Shaq Once Tipped Waitress Enough Money to Pay Rent for a Year

Shaquille O’Neal may be an NBA all-star, but his early financial decisions weren’t all three-pointers.

“After I decided to go to LSU, I did a million-dollar car deal,” O’Neal recalls to Us about an early money misstep. “So my first check was a million dollars. I went out and bought a car for $150,000. Means I got $850,000 left. I go home. My father wants the same car that I got. I want to impress him, so I buy that car. So that’s $300,ooo. Now I have $700,000 left. Now I got to buy my mother a car, $100,000, [plus then a bunch of car items, etc.]”
O’Neal then learned about things like taxes and the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA).

“After that mistake, I said, ‘Okay, now I have to hire somebody to help me to do this,’’ he continued. “I was so happy I got a million dollars that I thought I was smart. I’m doing simple math in my head. But [I then] realized I didn’t have anything. It was zero [after all my car purchases].”

To help others learn what he didn’t start out understanding, Shaq partnered with Credit One Bank to bring free, accessible credit education to college campuses across the country through the Credit One Bank Credit Tip Off Tour this fall, featuring “Credit Professor” O’Neal. The tour dates include September 14 at Southern Methodist University; October 23 at Georgia State University; November 6 at Fred’s Bar in Baton Rouge; and November 9 at Florida Atlantic University.

“We’re going to talk about credit education,” O’Neal says. “We’re gonna play some games. This is important to me because I love to learn. I’m actually back in school right now, working on a degree in criminology. I love being around young minds who have the same excitement about learning and growing. The good thing about the times we live in now is [there are] so many tools: AI and podcasts. I think the time is now for people to accelerate their learning.”

Below, Shaq completes Us’ Money Talks interview, opening up about first jobs, bad investments and the time he gave a $24,000 tip: “That’s what it’s all about — just making people smile.”

What did your parents teach you about the importance of money when you were a kid?

Nothing, nothing at all. My parents lived from check-to-check, and one word they did use was “safe,” which is why they definitely wanted me to educate myself on credit.

As a child, did you get an allowance?  

No, not at all. But my father was a great ambassador of teaching me horror stories. It’s like, ‘Hey, 70 percent of all professional athletes, when they’re done, have nothing.’ So we always say, ‘Hey, man, education, education, education, education, and figure it out.’ The good thing about growing up with a drill sergeant is you’re programmed not to make the same mistake twice. So every time I would try to freestyle something that didn’t work, now I have to educate myself. Okay, how come this didn’t work? And then what should I do? So once I figured that out and came up with a game plan, I’m still around. I’m still around to talk about it.

Did you have a regular job when you were a kid growing up? What was the first one?

I worked at Burger King for two days. My father gave me these — ‘You need to work at Burger King or babysit your brothers and sisters.’ I was like, ‘I’m not a babysitter.’ And when I went to work at Burger King for three days, I couldn’t hack it, so I had to come back and be a babysitter.

Do you remember what that paycheck looked like for those three days at Burger King?

It was $121, and this was back when minimum wage was like $3 an hour.

Do you remember the moment you first felt financially secure?

Once I got with my financial advisor and we made up a routine. He started teaching me things. And my favorite word as a youngster was annuity. Like, what’s annuity? It’s like, okay, you’re making so much money. You put this money inside the company, invest it and you could draw on that money at 55, another one at 60, and we’ll do another one at 65. And that was my fail-proof plan in case I just went crazy.

Now at 55, I still got some money coming in. That was my favorite word. And then I learned about treasury bonds and government bonds. I wanted to  stay on the safe side in case anything happens. And then I start being a little bit more daring and investing in companies and doing this and doing that. But after that first mistake, I got so scared that I had to develop a strategy that worked for me.

Did your financial security ever shift after that?

Oh no, I’ve made plenty of mistakes, but you know when you have the athletic mind, you win some and you lose some. When I make a mistake in a certain category, I just probably have to leave that category.

What was your worst investment? 

My worst investment was any get rich quick scheme that I tried to do, failed. Like a guy said, ‘Hey, man, we can do this, and I’ll sell the company in two years, and do this and that.’ This never happened.

What has been your most extravagant purchase of a single item?

It was the worst purchase in my life. I bought a house for $24 million on Star Island in Miami Beach.

How long did you hold onto that house?

Four years.

Did you make money off of it in the end?

Not really, because I invested a lot into fixing it up, and then when I sold it, I think I got $26.7 [million], But [the] answer is no.

You’ve been very charitable over the years to fans. Are you a good tipper? What is that situation like when you go out to dinner?

I’m the best tipper ever. Matter of fact, I ask the waiters and waitresses what do they want?

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What’s the biggest tip you’ve ever given?

Paid somebody’s rent off for a year.