If you’ve been watching the NCAA March Madness tournament, or regular late-season NBA action, you might have wondered where our man Shaq has been. He’s been noticeably absent from game coverage on any and all networks. Well…mystery solved.
There had been some concern over the weekend when O’Neal posted a pic of himself in a hospital bed. Wow, didn’t see that coming! But…don’t freak out. The Big Man says it was elective surgery to repair a nagging hip injury that’s been bothering him for years – probably since playing days.
Thanks to our friends at TMZ Sports for original reporting on this story. TMZ says the 51 year-old Shaq had the surgery this weekend and everything went just as planned. Now O’Neal says he’s in full recovery mode, and expects to be back at work in about three weeks. Just in time for NBA playoffs!
Of course there are social media pics… in one of them, Shaq tagged “NBA on TNT” colleagues Ernie Johnson and Candace Parker. He wrote that even though he couldn’t be at work, he was still tuning in to the show.
Shaq wrote “Miss y’all” … and Parker wrote back”Love ya big Fella ♥.” Here at the offices of the ShaqFu Radio blog, we’re just wondering where the hospital found a big-enough bed for O’Neal. We’re guessing his legs and feet probably hung out over the end of the hardware… (grin).
It wasn’t only the TNT crew talking to and about the big man. On his Twitter account, Former NBA center Roy Hibbert asked, “U good big man?” Plenty of other Twitter users sent questions and best wishes as well.
Shaq did make an audio-only appearance on his own podcast, “The Big Podcast With Shaq.” That’s when he put out the date of April 16 as his best guess for when he’d be getting back to work.
Also, Shaq talked about another new diet he’s going to be starting once he’s back on his feet. O’Neal says he wants to get “shredded” after the surgery recovery period. Says he’ll be working on an 8-pack!!
O’Neal’s surgery came pretty quickly and unexpectedly. Earlier this month, O’Neal was spotted sitting court side at the Big 12 basketball tournament championship game between the Texas Longhorns and Kansas Jayhawks at T-Mobile Center in Las Vegas.
The NBA legend shared a moment with veteran broadcaster Dick Vitale during the game, where the smiling pair was photographed shaking hands at the scorers table.
All these latest news-bits showed up right around another big day, Shaq’s birthday celebration late last month. The big man marked turning 51 with a party and so-called “Sneaker Ball” birthday bash at The Bank nightclub in Atlanta just ten days ago (as of this posting date).
Best wishes to the Big Man for a speedy recovery! Stay tuned to the ShaqFu Radio blog for the latest developments, of course!