Shaquille O’Neal Once Misappropriated $250,000 From His Own Car Wash: “I Was Being a Irresponsible Business Owner…I Was Having Too Much Fun”

Shaquille O’Neal started creating his business empire from the very onset of his NBA career. In his whopping $400 million net worth are included 150 incredible car washes across the United States. However, Shaquille O’Neal did not have an innate gift for business. He had a passion for it but even he has made his share of mistakes in the beginning. One time, those mistakes almost cost his business a quarter of a million dollars, and that too in pennies and quarters.

Several years ago, Shaquille O’Neal revealed a bizarre story about the time he had too much fun with his business. Subsequently, he ended up with endless bags of quarters and pennies in his locker, which got him worried about what to do with these many coins. This is the bizarre story of what happened when Shaquille O’Neal technically stole $250,000 from his own car wash.

When Shaquille O’Neal had too much fun with his business

During his conversation with Graham Bensinger on his show, Shaquille O’Neal revealed this bizarre story about his car wash. He said, “I was being a irresponsible business owner. Because I had other monies coming in, I was paying my bills from the other monies. But I was just having too much fun.”

Further, he added, “I would get the coins and the quarters and I’d just take them home and put them in my safe. But so much money was coming in, I didn’t think we could take quarters and dimes to the bank like that. I didn’t want them to think I was, you know, breaking into vending machines. So I would just take them and dump them in plastic bags and pillowcases and put them in the house.”

Also Read: Jayson Tatum Shuts Down Former NBA Champion’s Criticism While Praising Celtics All-Star Teammate’s Performance vs Knicks

What did this mean for Shaq?

In this segment of the show, Shaq was basically talking about the mistakes he made during the start of his business. So we know his struggles while making a career for himself in the business industry. As revealed by Graham Bensinger on the show, the car washes were one of the first investments for Shaq during his NBA career. Therefore, undoubtedly, they were close to his heart and a product of his own innovation.

Watch This Story: Five Times Klay Thompson Proved Hes Not Just Stephen Currys Second in Command

So this story is nothing but a hilarious walk down memory lane for him. Surely, we’re all allowed to make such mistakes in our personal ventures in life. And for Shaq, that mistake taught him how to build a business empire with 150 car washes. Indeed, Shaq learned his lesson very well.