
via Imago
Sport Bilder des Tages Former American basketball player Shaquille O Neal speaks to the press during an event at the UFC Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, USA, 26 June 2025. Shaquille O Neal at the UFC Hall of Fame ACHTUNG: NUR REDAKTIONELLE NUTZUNG PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xOctavioxGuzmánx AME8987 20250627-55017248027_1

via Imago
Sport Bilder des Tages Former American basketball player Shaquille O Neal speaks to the press during an event at the UFC Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, USA, 26 June 2025. Shaquille O Neal at the UFC Hall of Fame ACHTUNG: NUR REDAKTIONELLE NUTZUNG PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xOctavioxGuzmánx AME8987 20250627-55017248027_1
Ask who has the biggest heart in the state, and Shaquille O’Neal is easily the undefeated star coming out to help! But then, they say even giants trip over LEGOs. And lately, Shaquille O’Neal’s money game has been slipping on a few. One minute, he’s dropping $27 million on a private jet over a wild bet. Next, his Instagram starts looking like a cryptic mystery novel. His baffled fans aren’t the only ones—his wallet feels the confusion too. With 35.1 million watching, Shaq’s digital moves are raising eyebrows faster than his free throws raised heart rates back in the day.
O’Neal once blew through his first $1 million in just 20 minutes. But fast forward three decades, and the man’s sitting on a near $500 million fortune. From a below-par deal with Orlando to a $120 million Lakers leap, then cashing $100 million in Miami, Shaq turned slam dunks into dollar signs with moves as bold as his size 22 shoes. But now, this 53-year-old sporting giant (quite literally) turned businessman seems to be in a little bit of trouble.
After two Instagram stories and an interesting screenshot with unprecedented captions, many are concluding that someone has hacked Shaq’s Instagram handle. Now let’s understand what Shaq has offered to his 35 million followers, and how this promotion was different from many other collabs he has.
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Shaq’s Instagram officially took a nosedive into scam territory. That flashy screenshot flaunting a $55,151.39 portfolio with a 24-hour explosion of $53,069.09 and a 2,548 percent surge? Pure bait. Bitcoin at $117,817.46, Solana at $166.34, and a total holding of $52,978.98 and $1,109.84, respectively? Fabricated fanfare. At the center of this circus stood the mysterious @mrsjoyce_, promising crypto miracles with a DM. Spoiler alert—no such investor exists anywhere credible online. Scam alert, one thing, but in seconds, the hammer drops.

Shaquille O’Neal’s Instagram account has fallen victim to scammers. Gone are the days of blue-checked safety, as his page has vanished altogether. The red flags were flying, and now they’ve turned into full-blown sirens. The “get rich quick” smokescreen has cleared, revealing a textbook case of celebrity impersonation and social media exploitation. For the 35.1 million fans, it’s a rude awakening. For the scammers? Another target down.
Meanwhile, this Mrs Joyce, the so-called crypto guru Shaq tagged, has the online presence of a ghost in heels. For starters, there’s no LinkedIn, no finance trail, and no proof she’s ever touched a stock. Instead, her Instagram is a curious mix of selfies and lifestyle fluff. Then came the real twist—Shaq vanished from the ‘Gram altogether. No warning. No post. Just poof. As a result, the internet is spiraling. Honestly, this feels less like investing and more like a juicy plot twist straight out of reality TV, even when his team is knocking on the Meta HQ for a quick fix.
What’s your perspective on:
Is Shaq's Instagram hack a wake-up call for celebrities to tighten their digital security?
Have an interesting take?
Now, while Shaq’s Instagram spiraled into a crypto scam circus, his luck outside the app has been equally wild. As the digital dust settled, whispers of another jaw-dropper began swirling. This time, it had nothing to do with Bitcoin or bogus DMs. Instead, it involved a $27 million asset slipping through Shaq’s fingers in a bet that might top his highlight reel, for all the wrong reasons.
Shaquille O’Neal lost millions worth of jet to Peter Gunz
Shaquille O’Neal just raised the stakes in the wildest way imaginable. It all began with his signature blend of trash talk and a bet that turned heads across the NBA world. The prize? His $27 million Bombardier Challenger 650 jet, a flying palace dripping in cream leather, high-gloss wood, and a custom Dunkman logo. During the Knicks versus Pacers heat, Shaq stood by New York. His opponent? Bronx rapper Peter Gunz. And just like that, the jet was up for grabs.
The Knicks collapsed, and Peter Gunz soared. “Believe it or not, New York, I wanted the New York Knicks to win,” Shaq admitted in a video posted by @petergunz174 on Instagram. “Peter Gunz said they were not going to win. We had a bet. He gets the jet for a week. Woo! All expensive things. Woo!” Gunz, basking in victory, captioned it all with flair: “I didn’t have a good feeling about the Knicks against the Pacers, and it paid off. The jet is mine for a week. Where do I go? Who do I bring? 2nd week of August!! @shaq” No cap, no backtracking, just cold hard receipts.
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Shaq’s been on a roll with public Ls lately. From rocking baby hairs thanks to Candace Parker, to eating frog legs on TNT after a college football flop, the man embraces chaos. But a jet for bet? That’s a new altitude. Especially when it all stemmed from Shaq declaring, “The Knicks own the Pacers.” That confidence crashed hard. Now, Peter Gunz is packing bags while the Big Fella stays grounded.
All in all, Shaq’s world and IG’s credibility, even after paying for a blue tick, just flipped like a coin at center court, even though the page is back again. First, he fell for a crypto scam that shook the internet. Then, he handed over a $27 million jet in a Knicks-fueled wager gone wrong. As a result, the Big Fella’s been taking bold swings and even bolder stumbles. Even so, one thing remains true—Shaquille O’Neal always bounces back. For now, he may be grounded, but never for too long.
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Is Shaq's Instagram hack a wake-up call for celebrities to tighten their digital security?