O'Neal pays a visit to panda base in Sichuan. Photo: CCTV.com

NBA star Shaquille O'Neal has wrapped up his tour of China with a visit to Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province. The new Cleveland Cavaliers center visited the home breeding base of the giant panda on Thursday.

Despite a wet and rainy morning, O'Neal said he was excited to fulfill a long-time dream to see the giant panda up close. The pandas seemed to know that some friends had arrived to see them. They walked outside their house, climbed the trees, and dangled from the branches, all of which satisfied Shaq's curiosity.