Lucille O’Neal was determined to be her own kind of parent. Shaquille O’Neal has acknowledged this about his mother, sharing that she grew up in less-than-ideal family circumstances. When Lucille became pregnant with Shaquille at 17, her grandparents weren’t the supportive presence her own mother was. Despite the challenges, Lucille didn’t let circumstances hold her back. Today, she’s Dr. Lucille O’Neal, a thriving philanthropist, and she recently published her second memoir. Her children attest to her being an amazing mom, an accomplishment she achieved by taking a different path than her grandparents.

On the press rounds for her new book, While I Have Your Attention, Lucille spoke about her home life growing up. “My grandparents raised me with love through protection, warmth, and food on the table,” she said. We know from her 2010 memoir that Lucille’s parents separated when she was young and her grandparents raised her. They were, however, very strict, lacked affection, and stopped at the basic necessities.

Lucille rebelled by embracing a partying lifestyle, but that came to an abrupt halt when she became pregnant as a teenager, and the father of her child refused to take responsibility. Her grandparents disapproved of the situation and kicked her out. With the support of her mother, Odessa, Lucille gave birth to Shaquille O’Neal in her teens. Later, she married Philip Harrison, with whom she had three more children.

Right away, Lucille decided she wanted her kids to have a different family from what she had. “But I knew I wanted more for my children. I wanted them to feel it and hear it. I made sure my kids knew they were loved, no matter how tough things got. It was important for me to be that bridge between the past and the future—a future where we could show affection freely,” she said five decades after she became a teen mom.

Odessa deserves credit for giving Lucille the kind of family she wanted. And even Shaq adores his grandmother for that.

Shaq built the bridge his mother wants

To date, Shaquille O’Neal has strong feelings about his maternal family. Before Harrison came into the picture, Lucille raised Shaq alone. He resented his great-grandparents for her hardships even years later.

“So we were back and forth for two-three years. But when she told the family she was pregnant, they told her to get out. Get out,” O’Neal said in an interview as his reasons for holding a grudge against his great-grandparents.

Lucille eventually reconciled with Odessa when Shaq was three. She has been a very active gran since. O’Neal has fond stories about his grandmother giving him extra allowance for snacks and letting him get extended playtime. She even told off an adult Shaq for buying her an expensive house.

His grandfather didn’t fall behind either. O’Neal credits him and his granduncle for his love for cars.

Shaq revealed on The Big Podcast, that he hopes to be a spoiling, doting grandparent like his own grandmother. So it does seem the bridge between generations Lucille wanted to build is accomplished.