Amirah O’Neal, the daughter of NBA legend and Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, has announced that she is leaving her father’s alma mater to play at a historically Black college in Texas.
O’Neal is transferring from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge to play at HBCU Texas Southern University in Houston, beginning in the fall. She made the announcement to her hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram.
“I see the doubt in they faces, they didn’t think I would make it, ” she wrote in the caption.
Shaq, as the family patriarch and current “Inside the NBA” co-host, became a national star at LSU in the early 1990s before becoming a high first-round draft pick in the NBA in 1993.
The daughter’s decision comes four months after her younger brother, Shaqir O’Neal, announced to his IG followers that he committed to the same university.
Amirah O’Neal will be coached by one of the greatest WNBA players ever, Cynthia Cooper, who won four consecutive titles with the now-defunct Houston Comets from 1997-2000. TSU did finish last season with a 5-10 record during the pandemic-ravaged season. However, Cooper’s squad boasted a 20-10 record in 2019.
This situation is dripping with irony and serendipity. Amirah O’Neal’s brother Shaqir will be playing for head coach Johnny Jones, who coached Shaq at LSU from 1989 to 1992.
