He may have let his rap persona run rampant for the NBA Awards, but Shaquille O'Neal was back to his suit-and-tie self for a sit-down interview with Hoda Kotb for The Today Show. The former NBA star chatted with the host about how he's changed how he navigates social media, opting to rid his pages of showing off his luxury items. The reason behind the shift came after his mother told him to cut it out with the boastful photos.
"When I send out tweets it’s 60 percent to make you laugh, 30 percent to inspire you and 10 percent to promote what I’m selling," Shaq said. "I came up with that formula because when I first started doing Twitter I didn’t really understand social media. I was kinda in showoff mode. ‘Look at my house, look at my boat.’ My mom called me and she said ‘Stop showing off. Be humble. You should use that to inspire people.’"
He added that his mother has never steered him in the wrong direction. "She’s always been right, she’s never been wrong. She’s never gave me the wrong information. She’s so calm about her approach. I can be upset about certain things and she’d [stay] so calm and it always worked out." The best piece of advice she's given him? "Don’t forget where you come from and make people remember your name," he said. "Whenever I do or say something I imagine her in front of the TV watching. Every man should love and respect the women first of all and they should definitely respect and love their mother."