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Shaq has hilarious reaction to meeting 7-9 Florida freshman Olivier Rioux
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Shaquille O’Neal isn’t used to looking up to too many people at 7-1. The legendary center, though, was quite surprised by meeting Florida basketball’s Olivier Rioux.
Shaq shared a video of his encounter with UF’s 7-9 freshman center on TikTok.
Rioux, out of the IMG Academy in Florida, made more headlines than a typical college basketball commitment when he announced his plans to play college basketball at UF on Nov. 8, 2023. He is recognized by Guinness World Records as the tallest living male teenager.
Despite his height, Rioux was not a highly sought-after prospect. He received a 3-star rating, choosing UF over offers from Stetson and Florida Atlantic at the time of his commitment announcement.
While fans have long been intrigued by the idea of the 7-9 center playing for the Gators, they’ll have to be patient. The plan, per head coach Todd Golden, is for Rioux to redshirt for the 2024-25 season. The Gators are doing fine so far without Rioux, starting the season 15-1, including back-to-back SEC wins over No. 1 Tennessee and John Calipari’s Arkansas squad.
As for Shaq, he may be seeing Rioux again before too long. Me’Arah O’Neal, Shaq’s daughter, plays for the Florida women’s basketball team, so expect the LSU legend to be spotted in Gainesville from time to time.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
