Shaquille O’Neal, in an interview with The Red Bulletin’s John Gaudiosi, talked about esports and his experience with esports. He started off saying “I have been in and around the gaming space for years now. I got to witness first-hand at CES this year how exciting the CS:GO world had become and how passionate the fans were and what type of dedicated athletes the players had become. I wanted in.”

He continued to talk about esports as a legitimate business opportunity and why he wanted to invest “The fans did it for me. The fan base is huge and so passionate about their favorite games, teams and players. We have seen this movie before with the NBA and other traditional sports leagues. Sponsors and distribution always follow.”

Shaq, one of the best basketball players of his time also spoke about how similar esports is to traditional sports “Teamwork. Five guys working together, practicing together, trusting your brother. That’s what makes a winner. It’s a grind. It takes big time dedication to be the best and build a winner.”