Shaq Donates Weight Room to Louisiana High School
Shaquille O'Neal may be one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Don't get me wrong, his free throw leaves much to be desired, and there may be a few areas where his stats could have been higher - but that's beside the point. Shaq is one of the greatest because his impact has always been felt well outside the basketball arena. While it was impressive when he would literally explode a backboard due to the force of his Shaq-dunk, his humanitarian efforts have always impressed me more.
The latest item to add to the list is the weight room the 7'1" gentle giant donated to the Lafayette High School's Mighty Lions athletic program. Even though Shaqzilla attended Cole High School in San Antonio (which I am sure has a very nice weight room), he has always had a place in his heart for Louisiana. After all, it was the broken backboards at LSU that really put him on the map.
According to WBRZ, it would have been another 2 years before the school could afford the much needed upgrade had Kazamm (Shaq's genie alter-ego) not stepped in. The new, state-of-the-art facility set Shaq back $20,000. Matching funds were provided by the school board, as the total cost for the project was over $40,000.