Shaquille O’Neal is widely known for his comedic antics and laughable on-screen shenanigans with Charles Barkley and their fellow TNT analysts. However, the Diesel has been dealing with a much more serious matter as of late, and it’s related to a legal issue. He’s reportedly one of several celebrities that’s been named in a class-action lawsuit for allegedly being involved in the promotion of a “fraudulent scheme.” Attorneys previously claimed that they’d been trying to reach O’Neal in an attempt to serve him papers but that he’s been “hiding” from them for months. Now, after three months of attempts, the lawyers were able to catch up with the NBA vet.
This legal situation is connected to the debacle surrounding FTX, a now-defunct cryptocurrency firm, and founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who reportedly recruited a number of A-listers to promote Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs from Yuga Labs. It’s alleged in the suit that the stars were given hidden payoffs while doing so. Per legal documents, Yuga’s business venture saw it “using insidious marketing and promotional activities from A-list celebrities that are highly compensated.” It’s also been claimed that the company tried to convince “potential retail investors that the price of these digital assets would appreciate.” Kevin Hart, Gwyneth Paltrow and Stephen Curry were also among those named in the filing, which was initially reported on back in December 2022
The case that Shaq is specifically entangled with is a class-action lawsuit filed by Edwin Garrison, an FTX customer from Oklahoma. The case is being handled by Adam Moskowitz and David Boies of The Moskowitz Law Firm. They two have since claimed that the star – known for playing with Kobe Bryant on the Los Angeles Lakers – has either hidden or “driven away” from servers when approached. A judge even reportedly denied their attempts to serve him electronically. But according to The Block, he recently received the papers “outside his house” on Sunday. Moskowitz also discussed the development in an email shared with CoinDesk:
Mr. O’Neal will now be required to appear in federal court and explain to his millions of followers his ‘FTX: I Am All In’ false advertising campaign, created by FTX Advertising Agency ‘Dentsu McGarrybowen’ and FTX Global Partnership Agency ‘Wasserman.’
As The Block noted, the attorney’s attempts to track down the 51-year-old former NBA big man are interesting, considering his status as a highly visible celebrity. He has various partnerships and as a result, appears frequently in commercials for brands like Icy Hot, Papa John’s and The General Insurance. And of course, he’s also been a co-host on Turner Broadcasting’s Inside the NBA and has a podcast as well.
Recently hospitalized amid hip replacement, Shaquille O’Neal appeared in a commercial that debuted during the summer of 2022. The advert showed the athlete and businessman taking on the moniker of “Shaqtoshi.” Done in a somewhat “deep throat” sort of fashion, the promo features footage of him playing basketball and headlining an event as a DJ. As of this writing, said TV spot remains on the bankrupt cryptocurrency company’s Twitter account.
Shaq responded to the situation back in November, saying that he “was just a paid spokesperson for a commercial.” He was unable to be reached for comment after being served legal papers last weekend. As of right now, it’s unclear as to when he’ll have to appear in court.
