Shaquille O’Neal Admits He Got a Suit He Couldn't Afford for His 1992 NBA Draft (Exclusive)

Shaquille O'Neal knows how to put his fashion foot forward.

In light of Caitlin Clark making headlines for becoming the first person to ever be dressed by Prada for the WNBA Draft on Monday night, the retired NBA legend reflected on the attire he sported at the 1992 NBA Draft.

"I just went to a suit store and got a suit on consignment," O'Neal tells PEOPLE exclusively of the garment he wore when he was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick that year. "The suit was $1,500."

The then-LSU player — who's gone on to play for six NBA teams over his 19-year career —admits, "I didn't have $1,500 at the time." However, the gentleman behind the counter cut the then-rising athlete a deal.

"The guy looked at me and said, 'Shaq, you're nice. You're a gentleman. I know you're going to do big things. Just pay me when you can,' " O'Neal recalls, before remembering that the man actually gave him "two suits for $3,000."

O'Neal said the suits came in two different colors, and one his mother preferred over the other. "I wanted to do a muddy green [color]," he says, but his mom didn't want him "to go around" wearing it. Therefore, he wound up in an "off aquatic ocean green" instead.

"I wasn't into the design. I just know I had to represent my family, wear a nice, clean, professional business suit," O'Neal says. He paired the green suit with a white collared shirt, a multicolored tie and a finished it with a tightly folded, white pocket square.

The two green suits were borrowed from what O'Neal says was known as "Rochester's Big and Tall at the time." In fact, he reveals that store "is what prompted" him to start his Big & Tall line at JCPenney.

Despite looking dapper for his big Draft day — and drawing inspiration from his own past experience to launch his own clothing line in recent years — O'Neal doesn't fancy himself a fashion expert, nor places an emphasis on major designer names either.

"I'm told by my family and my friends I don't really know and understand fashion," admits O'Neal. "My definition of fashion is, 'How would you look if you're trying to have a meeting with Jeff Bezos? How would you look if you are at a conference with President Barack Obama?' "

The basketball star keeps his fashion philosophy simple: "My own style is about professional or homeboy."

O'Neal explains he either opts for "jeans and big shirts" for his "homeboy" look or "very nice and very clean" when he has to be "dressed up." He makes clear, "I don't go Prada and Louis Vuitton… I don't really do that."

Elsewhere in O'Neal's interview with PEOPLE, he opened up about his close bond with fellow LSU alumna Angel Reese, who was recently selected by the Chicago Sky as the seventh pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft.

"I am described as Angel's understandable ear," O'Neal tells PEOPLE exclusively of Reese. "I know things that she went through, I know what she's going through, I know what's about to happen to her and I could give her advice."

"She's the same age as my children, so I only want the best for her," the retired NBA star and father of six tells PEOPLE. "And when you have daughters, you know how to use that calm voice," he adds.

So after Reese was selected in the WNBA Draft, O'Neal says, "the first thing I told her is I was proud of her."