Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-wife claims quote questioning if she was ‘in love’ with him was ‘taken out of context’ from her OWN book
Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-wife Shaunie Henderson has said a striking quote about their marriage from her new memoir was “taken out of context.”
In ‘UNDEFEATED: Changing the Rules and Winning on My Own Terms’ – which was released on Tuesday – Henderson questioned whether or not she was actually in love with O’Neal – and also accused him of ‘being missing’ during their relation.
Now, Henderson has walked back the “in love” quote in an interview with PEOPLE.
“My book is my truth, and when I was talking to my friend yesterday I thought: developing an opinion and a commentary on content without context will show you the intelligence and unintelligence of many people, right? There was no context for that one quote that I said, and I think unfortunately people are taking my words out of context,” she said.
‘I’m not a word girl. “I’m a character girl, and since leaving Shaquille’s marriage, my character has spoken for itself,” she added.
Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-wife Shaunie has said quotes about their marriage from her new memoir were ‘taken out of context’
Henderson claimed that Shaquille O’Neal kept going ‘missing’ before their eventual divorce in 2011
O’Neal and Henderson married in 2002 before divorcing in 2011.
And the ex-Lakers star gave a cryptic response on social media after Henderson’s comments spread.
On Thursday, he wrote in all caps on Instagram: “I understand…I wouldn’t have been in love with me either. I wish you all the best… All the love, Shaq.”
He captioned the post: “Trust me, I understand.”
Fans were quick to offer him their support in the comments, with one saying: ‘I wish she’d never said that. Some things you just keep to yourself.’
Another wrote: ‘This man doesn’t post anything personal to the media so it’s a good thing this information is being released publicly.’
The NBA legend posted a message on Instagram in which he appeared to respond to Henderson
The couple married in 2002 and had four children: Shareef, Shaquir, Amirah and Me’arah.
Another comment read: “Shaq is going through it now,” with a crying emoji.
Henderson appeared to blame O’Neal for the recent drama, wondering “why he would walk away with” the “out-of-context quote.”
Yet she acknowledged “it is my book, my truth, and it is my legacy.”
In his 2011 memoir, “Shaq Uncut: My Story,” Shaq admitted that he was “a man with too many options,” and hinted that this would affect their marriage indefinitely.
He filed for divorce in Miami in September 2007 after admitting he “failed to protect” [Henderson] and protecting those vows.