What do Shaquille O’Neal and Las Vegas have in common? They’re both larger than life. The entertainment capital holds special meaning for Shaq who has lived out his post-NBA dreams here. Las Vegas is where the Big Chicken Shaq originated. It has the Shaq Fantasy Labs, The Event, and so many other businesses in O’Neal’s empire. Sin City has also hosted ‘DJ Diesel’s most insane shows. Vegas is going to have another piece of Shaq’s multi-fold dream soon. And if things go the big man’s way, he’d also bring the city its very own NBA team.

While in his second home of Atlanta, Shaquille O’Neal brought back his annual Christmas festival, Shaq-A-Claus for thousands of little ones in conjunction with The Boys & Girls Club. The big-hearted big guy’s association with a nationwide organization began when he was a troublesome kid and continued as a patron when he was a multi-million dollar pro-athlete. They’re taking this partnership to a new level in Las Vegas in the coming years.

Speaking to TMZ at “Shaq-a-Claus” in Henry County (where the 7’1″ giant is a sheriff’s deputy), O’Neal dished on his newest project. “They’re [Boys & Girls Club] my partners. I just broke ground, I’m building a really big facility in Vegas. It’ll probably be done in about two years.” 

In July this year, The Shaquille O’Neal Foundation, the Boys & Girls Club, and Clark County in Nevada embarked on a major project. The county voted to donate 4.81 acres of vacant land at the northeast corner of Lamb Boulevard and Kell Lane in Las Vegas. The plan is to build a massive youth facility that will benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada and Communities In Schools of Southern Nevada.

As Shaq, who is a member of the Communities In Schools national board of directors and Boys & Girls Club Alumni Hall of Fame, said, they’ve broken ground on the construction and it should take about two years to open this facility. The 17,000 sq.ft. facility is estimated at $16 million and will provide social, recreational, and tech resources for infants up to 24 years old.

Shaq’s big picture for Vegas

Shaquille O’Neal is determined to make Las Vegas known by his legacy. Apart from everything he’s got going in the entertainment capital, his previous Shaq-a-Claus and Shaq to School events here, and more to come in the form of his youth facility, Vegas is also part of his unfulfilled dreams. The ‘Big Aristotle’ wants to leave a much bigger mark on the city.

Just before breaking ground on his youth facility, the traphead even said his dream venue to perform in is The Paradise arena in Nevada. While that seems more plausible for ‘DJ Diesel,’ his other dream is a little more uncertain.

Las Vegas is a possible contender for the next NBA expansion team. The 4x NBA champion, who’s always wanted to be a franchise shot-caller, is hoping to be this new team’s owner. He’d have competition from other interested parties like LeBron James.

Previously, Shaq shunned the idea of doing it with Bron or making an ownership group. But recently he courted billionaire Mark Cuban to partner with him and bring James into the mix. It does show he’s very serious about this Vegas dream. We’d have to wait and see if Shaquille O’Neal becomes a team owner before his youth facility is up and running.