Shaq O’Neal Says He Gave Up $40M Deal With Reebok After Woman Called Him A “Motherf*cker” For Selling Expensive Sneakers

Shaquille revealed he turned away a $40 million five-year deal with Reebok after a woman confronted him about his expensive shoes during a game

On Thursday’s episode of the “Full Send” podcast, O’Neal recalled the moment he ended his deal with Reebok during his NBA career after a woman confronted him about the shoe’s prices at the time.

He said the woman called him a “motherf*cker” for charging too much for sneakers that were targeted for children and should make the shoes more affordable.

The NBA champion noted that the moment inspired him to make his own brand and launched a partnership with Walmart to launch the sneakers.

“I said keep the money… this ain’t right. I’ll still wear the shoes I wear during the season, but I’ll be looking to do my own thing. So, I started the Shaq brand. I went to my favorite store, Walmart, and we did a deal.”

He continued, “I was in all stores and my price point for the shoes was $29-$19 and since then we have sold over 400 million pairs. It’s not kids that don’t want to wear $20 shoes, they don’t want to wear shoes that look like they cost $20.”

According to the New York Post, O’Neal also brought over designers from Reebook to help design the shoes for Walmart.

The retired NBA champion had a deal with Reebok starting in 1992 where he launched his Shaq Attaq and Shaqnosis. He also owns shares in the company since it was purchased by Authentic Brands Group in 2015.