Basketball superstar Shaquille O’Neal known commonly as Shaq clashed with rapper Kanye West on Twitter in defense of his business dealings.
Shaq pushed back over a tweet that claimed he allowed his business dealings to control him.
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Why did Kanye West comment on Shaq’s businesses?
An argument between Kanye West and Shaquille O’Neal began after the basketball legend spoke out against Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving who posted a promotional tweet for the 2018 film Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America.
It is an antisemitic film based on a book, which Irving linked in his post and which O’Neal condemned in an interview on TNT’s Tip-Off show.
O’Neal said Irving’s comments were damaging to basketball and he “doesn’t really care what’s going on.”
Speaking about the backlash Irving has faced, O’Neal said it’s imperative to be “aware” and “conscious” of what you say and the effect it has on your followers.
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“You have to be aware of what you are doing. You have to be conscious and I can tell he is not conscious – he doesn’t really care what’s going on,” O’Neal said.
“It hurts me sometimes when we have to sit up here and talk about stuff that divides the game. We have got to answer for what this idiot has done.”
He continued: “I stand for equality of all people, I’ve always been like that. It doesn’t matter, your religion or where you’re from. That’s how I was raised.
“I don’t want to sit up here and answer questions for what he’s done. It’s my job to make people happy. I can’t answer for what he’s doing – it is obvious by his answers that he doesn’t really care.”
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Irving said he doesn’t need to defend his comments when a reporter repeatedly asked about his tweet during a post-game press conference.
“I can post whatever I want, so say that, and shut it down, and move on to the next question. I don’t have to understand anything from you,” Irving said.
“[I] wish you would feel the same about Black reproductive rights, about the things that actually matter, instead of what I’m posting. Fix your life, bro.”
What did Kanye West say to Shaq ?
Kanye West, who goes by Ye condemned the interview in his tweet, saying O’Neal only made those comments to appease those he is in business with.
Canadian billionaire Jamie Stalter has used O’Neal’s name and likeness for his company, Authentic Brands Group, since 2015.
O’Neal became one the ABG’s largest shareholders and Stalter previously said the company bought 50 percent of O’Neal’s future earnings.
Ye retweeted an article on November 3, published by Fox news with the headline: “Shaq rips Kyrie Irving over antisemitism controversy, calls him an ‘idiot.’”
Alongside the article, Ye tweeted: “They make us bully ourselves because of our business alignments.”
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“Shaq is in business with Jamie Salter. Jaimie first said he’s 50/50 with David Beckham and 50/50 with Shaq.
“I said ‘Jamie . . . There’s no such thing as 50/50 in business . . . Who has the extra 1 percent for the control and voting rights,” Ye tweeted.
He continued: “Jamie then said he’s actually got the 51 percent on both those deals. We as the creators and talent get so caught up in our vanity that we don’t read or understand the fine print.
“Like Dave Chapelle said, we need to stop giving up control over our own names and our likeness.”
What is Shaquille O’Neal’s involvement with ABG?
In 2015, O’Neal made the decision to sell the rights to his name brand to ABG while simultaneously becoming a primary shareholder.
The company now owns approximately 50 brands and acquired Reebok from Adidas in 2021, something O’Neal had wanted since linking up with the company.
“As a longtime partner of Reebok and an owner of ABG, it’s a dream come true to welcome this legendary brand to the family,” O’Neal said in a statement.
ABG President and CMO, Nick Woodhouse, said O’Neal was a big part of bringing the reality of acquiring Reebok to life, telling Footwear News: “Most conversations, [with O’Neal] start[ed] off with, ‘Have you bought Reebok yet
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Woodhouse continued: “Shaq is very involved in our business and very involved in his business with us.
“So it’s super gratifying for him, too. [Reebok] is the company that helped, with his athletic prowess, vault him to fame and teach him how to be a businessman.”
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