Shaquille O’Neal vs. Shareef O’Neal – Story on tape: How giant father and son basketball stars fare ahead of the NBA draft

SHAQUILLE O’NEAL could watch his son Shareef at NBA stardom next year.

Basketball legend Shaq, 50, is considered one of the greatest centers to ever play basketball.

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O’Neal was voted No. 1 overall by the Orlando Magic in 1992 and has been a dominant force on both ends of the court.

He won four NBA titles and formed a dynasty with the LA Lakers alongside Kobe Bryant.

And now he could be joined in the NBA ranks by son Shareef, 22, who is a candidate for pick in the 2022 draft.

It was initially assumed that Shareef would not take part after being named among 112 prospects who decided to withdraw from the exam.

However, his exclusion from the list was a mistake and O’Neal is expected to practice with a number of teams before the draft begins on June 23.

It’s a wonderful return for the youngster, who underwent life-saving surgery in 2019 after doctors discovered a congenital heart defect.

He has been plagued by a foot injury for much of the last two seasons, but played for LSU after transferring from UCLA.

How do the two O’Neals compare? SunSport took a look at their stats to find out, looking at how Shaquille fared prior to his 1992 draft date.

Much of Shaq’s success in the 1990s and early 2000s was due to his size and strength in color.

At 7’1, he was able to dominate the boards at either end of the court.

And he startled defenders with his sheer size during his college days at Louisiana State University — the same school his son would attend nearly three decades later.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON

Shareef is slightly shorter than his pops but still stands at an impressive 6ft10.

Due to his slightly leaner physique, Shareef plays as a power forward and has batted an impressive 50 percent from the field last season.

Only when both men step on the scales do the big differences become apparent.

Heading to the 1992 draft, O’Neal weighed in at a whopping 300 pounds—but still a long way from his NBA peak of 350 pounds.

This extra bulk allowed Shaq to push away defenders and thwart steals with ease.

Much lighter than he was 30 years ago when his father came into the league, Shareef is drafted at exactly 100kg.

He’s still only 22 years old, but he has plenty of time to build up when an NBA team takes a risk.

Though he’ll have to grow a few inches more if he wants to match his famous father’s wingspan.

Shaq wore huge size 23 shoes on court and had incredibly long arms that stretch to a whopping 7ft 5.

Shareef has a smaller wingspan of 7ft, so he adjusted his game accordingly throughout his collegiate career.

Away from the game, Shaq is a global celebrity and it’s safe to say he’s reigning supreme on social media.

O’Neal has a whopping 25.2 million followers on his Instagram, leaving his son behind at just 2.8 million.

But if a franchise takes a chance on a famous name later this month, that number is bound to increase.

SunSport recently revealed how Shaq lost two stone in weight as he settled into reaching his half-century.

The TV personality, pundit and occasional DJ also opened up about his health issues that have left him dependent on a sleep machine for the rest of his life.

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