♣ Review of "Shaq Uncut"

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Recently I read the 2012 edition of Shaq Uncut: My Story, Shaquille O'Neal's autobiography, written with Jackie MacMullan. My sister bought it for me in a charity shop in England as a birthday present. Thanks, little sister.

I probably would never have bought it myself because, although I enjoy reading biographies of basketball players, I didn't like Shaq very much as a basketball star. “Nobody likes Goliath,” as this physically enormous, now-retired player would say.

But I am glad I read it because it gave me an insight into Diesel's mind. I realised that some people think completely differently from me, without that necessarily being a fault (although sometimes it is).

In some respects, Superman's mind is ludicrous. He has been a bully for most of his life and talks about silly things such as being “The Man,” as they say in America. Or take his anecdote about showing off the scholarship money he had received at college: he put the large-denomination notes on the outside to make it look as though he had a lot of money and make people on campus envious.

A bully, yet at the same time someone whose father controlled him as though he were a baby. Saying “Yes, sir” to his father and to other people he regarded as authority figures. That makes no sense. We wouldn't act like that in Spain.

On the other hand, there are things to admire about The Real Deal. For example, the way he treats children, with affection and warmth, always trying to make sure they have fun; or the way he does business. He is not afraid of making mistakes and putting things right next time, or of haggling and negotiating to get a better deal.

I also admire his showmanship. He always does things in a light-hearted way: once, to warm up his biceps before a game, he lifted one of the team's trainers as if he were a dumbbell. Or there was the time he pretended to be a statue at Harvard University.

In the book, he discusses his relationship with Kobe Bryant, how he tried to haze him as a rookie and how Kobe, unsurprisingly, rebelled and told “The Logo,” Jerry West. West then lectured Shaquille about his behaviour. The funny thing is that Shaq thought he had done the right thing and that “The Black Mamba” was the one who had failed to respect the team's veterans.

Finally, I have to say that I would recommend the book because “The Big Daddy” seems sincere when he talks about his life.

Related reading

Shaq's account of his relationship with Kobe Bryant touches on tensions between teammates. In my review of Stolen Dreams, I also comment on Scottie Pippen's professional jealousy of Toni Kukoč.

This autobiography gave me an insight into Shaq's mind. For a complementary look at how coaches think and explain their ideas, see my review of NBA Coaches Playbook.