During a recent conversation with Adam Lefkoe, co-host of The Big Podcast with O’Neal, the former NBA star reflected on a discussion he had with Kelce on the podcast last month.

O’Neal told Lefkoe that he picked up on one tell-tale sign indicating Kelce was planning to leave the NFL.

“His eyes,” the former Lakers star said on his podcast’s March 6 episode. “When you interact with people, you have to realize, like, when you ask a question, if a person looks to the left, that’s the imaginative side of your brain.”

O’Neal said he noticed Kelce’s eyes shifting when he asked the former Philadelphia Eagles center if he did intend to walk away from the game. It wasn’t exactly that Kelce was trying to lie, O’Neal told Lefkoe, “but they’re like, you know, looking for time.”

Kelce, 36, officially ended his 13-year career in the NFL during a March 4 press conference. His announcement followed weeks of speculation after he reportedly announced his retirement to teammates when the Eagles’ 2023 NFL season ended in mid-January. Kelce later walked back those reports, telling fans he hadn’t yet decided whether he would return for another season with the Eagles.

Kelce has discussed retirement life with other professional athletes who left their sports. While in Las Vegas last month to cheer on his brother in Super Bowl LVIII, Kelce sought advice from some of his former teammates during a conversation included on an episode of his New Heights podcast.

He also discussed retirement with O’Neal while on The Big Podcast in mid-February.