On the Court With... Shaquille O'Neal by Matt Christopher Page A

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     the city of Newark as a receptionist at a youth center. Although she didn't earn much money, she was able to pay her bills.
     She worked hard and soon applied for other jobs with the city, eventually becoming a clerk in the payroll department at City
     Hall.
    Meanwhile, her “little warrior,” Shaquille, was beginning to grow. He loved to eat and was verybright and energetic. He didn't want to be held or cuddled very much. He was happy-go-lucky and liked to play.
    When Shaquille was only two years old, his mother met Phillip Harrison. Harrison was nothing like James Toney. He had two
     young children from a previous marriage and, unlike Toney, was doing his best to provide for them.
    Lucille began dating Phillip, and the two soon married. But before they did, Harrison looked up James Toney. Harrison had
     played basketball in college, so he knew who Toney was, but the two weren't close friends. When Harrison spoke to Toney, he
     told him that he planned to treat Shaquille as if he were his own son.
    And he did. Harrison became Shaquille's father. To this day, Shaquille O'Neal considers Phil Harrison his father and not James
     Toney. He even wrote a rap song about how James Toney had abandoned his mother and him. The song is called “Biological Didn't
     Bother.”
    Harrison soon realized he had to do everything he could to support his family and help them thrive. He wanted to move out
     of Newark, which was a poorcommunity that didn't provide a good environment for children. Soon after marrying Lucille, Harrison decided to join the army.
    Harrison loved the discipline, structure, and security the army provided. He believed that young Shaquille needed the same
     sort of structure in his life. At times he was very strict with his son, but only because he was determined that Shaquille
     make something of his life.
    Of course, Shaquille was little more than a toddler, so at first many of those lessons went to waste. When Shaquille misbehaved,
     Harrison would punish Shaquille by sending him to his room. But when Harrison went to work, Shaquille's mother would break
     down and lift the punishment. She just couldn't stay mad at her son for very long.
    As the years passed, Phil Harrison moved up the ranks in the army. The family moved to Bayonne, New Jersey, and soon grew
     larger. When Shaquille was six years old, his sister Lateefah was born, followed one year later by another sister, Ayesha,
     and then a year later by his little brother, Jamal.
    Shaquille was growing, too, and was much bigger than other children his age. When Lucille took Shaquille on the train to visit
     relatives, she carriedhis birth certificate to prove to the conductor that despite his size, Shaquille was still young enough to ride for free.
     By the time he started school, he was one of the biggest students in his grade. But he was bright, too. When he was little,
     his mother had read to him from the dictionary. She hoped to give her son a jump start on his education. It may have worked,
     for Shaquille skipped first grade.
    In many ways, Shaquille was a typical boy. He liked to play sports, particularly basketball and football. Even though he was
     one of the youngest kids in the local youth leagues, he towered over his opponents. His size helped him become a star player
     on most teams.
    But as he grew older, Shaquille started developing some bad habits. He wasn't a bad kid, but because both his parents were
     working, he didn't always have a great deal of supervision. He allowed his friends to talk him into doing things that he knew
     were wrong, like stealing candy and other small items from stores. His friends didn't care about school, so Shaquille stopped
     paying attention, too, and spent much of his time in class goofing off. In fourth grade he received all F's on a report card
     and was in danger of failing for the year.
    In an effort to turn their son around, Shaquille's parents gave him a wake-up call. They knew how important sports were