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(Shaq revealed) that he "had to be on pain pills to play" during his 19-year career.

The former Los Angeles Lakers center said he was using "homeboy math" when it came to his dosage.

"If it said take one, I'm taking three… I had to have them, so is that addiction?" he questioned, admitting he "didn't know" he was addicted at the time.

"Is addicting for the chemical effect or are you just taking it? Because I was having a heated discussion with my doctors like, 'You were addicted.' But I didn't feel high," O'Neal continued. "I don't think I was suffering mentally. I think if I had a knack, I would take it [because] I don't want to feel that knack because we need this game."

According to the Hall of Famer, his addiction wasn't exactly a secret. "It's not that I was hiding it," he said. "The trainers knew. I mean, I'm not telling my wife or my kids or my boys"

After a self-imposed "lifetime ban" from clubbing, O'Neal allows himself one vice: Hookah.

"I've never been into weed," he said. "[Hookah] enables me to follow the routine of sit your ass down. When I was young and dumb and I lost my family I lost my family by doing too much, being out, being in too many places. But now I don't go to clubs, I don't go to gentleman's clubs.

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Quote:

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(Shaq revealed) that he "had to be on pain pills to play" during his 19-year career.

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