WINDERMERE, Fla. -- Shaquille O'Neal changed from his gray T-shirt and sweat pants into a three-piece suit, then walked by some of the souvenirs he accrued during his NBA days for the final time as an active player.
Framed jerseys from the likes of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Wayne Gretzky, Mark McGwire, Kirby Puckett, Steve Young and Jerry Rice. An NBA Finals MVP trophy. Bottles of wine with labels bearing the "S" logo that he borrowed from Superman and essentially made his own. Basketballs with the Miami Heat logos painted on them, one to commemorate his 25,000th point, the other for his 10,000th rebound. A photo of him, Bill Russell and John Wooden.
It took him 19 years to collect those memories.
On Friday, he vowed to start truly savoring them.
"It's time for what's next," O'Neal said.
O'Neal, 39, made his retirement official Friday, reiterating what he revealed in a video posted online two days earlier that his NBA playing days are over. Saying those words made his pro career full-circle, because it all ended at his home in a suburb of Orlando, the city where his pro days began when the Magic made him the No. 1 pick in 1992.
"Never thought this day would come," O'Neal said. "Father Time has finally caught up with Shaquille O'Neal."
Speculation has been high for weeks that O'Neal's playing days were over, and what was widely expected became real on Wednesday. It took him 10 seconds to announce his plan online, and as few athletes in the world could do, those 10 seconds turned into a three-day story. Tributes have poured in since, and on Friday, O'Neal thanked just about everyone he could remember.
His parents, thanking his father for his disciplinary ways and his mother for sneaking him cake, milk and cookies when that discipline prevented the boy from getting his own. His brothers and sisters. His six children, who got an apology for his schedule demands and a promise that they would keep going to Toys "R" Us. His fans worldwide. The NBA and commissioner David Stern. The camaraderie in the locker room. The six teams he played with.
"And I'm really going to miss the free throws," deadpanned O'Neal, a notoriously bad foul-shooter.
A joker, all the way to the end.
He would not have it any other way.
He insisted he will not return, either, nor will he coach anyone but his three sons.
His career ends with 28,596 points, 13,099 rebounds, 15 All-Star selections, four championships and three NBA Finals MVP awards. He had a $1.4 million option to return to the Boston Celtics next season, but he said he did not want to hold up the team's plans several months if he needs Achilles surgery.
So he made the decision to retire, on his terms.
"I'm the luckiest guy in the world," O'Neal said.
For a finale, it was in a fitting place. He loves his mansion, about two miles from Tiger Woods' longtime home and surrounded by a private golf course, ironic in the sense that O'Neal has no plans to take up the game in retirement.
O'Neal bought the home in 1993, and it's remained his base ever since -- even after he left Orlando for Los Angeles, Miami, Phoenix, Cleveland and Boston throughout the remainder of his NBA career.
The doorways are enormous, as one would expect when the primary occupant of the home is over 7 feet tall. Guests were ushered in across a red carpet laid out over his meticulous garage, which held luxury cars and motorcycles. Family and close friends gathered in the massive kitchen while the gymnasium filled for a celebration that was tinged for many with a bit of sadness.
"This is a bittersweet day on behalf of the family," said O'Neal's mother, Lucille Harrison. "It's been 19 years, but the 19 years have gone by so quick."
Dale Brown, who coached O'Neal at LSU, sat on Shaq's left. Brown told a slew of Shaq stories, including one when he asked permission to eat peanuts from a hotel minibar, not even considering sneaking the liquor instead. Brown lauded how O'Neal was raised and the charitable work he does, much of which Shaq does not reveal publicly.
O'Neal was so moved by Hurricane Katrina that not only did he arrange for tractor-trailers to bring supplies to storm-ravaged New Orleans, he personally went to oversee distribution efforts. And after that, Shaq considered signing with the New Orleans Hornets, thinking his mere presence in the city would help recovery efforts even more, but the deal simply fell through.
"He's an unbelievable person," Brown said. "He'll stay that way."
Brown lauded the work O'Neal's parents turned in, even chiding the college scandals of today by pointing out that when he went through the LSU recruiting process, there was no shady deals, no under-the-table anything.
"This just didn't happen," Brown said. "The other thing that's very obvious to me is that this should be a beacon, a beacon light for all young people watching this."
In the hours before meeting with the media, O'Neal expressed gratitude to the Lakers for planning to retire his No. 34.
"I would like to thank the Laker organization for thinking of me," O'Neal said on ESPN Radio's "Mike and Mike in the Morning," adding he spoke Thursday with Lakers owner Jerry Buss and vice president Jeannie Buss.
In the interview, he added he believes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to be the best to ever play the center position. And, excluding himself from the conversation, he considers Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson to be among the top five centers of all time.
"Just to have my name mentioned next to those guys is a blessing," O'Neal said.
O'Neal also said on Stephen A. Smith's radio show that, if elected, he would prefer to enter the Hall of Fame as a Laker.
His immediate future is uncertain. He'll likely work in television, but his health comes first. Injuries derailed him mightily this season with the Celtics, and if his injured Achilles' doesn't improve soon, surgery may be an option.
"I've got to get that right," O'Neal said Friday before the throng of media at his home, "before I go into the next chapter."
Only O'Neal knows what that chapter might include, but he hinted at a possibility Friday afternoon on ESPN 710's "Mark & Marcellus Show."
When asked about owning an NFL franchise in Los Angeles, O'Neal said he was interested.
"Yes. Very interested. I don't want to say too much but yes, we are looking," he said.
The ways he changed the game were countless. No one ever saw anyone with the combination of size, strength and athleticism before he came along. He was the first NBA big man to become a marketing giant. He spent huge money -- $650,000 one year in Miami -- to play Shaq-a-Claus for underprivileged kids at Christmas.
With O'Neal, everything wasn't always perfect. He clashed with teammates like Kobe Bryant at times, clashed with coaches like Stan Van Gundy at others. Nonetheless, those in the league still hold him in high esteem.
"A living legend," Heat guard Dwyane Wade said.
O'Neal said he leaves with some regrets, foremost among them not being able to reach 30,000 points, and blaming that on his inability to make free throws. When it comes to the NBA, that's the only thing he won't miss any more -- those 15-footers that he struggled with his entire career.
O'Neal said he leaves with some regrets, foremost among them not being able to reach 30,000 points. And while everyone knew what he would say on Friday, he was anxious, something his mother gently chided him for afterward.
"I was nervous, Momma," O'Neal said. "I'm sorry."
Everyone laughed, as they did several times throughout the ceremony. He joked that the New York Knicks were calling for an interview. He cited his work in "award-winning movies, such as Kazaam."
He turned serious at times, too, thanking coaches such as Jackson and Boston's Doc Rivers, and proudly saying that his doctorate will be completed by January at Barry University in Miami Shores, Fla.
He'll then be called Dr. O'Neal. Good thing, because all his famous nicknames -- Shaq-Fu, The Big Aristotle, Diesel and especially Superman -- are now retired along with him, he said.
Henceforth, he'll call himself The Big AARP, which that organization couldn't have been happier to hear.
"If you're like most of our members -- half are still working, many more give back to their communities -- you're not done yet, either," AARP CEO A. Barry Rand said in a statement. "There's plenty left to do, enjoy, and figure out after 'retirement,' so let us know if you want help figuring out what's next."
He was asked toward the end of the ceremony what advice he would give to players today.
"Be leaders," O'Neal said, "and not followers."
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.