LAS VEGAS โ The first time Shaquille OโNeal asked to coach the California Supreme last summer, club director Gary Franklin figured it was a joke.
Had to be. Would a Basketball Hall of Famer really want to volunteer his time in hot and crowded gyms, working with teenagers โ even if one of them was his kid โ and get hounded by selfie-seekers after every game?
After all, last summer OโNeal watched his son, UA commit Shareef OโNeal, play for Cal Supreme 16U club for a day in Las Vegas โ and then bolted out of town for one of his many business engagements.
But this summer, having traveled to Atlanta to watch Cal Supremeโs top 17U team play in the Peach Jam earlier this month, Shaq felt like jumping out of the stands.
He asked again.
โI told the guys in the program I want to coach my son,โ OโNeal said.
This time, Franklin listened.
โI said, โAre you serious?โโ Franklin said. โI said, โOK, youโre a coach in Vegas.โโ
As it turned out, Shaq wound up anchoring a star-studded coaching staff for the Bigfoot Las Vegas Classic this week: He worked alongside fellow Cal Supreme โassistantsโ Kenyon Martin and Solomon Hill, Martin also having a son on the team and Hill having played for Cal Supreme before beginning his UA and NBA careers.
Together, the three coachesโ presence meant the five-star talent of Shareef OโNeal was somewhat overshadowed.
The personable forward known as โReefโ had no problem with that.
Martin โis actually very hard on me, him and my dad and Solomon,โ Shareef said. โTheyโre at the level that I want to be at. Theyโre just teaching me a lot. Iโm soaking it all in and doing my best.โ
While Hill is entering the peak of his NBA career, the 39-year-old Martin actually has some game left in him despite retiring in 2015, too. He left Las Vegas early to play in the BIG3 three-on-three event, meaning Shaq and Hill were helping lead the way Saturday morning when the Cal Supreme won its first game in the bracket round after a 1-2 finish in a preceding tournament called โThe 8.โ
The win Saturday morning came despite the fact that Shareef had to leave the game for good in the second half after slashing his right pinkie on the rim while dunking in Spring Valley High Schoolโs auxiliary gym. He came back several minutes later with the pinkie wrapped tightly in black tape, but did not play again in the game.
โA chunk of my finger just was sliced,โ Shareef said. โTheyโre saying that rim was sharp, like people were losing nails. (A trainer) said Iโm the fourth person this week to get a finger injury on that rim specifically. That rim is dangerous. I suggest anybody to not to dunk on it.โ
Dad had other advice throughout the tournament. Shaq frequently took a few steps on to the court to throw tips at Reef and his teammates, frustrated by Cal Supremeโs struggles in โThe 8โ as they coped with new teammates and the loss of 7-foot-2-inch UA target Bol Bol, who was summoned to play for his high school team this week.
Only Shareef and Chandler 2018 forward Tevian Jones were left from the Cal Supreme team that played in the Peach Jam. Combined with the injection of the new celebrity coaches, that made for a chemistry rebuild.
โYou know what? Probably I would say yeah,โ Franklin said of the challenge. A loss Wednesday โwas the first game but after that, the guys got a lot of flow and we were better (Thursday).โ
Shaq tried to help that process by laying down a law of sorts.
โItโs just so youโre having fun and hustling,โ OโNeal said. โOur problem is we donโt make a second effort. We donโt rebound. But itโs my first time working with the guys.โ
While Shaqโs influence on the Cal Supreme has been welcomed this summer, he has so far steered clear of his sonโs future Arizona career. Shareef committed to the UA in April, choosing the Wildcats over USC, UCLA and Kentucky while his father stayed on the sidelines. Shareef also considered his dadโs school, LSU, before the Tigers fired coach Johnny Jones.
โItโs his choice,โ Shaq said. โI love Sean Miller. Itโs a great program. Great basketball tradition. I wish him well.
โIโm not one of those guys whoโs going to micromanage. If you want to go to Arizona, go to Arizona.โ
Shareef appears solidly committed to doing so, though he canโt sign a binding letter of intent until November. So for now, heโs been working on his game, both to prepare himself for his senior season at Crossroads of Santa Monica, California, and also for the 2018-19 season at Arizona.
A skilled and versatile power forward who actually plays much differently than the way his father dominated around the basket, Shareef said heโs been working on his all-around game and leadership this summer.
โJust being more vocal and being a leader, thatโs the main thing Iโm focusing on,โ Shareef said. โJust trying to do a little bit of everything. A little bit of bringing it up, little bit of posting it up and a little bit of wing. Iโm just trying to do all that.โ
Thatโs a lot of work. But at least it doesnโt come with the added pressure that a five-star talent usually faces before his senior year: Because OโNeal committed to the UA in April, he has been able to exclusively worry about what heโs doing on the floor instead of whoโs watching from the stands.
โItโs a lot easier,โ Shareef said. โThere are a lot of great coaches out there โ coach K, coach Calipari โ I see coaches from every single school and I feel itโs a lot easier.
โWhen I wasnโt committed, I tried to impress people too much. Now I donโt shy away. I know where Iโm going. Me and coach Miller, we talk a lot and he says he loves my game, so that just boosts my spirits, and I can just play how I play.โ
Shaq is glad to see him do just that.
โHeโs getting better,โ Shaq said. โI just want him to get better. I want all the kids to get better. โฆ I love working with the kids.โ
Rim shots
- Point guard Devon Dotson, a 2018 recruit from Charlotte, N.C., said he will take an official visit to Arizona starting on Tuesday. It will be his first official visit, though he has visited Kansas unofficially and has Florida and Maryland among his top choices so far.
- Texas 2018 combo guard Quentin Grimes said he will โdefinitelyโ take an official visit to Arizona after having visited the UA unofficially for the Red-Blue Game last October. Grimes said heโs planning to visit Kansas and Arizona, with others possible.
