Shaquille O’Neal has again made it to the media headlines, but this time because of a photo going viral online. Notably, the 5x NBA champ’s dating history has been quite long and quite popular as well. And amid similar rumors, what has caught netizens’ attention is a photo featuring Shaquille O’Neal with a young girl. 

The X page, Daily Loud, also shared the photo with a caption, “52-year-old Shaquille O’Neal spotted traveling with his 21-year-old girlfriend in Spain”. And since then, various comments and opinions have surfaced on the social media platform. But it is now time to have a closer look at this photo and the claims being made about it.

Analyzing Shaquille O’Neal’s viral photo

The photo includes the former LA Lakers star with his arms crossed around a girl on a yacht. After the caption claiming the girl to be Shaq’s girlfriend, the trolls were bound to attack the post. “Shaq as old as her father lmaooo,” commented one user. However, there were a few who had enough respect for others’ privacy, as one user commented, “Mind your business, with all due respect.”   

Coming back to the photo, the microblogging platform, X, highlighted a separate section mentioning the context of the photo provided by the users. “This photo is from 2019 when Shaq was 47. It was during his time in Spain when he was DJing at Foreverland. That female was never confirmed to be his girlfriend as well,” the section read.

The section also provided a link to an article by the TMZ sports titled “SHAQUILLE O’NEAL FLEXES ON BALLER YACHT IN SPAIN… After DJ Gigs”. However, the article did not provide any details on the girl in the photo. Some recent media reports have mentioned the girl’s name as Danielle Dilworth. However, there is no information on the two ever dating each other but just being in a friend circle. And considering Shaq’s dating history has been quite popular, the chances of this relationship going unnoticed are quite thin.

A look-back at Shaq’s dating history

The former Lakers star’s first girlfriend who gained media attention was Arnetta Yardbourgh. The two dated each other for almost four years (1992-96) and they even had a daughter named Taahirah O’Neal out of this relationship. It is worth mentioning that this relationship ended the same year Taahirah was born.

After this, Shaquille O’Neal dated the only girl he has married yet, Shaunie Henderson. Notably, the two met each other after Shaq moved to the Lakers from Orlando Magic in 1996. The couple reportedly dated for two years before welcoming their first child, Shareef O’Neal, in January 2000. Shaunie gave birth to her second child in the following year and the duo eventually tied the knot in 2002.

The couple had two more children from their marriage before it ran its course and ended with divorce in 2010. Shaunie’s reason for filing the divorce was infidelity on Shaquille O’Neal’s end, to which he later admitted. “At one time my ex-wife Shaunie and I were happy, but I admit it — I was a guy… I was a guy with too many options. Choosing to be with some of those women, well, that’s on me. In my mind, I never did it disrespectfully, but obviously I shouldn’t have done it all,” he wrote in his memoir ‘Shaq Uncut: My Story‘.

As per the media reports, some girls he was involved with during his marriage include actress and author Karrine Steffans, Swedish actress and model Dominica Westling, and television personality Laura Govan. The last name that was reportedly associated with Shaquille O’Neal was Nigerian-American actress Annie Ilonzeh. However, it remains unknown if the two are still dating each other. So it can be said that Shaq has had a long list of women whom he has been involved with. However, the claims made about his photo that recently went viral are not true.