Having built a multi-million dollar business empire, Shaquille O’Neal has, at times, famously revealed that he has certain methods to do business. One such method endorsed by O’Neal is partnering up with other people to pursue new lucrative avenues. However, the Lakers legend is very picky in choosing partners to do business with. Despite being a man of mythical fame himself, Shaq has recently proclaimed that he is averse to interacting with celebrities and is not interested in doing business with them.

Shaq has adhered to his distaste for celebrities while endorsing a particular company for a noble cause. However, his latest ‘noble’ move might also have personal motives.

Shaquille O’Neal has been endorsing the insurance company, ‘The General’, for quite some time now. O’Neal did not shy away from endorsing the company with an internet sensation, who is not a so-called celebrity. The company is set to venture into the G League for a noble cause.

Shaquille O’Neal dismisses celebrities while endorsing a company

In a commercial for The General, Shaquille O’Neal had starred with the internet sensation Bad Luck Brian. Though Bad Luck Brian is regarded as an internet celebrity by many, Shaq hates to call himself and his co-actor a celebrity, and he has reasons for it. “I don’t want to be in that category[celebrities]. I’d rather demote myself to being just a regular person before you call me a celebrity and put me in the category of those jerk-offs,” Shaq said in an interview with People.com. Celebrities are often ‘rude’ and ‘obnoxious’ people, according to O’Neal, who spent almost a decade playing for the Los Angeles Lalers.

“He was a very nice guy,” Shaq said, while talking about his co-star Brian. “People are saying ‘internet celebrities,’ but I don’t want to use those terms in this. He was nice, I was nice, and his story is an amazing story, how he became the sensation that he is,” added the Diesel.

Though, Shaq has upheld humility and dismissed celebrity status while endorsing The General, the fact that the company is venturing into his son Shareef’s league, might have fuelled Shaq’s interest to endorse the company.

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Endorsing for a noble cause might have a personal motive as well

It has been a few days since The General announced that they would become the official insurance sponsor of the NBA G League, where O’Neal’s son Shareef O’Neal plays. Apparently, The General and the NBA G League are launching a docuseries titled, “The Break presented by The General,” which will showcase stories and personalities from across the G League with a behind-the-scenes look at players’ path to the NBA.

“I wanted to be able to give these kids the extra eyes that they deserve,” said Shaquille O’Neal.

There is no doubt that Shaq’s choice to endorse The General will prove beneficial for numerous budding talents in the G League. However, it is impossible to overlook the fact that Shareef O’Neal will also reap the benefits of the platform. Besides, given Shaq’s involvement in The General, fans would have to wait and see how much screentime Shareef O’Neal gets in the forthcoming docuseries.

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