Thanksgiving is a week away but Shaquille O’Neal has a head start on making families happy during the holidays. Turkey-loving maniac Big Diesel was his generous self to a lot of kids and their families in South Los Angeles. And nothing brightens the gentle giant more than spreading smiles. This is only the surface of what Shaq is doing as he’s determined to bring some smiles on Thanksgiving.

O’Neal’s personal Thanksgiving plans are usually low-key with his favorite meal. But that doesn’t stop him from turning his multiple ventures like Big Chicken to spread joy on the holiday.

Shaquille O’Neal makes South LA very happy

The youth in South LA have renewed vigor for their hoops dreams thanks to Los Angeles Lakers legend, Shaquille O’Neal. Continuing his longstanding philanthropy with the Boys & Girls Club, he refurbished a local basketball court in Metro LA. It is a continuing initiative, Comebaq Court, to fix sporting facilities for kids across the country launched by the Shaquille O’Neal Foundation.

Shaq was at the reopening of the court at the local chapter of BGC along with reps of Icy Hot on Thursday. The pain relief brand has had O’Neal as a partner since his NBA career, supported his charity for kids, and gave him a platform for his directorial debut through a series of commercials for their kids’ pain relief patch.

“If we can help one, if we can help 100, we can help ’em all,” O’Neal stated his driving principle at the opening. After chatting with the media, he’d spend the rest of the day playing with the kids and was, overall, a happy virus there.

O’Neal donated an additional $20,000 to the club. Furthermore, all the 160 or so club members will get a pair of Reebok sneakers courtesy of the new basketball division prez. After all that, he was still humbled by the love he got from these young fans. “All the kids know who Uncle Shaq is,” he gushed. “It’s kind of amazing. I haven’t played ball in 12 years but they know who I am.”

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This is the fifth refurbishment under Comebaq Court. His foundation has fixed up courts in Newark (Shaq’s hometown), Atlanta, Miami, and Las Vegas. As it was gratitude season, O’Neal was grateful to Icy Hot, the BGC volunteers, and the counselors for supporting his efforts. And this isn’t the last of what Shaq has in store for the rest of Thanksgiving month.

Shaq’s understated Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is his favorite holiday with his favorite dish. Legend has it that he can palm an entire full-size turkey, dismantle it, and consume it in one sitting. BBQ maven, Susie Bulloch, confirmed it. Other than turkey, he’s also a fan of helping families.

At the BGC event, he said this is what Thanksgiving is looking like for him. “I don’t do anything in my house,” he said. “I try to feed homeless families.” We all dream of a quiet Thanksgiving sometimes. Shaq usually gives his personal chef an off on the day and makes himself a humble turkey sandwich.

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He’s known to do other kind acts like buying an entire restaurant full of people a Thanksgiving meal. His fast casual dining chain, Big Chicken Shaq is set to open its new outlet in Tannersville during Thanksgiving week. The first 34 arrivals (34 after Shaq’s NBA jersey) will get treated to a sandwich every week for a year.

Big Aristotle is giving more reasons to smile on Thanksgiving. Fans can only be more grateful the world has Shaq among them.