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Shaquille O'Neal was in Los Angeles on Thursday. He was there to unveil the refurbished basketball court at the Challengers Boys & Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles. Shaq’s foundation (The Shaquille O'Neal Foundation) and Icy Hot funded the refurbishing.
The $400 million Los Angeles Lakers legend donated $20,000 to renovate the club's basketball court. An added detail of the renovation is a pair of O'Neal's unique size-22 shoes. The three-time NBA champion spoke about playing a substantial amount of basketball at his local Boys & Girls Club when he was growing up.
“Basketball was very, very healthy,” the Lakers legend told The Times during a Zoom call. “The people, the OGs made sure all the nonsense stayed away.”
Growing up, Shaq lived with his family on different military bases. Describing his experience while playing in those basketball facilities, O'Neal said it was "perfect." He also added that it felt like he was playing in a big basketball arena.
The Shaquille O'Neal Foundation and Icy Hot funded the refurbishing of these basketball courts in a drive to help South Los Angeles children. They refurbished the Challengers Boys & Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles under the Comebaq Courts initiative.
The court was painted purple and gold and has Icy Hot backboards. It also has a Shaquille O’Neal Foundation logo. Shaq and his foundation will also holding a DJ and slam dunk contest on the court.
Comebaq Court marks 20 years of Shaquille O'Neal and Icy Hot partnership
Shaquille O’Neal and Icy Hot have officially been partners for 20 years, and the opening of the Los Angeles Comebaq Court celebrated its anniversary. During their partnership, they have refurbished courts in Miami, Las Vegas, Newark and Atlanta. This has given thousands of local kids a space to play and hone their skills.
The project of renovating the courts for kids came due to Shaq’s relationship with the Lakers. Moreover, the Lakers Youth Foundation runs the basketball clinic for the Challengers Boys & Girls Club. The youth foundation also has a long relationship with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Los Angeles.
