Shaq turned down unusual deal which made another NBA icon $100,000,000 richer and he'll massively regret it

With an estimated net worth of $500 million, Shaquille O'Neal has proven to be a savvy businessman and investor in his post-basketball career.

"Big Diesel" was a superstar in the NBA during the 1990s and 2000s, winning four championships and one Most Valuable Player award.

He was also the highest-paid player in the game's history at the time he signed for the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent in 1996.

But much of Shaq's immense wealth has been built through his non-sporting interests, with the once-dominant 7ft 1ins centre showing a keen eye for profit opportunities.

Shaq has responded to the allegations (Image: Getty)

However, in 1998 there was one major investment opportunity that O'Neal passed on that could have earned him $100 million.

"The owner of Starbucks said, ‘Shaq I want to open up a Starbucks in the hood?'" O'Neal explained. "And I’m thinking about where I’m from. I’m like ‘That ain’t gonna work in the hood.’ I told him to his face.

"Growing up in my household, I'd never seen a Black person drink coffee. In my house, it was always sweet tea or hot chocolate. So, when Howard Schultz said he wanted to open up a Starbucks in the hood, I didn't think it would work.

"I ain't know nothing about gentrification and all the stuff they were doing at the time. I turned it down and Magic Johnson did it. [He] made a lot of money."

Like O'Neal, Earvin "Magic" Johnson was a Lakers icon and former MVP with sharp business acumen. He took up the opportunity that O'Neal had declined and made a huge windfall.

"That deal changed everything,” Johnson said, according to CNBC.

“We built 125 stores. We made that deal happen and that’s what really put me on a path of success. … It showed everybody that I could drive ROI in urban America.”

Despite missing out of the $100 million the Starbucks deal is believed to have pocketed for Magic, Shaq harbours no regrets.

“That’s why when we say educate yourself, it’s not all about going to school. It’s just like learn, like you gotta know what’s going on in your neighbourhood,” he said.

“I know where gentrification is now in Newark cause I’m doing it. Me and my group, the Boraie group, were responsible for tearing down the projects and building condos."