Shaquille O’Neal knows exactly how much refurbishing a basketball court can mean to a community and the kids who play on it.
He learned firsthand from his former Boston Celtics teammate Marquis Daniels. He was a teenager three decades ago when O’Neal was playing with the Orlando Magic and rebuilt a court in the inner-city area where Daniels was growing up.
“It was big. He was somebody growing up that I looked up to, he was the tallest person I had ever seen,” Daniels told The Associated Press. “He was playing with my home team, the Orlando Magic, and giving back to the community and showing his appreciation. For kids like me to have a court in the inner city was huge.”
Years later when they were teammates in Boston, Daniels reminded the Hall of Famer that he had been at that court dedication and how it helped change his life. After a 10-year career in the NBA, Daniels has been working as a coach at his alma mater, Auburn, since 2018.
O’Neal recalled Daniels telling him the story.
“He said, ‘You don’t remember me?’” O’Neal said while in Rockwall, Texas, to refurbish another court near his new home. “I said no, and he said well I was one of the kids that grew up in Orlando and you fixed up a court. Because you fixed it up, I’m here.”
Refurbishing courts is commonplace around the NBA and WNBA. The Indiana Fever unveiled a new Legacy Court at a park in Indianapolis during All-Star weekend and the league has an initiative this year to put down orange lines across the country to inspire young players with a WNBA 3-point arc on outdoor courts.
The renovated court at Gloria Williams park is now part of a collection of Comebaq Courts, a joint venture by Icy Hot and the Shaquille O’Neal Foundation to build well-equipped and safe courts for kids across the country.
“They found this court that hasn’t been refurbished in a while and that’s historical with the city,” O’Neal said.
Renovating one in Rockwall was actually the idea of Dallas Wings star Arike Ogunbowale. She has played her entire career in Dallas and wanted to do something for the community.
“This is like my second home. I’ve been here my whole career, so this initiative with Icy Hot and Shaq was a no-brainer,” she said. “Just to give back to the youth that pours into us and my teammates every night is special.”
It’s special to O’Neal also as he plans to spend a lot of his time in the Texas city.
“I’ll get on my little scooter or motorcycle and just ride by and see what’s going on with the kids,” he said. “I work in Atlanta, but it’s only an hour flight and I’m sure at some point this will be my permanent home.”
O’Neal, who is the president of Reebok Basketball, also donated basketball shoes to all the members of the Boys & Girls Club kids who were at the event.
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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
AP NBA: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NBA
