Shaquille O’Neal has never been known for being discreet. From his days as an NBA star to now as a top NBA commentator, he has always been known for his bold style, while never losing his sense of humor.
An example of this is the spectacular “public debut” of his new car. Due to its size, it couldn’t be a subtle vehicle for someone who stands 7’1″ and weighs 324 pounds, but with an estimated fortune of $500 million, O’Neal can solve any problem that comes his way.
The former Magic, Lakers, Heat, Suns, Cavs, and Celtics star now owns one of the first electric pickups from Tesla to hit the market.
It’s a lightweight carbon fiber beast, with the dimensions of a tank-elegant, lightweight, spacious, and eco-friendly. Its cost? Just over $100,000.
In addition, it features enormous 30-inch tires, the ability to tow over five tons, and an impressive range of 319 miles on a full battery charge.
According to Tesla, the company owned by Elon Musk, it’s the fastest electric pickup in the world, going from 0 to 100 mph in just 2.6 seconds, beating its two main competitors-the Rivian R1T (3 seconds) and the GMC Hummer EV (3.3 seconds).
In fact, this is actually the second Cybertruck the NBA Hall of Famer has purchased. He mentioned he already had another one at his house in Atlanta:
“I missed my Cybertruck when I was traveling from Las Vegas to Atlanta, so I bought another one because I needed one in each place,” said Shaquille O’Neal.
The Challenge of Buying a Car for Someone the Size of Shaq
The difference this time is that he didn’t settle for just the standard model. He also mentioned that when he got his first Cybertruck, Effortless Motors told him they had sold a similar car to LeBron James.
O’Neal immediately thought: “If LeBron can fit in this car and he didn’t want it, I’d call him and say, ‘Hey, Bron, 6’9″ or 6’10”, let me see it.’
“Whenever I buy a car, I know I can’t fit in it, so I have to look at the back seat,” O’Neal explained. “If there’s 6 to 8 inches behind the seat, I can move it back and fit.”
He added, “When I called, I asked, ‘What’s that?’ And the guy replied, ‘Oh, it’s the Cyberbeast, a bit bigger than the Cybertruck.’
“And I said, ‘How much does it cost? You know what? If you can bring it to Las Vegas, I’ll buy it.’ And he brought it to Vegas. I made the deal of my life,” O’Neal said, unable to contain his excitement.
