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The FIBA World Cup has seen giants getting buried. The USA’s 113:111 loss to Germany echoes the sentiments of the 2006 World Cup. Despite having a star-studded squad, the USA men couldn’t get past the Semis and played some sub-par defense all game long. Therefore, the playing field of WC has been uneven. In another happenstance, another favorite, Canada also crashed out in the Semi-Finals.

As the crestfallen team avoids the bright lights, Shaquille O’Neal shares a glimpse of it. His advice to one of their players also comes to the surface.

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Another favorite falters

The Serbs have made it to the Finals despite missing Superstar Nikola Jokic. They took a decisive 13-point lead in the first half against the Canadians. Then the Canadians played catch-up but couldn’t score more than 24 points in any quarter. This resulted in a 95-86 loss. Hawks’ sharpshooter Bogdan Bogdanovic continued his red-hot form and buried 23 points, once again making the defenses pay. This was his third straight game with 20 points or more and he has now made eight of his 11 attempts from the three-point line.

Nikola Milutinov had an impressive 16 points and 10 rebounds double-double. Meanwhile, Ognjen Dobrić mustered 16 points, Marko Guduric collected 12 points. While, Heat’s Nikola Jovic had 8 points, making all his four attempts from the field.

As for Canada, RJ Barrett led the way with 23 points whereas All-Star Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander collected 15 points. On the other hand, Dillon Brooks had another strong shooting night, bringing in 16 points and making three long-range shooters. However, his defense wasn’t enough as the opposition buried nine out of 20 shots from the deep.

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This comes hours after Dillon Brooks claimed, ”I am the best perimeter defender in the tournament, in the world, in the NBA!”. However, after the game, the team avoided interviews, and this wasn’t the first time that the dogged defender didn’t entertain reporters. Shaquille O’Neal shared a story, in which the clip of the players walking without responding to the media plays. These events come four months after the Legend gave the “best defender” a piece of advice.

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Shaquille O’Neal’s mom-and-pop advice lingers

After the Grizzlies crashed out against the Lakers in the Playoffs, reports surfaced that they won’t bring back Brooks. Back then, 27 years-old Brooks in reply to a question about LeBron James said, ”I don’t care, he is old”. These comments sparked outrage among many NBA legends who found it disrespectful. In this regard, Shaq gave advice to the outspoken defensive phenom.

READ MORE: Despite Being NBA’s “Most Hated Player”, 27YO Star Earns Luka Doncic’s “Respect” at the FIBA World Cup

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He had said,” “I know exactly what happened- you make it, you stop feeling like yourself. You get a little bit of money and you stop feeling like yourself…and a lot of time when you stop feeling yourself, you forget about yourself. My mama and Papa didn’t play that”. As a heartbroken Brooks suffers another loss, Shaq’s wisdom rings loud. 

Watch This Story: Shaquille O’Neal Leaves 32,000,000 Followers Dumbfounded With Mysterious Paul George Clip

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