UCLA Freshman Shareef O’Neal, the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, will miss the 2018-19 season to undergo heart surgery.
The school released a statement regarding his health on Friday:
“Freshman Shareef O’Neal will be sidelined for the 2018-19 season (medical). He will remain enrolled in class and on the men’s basketball team during this redshirt year. The UCLA men’s basketball program completely supports Shareef and his family as he gets this issue resolved.”
Recently I found out I had a serious heart issue … I am very blessed to be here living today, one of those moments on the court could’ve been my last breathe .. I will not be able to participate in sports this year but I will be back in no time … I want to thank god for looking out for me , I want to thank UCLA , my teammates and most importantly my family … this is just a small bump on the road and I gotta push through it .. I am very down about not being able to do sport I love .. I really wanted this year I felt like I was at my best but this is just a minor setback.. my health is most important over everything .. like I said .. I WILL BE BACK.. thank you
230.7k Likes, 8,992 Comments – Shareef O’Neal (@shareefoneal) on Instagram: “Recently I found out I had a serious heart issue … I am very blessed to be here living today, one…”
According to TMZ, O’Neal went through a routine checkup when UCLA’s medical team found an issue related to his heart. He’s expected to undergo surgery soon to fix the problem.
The young basketball player took to Instagram to release his own personal message:
“Recently I found out I had a serious heart issue … I am very blessed to be here living today, one of those moments on the court couldve been my last breathe .. I will not be able to participate in sports this year but I will be back in no time … I want to thank god for looking out for me , I want to thank UCLA , my teammates and most importantly my family … this is just a small bump on the road and I gotta push through it .. I am very down about not being able to do sport I love .. I really wanted this year I felt like I was at my best but this is just a minor setback.. my health is most important over everything .. like I said .. I WILL BE BACK.. thank you “.
