Shaq loves a powerful combination of players. That’s why, when Stephon Marbury, appeared on The Big Podcast, they jumped into that subject pretty quickly. Marbury began his NBA career forming a strong partnership with Kevin Garnett in the Minnesota Timberwolves. That would end in bitter terms when Marbury left for the Nets. But their combination was a formidable one that even gave Shaquille O’Neal, then the league’s terrorizer-in-chief, reason to feel nervous.

When Adam Lefkoe asked O’Neal how he felt about the Stephon Marbury and Kevin Garnett team in 1996-98, Shaq had some high praise. “It was scary… very scary.” Shaq claims an opponent is never scary unless they have a strong supporting cast too. That was the KG and Marbury-led Wolves in the late ’90s.

The Minnesota Timberwolves had acquired Marbury in 1996 while Garnett was in his second year. Shaq was in LA, transitioning from an on-court partnership with Penny Hardaway to Kobe Bryant. The duo presented tough competition to the Lakers and led Minnesota to the playoffs in 1997 and 1998, during the Bulls dynasty. In the 1997 playoffs, Marbury led the team in scoring.

Shaq claimed both the Lakers and the Wolves weren’t quite ready at that time. But when he looked at the Wolves, “A guy like him [Marbury] that can get open any time to get his shot and he got the New York flare definitely gotta worry about. A mean little skinny dude like KG that want to fight everybody and talk and could step out and play the new way,” Shaq said made for a “tough matchup.”

Interestingly, the fear was mutual. Garnett was known to not guard Shaq so he didn’t get beat up like his other rivals. Shaq believed that in the right combination, Marbury and Garnett would’ve taken the Wolves further than the playoffs. KG agreed too. Which became a sore point for them.

The ups and downs of KG and Marbury’s partnership

Marbury demanded a trade in 1999 to be closer to his family in New York. That’s how he landed with the New Jersey Nets. At that time, the Big Ticket signed a big contract with championship goals. But Stephon’s departure shattered that and left Garnett bitter.

In a 2022 interview, Garnett bluntly said, “He [Marbury] f**ked up all our championship dreams,” and he claims Marbury has to live with that. Though Garnett says he doesn’t want to hold it against him, his feelings showed when he said it was “unfortunate” their goals didn’t align. For his part, Marbury said his decision had nothing to do with KG or their goals. He simply didn’t want to stay farther from his family.

They’d reunite during Marbury’s short stint with the Celtics in 2009. But things still remain frosty between both.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.