Four-time NBA champion Shaquille O'Neal has confirmed that he'll take the stage with Panda Global's Ryan "Filipino Champ" Ramirez during TwitchCon next week in San Diego.
The two will be discussing the Bud Light Esports Bash, an event to be held on the main stage featuring traditional and esports celebrities alike. On stage will be Snoop Dogg, Adrianne Curry, Greg Jennings, Ronald Funches, as well as Team SoloMid's Marcus "Dyrus" Hill, Echo Fox's Mohammed "m0E" Assad, Winterfox's Alex "LeX" Deily, Evil Geniuses' Tyler "Ninja" Blevins and Team Naventic's Christopher "Zuna" Buechter.
Im going to stream with @SHAQ next week!
We gonna talk about @BudLightEsports Bash at twitchcon and maybe run some sets!@PandaGlobalPG- PG.Ryan Ramirez (@fchampryan) September 21, 2016
While there's some online speculation the two will battle it out in Street Fighter V, Filipino Champ confirmed to ESPN.com that nothing has been finalized. It's still uncertain if the two will play any video games at all, but Filipino Champ feels that the two may take it to the virtual court in NBA 2K17.
This news might sound surprising to some, but Shaq has firmly planted himself in esports territory. He's currently an investor and part owner of NRG Esports and recently used his celebrity status to promote "ELeague," a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive series on TBS.
NRG has some other notable investors behind the multi-game organization. Baseball world champions Alex Rodriguez and Jimmy Rollins have also taken stock in the team.
NRG has been quickly expanding into multiple games. Currently, the organization has teams in League of Legends, CS:GO, Overwatch, Smite, as well as a fighting game player in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.
TwitchCon will take place between Sept. 30 to Oct. 2 at the San Diego Convention Center.
