After giving three years of his life and owing a lot of his success to LSU, Shaquille O’Neal finds himself in a tight spot. His daughter, Me’Arah O’Neal, suited up against his alma mater today in a home game, leaving the NBA legend confused regarding who to support. His college, who he has been loyal to for decades, or his daughter? Shaq, being the big family man he is, showed up for his daughter.

The six-foot-four guard has had a slow start to her freshman season, only averaging about 5 points and 4 rebounds. Me’Arah’s size definitely works in her favour for defense and rebounding, but she hasn’t looked to be a commanding scorer so far. Gators fans shouldn’t worry though, her intangibles and defense are elite—she just needs more experience.

Luck was not in the Gators’ favour today, as LSU beat Florida decisively with a near 20-point margin, helping Kim Mulkey reach a milestone that few have. The Louisiana State coach has now achieved 20 or more wins in all 25 seasons that she has served as a head coach.

Mulkey moved to LSU at the beginning of the 2021-2022 season and made an immediate impact on the team. It was only in the coach’s second year that the LSU Tigers won the NCAA championship. The year after that, they made the Elite Eight. This is only a tiny part of her impressive resume, which houses multiple championships and post-season success stories.

Her contributions to LSU and college basketball are undeniable. The Hall of Famer head coach has been an NCAA legend for a while, and this milestone is just another feather in her cap.

O’Neal with the Gators, LSU neglected

Last summer, Me’Arah O’Neal committed to playing college basketball for Florida instead of her Dad’s alma mater. This came as a shock to many, however, because of the long family history with LSU. Shaq played three seasons there, scoring nearly two thousand points over three seasons with the Tigers. Even after having a long NBA career, Big Diesel has always been loyal to his alma mater.

His youngest, however, is a different story. Scouts had ranked the six-four guard in the low 30s for her draft class, and O’Neal had offers aplenty. She went to visit both LSU and Florida with her father. According to reports, she felt ‘like she belonged’ with the Gators, and bonded really well with coach Kelly. And so, LSU was turned away.

Most fans think O’Neal should have gone to LSU, however, but Shaq had a different viewpoint to it. The seven footer had stayed out of her decision making process, only providing slight bits of wisdom. “What I did tell her is, ‘Go where you’re needed, not where you’re wanted,’ because if you go where you’re wanted, and they got other people like you? It may take a while.”

Me’Arah followed her gut, and commited to becoming a Gator. It remains to be seen whether that was the smarter move, but at least it was a move that was entirely her own. According to Shaq’s Hall of Fame speech, his youngest might end up being the greatest women’s basketball player of all time! Me’Arah is yet to make a significant impact on the college level, but O’Neal is young. She’s got time, she’ll figure it out. What do you think? Will she be an effective player at the highest level? Will Shaq’s predictions come true? We’ll find out as time goes on.