Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille O’Neal has doubled his net worth after retiring courtesy to his investments, business ventures and endorsements. One of which was FTX, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges which recently went bankrupt. But was the 4 x NBA Chap actually a part of FTX or was he paid to feature in segments.
The 50-year-old NBA Hall of Famer emphasized on how he doesn’t believe in cryptocurrency and was rather paid to endorse FTX. Why did Shaq think about giving a justification? Because the former Los Angeles Lakers star starred in an FTX commercial released on June 2. While Shaq didn’t believe in the cryptocurrency, his words were quite the opposite.
In the viral commercial, Shaq stated how he was excited to partner with the exchange in making ‘crypto accessible to everyone.’ On Thursday, O’Neal said in a report by CNBC’s Make it, “A lot of people think I’m involved, but I was just a paid spokesperson for a commercial.”
If you’re thinking why did Shaq feature in a FTX commercial? The 50-year-old cited his close relation with Stephen Curry to be the primary reason why he even thought of featuring in the advertisement.
“People know I’m very, very honest. I have nothing to hide,” O’Neal emphasized, per CNBC. “If I was heavily involved, I would be at the forefront, saying, ‘Hey.’ But I was just a paid spokesperson.”
Shaquille O’Neal was one of the many American high-profile athletes to be included in a class-action lawsuit (filed November 15) against FTX. However, what’s contradictory – is that before appearing on the commercial Shaq had publicly expressed skepticism towards all and any cryptocurrency.
That being said, the NBA Hall of Famer did not reveal the money he made from the FTX commercial but clearly indicated on not having any involvement with the brand in general.