Known for his explosiveness each on and off the court, four-time NBA champion Shaquille O’Neal has shown remarkable growth and maturity through the years, a stark contrast to the person he was during his marriage to Shaunie Nelson within the early 2000s.

Now, the previous Lakers star gives advice to couples and hopes he might help them save their relationships, something he couldn’t do when he was married.

On a recent episode of his podcast, The Big Podcast with Shaq, O’Neal offered thoughtful advice within the “Ask Dr. O’Neal” segment.

The listener, a mother concerned about her partner’s frequent marijuana use and his skilled instability, emailed to ask if she could help together with her relationship together with her partner.

She explained: “My child’s father is a hard worker and a good person, but he smokes a lot (of pot) and loses jobs left and right, so I’m the main breadwinner. I hate that we’re so unstable financially. I want more out of life, but he doesn’t want the same.”

“I want to leave,” she continued. “But at the same time, I want my child to have both parents at home. What’s the best way to handle that?”

O’Neal responded with sympathy, realizing the issue of her situation.

“I would tell her to try to communicate better with him to see if they can work it out, but in any relationship you have to be happy,” he advised, adding: “Unhappy wife, unhappy life. So if you’re not happy, things won’t work out and it will probably end up costing both of you. I would just tell her to try to communicate her feelings to him and see what he wants to do.”

Shaq continued by sharing a more personal reflection on how it will possibly motivate him to make a higher life for his family.

“Lift your man up the best you can, because men go through a lot,” the sports analyst said. “I know you women go through a lot, but men go through a lot of pressure. … Maybe if you can lift him up a little more, maybe you can help him.”

That level of maturity is a far cry from O’Neal’s in 2002, when he married Shaunie Nelson (Henderson). The couple’s relationship was marred by rumors of infidelity, including an alleged affair between the NBA player and family friend Laura Govan. Their marriage led to 2009, and their divorce was finalized in 2011.

In retrospect, it will possibly be said that Shaq took responsibility for the breakdown of their relationship.

The NBA legend admitted to cheating on Henderson each in interviews and in his 2011 memoir, Shaq Uncut: My Story.

Once in an interview with The Pivot in 2022 podcastShaq said, “I was angry. She was amazing. That was all me. We don’t have to talk about what I was doing, but I didn’t protect her and I didn’t protect the oath.”

Update: Video and audio

Shaquill O’Neal Admits He Was to Blame for Divorce from Shaunie O’Neal. Shaq Says: ‘I Didn’t Protect Her and I Didn’t Protect My Vows’#shaquilloneal #shaunieoneal photo:twitter.com/DJD1K4FUhn

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Reflecting on their breakup, Henderson later confessed in her autobiography, Undefeated: Changing the Rules and Winning on My Own Terms, that there had been a breakdown in communication between them, which played a significant role within the breakdown of their marriage.

She also revealed something that shocked fans of the 15-time All-Star.

“When I think about it now, I don’t know if I was ever truly in love with that man, but I was in love with the idea of ​​being married to the man I had a family with,” she wrote.

The clip went viral and sparked discussion about how appropriate it was for her to say something like that publicly.

It also prompted a response from the Great Aristotle on Instagram with a heartfelt message: “Believe me, I get it. I get it… he wouldn’t be in love with me. I wish you the best… lots of love. Shaq.”

Now, each O’Neal and Henderson have moved on, specializing in raising their children — Amirah, Shaqir, Shareef, Me’arah and Myles — together in a patchwork family. Henderson has remarried, tying the knot with Pastor Keion Henderson, who has develop into a very present extra dad.

Henderson said her relationship with O’Neal is way stronger now.

“We have a great relationship now,” she said in an interview with Tamron Hall, emphasizing her commitment to raising their children together.

Even with this commitment, there are sometimes awkward situations when each men and her recent husband are present at necessary events involving the kids.

O’Neal’s journey from NBA superstar with a failed marriage to a more introspective and emotionally aware person seems to talk volumes about his growth. His willingness to supply advice from a place of reflection, perhaps on his past mistake, underscores a transformation that few would have expected twenty years ago.