and love you all. but no need to worry and yes i’m fine. pic.twitter.com/cnmLn58YDyMarch 21, 2023
An image of Shaq’s big ole booty was accompanied by Adele’s “Hello,” as the 51-year-old joked about upgrading his look with a Brazilian butt lift. (Hey, maybe that will help him achieve his goal of being an underwear model!) In actuality it was a hip replacement, not a BBL, and he acknowledged that he had given his fans a scare with the hospital bed picture, thanking them and repeating a couple of times that there was no need to worry.
One can easily see why fans started reaching out, as Shaq shared the following post, shouting out fellow NBA analysts Ernie Johnson and Candace Parker, on March 19:
i’m always watching @TurnerSportsEJ and @Candace_Parker miss y’all pic.twitter.com/4tY4X6v1PjMarch 19, 2023
Nobody wants to see Superman attached to all those wires, though he does look like he’s getting some good rest on what must be a supersized hospital bed. Hopefully he’ll have a quick recovery and be back in the Inside the NBA studio soon — though he may want to watch out around Christmas trees and try to stay on Kenny Smith’s good side!
Over the past year it hasn’t just been his hot takes on every topic from the Will Smith Oscars slap to Adam Levine’s cheating scandal that have turned attention to the NBA legend, but his incredible acts of kindness. While out on a date last June, Shaquille O’Neal spent over $25,000 at a New York restaurant, picking up the check for every diner, as well as buying dinner for all of the servers. He then reportedly left them the biggest tip they’d ever received.
That same month he donated the $50,000 he got for his DJ gig in Buffalo, New York, to the families of those killed in the mass shooting at Tops Friendly Markets a month earlier. Shaq also spent time with the family of retired police officer Aaron Salter Jr., who died trying to stop the shooter.
Hopefully Shaquille O’Neal’s hip replacement won’t have him sitting on the sidelines for too long. We wish him a quick and full recovery, and can’t wait to see the results of that BBL!
