Former All Star centre says reports are false; he has not been contacted by any league officials and he does not intend on playing there.
There was a report last week that former All Star centre and multiple MVP winner Shaquille O’Neal would be playing in the Mexican league for a few games, as part of the marketing campaign of the league to attract wider audiences
and generate income.
The deal would have been a great publicity stunt, as Shaq is one of the most followed and well known basketball players ever to play in the NBA. However, it has now turned out that the report was false and Shaq has not been contacted
by the league, nor is he interested in playing in the league.
Shaq was talking to the New Orleans Times-Picayune when he was asked:
“Is there any truth to the reports that you’ll be playing games in the Mexican League next month?”
“No truth to that. It’s kind of unfortunate that so-called experts have to get their sources from the Internet. It’s backwards. Especially like when people from ESPN know me and they can call me and ask me, but somebody else said
it so they want to be the first to report it even though it’s not true. However, we could talk, but nobody has contacted me,” replied Shaq.
The idea of Shaq playing in the Mexican league, though a great PR campaign, seemed too farfetched to be believed in the first place. Dennis Rodman has previously played a few games in the league in the past, but Rodman is nowhere
near Shaq when it comes to superstar status. Plus, Rodman needed the money. For Shaq, his decision is not motivated by finance as he has made tons of money during his NBA career, and would not want to damage his legacy or status by participating in an up and
coming league with no real talent or competition when compared to Shaq.
The legendary centre has always been conscious of his status and perception, even though he likes to have a lot of fun and is known for his pranks and sense of humour. In view of the reputation he holds and the status he demands,
him playing in the Mexican league does not seem like it will be happening, at least not anytime soon.
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