Shaquille O'Neal Reveals He Refurbished Kobe Bryant's High School Car for the Late Star's Parents (Exclusive)

Shaquille O'Neal refurbished nan car Kobe Bryant drove successful precocious schoolhouse for nan precocious NBA star's parents.

In grant of what would person been Bryant's 47th day connected Aug. 23, O'Neal amazed his mom Pamela Bryant pinch nan rubbing gesture, arsenic documented successful a video shared by Effortless Motors, who helped him propulsion disconnected nan benignant gesture.

O'Neal tells PEOPLE nan thought came to him while he was visiting Pamela and her hubby Joe, who passed distant successful July 2024. "I was complete location 1 day, and I was like, 'What are you doing pinch this car?' and [Joe] is like, 'That's Kobe's aged precocious schoolhouse car,' truthful I promised nan dada I would hole it up, and earlier he passed away, I went and picked it up."

O'Neal wishes he "could person dropped it disconnected to him and seen" nan reaction, "but we conscionable fixed it up and refurbished it free of charge," he says, noting that he wasn't capable to beryllium coming astatine nan presence of nan car because he had to admit himself to nan emergency room. "But everything's fine," O'Neal assures PEOPLE of his health.

Speaking astir his narration pinch Bryant's family, O'Neal says it's "just astir respect" and taking attraction of his precocious friend's family. "I'm ever going to respect everybody's mother and everybody's father. They unrecorded successful Vegas. I'm successful Vegas. I'm adjacent pinch his sisters. I conscionable telephone to cheque connected them. Their mom has been done a batch successful a mates of years, and that takes toll, and sometimes you conscionable request personification to conscionable telephone to cheque connected you."

The erstwhile Lakers star, who won 3 championships pinch Bryant complete 8 seasons together successful Los Angeles, says he knows "what it feels for illustration pinch nan passing of her son," but says he can't subordinate to "what it feels for illustration to suffer a boy and a husband, truthful I'm judge she has a batch of symptom that she's dealing with."

He checks connected Pam monthly, sending her flowers from clip to time. "I conscionable effort to make her smile. I conscionable effort to do immoderate I tin because I cognize it's tough," he says.