Shaquille O’Neal was scrolling through Instagram when he stumbled upon a video of six-year-old martial artist Nalah Barry, whose talent and skill captivated the NBA legend.
He went on to fly the entire family of the El Paso fighter to New York City and offered her a shoe deal. O’Neal also donated $10,000 to the girl’s family, which was matched by his partners at global footwear organisation Galaxy Universal.
“I’m about to offer this little girl her own shoe deal,” O’Neal said. “… So, I’m on Instagram all the time, and you, you’re a great daddy. I was watching her story, and I just kept watching it. I kept watching, saw your story. So, then I was like, I want to support, so you told me how much you need.
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“So, Galaxy is gonna give you 10,000, I’m gonna give you 10,000,” O’Neal stated. “And then I owe you [father] five for the knockout. We just wanted to bring you here today, give your baby some gifts… I don’t want nothing. I want you to keep winning. I’m happy for you, okay? And we’re going to give you your own shoe.”
Barry is a five-time gold medalist and a grey belt, as stated by her father, Dominic, who is a professional boxer. He has been training Barry and her younger sister, Nayah, who is equally talented.
With a strong fanbase on social media through her father’s TikTok page which has over 1.5 million followers, Barry’s journey has, however, not been smooth sailing.
She lost every tournament for the first six months of her career, according to her father. She did not give up, though, as she continued to train to become better, Dominic revealed in a TikTok video.
“In the beginning, it was all about her heart. One day, she snapped. One day, everything started clicking. Actually, it was the training that we put in outside of jiujitsu. She wanted to put more training in with me, more weight lifting, more running,” Dominic said.
As time passed, people, including influential men and women, began to take notice of Barry. In July, the six-year-old fighter was nominated for youth athlete of the year.
When O’Neal contacted Dominic and asked to be a sponsor for the child, Dominic told O’Neal that he would appreciate he came over to watch her perform at one of her events or repost her videos. But the basketball legend decided to do more.
O’Neal’s move to help the child is not new. Recently, he donated sneakers to 2,000 kids in need. In February 2024, a teen in Missouri who wears a size 23 shoe finally felt comfortable thanks to a donation from O’Neal.
At the time, Jor’el Bolden struggled to find shoes as he would need custom-made shoes, which could cost more than $1,000. When various media outlets aired Bolden’s story, O’Neal was moved and sent Bolden new clothes and new shoes as well as items from his own closet.
O’Neal’s success story in the NBA and building a massive net worth tells a story of resilience and ‘can-do spirit’. This is because he did not receive any handouts, coming from humble beginnings, but he worked exceptionally hard to build his empire.
Accruing wealth through endorsement deals and his multiple businesses, O’Neal’s net worth is around $600 million, making him one of the richest retired players in basketball history.
