“When I watch my kids play, they don’t play well. I make a lot of faces. So, the certain faces I make probably seem like I’m me. They don’t play well around me.” On Angel Reese’s Unapologetically Angel podcast, Shaquille O’Neal explained how he felt his presence hurt his children’s performance. It might be true for Shaqir’s first four performances, but his latest showcases even earned him a spot in SportCenter’s top 10.

“ICYMI: Shaqir O’Neal was number 9 on SC Top Ten last night for his big dunk in last night’s win.” After a closer look, Florida A&M Men’s Basketball shared the reel with Florida A&M Men’s University and Florida A&M Athletics 🐍 OFFICIAL account for Florida A&M Athletics 🐍. So, that’s why the youngest son of the O’Neal on his Instagram story added: “❤️.”

ESPN first showed how Shaqir dunked on the opponent during his 26 points and 9 rebounds display. A few seconds later, they showed the highlight of Shaquille O’Neal dunking and his son dunking. Apart from reaching the SC, the team ended up on the winning side for the first time this season.

Even his mother Shanie Henderson, sent her praise via Instagram. “I’m going to ALWAYS be his biggest fan! @shaqironeall.” He led the Florida A&M Rattlers to a crushing 110-68 win over the Trinity Baptist Eagles. And that win meant they have a 1-4 record this season. Shaquille O Neal’s son also scored his first double-digit points in that exploit. However, it wasn’t smooth sailing in the previous four games.

Shaquille O’Neal’s son is still finding his feet

After his move to Florida, “Shaqir has played in one of the premier programs in our conference and for a great head coach,” said head coach Patrick Crarey II. In the opening four games, Shaqir could only put up 2, 6, 9, and 2 points respectively, when his team was losing. In the fifth game against the Eagles, he ended up being the top scorer and rebounder for the night.

For the first game of the season, father Shaquille O’Neal was in the stands watching the debut where the forward scored just 2 points in 15 minutes of the action. With poor shooting of 1-4 from the field and 0-2 from beyond the arc. Against the Maryland Terrapins, Shaqir missed out on a double-digit points tally by one. His shooting improved with 60% from field goals and 75% from FT.

Shaquille O’Neal’s youngest son’s average for the previous team was 1.8 points in the last season. This year, the average is already 9 points, and the average would lead to more confidence in the work. And certainly he will find himself in many more top players lists.