There are very few NBA players, active or retired, that have more on their plate than Los Angeles Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal. The Hall of Fame big man can regularly be seen in commercials for The General and Icy Hot while also being a board member for Papa John’s and the President of Basketball at Reebok.
And of course, Shaq also remains part of “Inside the NBA,” arguably the best in-game studio show in all of sports. But O’Neal is always looking for more and with the change in collegiate sports across the country, many schools now require a general manager for their sports programs.
And Shaq is now jumping at the opportunity as the Lakers legend has agreed to become the man’s basketball general manager at Sacramento State where his son Shaqir plays, and where former Sacramento Kings point guard Mike Bibby is the head coach, via Shams Charania of ESPN:
Shaquille O'Neal has agreed to become the men's basketball general manager of Sacramento State, sources tell ESPN. It will be a voluntary role for Shaq, whose son, Shaqir O'Neal, also plays for Sac State under Mike Bibby. Shaq and Bibby form a star duo as college GM and coach. pic.twitter.com/3F2NQBbhf7
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 29, 2025
It is pretty funny to see Shaq and Bibby teamed up after all of the fierce battles the two waged against one another in the early-2000s when the Lakers-Kings rivalry was at its peak. Nonetheless, both are now on board in trying to turn this Sacramento State program around.
O’Neal’s son being there surely played a role in his decision, but Shaq has always been someone who takes his jobs and investments seriously and he would not have taken on this role if he wasn’t really committed. It won’t be easy, however, as the Hornets have just one winning season in their program’s history and won just seven games last season.
Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal explains why he was so hard on Dwight Howard
The ongoing beef between Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal and soon-to-be Hall of Famer Dwight Howard finally seems to have come to an end as the former agreed to walk the latter out at his Hall of Fame ceremony. But the two continually exchanged barbs through the years and it seemed as if Shaq was a bit extra in his criticisms.
But Howard appeared on “The Big Podcast” with Shaq and the Lakers legend claimed that his goal was to make Howard hate him so that he would reach another level of dominance that he felt he was capable of.
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