Shaquille O'Neal Expresses Interest in Buying NBA Franchise, Wants to 'Come Back Home'
ORLANDO - As a man of many business endeavors, former Orlando Magic center Shaquille O'Neal has began laying the groundwork of owning an NBA franchise in the past few months.
But according to CNN, the 15-time All Star is most interested in the place he calls home, which can mean a number of the 30 NBA teams.
“I don’t know if I’m allowed to say,” O'Neal said. “It’d probably be disrespectful to say it, but I would like to go back home. I’ll leave that to the viewers to figure out [what it means]. I would like to go back home.”
Regarded as one of the most dominant players in history, Orlando is one place that could be considered "home" for O'Neal, who was selected first overall by the team 1992 and where he spent the first four years of his career.
However, Orlando is not the only city of significance to Shaq ... who was born and raised in Texas near the San Antonio Spurs, followed by playing three years of college basketball at LSU close to the New Orleans Pelicans.
The DeVos family has owned the Magic since 1991, but has not shown interest in selling the franchise despite Amway co-founder and patriarch Richard DeVos passing away in 2018.
O'Neal has experience in franchise ownership in the NBA, being a minority owner for the Sacramento Kings since 2013 before selling his stake in January.
"Listen we still run that franchise [Magic]. If they wanna sell it to us, DeVos family, we're ready to go right now," O'Neal said on The Big Podcast in July.
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