NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal sat down with Dr. Phil recently and opened up about what it was like for him to finally meet his biological father Joe Toney for the first time at age 44.
FYI: Shaq was born on March 6th, 1972, to mother Lucille O’Neal and biological father Joe Toney. Just like Shaq, his biological dad Joe played high school basketball and was an All-State guard. Joe was offered a college basketball scholarship to play at Seton Hall. However, Toney struggled with drug addiction and was imprisoned for drug possession when O’Neal was an infant. Upon his release from prison, Joe was never part of O’Neal’s life and agreed to relinquish his parental rights to Shaq’s Jamaican stepfather, Phillip A. Harrison, a career Army sergeant.
For decades, O’Neal never spoke to Joe or expressed any interest in establishing a relationship with him. However, Shaq’s feelings changed toward Joe when his stepfather Phillip Harrison passed away in 2013. As a result, Shaq and Joe met for the first time in March 2016.
Watch the video below:
