Me'Arah O'Neal followed in her father's footsteps by playing
Southeastern Conference basketball. However, the freshman diverged from
Shaquille O'Neal 's large shadow in another way — she instead is playing for one of her dad's chief rivals. "Shaq" played college ball at LSU from 1989 to 1992. The youngest daughter of the 2016 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee is a
Florida Gator .
Me'Arah O'Neal will try to help No. 11 seed Florida (14-16, 5-11 SEC) go on a deep run in the
women's SEC tournament this week, looking to steal an automatic berth to the women's NCAA Tournament. The Gators take on No. 14 seed Auburn (12-17, 3-13) at 8:30 p.m. ET Wednesday at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The 6-foot-4 guard/forward has averaged 5.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game on 40.7% shooting in 28 games (eight starts) during her freshman season. She scored a career-high 19 points against Arkansas on Feb. 2 and recorded her first double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds on Dec. 2 vs. Hofstra.
Who are Me'Arah O'Neal's parents?
Me'Arah O'Neal is the youngest daughter of Shaquille O'Neal and Shaunie Henderson. Shaq played for six teams during his 19-year NBA career, winning four championships and three Finals MVPs. He was also named MVP of the 1999-2000 season.
Henderson is the founder and CEO of Amirah, Inc. and the creator and executive producer of the TV show "Basketball Wives." Shaq's other children with Henderson played basketball, too. His son Shareef played at UCLA from 2018-2020 before transferring to LSU, where he played from 2020-22. After going undrafted, he played two seasons in the NBA G League. Shaqir is a redshirt junior at Florida A&M. His daughter, Amirah, was a walk-on at LSU before transferring to Texas Southern. Shaq has expressed the most confidence in Me'Arah O'Neal becoming the family's next star. "I don't like to put pressure on my babies, but she works out with my sons and I think it's fair to say one day, if she continues, Me'Arah will probably be the best women's basketball player ever," Shaquille O'Neal said during his
Basketball Hall of Fame induction speech in 2016 . "She's that good."
Me'Arah O'Neal recruiting
Me'Arah O'Neal was the 31st-ranked player in the 2024 recruiting cycle — per the
ESPNW Top 100 — after leading Episcopal High School (Houston) to a Southwest Preparatory Conference Class 4A girls' state basketball title. O'Neal also played in the 2024 McDonald's All-American Game and the 2024 Jordan Brand Classic Game. Despite being pursued by Kim Mulkey and LSU and her father's ties with the university, O'Neal announced her commitment to Florida
on Instagram Live on Nov. 12, 2023. The other schools in her top eight were Arizona State, Baylor, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Kentucky and Tennessee. A big reason for her commitment was due to Florida coach Kelly Rae Finley. "I went on the Florida visit, and I had a feeling that's where I belonged,"
O'Neal told ESPN of her decision . "And that I was going to be most successful if I went to go play at Florida. I felt like I connected with Coach Kelly more than I connected with any of the other schools that recruited me. She really cares about me not just on the court but off the court. That's important for me."
Me'Arah O'Neal stats
