In between breaking backboards and winning championships, the Laker legend Shaquille O’Neal often found himself in somewhat difficult situations. The four-time champion is a massive human. So things that most regular people used didn’t always fit him. Big Diesel went to meet this Grammy-winning artist during his search.

Before her rise to being a pop sensation, she was a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers. She spoke of the misfortunes that followed her after she helped the big man on his journey.

Having rich neighbors has its troubles, reveals former American Idol host

In a recent interview with Jennifer Hudson, the former Lakers cheerleader shared her story of Shaq moving to the house across her street. The 61-year-old said that Shaquille O’Neal was looking for a house to buy and eventually came to look at her house. The normal-sized house was not big enough for this humongous specimen, so she recommended he check out the house across the street.

He went over and paid the people living there extra to get the place. But then came the unexpected troubles for dancer/singer Paula Abdul.

She was not aware that Shaq owned over 20 cars. Abdul went on to say that it was a hassle to get to work in the morning. Paula had to get the keypad codes and Shaq’s car keys to move his cars every day in the morning for her to get her car out and go to the studios.

Paula, who is barely 5 feet on a good day, also said that she could stand straight in his car’s driver’s seat. Both Shaq and Paula were close because they had the same business manager, but there were a few things that Paula didn’t know about.

To be fair, O’Neal is an avid car enthusiast. Apart from owning a variety of vehicles, he also owned the 1963 Cadillac Eldorado that was featured in Al Pacino’s classic film ‘Scarface’.

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Paula Abdul was a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers from 1982 to 1986. This was way before her singing career took off. She later gained more recognition after being a judge on the ‘American Idol’ TV show.

Shaquille O’Neal has a different version of the story

Shaq, in an interview with Jimmy Kimmel, revealed his side of what happened during the search for his house.

It was after the big joined the Lakers. Diesel was looking for a house in Los Angeles around a gated community. He immediately decided to buy the house without even looking inside as soon as he heard it was right across from Paula Abdul’s house.

Shaq joined the Lakers in 1996, so he never saw her be the cheerleader for the Lakers. He played in LA for six years before leaving in 2004.

He revealed in the interview that he had never flirted with her or dated her, but whenever he saw her standing outside her house, he would also walk out. But it can be assumed that they couldn’t see each other properly because of all the cars in between them.

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The Big Aristotle continues to spend his fortune on various cars, and as of 2023, he owns 30 cars.