Shaq’s son Shareef O’Neal isn’t the only talented young hooper in the O’Neal family.
In fact, his youngest daughter, Me’Arah, has well and truly arrived and she’s ready to make her mark.
Me’Arah was selected for the McDonald’s All-American game this week and is bound for the Florida Gators, who she committed to over her dad’s alma mater, LSU.
The 17-year-old has faced a lot of pressure from a young age, with her father predicting she would become the greatest female basketball player ever during his Hall of Fame induction speech in 2016.
Listed at 6-foot-3, Me’Arah is a versatile forward with a great three-point shot. She is a physical defender, a good rebounder and loves to block shots from the weak side.
When it came to joining Florida over LSU, Shaq says he stayed right out of the decision-making process.
“What I did tell her is, ‘Go where you’re needed, not where you’re wanted,'” he told ESPN. “Because if you go where you’re wanted and they got other people like you, may take a while.’ I want [my kids] to have their own journey, have their own experience.”
Me’Arah is ranked No. 33 overall in the 2024 recruiting class, according to ESPN’s HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings.
Her challenge now will be escaping her father’s shadow, but she has already come a long way in forging her own identity.
And clearly, the best for her career is yet to come.
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