In a hot real estate market countrywide, Orlando, Florida, home prices continue to surge.
That is unless, apparently, the home was customized for a 7-foot-1 Hall of Fame center, 15-time All-Star and four-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat — Shaquille O’Neal, whose Orlando-area mansion was originally listed at $28 million.
O’Neal’s mansion has 12 bedrooms, 15 bathrooms and a 17-car garage. There is also a wine room, a vast theater room, an NBA-certified indoor basketball court and an aquarium room. A resort-style swimming pool is outside, and the mansion sits on 3.94 acres of land.
Around Orlando, historically low inventory for homes in Central Florida has seen prices climb 15% from year over year from 2020, according to the Orlando Regional Realtor Association. The average home price in Orlando is just north of $360,000.
This time around, the agency selling O’Neal’s mansion came up with a new strategy: removing as much of Shaq as possible from the home.
Prior listings had O’Neal logos, touches and memorabilia throughout the home. The new entry on Zillow has dozens of photos, with the only standout Shaq reference an embossed logo in the home gym.
O’Neal, 49, is an analyst for TNT’s “Inside the NBA,” but he’s no stranger to business ventures and successes. He has his own shoe brand called “Shaq,” and he also is a minority owner of the Sacramento Kings. He also owns numerous restaurants, including some Papa John’s and Auntie Anne’s franchise locations.