NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal said that he no longer wants to be considered a celebrity because of how poorly celebrities treat other people, and instead wants to be remembered for his kindness, rather than his abilities as a basketball player and analyst.
"These celebrities are going freaking crazy and I don’t want to be one. I denounce my celebrity-ness today. I’m done with it," he O'Neal said in a Friday interview with the New York Post.
"I don’t want to be in that category," he continued. "Celebrities are crazy, they really are. Don’t call me that anymore. These people are out of their freaking mind with how they treat people, what they do, what they say. That’s never been me. I never want to be looked at like that."
O'Neal, a four-time champion during his 19-year NBA career, also pointed out that, while celebrities typically get stereotyped as people who are "out of their mind," he wants to distance himself from that category as he just to be seen as a nice guy.
"All my life, everyone probably gets stereotyped, but us celebrities, we get stereotyped because most of these celebrities are out of their mind. I don’t do that. I’m a regular person that listened, followed his dreams and made it," he said.
O'Neal, who grew up in poverty, made it clear that, while he ultimately became successful, he still does not think of himself as being better than anyone else due to his status and fortune.
"I came from nothing," O'Neal said. "But, just because I made it doesn’t mean I’m bigger than you, smarter than you — just because I have more money doesn’t mean I’m better than you. I’ve never been that way and I never will be that way. So I don’t want to be in that category of people."
"When they talk about Shaq, what do you say? 'He’s a nice guy.' Because what else can you be? You’re either nice or you’re the A-word, and I definitely won’t be looked at as the A-word," O'Neal said.
"I want people to say, 'Bro, he’s nice. He didn’t have an entourage. His people didn’t take my phone because I took a picture and threw it,'" he continued.
O'Neal, who will continue working as an analyst for the NBA on TNT, has made it a priority to engage in random acts of kindness, which he said he tries to do at least twice per week.
These gestures have included paying for a stranger's engagement ring, donating $35,000 to an Atlanta restaurant that was affected by the coronavirus pandemic and partnering with Mission Tiger to fund new sports equipment for a total of more than 60,000 middle school athletes residing in cities where he played during his NBA career — Orlando, Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, Cleveland and Boston.
"I'm just trying to make people smile... That's all."@SHAQ helped a young man out at a local jewelry store by paying for his engagement ring. pic.twitter.com/eK8n0YHGb7
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 7, 2021