‘He Twisted Me Up Kind of Like a Pretzel’

A man, a woman, and a pretzel.

He Twisted Me Up Kind of Like a Pretzel is a song by American country music duo Sugarland.

Brian Shaw and Shaquille O’Neal have a long history together. Shaw joined the Orlando Magic at a time when Shaq was establishing himself as one of the greatest centers in the NBA. At the turn of the century, he rejoined The Diesel in Los Angeles, where he had established himself as the league’s top player.

Shaw felt a feeling of power in being able to speak back to Shaq after so many years of playing with the Big Aristotle. However, he soon learned not to criticize O’Neal too harshly.

With the Magic and Lakers, Shaquille O’Neal and Brian Shaw had great success.

Brian Shaw arrived to the Orlando Magic at just the right moment.

Shaw played a couple seasons in Boston (and one in Italy) after being selected by the Boston Celtics in 1988. He then joined the Miami Heat. Meanwhile, Shaquille O’Neal was toiling away for the Orlando Magic, who had just become an expansion club in 1989, and were attempting to establish a footing.

After drafting O’Neal and acquiring Penny Hardaway in a draft-day trade a year later, the Magic started to gain traction. During the 1993-94 season, they reached the playoffs. Shaw joined with Orlando that summer. The next season, the Magic advanced to the NBA Finals and seemed to be on the verge of becoming a dynasty.

However, the rumored dynasty withered in the heat of Orlando. In the 1996 Eastern Conference Finals, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls swept the Magic. That summer, Shaq moved to Los Angeles to join the Lakers.

Shaw would eventually return to The Diesel. After Kobe Bryant’s hand injury opened up a roster space, he joined with the Lakers in October 1999. The playmaking guard did not return the stare.

Shaw was an important bench player as a facilitator and floor-spacer, allowing O’Neal to operate in the paint. Shaw and the Lakers won three straight championships behind a dominating Shaq and a developing Kobe Bryant.

Phil Jackson’s Lakers were known for their incredible togetherness. Shaw’s decision to attack Shaq after the 1999-00 regular-season finale, on the other hand, backfired on the Oakland native.

After being chastised for not boxing out, Shaq rushed at B-Shaw.

During the Lakers’ 1999-00 championship season, Shaquille O’Neal was named NBA MVP. He was without a doubt the most dominating force in basketball and a driving factor behind Los Angeles’ success.

So O’Neal was irritated when veteran Brian Shaw supported a Lakers rookie and chastised Shaq for his mistakes in a regular-season overtime defeat to the San Antonio Spurs.

After the game, the Hall of Fame center confronted forward Devean George in the locker room about a costly error George made at the end. Shaw, on the other hand, had O’Neal’s back, arguing that the youngster should have concentrated on boxing out Spurs big man Malik Rose, who had four crucial offensive rebounds in the game. Shaq retaliated against Shaw as a consequence of the criticism, as he informed NBA.com in 2016.

“We got into a wrestling bout that wasn’t much of a contest. I was twisted up like a pretzel by [Shaq].”

-Brian SHaw, NBA.com, 2016.

During his playing career, Shaw weighed in at around 200 pounds. With O’Neal, he never had a chance, particularly when opposition centers had a hard time slowing down Shaq.

Despite the physical disparity, Shaw gained Superman’s respect by demonstrating a willingness to confront him.

As a head-coaching candidate, O’Neal advocated for Shaw.

Former Lakers teammates Shaquille O'Neal and Brian Shaw high-five during the 2001 NBA Playoffs Near the conclusion of Game 1 of a first-round playoff series in 2001, Shaquille O’Neal congratulates Brian Shaw | Vince Bucci/AFP via Getty Images

As a teammate, Shaq developed a great admiration for B-Shaw. O’Neal was likewise insistent that the veteran assistant coach be given the chance to lead the team.

In 2013, the Diesel pushed for Shaw to be appointed head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers or Brooklyn Nets, citing the NBA’s propensity to churn coaches.

According to the Indianapolis Star, Shaq stated, “I’m sick and tired of these coaches having another opportunity before these other up-and-coming people.” “People must understand that this is a new period, and B-Shaw speaks the language of that era. He’s my age, but he knows how things work. He understands how the players operate and how they react. All of these losers show here and attempt to do the same thing (expletive). “This isn’t going to work.”

Shaw was appointed as the head coach of the Denver Nuggets later that summer. After missing the playoffs in 2013-14 and beginning 20-39 the next season, the Nuggets dismissed him. Shaw subsequently joined the Lakers’ coaching staff as an assistant head coach.

Despite his lack of success as a coach, B-Shaw has Shaquille O’Neal’s undying admiration. Even if it meant twisting myself into a “pretzel.”

Basketball Reference provided the statistics.

Shaquille O’Neal Slapped Greg Ostertag in the Face in Retaliation for a Playoff Loss to the Jazz

The boban best friend is a song by the band He Twisted Me Up Kind of Like a Pretzel. It was released on April 22, 2017.

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