Shaq at Retirement Press Conference: ‘Call Me The Big AARP’

By KC Downey in Celtics, Featured ⋅ June 3, 2011 at 2:08pm ⋅ Post a comment

Shaquille O’Neal has now played his last game in the NBA, officially making the announcement at a Friday press conference near his home in Orlando. Shaq, who said nice things about former coaches Phil Jackson and Doc Rivers, revealed that if he wanted to play for one last season with the Celtics, he would need surgery and face a 9-month recovery. This is why he’s retiring now so the Celtics can move on in a timely manner.

Shaq announced he’s retiring via Twitter earlier in the week, also dubbing himself “The Big 401k.” At his presser Friday, he changed that to ‘The Big AARP.”

Shaq’s mom Lucille introduced the big fella’s news conference, saying ”It’s a bittersweet day for our family.” She previously said that Shaq may return to the Celtics for one more season, but Shaq just didn’t want to disappoint the Boston fans again.

So, what will come of the former Magic/Laker/Heat/Sun/Cav/Celtic? Well, he most certainly will be a Hall-of-Famer. But, it looks like he may step away from the game for a bit as he’s going to spend some more time with his six kids, dubbing himself the Phil Jackson of Little League.

“I want to be a consummate professional. The ultimate goal is to have my 6 children look at me the way I look at my mother & father.”

At his press conference, CSNNE.com’s Jessica Camerato noticed Shaq did not wear any colors associated with past teams (his tie was pink). Pink tie and all, Shaq took funny swipes at Stephen A. Smith, Skip Bayless, and Dwight Howard.