When Shaquille O’Neal’s 'nude practice' was revealed by Phil Jackson: “He shocked us all in the practice room when he showed up with just shoes on”

In eight seasons for the LA Lakers, Shaquille O’Neal won three championships for the franchise. During his playing career, "Big Diesel" was known to have some fun with his coaches and teammates. This includes a time when Shaq reportedly showed up to a Lakers practice wearing only his basketball shoes.

At an American Express event in 2016, legendary coach Phil Jackson recalled the incident and said this about Shaq:

“Well, you know, numbers of times, he could crack a team up with humorous effects on the floor.

“There were times when he shocked us all in a practice situation, especially when he showed up nude with just his shoes on.”

Shaquille O’Neal was also present at the event when Jackson opened up about his antics. O’Neal neither confirmed nor denied if the story was true.

“I don’t remember,” O’Neal said as he smiled.

It’s hard to believe someone forgetting about showing up to a team practice naked. O'Neal was likely being sarcastic. However, Jackson and O’Neal’s answers further confirmed that O'Neal's time in LA must have been incredibly eventful.

Shaquille O’Neal used to surprise attack Phoenix Suns teammates while fully naked

Former Phoenix Suns stars Shaquille O'Neal and Steve Nash

Shaquille O’Neal’s antics weren’t limited to his time with the Lakers. According to former Phoenix Suns coach Alvin Gentry, the 15-time All-Star constantly terrorized his teammates during his two seasons with the team from 2007 to 2009.

In 2014, Gentry was asked about any locker room pranks he encountered during his coaching career. Gentry recalled how O’Neal would surprise attack Suns players and staff members every few days while fully naked.

O’Neal did this by tackling them to the ground and then rolling around with them. He referred to it as "Brazilian naked wrestling."

Overall, it seems pretty clear that no one is safe from pranks when Shaquille O’Neal is around. So it’s no wonder that he continues to be one of the most prominent personalities in all of sports, even post retirement.