Shaquille O’Neal Faces Backlash For Comments About Angel Reese’s “Little A** Shorts”

Shaquille O’Neal and Angel Reese have been vocal about their mentor-mentee relationship, which presumably comes with a level of mutual comfort. Still, the NBA legend’s recent comments on the “little a** shorts” she recently wore — and that made her go viral — were not well-received by the public.

The 22-year-old hooper appeared on Wild ‘n Out and took over the internet for wearing a pair of shorts that exposed the bottom half of her buttocks. She hosted the 52-year-old media personality on her Unapologetically Angel podcast, and he suggested she use the shorts to boost her financial gains.

“Imagine you in them same little a** shorts you had on at the ‘Wild ‘N Out’ show dunking,” Shaq said. “You know how many T-shirts you gon’ sell? You trippin’. Them same little a** shorts you had on at Wild ‘n Out … I’m just saying.” The Chicago Sky star seemingly did not like where the conversation went and tried to shift things: “OK, all right, all right, all right,” she said.

“Shaq sexualizing Angel Reese when he’s 30 years her senior and has kids older than her,” one user wrote on X. “Angel Reese learned a painful lesson about men through Shaq in real time, I fear,” another user wrote. “I’m glad people are recognizing Shaq’s creepy and perverted behavior. What I don’t like is some people following up with ‘well if Angel dresses like that what does she expect.’ She can dress sexy and still not want to be sexually harassed,” another used added.

Angel Reese has previously stated that she viewed Shaquille O’Neal as a “father figure,” especially when he constantly checked in on her during her mental health struggles while playing for LSU. “He’s super inspiring to me. He’s so genuine, he’s been there for me through tough times,” she told USA Today in January. “He just gets it, and there’s not a more perfect person for me to be tight with. We have fun, and if I need anything, he would help me … and he would do that even if I never played basketball again. He doesn’t care about me as a player, he cares about me as a person.”

The four-time NBA Champion reciprocated those feelings. “I have four daughters. She reminds me of one of my babies,” he told VIBE last month. “Coming from where she’s come from, sometimes you need that extra protector, and that was me. I always let her know, ‘Anybody f**k with you, holler at me.’ When she was going through her thing with Kim [Mulkey], I was the one that got on the phone and was like, ‘Hey, this how you handle it, relax,’ and she did a wonderful, beautiful job.”

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