Former Los Angeles Lakers player Shaquille O’Neal recently appeared on “The Jennifer Hudson Show” to chat about everything from his friendship with fellow NBA All-Star Charles Barkley to his other career as DJ Diesel.
But the “American Idol” alum wanted the tea — asking the 7-foot-1 athlete about the time he slid into Kerry Washington’s DMs.
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Last week, the “Django” actress appeared on an episode of Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen,” where the star was asked, “Who’s the most famous person to slide into your DMs, wanting to connect as a friend or otherwise?”
“Um, Shaq, Shaquille O’Neal,” she promptly answered, adding, “He’s a big ‘Scandal’ fan. He’s always like I’ll do anything for command.”
Hoping there might have been more to Washington’s story, Hudson asked Shaq about exactly what was said in his message to her on social media.
The singer-turned-talk show host said, “You made the headlines because you were DM’ing Kerri Washington.”
“First of all, I wasn’t DMing her,” said the retired athlete before confirming Washington’s account of what happened.
“I’m a fan of hers and we were talking about ‘Scandal,’” said Shaq, noting that he contacted Washington to celebrate her award-winning role and success.
“I said, ‘God bless you. I’m proud of you and I love your show,’” he recalled, stating he started watching the show late.
“I wasn’t watching when it was on. So, I picked it up and I was watching like 1 through season 7 and I’m a binge-watcher, so I watched, like, seven seasons like 3 days. Then when it went off, I couldn’t find it, so I jumped in the DM. Like, ‘Hey, is ‘Scandal’ coming back on?”
Shaq said he asked her when the next season was going to air and that was it.
In response to Shaq revealing what he said, fans began to remind him that Washington is a married woman, while others accused Hudson of putting him on blast.
“She def married.”
“Stop trying to put Shaq on blast. He just wanted to know when the scandal shows came back on. keep being amazing J.”
“That’s exactly what Kerry said that Shaq was a fan of scandal.”
In an attempt to change the subject, one fan asked Hudson about her rumored relationship, writing, “Don’t do him!!! What about you and Common.”
This is not the first time that someone tried to put Shaq on blast for sliding in a pretty lady’s DMs.
A week after attending dinner with fitness influencer Brittany Renner, Shaq made headlines earlier this summer for sliding into the DMs of Ariana Josephine Cossine, now known as “Home Depot Girl.”
Shaq DM's the Viral Home Depot Girl😳📱💯 pic.twitter.com/JjVNQgWqgl
— Raphousetv (RHTV) (@raphousetv2) June 11, 2023
The young lady went viral in June after posting a picture of herself in her work uniform, prompting social media users to comment on how she was either too pretty to work at the hardware store or that she was trying to get attention — attention that became too overwhelming.
Cue the celebrity direct messenger.
The former NBA baller didn’t try to holler at her as many suspected, but instead he gave her some words of encouragement following the criticism. “Don’t read the comments stuff like that will drive u crazy have a great day.”
He then stunted a little bit and said, “Tell all your boyfriends i said hello lol.”
The attention caused the content influencer to quit her job, while Shaq attempted to find the humor in the matter with a funny freestyle video that was filmed at a Home Depot location where she worked.
New Orleans artist Treety later revealed that Shaq slid in her DMs to also show support for her rising music and her song “Making Love.” The following month in July, Shaq was spotted entering a hotel with two ladies.
Whether it’s as a friend or a motivator, it’s clear everyone loves Shaq’s way with words.
