- Phillip Harrison was a retired United States Army sergeant who started playing fatherly roles to the former NBA player Shaquille O’Neal when he was two years old
- In high school, he played basketball against O’Neal’s biological father and coached all of his stepson’s basketball youth teams
- The former US Army drill veteran died on September 10, 2013, and his stepson dedicated a room full of awards in his honor dubbed “The Philip Arthur Harrison Memorial Room” in his honor
Phillip Harrison was a former United States Army sergeant of Jamaican origin, best known as the stepfather of former American basketball great and four-time NBA champion Shaquille O’Neal.
He was instrumental in his stepson’s career accomplishments. The principles of hard work and discipline he instilled in him kept his O’Neal from ruining his life.
Here’s more on the retired Army sergeant who raised O’Neal when his biological father, Joe Tony, abandoned him and his mother.
Joseph Harrison Was Born And Raised By A Jamaican Father
Joseph Harrison, Shaquille O’Neal’s stepfather, was the first of seven children born to a Jamaican father on August 15, 1947, in Newark, New Jersey. He described his father as a disciplinarian who beat him frequently as a child to keep him in line.
Harrison’s stubbornness, as well as the fact that he was skipping school, playing cards, and following girls in Newark, were the primary reasons for his father’s strictness.
In order to get away from that kind of life, he joined the military. He served in various formations and units in the United States and Germany, including Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, Fort Sam, Houston, Fulda, West Germany, and Wildflacken, Germany.
Harrison also coached children’s basketball teams in the places where he deployed as army personnel. He left the army as a sergeant.
Every Interesting Fact You Need To Know About Retired Sergeant Phillip Harrison
1. Harrison’s Stepson Was Born In Newark, New Jersey
Shaquille O’Neal was born on March 6, 1972, in Newark, New Jersey, to Lucille O’Neal and Joseph Toney. When O’Neal was quite tender, his father was caught and sentenced to prison for narcotics possession and check forgery.
Toney revealed that his drug issues and prison sentence had caused him to lose contact with his son. He did not come home or contact them after his release from prison, according to reports.
2. Shaquille O’Neal Was Two Years Old When Phillip Harrison Came Into His Life
Harrison began playing fatherly roles in Shaquille O’Neal’s life when he was two years old. This began when he met and married O’Neal’s mother in Newark, New Jersey.
Lucille O’Neal, O’Neal’s mother, reportedly obtained Joseph Toney’s parental rights to her son after he abandoned them. This helps to explain why the former Los Angeles Lakers star adopted his mother’s surname.
In turn, his mother gave the rights to her new husband, Phillip Harrison. The entire family relocated to a military base in Germany, where they lived for a short time before returning to the United States.
Phillip Harrison used iron fists to raise the former basketball star. He was the type of person who could stroll into class and publicly whoop his stepson.
A typical example of this was when O’Neal and his bunch of friends stole a car from a military base in Germany, and he got the beating of his life. All the punishments he received from his stepfather helped him to focus and become a better person today.
3. O’Neal’s Stepfather Had Three More Children With Lucille
Joseph Harrison and Lucille O’Neal have three children, Jamal, Lateefa, and Ayesha, in addition to Shaquille O’Neal. Unfortunately, Ayesha died in October 2019 at the age of 40, after a three-year battle with cancer
4. Harrison Divorced Shaquille O’Neal’s Mother in 2002
Although it is unknown when O’Neal’s stepfather and mother married, Harrison began raising his stepson when he was two years old. Unfortunately, for reasons best known to them, the marriage ended in divorce in 2002
Harrison’s ex-wife is now a motivational speaker and author of books such as Walk Like You Know Where You Are Going. She recently told the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) that, despite her rigorous Christian upbringing, she was disobedient and nearly ended up in a juvenile jail camp.
When she decided to return to college, she was grateful to her son Shaquille for supporting her studies.
5. Phillip Harrison Played Basketball With O’Neal’s Biological Father
In his early days, O’Neal’s stepfather was a basketball player. In high school, he competed against Joseph Toney. Dave Cowens of the Boston Celtics once knocked out some of his teeth in a pickup game.
Similarly, he used to coach all of his stepson’s youth teams.
See Also- Shaqir O’Neal Biography: Facts About Shaquille O’Neal’s Son
6. Shaq Released A Song In 1994 Praising His Stepfather
In 1994, Harrison’s stepson released Shaq Fu: The Return, a rap album. In the song Biological Didn’t Bother, he mocked his biological father, Joseph Toney, with the line “Phil is my father.”
During the 2002 NBA Finals, the basketball Hall of Famer sneered at the prospect of reuniting with his biological father, Toney. Harrison believed it would be insulting to him to meet someone else and call him father.
According to reports, Shaquille’s biological father stated that his attempts to reach his son were denied by those entrusted with his protection. He once sought to meet with O’Neal after seeing him in the McDonald’s High School All-American Game, but his stepfather wouldn’t let him.
7. O’Neal’s Stepfather Died in 2013
Phillip Harrison died on September 10, 2013, at the age of 66. His memorial service was held on October 12, 2013, at the Beulah Grove Baptist Church on Springdale Avenue in Newark, New Jersey.
According to accounts, the retired US Army sergeant had a number of health conditions, including diabetes and hypertension. His death put an end to the health issues he had been dealing with for nearly a decade.
O’Neal began a 6-hour trip from TNT’s Atlanta studio to Orlando, Florida, the same night he learned of his stepfather’s death, but his own tears blinded him. He exited the freeway, returned to TNT, and had a friend send a private plane.
8. O’Neal Dedicated A Room In His Orlando Mansion In Honor of His Stepfather
According to the former Boston Celtics player, his stepfather used to keep all of the trophies and accolades he received while playing for youth teams. He did this to make him want more.
After Phillip Harrison died, O’Neal named a room in his Orlando mansion “The Philip Arthur Harrison Memorial Room” in his honor. The room has all of his stepfather’s awards and trophies, which he keeps.
9. O’Neal Meets His Biological Father Three Years After The Death Of His Stepfather
Three years after Harrison’s death, O’Neal meets his biological father Joseph Toney. The NBA great made a plea to his long-time bodyguard, Jerome Crawford who once dated his aunt in Newark, to telephone his former partner and find where Toney is.
He desperately needed to talk to his biological father so he could heal. So, he drove to Newark and went to a house believed to be Toney’s, but there was no answer at the door because he doesn’t live there anymore.
O’Neal was heading home in his private jet when Crawford’s former lover called back and said his father has been living upstairs at Vonda, the same restaurant where he eats. He asked his pilot to turn the plane around, while his bodyguard called Toney who went to visit a friend in a nearby nursing home to come to Vonda.
When the pair met, the scene was serene, until Shaquille’s father rose from his seat and they both hugged. The last time Toney held his son was probably during his birth on 6th March 1972.
The New Jersey native told his father that he wasn’t angry with him, but he was only sad seeing him show up on the Ricki Lake Show when he was drafted. It made little sense to him knowing that he had not seen nor heard from him for 18 years.
10. How Tall Is Shaq’s Stepfather?
Although there are no details about his height and body measurement, Harrison likely wouldn’t be below 6 feet. His stepson by the way is quite tall. He stands at a height of 7 feet 1 inch (2.16m) and his body weighs 147kg (325 lbs).
It seems Shaq inherited his tallness from his family. His mother Lucille O’Neal is 6 feet 2 inches (1.88m) tall, while Toney’s height is 6 feet 1 inch.
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