For the first six years of his life, it was Shaq and Lucille against the world. Lucille O’Neal became a mother at 17, juggling work while being hands-on with her young son. However, things changed when she met and married Phillip Harrison. He became the only father figure Shaq ever knew and loved, playing a pivotal role in shaping him into a future NBA star. This transformation wouldn’t have been possible if Lucille hadn’t sacrificed part of her close bond with Shaq to allow Harrison to step in and guide him.

She goes into her own childhood to motherhood story in her new memoir, While I Have Your Attention. Contrary to her 2010 memoir, Lucille narrates her personal evolution from being known as Shaq’s mom to getting recognized by her name. But evolving was something she did long before Shaq’s fame.

“That wasn’t easy,” Lucille admitted in a recent interview. With the benefit of hindsight, she can laugh about it too. However it was no small feat when she gave the reins to her husband regarding parenting. “I was used to being the one in control, but I had to let them have that space.”

Lucille and Phillip had three more children of their own but Shaq wasn’t left out. Through his 1993 track, “Biological Didn’t Bother” and Lucille on Raising Fame, it was confirmed that she made it clear to Harrison that she and Shaq were a package deal. Harrison didn’t retreat and Lucille had to reluctantly give them room to bond.

And bond they did. Though the Sarge was strict, he instilled some strong principles in Shaq. He’d take young O’Neal to Dr J’s games to encourage his basketball pursuits. He was like Shaq’s personal coach who kept him in line when he showed off a little too much.

Harrison was present throughout Shaq’s career. He eventually passed away in 2013 after battling a series of health issues. A decade later the Orlando Magic retired O’Neal’s #33 and Shaq missed his father the most on that night. “It actually makes me sad and I’m going to tell you why. The guy that created all this passed away about nine, 10 years ago,” he said before the ceremony. “My mom will be there, so this is more their moment than it is mine.”

Pushing Harrison to the fore helped Shaq in the long run. And it helped Lucille too.

Shaq’s parents struck a balance

Lucille’s estranged mother wouldn’t be back in her life until Shaq was three. For the longest time, she was his primary parent. It’s understandable why it took the effort to share the parenting load with Sarge. But when she did, she said, “It helped me grow too. It allowed me to understand that I wasn’t just Shaquille’s mom or someone’s wife—I was Lucille. And I had to find out who she was.”

To make their blended family work, Lucille said, “we took that word ‘step’ out of our home. You’re not the stepfather, you’re the father and it worked.” She instead took on the role of ‘buffer’ when things got tense. 

Until an unspecified incident when Shaq was 15. Without getting into details, the 4x champion narrated several times that he had a big blowup with his stepdad. Lucille stated she stayed out of it and let both guys sort it out. Shaq and Harrison came out of that fight stronger than ever.

Lucille and Phillip eventually divorced in 2002. She had graduated from Bethune-Cookman University with Shaq’s support by then. Despite being separated, Shaq remained close to Harrison till his demise.