"Nobody can stop that cat" - When Shaq praised Marbury after a 50-point game vs. the Lakers

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"Nobody can stop that cat" - When Shaq praised Marbury after a 50-point game vs. the Lakers originally appeared on Basketball Network.

Nowadays, Stephon Marbury's career isn't precisely remembered as one of the greatest, but during his peak on the New Jersey Nets, he looked like one of the best point guards in the NBA. Quite possibly, the best performance of his career came against the powerhouse Los Angeles Lakers on February 13th, 2001.

The Nets lost the close contest in overtime, 113-110, but Marbury made his mark by scoring 50 points on 17-29 from the floor, along with 12 assists and three rebounds. He was unstoppable that night, which impressed big man Shaquille O'Neal on the other side.

"With the new rules, you can't hand-check that cat. Nobody can stop that cat. It's a shame he's played in the league for five years, and this was the first time he was an All-Star. That's awful,'' O'Neal praised Marbury for his exceptional performance.

Despite Marbury's career night, the Nets could not upset the Kobe Bryant-Shaq-led Lakers. While the Nets guard dropped 50, the rest of his squad didn't give him much help outside Keith Van Horn's 20 points and Lucious Harris' 14.

After the contest, Marbury's teammate praised his point guard and give him the ultimate flattering comparison.

''He was like Michael Jordan for a while,'' Harris exclaimed about his teammate. ''The way Steph played tonight, he was in a zone. I didn't think we were going to lose this game, everybody was confident we were going to win the game.''

Marybury's big night came close to helping New Jersey grab a massive win over Los Angeles, but the tandem of Shaq (32 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and five blocks) and Kobe (38 points, eight rebounds and five assists) proved to be too much. After all, this was the three-peat Purple and Gold squad at the peak of their powers.

However, that was enough for the Nets to consider this a moral victory, at least.

''It feels like a loss, but it also feels like a win,'' Lucious added. ''We got confidence by playing the world champions, and we took them into overtime.''

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Bryant got to the basket and put the Lakers up three with a few seconds to go in the game. Marbury tried to respond and send the game into a second overtime with a 3-point shot, but it didn't drop. It was the only moment the NYC legend regretted that night.

''Tonight, they showed why they're champions,'' said Marbury, who played great despite dealing with a bad cold. ''We played hard. We gave everything we had tonight...I could have made that final 3-pointer...career night. I was just trying to win the game.''

While he didn't have any real team success in New Jersey, those three seasons were the best version of Marbury on the NBA stage. During that time, he blossomed into one of the Association's better scorers and point guards, averaging 23.0 points and 8.1 assists per night.

It earned him respect around the NBA and from the legendary Shaq himself. Aside from that night, O'Neal never shied away from sharing his appreciation for Marbury's career and legacy -- big words and praises from someone who never shared those kinds of compliments loosely.