How many people can confidently say that they are close to Shaquille O’Neal? While the 52-year-old’s joyful personality allows him to make friends anywhere he goes, how many of them managed to make his inner circle? Not many, one would assume. Especially after the 4x NBA champion faced some harrowing consequences of letting people into his life. Shaq’s legal battle with his former IT guy is an example. So it wasn’t surprising that the gentle giant became more careful of such things. However, that resulted in many worthy candidates not making his inner circle.

One instance of this was when he had to come up with a quirky way to avoid giving out his contact number. As per an article by Paper City, the Los Angeles Lakers legend was quite impressed with a Fox26 story by Houston Sports Media’s legendary reporter, Mark Berman. The Big Aristotle even personally complimented Berman on his work.

After what must have been a good conversation, the reporter asked O’Neal for his contact number so he could reach out to him for future stories. Shaq obliged. Months later, however, when Berman called the number he was given, he was directed to a Pizza Hut outlet. It’s possible that O’Neal accidentally provided the wrong number, though it seems more likely he did so intentionally to avoid sharing his contact details.

Perhaps O’Neal was anxious about the reporter and wanted to be extra cautious. Sports celebrities are always in the spotlight, and it’s not uncommon for obsessive fans, hecklers, or scammers to invade their privacy. Something Shaq himself had to go through.

Shaquille O’Neal took legal action against Ex-IT person 

Out of many, one such instance that the NBA legend faced was when he met Shawn Darling. The computer consultant, initially hired by Shaquille O’Neal, allegedly stole O’Neal’s private emails and personal details after discovering the Big Aristotle‘s computer password.

Moreover, Shawn also pilfered contact information and sensitive data from O’Neal’s celebrity friends. Shaq may not have known that Darling had a prior felony conviction for bank fraud. Shawn put O’Neal’s emails on the market and attempted to blackmail him. In 2010, after O’Neal refused to meet Darling’s attorney’s demands, Darling sued the Lakers great for hacking. 

Once O’Neal became aware of the situation, he countered by suing Darling for stealing his information. This incident shows why celebrities like O’Neal need to be exceptionally cautious about who they associate with and trust. Berman sadly became the victim and O’Neal had a good reason to do so. 

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.