Shaquille O’Neal says he spends thousands on pedicures.
In an episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq, the 52-year-old former NBA star admitted that he regularly spends around $1,000 on pedicures, often opting for “sparkles and designs” for his toes. He explained to listeners, “I give about $1,000 because I know my feet stink, I know they’re ugly, and I like to paint them.
“I paint that s*** because it’s ugly and I want it to look pretty,” he continued, noting that his mother was the one who initially got him into getting pedicures. “True story — one time I had a toenail that was torn off and I wasn’t going to play in the game. I was like, I tore my toenail off, so she did something and then she put like, some red polish on the thing, and I had 40 that game.”
From then on, he continued the habit: “So I was like, you know what, I’m just going to start painting my toenails.”
O’Neal’s co-hosts were caught off guard and asked him whether or not he paints them with “solid colors” or “designs,” to which the retired Lakers player said that he prefers the latter. He revealed, “I do like, sparkles and designs and all this stuff, you know, just to make it look pretty because I have ugly, stinky feet.”
O’Neal showed off his fresh-to-death toenails in a video for Sports Center’s Instagram account, donning royal blue toenails.
He’s not the only athlete opening up about his penchant for getting his nails done. At the 2024 NFL Draft, top overall pick Caleb Williams flexed his manicured nails, which he painted to match his girlfriend Alina Thyregod‘s silver dress. At the time, he told news outlets, “I paint my nails, I wear unique things.”
In an interview with Cam Newton for the NFL Network, Williams opened up about his sense of style, and doubled down on his decision to paint his nails. He said, “It’s me. You call it unique. I call it me.”
He added that he will continue to “showcase that” uniqueness “here today and in the future here soon.”
Later in August of last year, Williams opened up to People about his sartorial choices going viral, noting that “the nails thing kind of took everybody by surprise” especially when the quarterback’s looks first began to be talked about on social media.
“I’ve been doing it before college, but it took everybody by surprise, just because you don’t always see male athletes who play football paint their nails,” Williams added. “But I think it’s just another way of expression.”
Williams was drafted as the first overall by the Chicago Bears in the 2024 NFL draft to join their team as their new quarterback. Previously, he played college football for the Oklahoma Sooners and USC Trojans.
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