UK women’s basketball adds Me’Arah O’Neal, daughter of Shaq, via transfer portal
Kenny Brooks has secured another portal commitment from a former McDonald’s All-American.
Former Florida Gator Me’Arah O’Neal, a 6-foot-4 forward and 2024 McDonald’s All-American, announced her commitment to UK via social media Monday afternoon.
She captioned the photo of herself in her new uniform — as well as a video edit featuring Brooks — with the bible verse Psalms 139:14 and the hashtags “#agtg #llkb #llgb #committed,” honoring her faith and her family friends, the late Kobe and Gianna Bryant. The post was soundtracked by Rod Wave’s “The Best.”
O’Neal, the daughter of four-time NBA champion and Naismith Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal, entered the portal April 14 after two seasons at UF; former head coach Kelly Rae Finley was fired by administration in March after five seasons at the helm.
A versatile player, O’Neal averaged 13.6 points and 6.4 rebounds this season in Gainesville. She sought a new opportunity after Florida hired new head coach Tammi Reiss in late March. O’Neal and fellow 2024 McDonald’s All-American Liv McGill — who recently announced her decision to transfer to Oklahoma State — made up the highest-ranked recruiting cycle in Gators history.
O’Neal shot 52.9% from the field as a sophomore — more than a 10% increase from her freshman campaign — including 38.1% from beyond the arc, up from 27.7% her freshman year. O’Neal recorded 1.1 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks in 25.2 minutes as a sophomore, playing in 33 games.
This season, O’Neal dropped 23 double-digit scoring performances in 23 games, including 22-point performances against Mississippi State in the second round of the SEC Tournament and at Vanderbilt on Feb. 1. Against UK on Jan. 15, O’Neal nearly led the Gators to an upset while delivering a personal SEC-high 23 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field, including 2-of-4 shooting from 3-point range, plus four rebounds and an assist.
Though former head coach Kyra Elzy was still at the helm at Kentucky at the point of O’Neal’s recruitment, O’Neal named UK as one of eight finalists in high school; the list also included Arizona State, Baylor, UCLA, Georgia Tech, LSU (her father’s alma mater) and Tennessee.
During her final summer on the Nike EYBL circuit with Texas-based CyFair Elite, O’Neal told the Herald-Leader that, when choosing a program, she prioritized strong relationships alongside “where I’ll have a successful career.”
O’Neal marks the third portal commitment for Brooks and his staff, who also got pledges from 2022 McDonald’s All-American and No. 4 overall prospect Ayanna Patterson (UConn) and former SEC starter and 2023 No. 70 overall prospect Diana Collins (Alabama).
UK also returns starters Clara Strack and Asia Boone and will welcome a trio of five-star prospects in incoming freshmen Maddyn Greenway, Savvy Swords and Emily McDonald.
The program recently said goodbye to four WNBA Draft picks in Teonni Key (Toronto Tempo), Tonie Morgan (Chicago Sky), Amelia Hassett (Los Angeles Sparks) and Jordan Obi (Las Vegas Aces), as well as fellow senior Josie Gilvin. Former top-40 overall prospect in the class of 2024, Lexi Blue, announced her decision to transfer to Northwestern April 13. Brooks’ two-player 2025 recruiting class, McDonald’s All-American and former five-star prospect Kaelyn Carroll and Swedish center Elsa Vadfors have each entered the portal, but have yet to commit to another program.
