2023-05-12 20:30:00
Big league legend Shaquille O’Neal obviously hoped his son Shareef could do the same on the court. As he confided years ago, he particularly wanted the young man to be inspired by a particular superstar to shape his game. We have known worse as an idea!
When you are the son of a monument of the orange ball, it is always difficult to follow in his footsteps. This is what Shareef O’Neal quickly understood, whose pro debut is far from being as sensational as that of the Shaq. Undrafted then cut by the Lakers during summer camps, he is now playing in the G League with Team Ignite, also distinguished himself against Victor Wembanyama.
On the other hand, the young big man had never intended to do the same crazy things as his father, who was quickly made independent by Big Diesel as to his future. The Hall of Famer wanted his offspring to trace his own path, even if the latter led him to the courts. However, he obviously kept a close eye on his sporting development.
Interviewed in 2015 by the San Francisco Gate, Shaqfu explained that he saw a young insider in the league being the perfect role model for his offspring. Coincidence or not, we had to look at New Orleans, the legend and his son having each studied at LSU:
This is a new version ofAnthony Davis. I want him to be 2m10 tall and able to play a bit off but he’ll probably be 2m15 tall. He’s a great outside shooter. I don’t know where he got that from, but I don’t care. It is super coordinated. I’m jealous.
Anthony Davis, the Shaq’s dream model for his son Shareef
Years later, this time in an interview with the Times Picayunethe former Lakers had also reiterated the comparison between the two because convinced that there was a track to exploit for “Reef”:
I told him to watch Anthony because he will probably be the same height and have the same type of build. Not skinny, but long. He is probably the best in this position. He can run, rebound, dominate, take control of the game.
Unfortunately for the son O’Neal, it is especially in terms of their physical fragility that he and The Brow are very similar. In addition to a major heart operation suffered during his career at university, the young player also experienced foot problems and this ended up costing him a place among the 60 names called on the evening of his draft. . No chance…
However, it is easy to understand why the Big Aristotle had this project in mind. In 2015, when he was only in his third season, AD was already averaging nearly 25 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks against the Pelicans. When he is in good health, the 2021 champion remains one of the very best NBA players thanks to his offensive and defensive arsenal. Normal that it is then a source of inspiration.
He may be injury-prone, but Anthony Davis is still a fabulous basketball player who was already bursting onto the screen in 2015. No wonder the Shaq wanted to see his son draw inspiration from it. Unfortunately, it seems that he mostly copied his physical fragility…
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