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Shaquille O’Neal’s No-Nonsense Ultimatums on His Daughters’ Dating Lives Are Almost as Strict as His Policy of Forcing His Sons Out of the House

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Shaquille O’Neal has very different regulations for his sons and daughters when it comes to dating. The NBA Hall of Famer, who shares three biological children with media mogul Shaunie Henderson and an eldest daughter from a previous relationship with businesswoman Arnetta Yardbourgh, has long been vocal about allowing his sons to begin dating when they turned 18 years old yet prohibiting his daughters from dating until they were in their mid-20s. Now, he’s added that his girls Taahirah, Amirah, and Me’arah, aged 27, 22, and 17, respectively, can’t bring a boy home until they’ve obtained a master’s degree.

During the March 20 episode of “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” Shaquille O’Neal discussed with Bert Kreischer the dating restrictions he has set for his six children.

Left to Right: Shaunie Henderson, Shaqir, Sharif, Myles, Shaq, Taahirah, Me’arah, Amirah (Photo Credit: @shaq/Instagram)
Left to Right: Shaunie Henderson, Shaqir, Sharif, Myles, Shaq, Taahirah, Me’arah, Amirah (Photo: @shaq/Instagram)

“How many kids you got, Bert?” Shaq asked his guest.

The comedian answered that he had two girls, who were 17 and 19.

Then former L.A. Lakers star asked, “What’s your policy on dating?” Kreischer quickly said, “Zero. I have no policy; I’m powerless. They do whatever they want. I just want them to be happy.”

He continued, “I don’t want them to bring home a fan,” before saying to Shaq, “I am sure you have it with your kids.”

However, the Hall of Fame center was clear that he will not have that issue because his daughters will not be dating boys at this time.

“You’re a better dad than I am,” the Newark native began before disclosing what he says to his two youngest daughters, Amirah and Me’arah.

“Don’t bring no boys to my house unless you got a master’s,” Shaq said. ‘I don’t want to see them at all.”

The 52-year-old then declared that if his daughters brought a boy home, no matter how polite, he would “get f—ked up.”

Shaq admits that if his daughters’ potential mate arrived with a three-piece suit, was well put together and had a master’s degree, he’d be “impressed,” but then he’d have one question to ask to determine whether the boy was genuine, or a “shyster” like he was in his early days.

The simple question Shaq needs answered: “What you trying to do?”

Social media weighed in on the baller-turned-commentator’s restrictions.

“I’m with @SHAQ anyone wanting to date my daughters gotta come with credentials and no foolery,” one person wrote.

A YouTube commenter offered some insight into why Shaq and Kreischer’s parenting styles are so different “They parent different with their daughters because they treat women different as men,” they wrote.

Shaq’s sentiments on dating are no secret to fans who have been keeping up with the NBA veteran’s life off-court. Previously, in 2018, while a guest on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, he shared the dating regulations that he has set in place for his children. According to Shaq, he established these demands to ensure that their focus remains primarily on their studies and to minimize distractions.

“Well, my sons can date when they’re 18, and my daughters can date when they’re 24,” O’Neal said to the comedian, who in response said his policies seemed unfair.

“Well, you’re right; it’s not fair, but my daughters are much smarter than my boys, and I want them to always be focused,” he explained. “And I want them to realize, ‘Hey, you have to be happy within yourself. You don’t really need anybody to make you happy. You can do your own thing.”

When Ellen asked what would happen if one of his daughters brought a boyfriend home, much like his response in his recent podcast episode, the 7-foot-1, 350-pound giant said it would not be pretty.

“I’m waiting for that. Imma torture him,” he stated.

“First thing I have to let the guy know is, all the little things that you think you doing, I invented. And all the little things, like you going to the movies and you start to do stuff like that, I did all that stuff,” he added, “So I need to let him know that I know what he’s thinking. Just really torture him. Torture him bad.”

Some on the X platform thought Shaq’s demands were silly.

“‘My sons can date when they’re 18, and my daughters can date when they’re 24’ if Shaq don’t….” tweeted a critic.

Taahirah O’Neal, Shaq’s firstborn and eldest daughter, made it past the 24 mark and recently revealed she is actively dating. Taahirah graduated magna cum laude from Oglethorpe University in 2019 with a bachelor of arts in sociology and a minor in politics and African American studies, and despite not having a master’s, she’s ready to find a man.

The 27-year-old shared the news on the “Do I Know You” podcast, clarifying that she has no interest in athletes like her famous father.

“I am dating right now. No offense to athletes, but I was raised by, raised with athletes, it’s a no-go for me. It is a no-go. Y’all keep that over there, respectfully,” Taahirah said, offering that the grind is too much based on her experience with one of the world’s greatest basketball players. She said she needs a partner who is a lot more intentional than a baller.

Shaq’s gender-based policies for his kids don’t stop with just dating. Although he is more strict with his daughters versus his sons when it comes to when they’re allowed to date, when it comes to finances and living at home, Shaq has harsher guidelines for his sons Shareef, 24, and Shaqir, 20. Myles, 26, is Shaunie Henderson’s son from a previous relationship, though Shaq has treated him like his own.

In 2021, he told Earn Your Leisure that in order to get access to a piece of his nearly $500 million net worth, there are directions they must abide by. “My kids are older now. They kinda upset with me. Not really upset, but they don’t understand. I tell them all the time. We ain’t rich. I’m rich.”

“You gotta have bachelor’s or master’s and then if you want me to invest in one of your companies, you’re going to have to present it, boom boom boom, bring it to me,” he continued. “I’ll let you know, I’m not giving you nothing.”

A year earlier, while a guest on “The Pivot Podcast,” Shaq told the hosts that his sons “got to go” when they turn 18, while his three daughters are permitted to “stay as long as [they] want.”

“I tell my boys when y’all get 18, you all got to go. Girls can stay as long as they want,” Shaq stated, adding that he will financially invest in his sons’ business ventures but will not give them handouts.

Again, his position evoked powerful responses from social media.

“Listened to Shaq talk about how he’s rich and his kids aint,” one person said. “Once 18 they gotta earn everything. He said he wont ‘give’ them anything but he’ll invest in their biz or company if they have a good biz plan. That’s just the sons though. He said the daughters good regardless lol.”

Another person tweeted, “The culture is backwards. Shaq said he isn’t giving his sons anything, but he will take care of his daughters. Now the girls looking good and the boys looking busted. The girl now thinks no man can measure up and that she is better than she actually is, even better than him.”

Another commentator compared Shaq’s parenting style to the relationship between Dr. Dre and his daughter, LaTanya Young, who, in 2021, revealed she was homeless and living out of her car.

“Shaq make all his sons earn part of his wealth. plus teaches them the responsibility of gaining their own. his daughter is also 38 years old. she should’ve made a career out her blessings and stopped fending off her father,” they tweeted.

One person said that there might be a backlash for Shaq being so staunch.

“Shaq sons going to be stealing crab legs from the grocery store while his daughter are tweeting about broke n—s,” an X user wrote.

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