Shaquille O’Neal Reps Alabama State, Announces Plans To Become College Professor

NBA Hall of Famer and “Inside The NBA” television personality Shaquille O’Neal showed love to Alabama State University through a wardrobe choice and an announcement of his future plans on the May 8 broadcast of the show.

According to Sports Illustrated, in addition to wearing the bold black and gold of Alabama State University and flashing a “Que Dawg” salute, O’Neal hinted that he would leave the studio in two years after he becomes a college professor after concluding his studies at Alabama State University.

After Ernie Johnson asked O’Neal why he was wearing the ASU gear, he replied, “From now (on) I would like to be addressed as Professor O’Neal, because when I graduate in two years, I will leave you and become a college professor on mentorship and business administration. I love you.”

O’Neal recently opened up about his personal connection to HBCUs more broadly during an episode of his podcast, “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” after an HBCU student asked him what he does to support HBCUs.

“I always supported. It was an HBCU that helped me graduate from LSU. A lot of people don’t know the story, but I had to transfer to Southern for summer school. So it, I mean, I’ve always been a big supporter,” O’Neal said.

He continued, “Going there, the flavor, the feeling—like, sometimes I sit and I say, ‘Man, I wish I would’ve went to an HBCU. Because I went to the HBCU tournament when it was in Atlanta a couple weeks ago. And the DJs, the culture, the band, the cheerleaders—it’s just fun. And I’m a really big supporter of HBCUs.”

O’Neal’s son, Shaqir, has been intentional about playing at HBCUs, first enrolling at Texas Southern University out of high school in 2021, with the intent to “change the narrative” regarding the basketball programs at HBCUs.

Shaqir would later transfer to Florida A&M University for the 2024-2025 basketball season, where he recorded his first double-double as a collegiate athlete. Shaqir recently transferred to Sacramento State, where he will join a basketball program that employs former Sacramento Kings guard Mike Bibby as its head coach and his father as its general manager.

According to The Athletic, O’Neal’s position is on a voluntary, unpaid basis, and he follows other NBA luminaries like Stephen Curry and Trae Young into the position, albeit the latter pair have a more personal connection to their positions, Davidson and the University of Oklahoma are the alma maters of Curry and Young, respectively.

The Bibby/O’Neal era is already paying dividends, just one day after O’Neal was officially announced as the general manager, the program signed former four star prospect Mikey Williams. Despite Williams’ troubled past, which included nine felony gun charges stemming from a 2023 shooting near his home in San Diego, he is still a big splash for the university.

As O’Neal said in a statement to The Athletic, he sees his job as preparing young men to face life more than he sees it as raising championship banners and trophies. “This is about more than banners and trophies, but preparing these student-athletes for life on and off the court,” O’Neal said.

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