Shaquille O’Neal debated canceling his Super Bowl party in Miami, but he decided something good could come from it as he thought to donate all proceeds from the event to families of the nine victims in the California helicopter crash.
“Been going back and forth the past couple of days on if I should even have my event in Miami this weekend. Part of me wanted to stay to myself as I reflect what my brother and his family mean to me and my family. But in thinking what would Kobe want, what would he do? Kobe would want us to push through and celebrate life. So let’s do just that. I’ll be dedicating and donating all my proceeds from Friday nights Fun House to all the families who lost loved ones and to the Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Foundation. Together we will celebrate all those who lost their lives in Sunday’s tragedy. RIP my brother, my friend and my homie, The Black Mamba. Until we meet again.”
O’Neal and Bryant were teammates on the Lakers team that won NBA Titles in 2000-2002, and although they occasionally butted heads, they remained friends, with O’Neal viewing 13-year-old Gianna Bryant as his “niece.”
“When I saw Kobe and his daughters — I love them,” O’Neal said. “He saw my kids. He loved them. If you look at my kid’s Instagram, he talked to Shareef yesterday morning. So, all of that stuff that was documented between us was never a dislike. I love Kobe Bryant.”
Kobe, his daughter and seven others were traveling in a Sikorsky S-76B helicopter to basketball games at the Mamba Academy when tragedy struck. Officials have since recovered all nine bodies from the “devastating” crash site in the hills of Calabasas, California.
It was reported on Tuesday the helicopter was not equipped with a terrain alert system that would have told the pilot a hill was coming.
