By: Tadi Abedje

There has been a rise in college athletes deciding to take their talents and education to historically Black colleges and universities, from Makur Maker to Hercy Miller, and now Amirah O’Neal. Her younger brother, Shaqir, is also attending Texas Southern University. 

She made the announcement on her Instagram page, on which she has approximately 116,000 followers. 

“I see the doubt in they faces, they didn’t think I would make it,” O’Neal said. 

She and her brothers, Shareef and Shaqir, and her youngest sister Me’arah O’Neal, who is in high school, are following in their father’s footsteps on the basketball court.  

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The great Shaquille O’Neal is a Basketball Hall of Famer and arguably one of the greatest players of all time. He played 19 seasons in the NBA for the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics. During his career, O’Neal was a 15-time All-Star, four-time NBA Champion, three-time NBA Finals MVP and won the MVP Award for the regular season in 2000. 

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Amirah is from Los Angeles, California, and attended the Crossroads School for the Arts and Sciences. According to the HBCU Gameday website, she “was a 2019 MaxPreps California All-State Girls Team honorable mention and a two-time All-state honoree.” 

She originally decided to attend LSU, where her famous father was a dominant force. Her major was Agricultural Business, according to the LSU Women’s Basketball website. 

Now, the six-foot-one post player will be coached by another Basketball Hall of Famer, Cynthia Cooper-Dyke and should be a valuable contributor to the program.  

Life is good for the O’Neal family, as two of their children, with the possibility of another one, are attending an HBCU at the same time. 

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