Shaq’s Son Shareef O’Neal Reveals Heart-melting Admission Following Kobe Bryant’s Tragedy

Shaquille O’Neal’s son, Shareef, had a special relationship with late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. The kid was devastated after Kobe’s death. It was hard for him to accept the truth, mostly because Kobe actually texted him hours before his helicopter crashed in the hillside outside Los Angeles.

Shareef shared a screengrab of Kobe asking him “You good fam?” This message is actually his phone background now.

“I look at it every day,” Shareef said. “It’s a special moment. It’s crazy that three hours before that he texted me asking if I’m good. He was always checking in on me. I was literally going, I would’ve seen him that day because I was going to the same place he was going. It’s crazy. It’s still unbelievable.”

Shareef and Kobe had plans

Shareef was supposed to go to Kobe’s Mamba Sports Academy. Bryant was going in the same direction. The Black Mamba wanted O’Neal’s sister to play with his girl Gianna, who also lost her life in the crash.

“There’s always those people in life you look at like superheroes and that nothing bad can ever happen to them. It’s still unbelievable to me, I still don’t even want to believe it,” Shareef said. “It’s just crazy to think about. It races through my mind, but it made me focus more. I feel like it’s changed my basketball drive to times 10. I’m gonna do it for him because I know he’d want me to do well. He always told me he wanted me to do well. It’s crazy, but I’m gonna play for him.”

Shaq’s son is transferring from UCLA to LSU, and he even got a tattoo to pay tribute to Kobe. He isn’t the only one to get a Black Mamba too. Lakers superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis did the same earlier this month.

Shaq can’t get over Bryant’s death. They won three NBA titles together. It was like losing a family member to him.

The tributes won’t stop here, and everyone wants to share a piece of history they had with Bryant. This tragedy shocked the basketball world, and it’s hard to believe that Kobe won’t appear at the sidelines at Staples Center ever again. His name will be remembered as the name of a great legend and icon. Young athletes looked up to him. He wasn’t selfish when it comes to sharing his knowledge.

Davis shared his story with Bryant and the meaning of his tattoo. Kobe helped him learn a lot about professional basketball and this means the world for Davis.