I didn t get in the car and everybody in the car passed away - Shaquille O Neal opens up about his near-death experience when he was a teenager in Germany × Follow Us Create Notifications New User posted their first comment this is comment text Link Approve Reject & ban Delete Log in Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Gaming Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout Basketball NBA News News I didn t get in the car and everybody in the car passed away - Shaquille O Neal opens up about his near-death experience when he was a teenager in Germany By Juan Paolo David Modified 27 Aug 2022 Follow Us Comment Share Shaquille O'Neal at the Tyson Fury vs Deontay Wilder fight Shaquille O'Neal was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey, but grew up in San Antonio, Texas. O'Neal also spent some time in Germany where his stepfather, "Sarge" Philip Harrison, was stationed. The LA Lakers legend recently opened up about a near-death experience he had in Germany. During a snowstorm in Germany, a teenage O'Neal was out drinking with his friends. They then decided to go on a road trip, but Shaq refused to enter the car. Shortly afterward, the car was involved in an accident and no passenger survived. O'Neal recounted the experience at a speaking event called "An Evening with Shaquille O'Neal" in Melbourne, Australia on Thursday. "They decided to drive in Germany during a winter storm," O'Neal said. "Something told me not to get in the car. I didn't get in the car and everybody in the car passed away." "After that I was like, You know what? I have to be a leader. I can't just follow guys because I'm trying to be cool.'" After living in Germany until his sophomore year of high school, O'Neal and his family returned to the United States. They settled in San Antonio, where Shaq became a high school star. He then went to LSU for three seasons. O'Neal was drafted first overall in 1992 by the Orlando Magic. He joined the Lakers in 1996 and led them to three straight championships from 2000 to 2002. He was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004 and went on to help them win their first title in 2006. He bounced around the league from 2008 to 2011, playing for three different teams before retiring. Shaquille O Neal compares his son Shareef to Giannis Antetokounmpo Shareef and Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille O'Neal was against the idea of his son, Shareef, entering the NBA draft this year. However, Shaq had no choice but to support his son in trying to achieve his dream of reaching the NBA. Shareef went undrafted, but represented the LA Lakers in the Summer League. The 22-year-old was not signed by his father's former team, but received an offer to play for the G League Ignite Team. He accepted the offer and will start his journey to the NBA. During the speaking event in Australia, Shaq compared Shareef to two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. He praised his son's skillset and shooting form, but stressed that Shareef is too nice on the court and should develop a mean streak. "He's a fabulous player. He's like Giannis with a jump shot, but he has to figure out how to harness that energy. He's just too nice right now, a very nice, respectful kid. I always tell him, 'If a guy tries to bowl up against you, put your elbow right in his teeth and knock his teeth out.' That's how you do it." Poll : 0 votes Quick Links More from Sportskeeda Edited by Juan Paolo David × Feedback Thank You! Be the first one to comment Follow Us Share Show More Comments GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ GIF Comment in moderation 0 0 Reply x Edit Delete Delete the comment? No thanks Delete GIF Cancel Update GIF Cancel Reply ❮ ❯ Be the first one to comment on this story More from Sportskeeda Fetching more content... 1 Manage your profile Editing Story Queue Video Queue Editing Stats Writer Home SEO Redirection Admin Gaming Wiki Edits Taxonomy Home Edit Site Menu Mapping Dashboard Tag Pages Community Social Feed Queue Feed Center Notification Center Affiliate Home Manage Pages Bottom Tagline Dash Timeless Stories Logout No Results Found Get the free App now Manage notifications Popular ‍ Sports (30+) CricketCricket HomeCricket NewsScheduleIND vs SAAUS vs WIENG vs PAKLegends LeagueECC T10County ChampionshipBukhatir LeagueNZ T20 Tri-SeriesWomen's Asia Cup 2022Japan Cricket LeagueWI-W vs NZ-WECT10T20 World Cup FootballFootball HomeNewslettersSK Experts ScheduleEPLNations LeagueLa LigaLigue 1Champions LeagueFIFA WCMLS Bundesliga Serie A WWEWWE HomeNewslettersRumor RoundupRAWSmackDownResultsRosterChampionsWWE Extreme Rules 2022PPV ScheduleAEW EsportsEsports HomeMinecraftOverwatch 2RobloxGenshin ImpactFortniteGTAStreamersFree FirePUBGValorantBGMIPop CultureAnimeGaming TechWiki Guides TennisTennis HomeTennis calendarChina OpenTennis Results TodayATP RankingsWTA RankingsRoger FedererRafael NadalNovak DjokovicSerena Williams MMAMMA HomeUFC NewsONE ChampionshipUFC Fight NightScheduleRankingsResultsUFC Fights TonightONE Championship ResultsONE Championship ScheduleONE Championship Rankings KabaddiKabaddi HomePKL 2022PKL SchedulePKL Points TableKabaddi Rules WikiWiki HomeMinecraft WikiNaruto WikiTikTok WikiYoutube WikiGTA WikiTerraria WikiOne Piece Wiki MoreSportsBasketballIndian FootballNFLMinecraftFormula 1NascarPop CultureCollege FootballHockeyGolfAthleticsBadmintonGymnasticsWrestlingSwimmingTennisShootingBoxingArcheryWinter SportsRobloxSkateboardingKho KhoLifestyle LINKS About Us Write For Us Policies Editorial Standards Journalism Awards Fact Check Affiliate Program Careers CSR Privacy Policy Contact Us Edition: English हिन्दी