In this interview segment, former NBA player and coach Tyronn Lue recounts two distinct periods of his career. He first shares a wild locker‑room prank by Shaquille O’Neal, who allegedly defecated in rookie Devin George’s shoe, illustrating Shaq’s larger‑than‑life personality and his willingness to keep the team environment playful. Lue then shifts to his own early Lakers experience: a micro‑fracture knee injury that sidelined him for ten months, the frustration of being placed on the injured‑reserve (IR) list under the league’s rules, and the tense war‑room moment when Phil Jackson announced the playoff roster, ultimately selecting Lue over teammates Mike Penberthy and J.R. Rider. Lue describes his limited minutes in the 2001 playoffs, culminating in the iconic matchup against Allen Iverson in the NBA Finals. He details how Iverson’s 36‑point third‑quarter lead forced Lue into the game, the famous stepover moment, and how that defensive assignment extended his career, leading to increased playing time and future matchups against other stars. Throughout, Lue reflects on Shaq’s everyday demeanor, the cultural impact of the Iverson‑Lue encounter, and his personal gratitude for the opportunities that arose from those pivotal moments.
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Yeah, we know you played with Shaq, who's a big prankster in LA. You gotta give us a wild Shaq prank or give us, you know, I know he's one of the best teammates ever, dude.
Yeah, one of the best teammates ever. Somebody gotta genuinely giving and taking care of people like Shaq was that. But I remember one time he asked Devin George to do something and Devin didn't do it. And so, you know, Devin, you know, late, didn't do it, whatever. So Shaq's like, "All right, cool." So the night before we had a game, Devin's, you know, I think on the court shooting, whatever he's doing in the training room, whatever. So Shaq goes in the stall and he takes a shit in Devin's shoe. Oh my God. And so he takes it and he knocks it, he knocks it, you know, so it goes all the way down to the front of the— And so Devin, Devin, uh, comes back, goes to put his shoe on Draymond, and he sticks his foot, stuck his foot in some— Oh my God, that is crazy. That was crazy. Oh my God. Oh my God. Yep.
Hey, that Shaq is wild.
Wow.
He's crazy.
Devin George is a rookie at that point? Yeah.
Oh, now he probably devastated. Wow, that's brutal, man. Shaq is the biggest kid in the world, dog. Shaq is the biggest kid in the world.
You know what I give Shaq credit for? Is I give Shaq credit for being a megastar, but living his life.
Yeah.
I mean, you, 'cause you come across guys that, you know, they won't come outta the house, you won't see 'em. Shaq was out every day. So then it became, oh, that's just Shaq, you know? And that's why he should do it, you know what I mean? Because like, he was amongst the people. He did everything.
Everything.
Like, so—
He was a hero.
Yeah, you can live a normal life, but if you just, you know, like locked in, you come out every now and then, people don't see you, like it's harder for you to live that life. But Shaq like, man, I'm just gonna live. And it's probably the smartest thing he ever did. You know what I'm saying? Because larger than life, but to just to live everyday life like, you know, like me, like he just went out every day, did whatever he wanted to do and people was like, oh, that's just Shaq. We saw him last week. You know what I mean? It was cool. Like that was crazy.
Shaq had the city on fire.
Oh yeah.
Oh my God. He had the city on fire.
You get traded to the Lakers on draft night. First 3 years don't go your way. Fast forward to the 2000s. 2001 playoffs, you find out, um, that you guard Iverson. How was that conversation with Phil? To backtrack, um, the year before— the year when Phil got there, um, was in 2000. That's when I had, um, messed my knee up and I got a microfracture. So I was out for 10 months. So I was out the whole year we won that first championship. And so, um, coming back the second year It was kind of like, you know, back and forth because they were just trying to figure out who was a good match and good fit. And so they brought in a guy, you know, Mike Penberthy.
Yeah.
Who was a sharp shooter, like, he could make ball.
Yeah.
All over the place. So, you know, back then, if you go on IR, they, they, you gotta sit out at least 5 games. It wasn't like you were dressing. So if they put you on IR, you had to sit out 5 games. And so it was like a whole year of just back and forth with that. I'm like, I was getting so frustrated. And then one time they came and put me on IR and I remember I came in, my cousin Doodle, I threw a, you know them like little marble fish bowls, like that marble set?
Yeah.
I threw it through a glass table, man. He ran, man, what the hell is going on? So man, they put me on IR again. I was mad, I was, you know, whatever, going crazy. But the craziest thing is back in those days, if you go on the, if you get on the playoff roster, you had to be chosen. So we in the war room and Phil's going around the room telling everybody who's on the playoff roster. And so at that time we had Mike Penberthy, J.R. Rider, myself. And so when he called my name in the war room, man, I jumped crazy. Kobe and them going crazy. Now everybody was happy. I was hyped. You know what I'm saying? Left Mike Penberthy and J.R. Rider off the playoff roster. So once you off, you can't play.
It don't matter. You can't play. Yeah, you done.
You can't play.
Wow.
You can't play. Yeah. So throughout the course of those playoffs, I was playing like, you know, 10, 12 minutes a game. And what people don't realize, it would've never been me and AI if Milwaukee would've beat the Sixers in the Eastern Conference because it'd been Sam Cassell, Ray Allen.
They beat us.
They beat us. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I wouldn't have played, you know? So, so now we get to the finals. And so the first game when I check in, like,, you know, I'm AI for 2 weeks. I'm playing AI, you know, running around fast, doing all this stuff. And so I didn't know if I was gonna play or not. But first game with 6 minutes to go in the third quarter, he had 36 points and I hadn't played yet. So the first time I checked in was 6 minutes ago in the third quarter. He had already had 36.
Oh man.
That's brutal.
He was cooking that. He was cooking that game. He was cooking that game.
Oh man. So you gotta think like,— As a young dude, you know, growing up, same height, like I idolized AI too, you know what I'm saying? Like even we close in age, but like that was like the culture, you know, stand up for, you know, who we are as a culture, who we are as people, and to live it on the level that he did. I mean, that was huge to me, you know? And so when I had a chance to go in the game, like I said, to step over and all that, like at the time I didn't even know it was a big deal. Like, feel like he crossed me over and I fell down and you know, like he made a, you know, shot, I contested it and I stepped on his foot, stepped over, you know what I'm saying? But to have to, but if it wasn't for that series, if it wasn't for AI making it to the finals, I might be outta the league that next year, Danny. Wow.
You played, you balled though. You balled.
Yeah, but that put me on the map. Yeah, that put you on the map. But that put me on the map because if I didn't have that matchup with him, like I ended up playing 27 minutes a game. In the finals, you know what I mean? But if I didn't have that matchup with AI, I wouldn't have had a matchup against Toronto who had Alvin Williams and Vince Carter.
Yeah.
Milwaukee who had, you know, Big Sam and Ray and those guys, you know, BD. So I wouldn't even have a matchup. So thankfully, you know, thank God he made it to the finals and like, okay, we need a different, you know, we need a different guy to guard, you know? And that saved my career for real. So it was a blessing in disguise. So the stepover was worth it? It was well worth it. I'd do it again.
'Cause you know they doing it in football. I was gonna ask you, you know, how you feel about all that, you know?
I mean, for me, I don't feel bad. Like I said, it was a part of history. It's a moment in history, you know? But like, it ain't like I got crossed over and fell down.
Right.
You know what I'm saying? Like, I contested the shot, stepped back on his foot, like kind of rolled my ankle, you know what I'm saying? But they make a big deal of it. Like I said, AI is my man. Like, if I can win a championship, I'll let him step over me right now. Right there, I go make a half court, you know what I'm saying? Right now, come step over me right now.
