Shaquille O’Neal is still flying high. Same for his comedy posse, assuming they soared over Pacific skies to reach us.

It was serendipity: The day Shaq signed to the Boston Celtics (after a brief stint in Cleveland with LeBron James), we spoke with a couple of comics who’ll be at the Blaisdell tonight in the O’Neal-approved All-Star Comedy Jam.

Both D.L. Hughley and Charlie Murphy call Shaq Daddy a friend, and both had a comment ready when asked about O’Neal’s move to Beantown.

"I’m a Celtics fan," said Murphy by phone, "and I know there will be opposition from some Boston fans who remember when Shaq used to be with the (Los Angeles) Lakers," referring to the historical rivalry between the two basketball teams. "But it’s a great relief to have him on our team. He’ll be able to step in quick and be good for a number of rebounds. He may be a little slower, but once he gets the ball, he’ll do fine."

"I love Shaq," said Hughley by phone after his gig in London. "I think he’s got two more years in him, and he has such a gregarious personality, he can only help Boston, like what Moses (Malone) did in Houston."

The good-natured Shaq is supposed to be flying out to Honolulu for tonight’s show at the Blaisdell Arena, according to the show’s publicist. And Hughley and Murphy had plenty of good things to say about him.

MURPHY, now 50-something, says he has O’Neal to thank for helping to buoy his career.

"I did his first jam four or five years ago, after Shaq came to Phoenix to see me. D.L.’s also a good friend of mine," he said.

The brother of Eddie Murphy and former cast member of "Chappelle’s Show" (best remembered for his hilarious take on Rick James) said that in comedy years, compared with someone like Hughley, "I’m just a baby."

"This is only my 10th year doing comedy, so any time you can represent yourself onstage, I consider it a blessed moment," he said. "Writing and doing comedy has always been primary to me."

If there’s one word Murphy said he lives by, it’s "respect." "If you give it, you change the whole dynamic. It’s taught me how to evolve both as a person and a comic. And it’s something you have to earn as well — not the kind that you demand to get by putting your foot up somebody’s ass."

He’s still reaching for the gold ring, and striving for mastery in the comedy arena.

"I’m reaching for the top of the food chain," he said. "It’s the ones at the top that are the most versatile. Now I can get anybody to laugh — black, white, Asian, Latin."

Murphy hosts tonight’s show. While Hawaii audiences are already familiar with him from previous visits here, we’re catching him at a good time in his career. You’ll be able to see him again next week in theaters in the new comedy "Lottery Ticket," co-starring Bow Wow, Ice Cube, Terry Crews and Mike Epps. Murphy also recently did a Comedy Central special, "I Will Not Apologize," and he’s still hyping his autobiography, "The Making of a Stand Up Guy," which came out in late ’09.

BECAUSE OF Hughley’s high-profile resume, the headlining comic gets his due, as well. He’s done regular stints for CNN and Jay Leno’s "The Tonight Show," and thanks to his previous TV work on NBC’s "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," Hughley said he’ll be doing a guest turn on "Hawaii Five-0" while he’s here — playing a convict.

There’s no word yet whether the Peacock network has picked up his game show "Who’s Bluffing Who?" for broadcast sometime in the future. The comic is also working to get his radio show syndicated nationally.

Hughley made phone contact just after a performance in London, in the midst of a brief European jaunt before moving westward through New York City, Los Angeles and then Hawaii.

"The European audiences have been spectacular, although the English and German food has generally been … sh*tty," he said. "They gotta learn how to make ribs!"

What with fellow comic Louis C.K. finding success with his unorthodox FX show "Louis," Hughley said he would be interested in developing a similarly freewheeling, single-camera sitcom.

"’Studio 60′ wore me out," he said. "Sometimes there would be 18, 19-hour days. But TV’s changed so much since then."

With a movie, the action-thriller "Roadkill," coming out in the fall, he said, "I always want to keep busy, otherwise life is pretty boring when you end up watching other people live their lives."

Hughley acknowledges the importance of Spike Lee’s documentary "The Kings of Comedy" in upping his game. "I was part of an all-star team with Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer and Bernie Mac. It was very cool knowing that it would be one of the few times in my life to be this fortunate.

"Every day is a new development," he said. "There’s always something to add to my comedy. I’m never above mixing it up and playing with my audiences. I try to keep it as organic as possible."