There’s this picture that has recently gone viral, involving Shaquille O’Neal and an influencer by the name Maria Ozuna Teachey. The photo sparked a wave of speculation concerning the former NBA star’s love life. The picture showed Teachey in front of a mirror with arms wrapped around her from behind-but a tall, muscular man. Because of the man’s size, many thought it was Shaq. But Shaq was quick to refute those rumors in a humorous way when he commented on the WorldStar Instagram post, “Nope not the kid,” knocking the idea of him being the man in the photo.
Shaq with his new girlfriend 👀 pic.twitter.com/g8pqoNS5xb
— NBACentel (@TheNBACentel) September 17, 2024
Teachey then posted a now-deleted video showing herself in what appeared to be a hotel room with Shaq, interlaced with other footage of him appearing to perform at an event and even sleeping on the couch. This seemed to call his denial into question and add further drama to the situation, though she has since removed those posts and hasn’t spoken further.
Woman in the viral photo with Shaq shares video proof that she was with him after he denied it 👀
— My Mixtapez (@mymixtapez) September 18, 2024
pic.twitter.com/4vtLaI2mz3
Well, in typical Shaq fashion, he joked with the incident by posting a slideshow of himself with different women via his own Instagram, saying,
“Is this my girlfriend too? Trust me, I’ll let y’all know who my woman is.by the way, my woman’s name is Shaqirah,”
furthering his light response to the rumors.
“Is this my girlfriend too, trust me I’ll let yall know who my woman is, and by the way my woman name is Shaqrah”
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 17, 2024
Shaq saw the Twitter post yesterday accusing him of having no shame and responded the only way Shaq can 😂🔥 pic.twitter.com/Ki6SxTBo2M
It points out how an incident snowballs into rumors with the advent of social media and how adeptly Shaq has handled the speculation with humor yet keeping the privacy intact.
