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.
