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Speaker 1: This is kJ Live with Chris Johnson. Allen and Chris

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Speaker 1: is having conversations with influencers in the sports world and

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Speaker 1: entertainment in the strain. Now here's Chris Johnson. You're now

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Speaker 1: TEO thing the kJ Live Today's guests from the show.

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Speaker 1: There's a former u c l A. Bruce who was

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Speaker 1: named first Team All packed ten in the two thousand

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Speaker 1: and five He was drafted in the second round with

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Speaker 1: number by the New York Knicks. He spent thirteen seasons

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Speaker 1: or something like that playing overseas as a bona fide pro.

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Speaker 1: One of my favorite dudes, Dijon, Welcome to kJ Live.

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Speaker 1: What's up? But thank you man, I appreciate that one.

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Speaker 1: You said, you said my name actually right to end

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Speaker 1: it off, man, De john that's you know, it's that

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Speaker 1: he gets dragged out a lot lately. But you know this,

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Speaker 1: m but appreciate, appreciate the welcome. Welcome to be here, man,

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Speaker 1: No doubt, man, no doubt. Man. I've had a lot

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Speaker 1: of cats on on the show since I started doing this,

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Speaker 1: a lot of our U c l A brothers as well,

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Speaker 1: and we kind of kind of dive into the background

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Speaker 1: of the person and you know, find out the journey

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Speaker 1: that made the man who they are. UM. I want

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Speaker 1: to educate our audience on you and sort of just

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Speaker 1: start in your childhood and where you're from, what neighborhood

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Speaker 1: you grew up, be like, where were you born at? Um?

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Speaker 1: I grew up in Englewood. UM spent some some time

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Speaker 1: growing up with my great grandmother. She stayed off of

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Speaker 1: eighth Adam Vernon. UM My mom and they kind of

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Speaker 1: went to Crenshaw and then they moved out to Pasadena

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Speaker 1: area and graduated from your and then we came back

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Speaker 1: down to the Crenshaw to the Englewood area, and that's

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Speaker 1: kind of where I grew up. My mom and dad

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Speaker 1: they worked at North ropp And Grooming at the time,

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Speaker 1: it was tr W and then they went to North Grooming.

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Speaker 1: So that's how I was able to get the permit

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Speaker 1: and found my way into Redondo Beach in the high

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Speaker 1: school area. But um, I grew up in the l

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Speaker 1: A area Inglewood. Yeah, like a lot of us. Bro

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Speaker 1: like a lot of us. What a lot of people

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Speaker 1: don't realize about the l A area is south central Inglewood.

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Speaker 1: Wats all that's like ten fifteen minutes from each other.

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Speaker 1: Inglewood South Central is really close. It's like you hit,

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Speaker 1: you go, you know, Hyde Park, hit a couple of backstreets,

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Speaker 1: and you right over, you know, in the thick of things,

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Speaker 1: and you might be in the sixties hood over here

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Speaker 1: and then you you hit, you hit the cut you

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Speaker 1: over here in the in the in the bloodhood, like

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Speaker 1: the hell's going on? Was there anything as far as

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Speaker 1: the gang activity? And I know you're a little younger,

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Speaker 1: younger than I am, because the gang stuff was real

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Speaker 1: huge for us and we were growing up. Was the

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Speaker 1: gang or the streets? Was there any a lord of

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Speaker 1: that when you were coming up in Inglewood? Uh? Yeah,

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Speaker 1: I mean, like you said, it didn't go nowhere. I

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Speaker 1: mean it was always around growing up. You know, you

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Speaker 1: just have vivid memories. Even we stayed on Cranshaw at

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Speaker 1: the time time and it's doing the riots. You know,

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Speaker 1: it's growing up during that time, and it's it's funky

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Speaker 1: around there. And I mean game is an't going nowhere.

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Speaker 1: You always grew up in it and growing up in

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Speaker 1: that l a, it's it becomes second nature. Really, I

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Speaker 1: mean you numb to it. You see it. You you

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Speaker 1: you know where to go, We're not to go but yeah,

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Speaker 1: it's it's always around and I was down the street.

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Speaker 1: Like you said, when did uh who start to become

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Speaker 1: something that you figured out and you wanted to do. Seriously,

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Speaker 1: that's crazy because I don't really have the that traditional

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Speaker 1: like I grew up with the ball or you know,

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Speaker 1: I was always playing basketball. That wasn't necessarily to me. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: I was always playing basketball at schools and parks and stuff.

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Speaker 1: But my family wasn't really an athletic family. I had

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Speaker 1: maybe had an uncle that played some baseball, um, but

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Speaker 1: I was really the first generation as far as you know,

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Speaker 1: taking basketball or sports um to another level, so that

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Speaker 1: that background wasn't there. Everything was green from me and

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Speaker 1: I was just learning on the fly type of things. So, um,

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Speaker 1: it was just playing at school and um, probably about

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Speaker 1: the sixth grade, fifth grade, you know, you got your

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Speaker 1: your your peers or your friends saying we in this

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Speaker 1: league and why you're not playing? And why am I

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Speaker 1: not playing? You know, And at that time, you know,

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Speaker 1: my mom was single parents. She ain't had time to

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Speaker 1: do all that, you know, So it was just at

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Speaker 1: the school and that's it. But you know, once my

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Speaker 1: stepdad came along, um, it was way more time for that. Uh,

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Speaker 1: you know he was able to take me to everything

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Speaker 1: and really get involved and dive into it and really

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Speaker 1: get a liken to it. Oh man, how old were

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Speaker 1: you when your stepfather came into the picture? Ah? Man,

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Speaker 1: he was there from the beginning. Um so so as

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Speaker 1: you could remember what school, what what elementary school or

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Speaker 1: what like park? Like I was talking to um Stays

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Speaker 1: Bowsman and I know you know who Stays is, and

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Speaker 1: he was talking about how he came up at jesse

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Speaker 1: O and so it was called Sportsness Park and then

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Speaker 1: he was at St. Andrew's and hooping with all this

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Speaker 1: what park did you come up back? So that's crazy,

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Speaker 1: Like it's like like I don't have that that story

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Speaker 1: to where I was always out like that, you know,

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Speaker 1: like basketball, it came alik and it was like natural.

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Speaker 1: But you know, I will go to the park. I

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Speaker 1: go to Holly Park down the street. That okay, yeah,

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Speaker 1: that's bad. Nads go to Holly Park. You know, you

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Speaker 1: wasn't really allowed to go to Raleigh, so it was like, well,

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Speaker 1: just stopped at Holly Park. So I wasn't going to

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Speaker 1: Riley Park and Gardenia. It was always Holly Maybe simmar

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Speaker 1: On Park because my uncle stayed like literally like right

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Speaker 1: around there. So I was in that area. When at

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Speaker 1: what point or how old were you when you kind

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Speaker 1: of knew that you were better than do when you

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Speaker 1: played against I'm like, when did it sink into you?

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Speaker 1: For me? Like I started to get that bug like

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Speaker 1: four fifteen years old, I started, you know, giving dudes

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Speaker 1: numbers and feelings that about myself. How old were you?

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Speaker 1: What age was that? Oh man, it's probably about ninth grade,

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Speaker 1: you know, I started. I started to really get on

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Speaker 1: that circuit that that real circuit with the with the

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Speaker 1: killers is that, you know, the ninth grade I'm playing

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Speaker 1: with that with Sports Express, they brought me on Who's

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Speaker 1: on your team? Who's on your team? I got guys

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Speaker 1: like Brandon Heath, uh, we got Chad Bell, Yeah, we

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Speaker 1: had Chuck Hayes, my guy, my desk though Lefty Yeah yeah,

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Speaker 1: we had a mom Marcus Williams uh wait with Marcus

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Speaker 1: left lefty, Lefty, Crenshaw, Craig Man, Yeah, squad. It was fun.

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Speaker 1: It was fun. So around that time you start, you

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Speaker 1: start measuring yourself against this type of competition and got

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Speaker 1: against guys that have you know, grew up in the gym,

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Speaker 1: you know, and it's like all right, I can hang

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Speaker 1: you know, I'm still fresh, still learning, Like, oh, these

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Speaker 1: guys are fine around here, but I kind of I

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Speaker 1: adjust to quit learning on the fly. Like I said,

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Speaker 1: who did you kind of hold yourself to like the

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Speaker 1: standard of that type of guy? Like when we were

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Speaker 1: coming up in my era, it was like Charles O'Bannon, Chuck.

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Speaker 1: It was like everybody was, you know, trying to rock

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Speaker 1: with Chuck. Chuck was the man was there? Who who

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Speaker 1: in your era was that kind of like that guy? Man,

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Speaker 1: that's a good question, Like I was a weird one. Man.

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Speaker 1: Like it's like basketball was just like I just like basketball. Um,

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Speaker 1: like you said, ninth grade year, Like that motivation starts

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Speaker 1: coming you. I went to high school like a damnime.

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Speaker 1: Marcus Moore he was our point guard, Andrew's on these

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Speaker 1: guys were at the time they were getting letters. You

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Speaker 1: see him walking across the lunch quad with letters, Nike shoes, everything.

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Speaker 1: I'm like, man, I need all of that. How do

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Speaker 1: I get to that level? Like how I I need

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Speaker 1: all of that? I need them letters, I need all

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Speaker 1: of that. So to answer the question, like for somebody

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Speaker 1: to meet looking at somebody growing up like I really didn't.

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Speaker 1: Basketball was just basketball to me, and I'm just hoping,

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Speaker 1: like it's just fun. Where did you like find or

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Speaker 1: draw upon for your competitive spirit, like the competitive side

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Speaker 1: of things, because you know, as hoop is man, we're

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Speaker 1: not just go let people bust our asses. And I

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Speaker 1: know you might have not been at the park, but

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Speaker 1: I'm sure when you did go to the park, you

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Speaker 1: was trying to win. Where did you Where did you

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Speaker 1: get that con headed a spirit from that made you elite? Uh,

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Speaker 1: that's that's that's my mom and my dad really, I

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Speaker 1: mean it's yeah, it's it's once you start something, you're

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Speaker 1: gonna do it at your best and give it your best.

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Speaker 1: And it's that that's where that competitive is come in.

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Speaker 1: And it's uh, just the streets. You know. I've always

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Speaker 1: always played and had friends that were older than me.

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Speaker 1: You know that that was kind of my I never

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Speaker 1: really played with people my age. It was always hanging

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Speaker 1: out with people older than me. So I'll go around

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Speaker 1: the corner with my friend Troy and was older than me.

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Speaker 1: He had handles. He kind of baptized me. It was

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Speaker 1: just like, damn, I need to I need to step

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Speaker 1: it up a little bit. So it was it was

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Speaker 1: always with my older friends being around them and and

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Speaker 1: and kind of learning the ropes like that that's the

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Speaker 1: best way, man, uh, because I kind of like you, bro,

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Speaker 1: I didn't grow up in the gym as all them

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Speaker 1: dudes that we ended up playing with either. You know,

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Speaker 1: you know how everybody knew each other when they was younger.

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Speaker 1: Now I came in late fifteen sixteen, it was calling

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Speaker 1: me the fat boy with the curly top, the fresh

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Speaker 1: the fresh prince of bel air, you know what I'm saying.

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Speaker 1: But what I had was a lot of experience playing

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Speaker 1: against my dad one on one. Broh. So imagine back.

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Speaker 1: So when you say you had your cousin or the

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Speaker 1: home around the corner that was beating up on you,

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Speaker 1: my dad was doing the same thing. He was trying

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Speaker 1: to make a comeback to the league. So he used

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Speaker 1: me as the one on one, like, what's up with

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Speaker 1: your ones? I gotta guard him. I gotta do all

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Speaker 1: that when I'm fourteen and fifteen, and so the leve

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Speaker 1: of physicality he induced me to it just made it

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Speaker 1: so that when I played against dudes my age, I

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Speaker 1: just was not tripping on nobody. And that's why that

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Speaker 1: older that that's where that playing against older dudes thing

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Speaker 1: comes in. Sometimes you ain't gotta play on the circuit

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Speaker 1: as long as you're getting that good work. And it's

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Speaker 1: that like you you got it. Yeah, I was always

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Speaker 1: finding some good bump. I mean yeah, yeah. So your

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Speaker 1: your recruitment. Um, you have ver Dondall Union. Were you playing?

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Speaker 1: Who was that Reggie? Reggie Mars? Was Jim Nielson? Okay,

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Speaker 1: Jim Neilson was there? You big? I remember andrews On

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Speaker 1: from hoop my hoop Master's days. He played with Josiah

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Speaker 1: or his brother. I forgot who which one it was.

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Speaker 1: He had a brother, right, it's a couple of them.

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Speaker 1: But anyway, Um, your recruitment, so you got a nice crew.

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Speaker 1: You kind of you know, getting off a little bit. Um.

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Speaker 1: Who are some of the schools that were looking at

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Speaker 1: you early on? That kind of got you excited. I

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Speaker 1: had this weird, if like factuation with Syracuse. I don't

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Speaker 1: Syracuse just had that that that that notoriety at the time,

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Speaker 1: you know, in the nineties, and you know, North Carolinas

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Speaker 1: was like I gotta go to Syracuse. I like the Orange,

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Speaker 1: I like the jerseys. Jerseys was sweet, you know. And

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Speaker 1: then once you start, once I started to get more

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Speaker 1: deeper into basketball, I'm like snow like I'm from l A,

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Speaker 1: like snow like I ain't I'm not going there, like

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Speaker 1: nah off the snow like nah like because because I

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Speaker 1: didn't really go nowhere, I didn't really travel nowhere like

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Speaker 1: basketball took me everywhere, like I probably want to travel.

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Speaker 1: I probably have been. You know somebody from LA that

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Speaker 1: has never been nowhere anywhere. So um so yeah. Fox

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Speaker 1: Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation.

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Speaker 1: Catch all of our shows at Fox Sports Radio dot

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Speaker 1: com and within the I Heart Radio app search f

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Speaker 1: s R to listen live in Syracuse. And then so

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Speaker 1: senior year came down to Yukon Arizona, and U like

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Speaker 1: my top three schools okay, okay uh, Jim can who

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Speaker 1: Calhoun came to it, came to my house to home visit,

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Speaker 1: loved him, loved you. Colma East Coast is saying I

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Speaker 1: ain't really been nowhere. And then at that time it's

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Speaker 1: like it's not for me. I've been Gordon damn all right, cool,

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Speaker 1: So Arizona, I go to my trip on Arizona loved it.

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Speaker 1: Richard Jefferson's my host. End up hanging out with Gilbert

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Speaker 1: probably the whole time. Hey, what would your visit like?

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Speaker 1: You and r J, y'all two light skins. What was

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Speaker 1: y'all getting off in Arizona? Don? I can't imagine what

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Speaker 1: Listen been the same. He's been the same. He's been

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Speaker 1: the same guy as you see him now. Man, he's

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Speaker 1: the same guy. J Don like J from Phoenix down

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Speaker 1: the street, you know, just like, Hey, it's Tucson, you

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Speaker 1: know this Arizona, trying to show me the way. And

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Speaker 1: then you know you come across guild. Who's Gilbert the

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Speaker 1: same Gilbert? Come over here with me, young Feller, were

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Speaker 1: gonna I'm gonna show you the rope. So ended up

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Speaker 1: hanging out with Gilbert more than than than Richard. But

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Speaker 1: you know, it was it was fun. I had. I

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Speaker 1: had a really good time, really good trip. Um Andrew,

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Speaker 1: who I played with, was a freshman going into his

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Speaker 1: freshman year at that time, so I had a little

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Speaker 1: comfort there for my high school teammate. Um, it just

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Speaker 1: was in l A. It just wasn't l A. Ludolson

250
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Speaker 1: was amazing, Like if they was in l A. I

251
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Speaker 1: probably have sawn there, But it just was in l A.

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Speaker 1: What was it about? It wasn't the thing you didn't

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Speaker 1: want to leave home. Man, You're so comfortable just in

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Speaker 1: your surroundings in l A that leaving l A just

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Speaker 1: kind of not frighten you, but it kind of gave

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Speaker 1: you a little pause, kind of like, man, I ain't

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Speaker 1: trying to dip from the city. Is that how he

258
00:13:39,720 --> 00:13:42,760
Speaker 1: went down for you? A little bit? A little bit?

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Speaker 1: But I mean you grew up in l A and

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Speaker 1: you still you see the prestige that you see l

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Speaker 1: A god and you still you see the banners and everything.

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Speaker 1: I mean that spoke for itself. And you got laugh

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Speaker 1: coming in and you know, talking and seeing the family

264
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Speaker 1: and being at every game and you know, being live.

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Speaker 1: I mean it was it was an easy sale for me. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: when back in that era of lab Man, when you

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Speaker 1: say being laugh Steve Laughing, who was just named the

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Speaker 1: new head coach at University of San Diego and who

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Speaker 1: we both played for, we can both testify to that

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Speaker 1: this guy is one of a kind. He's one of

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Speaker 1: the probably know in my opinion, just as far as

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Speaker 1: his ability to speak and work a room and you know,

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Speaker 1: sell somebody's mom on trusting that person with their child

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Speaker 1: for the next four years. Like please, it doesn't get

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Speaker 1: too much better than that, I say, laugh Caliparie type

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Speaker 1: of dudes, man, like those dudes that come from the

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Speaker 1: same cloth. So so so you got a laugh so

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Speaker 1: laugh got you. Who was your other guys that came

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Speaker 1: in with you as freshman? Uh? Came in with another

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Speaker 1: Actually I wasn't saying they were all Los Angeles natives

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Speaker 1: Man Bosman, Yeah, um, Andre Patterson. Yeah. That was that

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Speaker 1: was our crew right there. That was a nice crew. Man.

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Speaker 1: That was a nice crew. Long. You guys were long,

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Speaker 1: very athletic. Uh. One thing that could be said for

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Speaker 1: probably every team that played at u c l A

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Speaker 1: under lab and all that, at least one team or

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Speaker 1: two teams twice, you were pretty much underachieved. We didn't

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Speaker 1: live up to our potential as a as a team,

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Speaker 1: as a as players. When do you attribute those lapses

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Speaker 1: two back at U c l A. I've always tried

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Speaker 1: to figure that out because we would have so much talent, man,

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Speaker 1: and the summertimes you probably ran and what gets the

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Speaker 1: pros with the us A crew and y'all probably was

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Speaker 1: getting a lot of wins and looking great. What was it? Man?

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Speaker 1: What happens? What happened to U? C l A. As

296
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Speaker 1: far as the underachieving part, that's a good question, man.

297
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Speaker 1: It's UM. I think it comes down to just building

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Speaker 1: teams and everybody's standing there and you know, you've got

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Speaker 1: guys is leaving year after year and new guys coming in.

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Speaker 1: That it's it's hard to build that camaraderie and that

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Speaker 1: that uh, that grid, that winning, that winning mentality. So

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00:16:00,720 --> 00:16:03,560
Speaker 1: I think that's uh, I kind of where it hurt.

303
00:16:03,680 --> 00:16:06,120
Speaker 1: When I was playing. Um, I played with two coaches,

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00:16:06,360 --> 00:16:08,520
Speaker 1: so it was Lave for two years and then been

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00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:11,240
Speaker 1: Holland for two years, uh the next two years. So

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00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:16,120
Speaker 1: that coaching change could be, um a monkey wrench in itself. UM,

307
00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:19,600
Speaker 1: just because it's just new. It's different, uh, two coaching styles,

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Speaker 1: um Ben Holland coming from the East Coast and coach

309
00:16:23,320 --> 00:16:27,800
Speaker 1: Lave more West Coast style and more free oriented. UM.

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Speaker 1: So that that that was just a little different. It

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Speaker 1: just kind of just throws you off your your your

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00:16:32,520 --> 00:16:34,680
Speaker 1: you know, what you're used to and what you're seeing

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Speaker 1: for the first two years. So I can say that.

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00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:41,280
Speaker 1: I mean it's just just keeping the team together. Building

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00:16:41,600 --> 00:16:43,360
Speaker 1: a team, a good group of guys that's gonna stay

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00:16:43,400 --> 00:16:45,680
Speaker 1: together for the you know, for four years, three years,

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00:16:45,760 --> 00:16:49,320
Speaker 1: or however long it takes. Yeah, man, building a program,

318
00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:52,400
Speaker 1: building the culture, it takes time, and take guys sticking around,

319
00:16:52,400 --> 00:16:55,360
Speaker 1: Like we had guys that stayed off four years back then.

320
00:16:55,480 --> 00:16:58,280
Speaker 1: So you know it was Ed and Tires and George Zedek.

321
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Speaker 1: Those are our guys. Those are our saying. We won one.

322
00:17:02,320 --> 00:17:04,199
Speaker 1: We won one, and there was no doubt with the

323
00:17:04,240 --> 00:17:08,280
Speaker 1: talent you guys had, um because coming there, So wait,

324
00:17:08,359 --> 00:17:11,520
Speaker 1: you weren't there for Moisa and Dan? Were you? I

325
00:17:11,600 --> 00:17:14,159
Speaker 1: was there for Dan, not Moisa. So I had Matt

326
00:17:14,680 --> 00:17:19,480
Speaker 1: Campono Yeah yeah and really rest in peace, Billy Billys

327
00:17:19,520 --> 00:17:22,480
Speaker 1: in peace. Um. Yeah, I had a lot of older

328
00:17:22,480 --> 00:17:27,920
Speaker 1: guys there. Yeah, good team. We lost on Sweet six

329
00:17:27,960 --> 00:17:30,760
Speaker 1: team that year. Yeah, was you see l a everything

330
00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:35,040
Speaker 1: you thought it was gonna be. I don't know what

331
00:17:35,119 --> 00:17:38,760
Speaker 1: it was gonna be, you know, Like I was so

332
00:17:38,880 --> 00:17:41,120
Speaker 1: green with the basketball. I was learning on the fly,

333
00:17:41,400 --> 00:17:47,040
Speaker 1: like I I didn't really have that that um, I

334
00:17:47,040 --> 00:17:50,359
Speaker 1: guess experienced sort of supportive experience, you know that that

335
00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:52,400
Speaker 1: could just be like okay, look out for this took

336
00:17:52,400 --> 00:17:54,160
Speaker 1: out for that. It was ill learn on the fly.

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00:17:55,520 --> 00:17:58,919
Speaker 1: So UM, I don't know what. I didn't know what

338
00:17:58,960 --> 00:18:01,800
Speaker 1: to expect. It was it was fun like I enjoyed

339
00:18:01,840 --> 00:18:04,840
Speaker 1: every minute of it. I enjoyed it. I wouldn't if

340
00:18:04,840 --> 00:18:06,440
Speaker 1: I had to go back and change school, I wouldn't.

341
00:18:06,680 --> 00:18:09,959
Speaker 1: I still choose you, so it, yeah, I would to Um.

342
00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:13,119
Speaker 1: I had a few schools that were, you know, knocking

343
00:18:13,119 --> 00:18:16,440
Speaker 1: down my door. Washington State with Calvin Sampson, Arizona State

344
00:18:16,440 --> 00:18:21,040
Speaker 1: with Bill Freeder, um Cornell out in the Ivy League.

345
00:18:21,080 --> 00:18:23,960
Speaker 1: But you know, nothing nothing. I'm glad I went to

346
00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:25,880
Speaker 1: u c l A. But I kind of wonder what

347
00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:27,480
Speaker 1: my life would have been like had I went to

348
00:18:27,560 --> 00:18:30,480
Speaker 1: like a Utah and played for Rick Majeris and had

349
00:18:30,480 --> 00:18:32,920
Speaker 1: the rock in my hand, you know, not running. You know,

350
00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:34,879
Speaker 1: do you sell a high posts and where you could

351
00:18:34,960 --> 00:18:38,040
Speaker 1: kind of develop a little more and handle and things

352
00:18:38,119 --> 00:18:40,919
Speaker 1: like that. I always think about it, but you know,

353
00:18:41,040 --> 00:18:43,440
Speaker 1: not really tripping on it. Uh. You know, hindsight is

354
00:18:43,480 --> 00:18:48,159
Speaker 1: always twenty. If you were all packed ten, Uh, you're

355
00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:51,320
Speaker 1: last year U c l A. And now take me

356
00:18:51,359 --> 00:18:55,080
Speaker 1: through the draft process. So you're coming, you're projected. Well,

357
00:18:55,080 --> 00:18:56,439
Speaker 1: I don't know where they had you. But I know

358
00:18:56,520 --> 00:18:59,760
Speaker 1: that at your size, your height, your skill set at

359
00:18:59,800 --> 00:19:03,040
Speaker 1: that time, uh, you seem pretty primed to you know,

360
00:19:03,280 --> 00:19:05,560
Speaker 1: to do well in the draft. Now you get picked

361
00:19:05,600 --> 00:19:10,280
Speaker 1: fifty second round. How take me through the workout process

362
00:19:10,320 --> 00:19:13,360
Speaker 1: for you, the pre draft process. If you can remember

363
00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:17,840
Speaker 1: and talk about the moment that your name got called.

364
00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:23,760
Speaker 1: I always tell people that was probably like that whole

365
00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:27,159
Speaker 1: process was I hated that process. Like I hated that

366
00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:32,359
Speaker 1: whole process. It's um, I don't know that my my nature,

367
00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:38,200
Speaker 1: my style of play and going going out workout after workout,

368
00:19:39,080 --> 00:19:42,359
Speaker 1: having to like prove yourself. Yeah, I could do it,

369
00:19:42,359 --> 00:19:43,840
Speaker 1: but that that wasn't my thing. I'm more of a

370
00:19:43,920 --> 00:19:46,479
Speaker 1: gamer like I. I like to show my my my

371
00:19:46,560 --> 00:19:49,359
Speaker 1: game throughing just game play, so that you having to

372
00:19:49,520 --> 00:19:53,400
Speaker 1: fight every every trip, every work I was like, damn,

373
00:19:54,240 --> 00:19:57,520
Speaker 1: these guys is hungry. But I think we'll kind of

374
00:19:57,520 --> 00:19:59,119
Speaker 1: threw it off a little bit. My senior year, I

375
00:19:59,119 --> 00:20:01,960
Speaker 1: played the four p Uh that's just where we needed

376
00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:04,919
Speaker 1: to I need to be for the team to to thrive,

377
00:20:05,119 --> 00:20:07,399
Speaker 1: or that was only position that that was open at

378
00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:10,119
Speaker 1: that needed feeling. So I played. There was a stretch

379
00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:14,240
Speaker 1: for so going into the draft. In that pre draft process,

380
00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:15,840
Speaker 1: like I was going against a lot of fours in

381
00:20:15,920 --> 00:20:18,560
Speaker 1: my work, and I'm just like, that's not but it's

382
00:20:18,560 --> 00:20:21,320
Speaker 1: not my position. But you know, I was able to

383
00:20:21,359 --> 00:20:23,600
Speaker 1: do it and it was successful at a little bit.

384
00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:25,879
Speaker 1: But these guys are a little bit heavier than me.

385
00:20:26,040 --> 00:20:30,159
Speaker 1: You know, on against like Ryan Ghnes, it's like twenty

386
00:20:30,160 --> 00:20:32,600
Speaker 1: pounds te five pounds more heavy than me, thirty pounds

387
00:20:32,640 --> 00:20:36,680
Speaker 1: Jason Max. Still, I'm like Jason Max sill these guys

388
00:20:36,800 --> 00:20:38,760
Speaker 1: on the block. I can't do nothing with this man.

389
00:20:38,760 --> 00:20:41,800
Speaker 1: These guys was physical. Who's that time? The game was

390
00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:45,400
Speaker 1: more physical. It was who's your agent? D who's your agent?

391
00:20:45,440 --> 00:20:47,360
Speaker 1: Real quick? Who's your agent? At that time, I was uh,

392
00:20:47,760 --> 00:20:50,119
Speaker 1: I had signed with Todd. I was with Todd. It

393
00:20:50,200 --> 00:20:51,880
Speaker 1: was it was his first go around with the Life

394
00:20:51,920 --> 00:20:55,679
Speaker 1: Sports Agency. So the year before that, Trevor had went

395
00:20:55,720 --> 00:20:57,840
Speaker 1: to the draft. He had Trevor and then I had

396
00:20:57,880 --> 00:21:00,000
Speaker 1: I was going to go to the draft my junior years.

397
00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:02,280
Speaker 1: So we both me and Trevor went to pre draft together.

398
00:21:02,960 --> 00:21:06,760
Speaker 1: Trevor stayed. Then I went back to school. Wait, um,

399
00:21:08,800 --> 00:21:10,640
Speaker 1: I went through my whole senior year, had a better

400
00:21:10,640 --> 00:21:12,440
Speaker 1: senior year, which I was like, yeah, you go ahead

401
00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:17,159
Speaker 1: and Trav like worked out for him, um, but end

402
00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:19,280
Speaker 1: up going back to school and doing the pre draft thing.

403
00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:21,600
Speaker 1: But Todd was my agent when I signed, and so

404
00:21:21,720 --> 00:21:24,280
Speaker 1: Todd had so I guess I was supposed to have

405
00:21:24,320 --> 00:21:26,199
Speaker 1: Todd on him last week. I guess I'll ask him

406
00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:28,119
Speaker 1: when he gets on. I'm asking why the hell he

407
00:21:28,160 --> 00:21:31,240
Speaker 1: sent you the pre draft workouts with force and didn't

408
00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:33,600
Speaker 1: have no god dang shooting guard workouts. And that's that's

409
00:21:33,600 --> 00:21:35,600
Speaker 1: for another discussion. I'm gonna asked Todd on my own

410
00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:37,200
Speaker 1: because I want to get the bottom of that, because

411
00:21:37,200 --> 00:21:40,280
Speaker 1: that will make no damn sense. But but Dijon, it's so,

412
00:21:40,480 --> 00:21:42,359
Speaker 1: it's so funny how we have a lot of parallels.

413
00:21:42,440 --> 00:21:45,119
Speaker 1: So you just talked about your pre draft experience and

414
00:21:45,160 --> 00:21:47,680
Speaker 1: have playing before right to stretch four. So my whole

415
00:21:47,720 --> 00:21:49,760
Speaker 1: senior year, Bro, I played the stretch four. And I'm

416
00:21:49,760 --> 00:21:52,119
Speaker 1: not tall as you, so I'm bigger, but I'm not

417
00:21:52,160 --> 00:21:54,240
Speaker 1: as tall as you. I'm six five playing the stretch four.

418
00:21:54,280 --> 00:21:56,160
Speaker 1: So I and then when I get to the pro

419
00:21:56,320 --> 00:22:00,280
Speaker 1: situation in Arizona and Chicago and all that, they me

420
00:22:00,320 --> 00:22:03,080
Speaker 1: in the in with the twos, So I was I

421
00:22:03,200 --> 00:22:04,920
Speaker 1: wasn't like I would have been. I would have rather

422
00:22:04,960 --> 00:22:07,399
Speaker 1: have been in with the Force. But they put my

423
00:22:07,560 --> 00:22:10,000
Speaker 1: they put my big slow. I was too forty six

424
00:22:10,040 --> 00:22:12,520
Speaker 1: five to forty. I'm trying to stay in front of

425
00:22:12,560 --> 00:22:14,840
Speaker 1: you know, Earl Boykins in them, you know, I mean

426
00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:17,680
Speaker 1: it was just it wasn't Anthony Carter. You don't remember

427
00:22:17,720 --> 00:22:21,320
Speaker 1: a Carter, but please he's coming in along. I'm like,

428
00:22:22,040 --> 00:22:23,920
Speaker 1: I'm just trying to guard. And you know how it

429
00:22:23,960 --> 00:22:26,679
Speaker 1: is once you when you play a position for an

430
00:22:26,680 --> 00:22:29,399
Speaker 1: extended period of time at a very high level, like

431
00:22:29,560 --> 00:22:32,840
Speaker 1: a four, when you try to translate the that skill

432
00:22:32,880 --> 00:22:35,359
Speaker 1: set that you have been used to playing into the

433
00:22:35,480 --> 00:22:38,080
Speaker 1: end into the pro setting where guys have been playing

434
00:22:38,080 --> 00:22:41,080
Speaker 1: their natural positions and this, and that you're gonna always

435
00:22:41,080 --> 00:22:45,640
Speaker 1: be at a disadvantage. I'm really um, Actually, the fact

436
00:22:45,640 --> 00:22:48,879
Speaker 1: that you got drafted after working out against Force, it

437
00:22:48,920 --> 00:22:51,240
Speaker 1: really says a lot about probably how you stuck out

438
00:22:51,640 --> 00:22:54,840
Speaker 1: and how you how you showed up in those workouts. Yeah,

439
00:22:55,240 --> 00:22:57,000
Speaker 1: I mean I definitely did the best thing I could

440
00:22:57,119 --> 00:23:02,880
Speaker 1: um in those workouts. UM My trainer, you know, Rico Hanes, Uh,

441
00:23:03,119 --> 00:23:08,119
Speaker 1: he definitely prepares you, um those type of workouts. Pro workouts,

442
00:23:08,119 --> 00:23:12,199
Speaker 1: and and that was what ten fifteen years ago. You know,

443
00:23:12,280 --> 00:23:14,480
Speaker 1: people are just now starting to see Rico now, but

444
00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:17,679
Speaker 1: he was doing that ten twenty years ago the workout,

445
00:23:17,720 --> 00:23:20,080
Speaker 1: so and it was probably harder than like he's probably

446
00:23:20,119 --> 00:23:22,800
Speaker 1: lighted up now because he's can't move as much as

447
00:23:22,920 --> 00:23:26,320
Speaker 1: and you know, getting older like we all. But they

448
00:23:26,320 --> 00:23:28,800
Speaker 1: were tough. They prepared me. I was. I was definitely

449
00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:34,120
Speaker 1: prepared in all the workouts. Um it just the way

450
00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:36,480
Speaker 1: the game was, the game, the way the game evolves now.

451
00:23:36,520 --> 00:23:38,080
Speaker 1: I think if I was playing now to be a

452
00:23:38,119 --> 00:23:40,000
Speaker 1: little bit better for me to stretch forward, it's not

453
00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:44,720
Speaker 1: really a stretch Forward's best players out there. Yeah, you'd

454
00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:47,320
Speaker 1: be a three, three and D guy, you know, they'd say,

455
00:23:47,440 --> 00:23:49,639
Speaker 1: or I mean if you, I mean, it's a lot

456
00:23:49,720 --> 00:23:52,080
Speaker 1: of guys that are playing and flourishing in the NBA

457
00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:54,000
Speaker 1: right now that I can see somebody with your skills said,

458
00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:56,080
Speaker 1: because you have the skill set that that's the most value.

459
00:23:56,080 --> 00:23:59,560
Speaker 1: But we do both. Do that jumper, that that pro

460
00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:05,280
Speaker 1: deep ass jumper. Okay, that jumper put me in a

461
00:24:05,400 --> 00:24:08,400
Speaker 1: game right now, my jumper I am pulling like these

462
00:24:08,400 --> 00:24:12,399
Speaker 1: motherfucker's is pulling everybody pulling d it's all good to

463
00:24:12,480 --> 00:24:15,240
Speaker 1: pull from be now. Remember remember we had to be

464
00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:17,600
Speaker 1: edited because we could always shoot from there. But then

465
00:24:17,680 --> 00:24:19,520
Speaker 1: you had to get a look if we pulled up,

466
00:24:19,600 --> 00:24:22,600
Speaker 1: people looking at you, mad at you. And so I

467
00:24:22,640 --> 00:24:25,480
Speaker 1: try to tell folks, man, it's a totally different game now,

468
00:24:25,840 --> 00:24:28,119
Speaker 1: and it's not. It's not just because of what guys

469
00:24:28,160 --> 00:24:31,160
Speaker 1: can do or where they can shoot. It's the attitude

470
00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:34,800
Speaker 1: towards a five to seven dribble combo, a dude just

471
00:24:34,840 --> 00:24:37,919
Speaker 1: playing ice ball. It's the attitudes by the coach and

472
00:24:37,960 --> 00:24:40,880
Speaker 1: the other teammates that has changed the most of my opinion.

473
00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:43,439
Speaker 1: Think about how we let everybody get this off. Now,

474
00:24:43,480 --> 00:24:46,880
Speaker 1: remember you, man, that some of these shots broke, I'd

475
00:24:46,880 --> 00:24:48,840
Speaker 1: be wanting to fight. I would have been wanting to

476
00:24:48,880 --> 00:24:50,920
Speaker 1: fight these You're like, man, what you're doing? God, where

477
00:24:50,880 --> 00:24:54,320
Speaker 1: are you showing that? Nowadays it's like good shot, bro

478
00:24:54,520 --> 00:24:59,560
Speaker 1: good shot. Let me ask you this though, and be

479
00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:04,880
Speaker 1: be to percent honest. Being a second round pick by

480
00:25:04,880 --> 00:25:07,440
Speaker 1: the next number fifty four, were you satisfied? Were you

481
00:25:07,520 --> 00:25:10,240
Speaker 1: happy with that? Or were you like disappointed that you

482
00:25:10,359 --> 00:25:13,840
Speaker 1: spent a large portion of your life probably wanted to

483
00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:16,240
Speaker 1: be a first rounder. Now you get draft in the

484
00:25:16,280 --> 00:25:21,000
Speaker 1: second round. What were your emotions, Like, I remember, like

485
00:25:21,040 --> 00:25:24,000
Speaker 1: it was yesterday. It was sitting in Todd's office. Uh,

486
00:25:24,119 --> 00:25:28,840
Speaker 1: family was there. It was stressful. It was just like damn,

487
00:25:28,880 --> 00:25:32,000
Speaker 1: you know, it's it's it's like everybody's draft experience. You know,

488
00:25:32,040 --> 00:25:35,080
Speaker 1: you're saying you're about to get drafted. Here that that

489
00:25:35,160 --> 00:25:37,960
Speaker 1: pig past, You're like, all right, the next couple of pigs,

490
00:25:38,480 --> 00:25:40,320
Speaker 1: and you start, you know, you start going down the

491
00:25:40,359 --> 00:25:43,640
Speaker 1: list and the opportunities. The window starts closing. But once

492
00:25:43,680 --> 00:25:46,240
Speaker 1: I heard that name, it was like a big relief.

493
00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:50,040
Speaker 1: Oh we it was like yeah, you know, even though

494
00:25:50,080 --> 00:25:54,439
Speaker 1: it's fifty four, I was like, yeah, it was. It

495
00:25:54,480 --> 00:25:56,879
Speaker 1: was a great feeling. Honestly, it was a great feeling.

496
00:25:56,960 --> 00:25:58,560
Speaker 1: And it was just like it's time to get to work.

497
00:25:58,760 --> 00:26:01,240
Speaker 1: You know, it's talking to work. It was. It was

498
00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:03,200
Speaker 1: a chip on my should, it was. But I was

499
00:26:03,240 --> 00:26:04,879
Speaker 1: happy that I was happy to get drafted. One out

500
00:26:04,960 --> 00:26:07,760
Speaker 1: sixty players in the world to get drafted, man, And

501
00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:10,520
Speaker 1: and I tell myself now, just like one out of

502
00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:17,520
Speaker 1: sixty one sixty man, your name called so bro, make

503
00:26:17,560 --> 00:26:20,359
Speaker 1: no mistake, that is that is amazing. That is an

504
00:26:20,359 --> 00:26:23,800
Speaker 1: amazing accomplishment to be drafted to have your name on

505
00:26:23,840 --> 00:26:26,760
Speaker 1: the board, for an organization to believe in you enough

506
00:26:27,000 --> 00:26:29,840
Speaker 1: to invest the draft pick in you. Okay, because I

507
00:26:29,840 --> 00:26:32,240
Speaker 1: didn't get drafted. I'm sitting on the board. I'm sitting

508
00:26:32,320 --> 00:26:34,720
Speaker 1: watching the thing, and you watched the whole thing. My

509
00:26:34,760 --> 00:26:38,040
Speaker 1: stomach heard, you know, the tears is flowing. It's like dang.

510
00:26:38,560 --> 00:26:41,119
Speaker 1: So any So, everybody that comes on here that has

511
00:26:41,160 --> 00:26:43,160
Speaker 1: been drafted or anything like that, I always talk about

512
00:26:43,200 --> 00:26:45,439
Speaker 1: this because I love hearing it. I love hearing people's

513
00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:48,399
Speaker 1: perspective on whether or not they were happy some people.

514
00:26:48,440 --> 00:26:50,920
Speaker 1: Some people were you know, weren't happy with their second

515
00:26:51,000 --> 00:26:53,040
Speaker 1: round pick, like you know, told me wasn't too happy

516
00:26:53,080 --> 00:26:55,399
Speaker 1: with that. Hey dog, I'm sure we're first round. You know,

517
00:26:55,400 --> 00:26:57,520
Speaker 1: I should have boats after my first few year. So

518
00:26:57,600 --> 00:26:59,919
Speaker 1: we get into all that type of conversations. So if

519
00:27:00,040 --> 00:27:02,000
Speaker 1: it's good to hear that you were rolling with the

520
00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:06,879
Speaker 1: four pickers, I know that we were. Um, what do

521
00:27:06,920 --> 00:27:09,639
Speaker 1: you remember what stands out the most about your first

522
00:27:09,720 --> 00:27:14,840
Speaker 1: NBA training camp as a rookie. God, So I got

523
00:27:14,920 --> 00:27:17,440
Speaker 1: drafted by New York, but I was traded to Phoenix.

524
00:27:17,440 --> 00:27:22,840
Speaker 1: So my first year was in Phoenix and training camp

525
00:27:22,880 --> 00:27:25,280
Speaker 1: was at Tucson. It was at you have a So

526
00:27:25,320 --> 00:27:27,119
Speaker 1: I was like, all right, cool, I know this arena.

527
00:27:27,240 --> 00:27:30,320
Speaker 1: I didn't play here for years. I know the baskets,

528
00:27:30,440 --> 00:27:34,880
Speaker 1: I can you know, I'm cool. But that Phoenix system

529
00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:38,240
Speaker 1: man with Steve Nash, that eight seconds, seven seconds or less,

530
00:27:38,280 --> 00:27:42,000
Speaker 1: you get in that, You're like good. They are flying

531
00:27:42,119 --> 00:27:45,200
Speaker 1: up and down this court. Like it was hard to adjust.

532
00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:47,880
Speaker 1: It was really hard to adjust to to really get

533
00:27:47,880 --> 00:27:49,919
Speaker 1: in that mold, to just throw up anything up there

534
00:27:49,960 --> 00:27:52,680
Speaker 1: on that just throw up the shot, just get it up.

535
00:27:53,119 --> 00:27:56,399
Speaker 1: And that wasn't my style of game. Like in your mind,

536
00:27:56,440 --> 00:27:59,080
Speaker 1: you like anybody wants to play in that style, but

537
00:27:59,440 --> 00:28:02,560
Speaker 1: that's not for everybody. Everybody don't have that mindset. Everybody

538
00:28:02,600 --> 00:28:06,280
Speaker 1: don't have that conscience. So it was it was difficult

539
00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:07,840
Speaker 1: for me. You know. It was times to where it

540
00:28:07,840 --> 00:28:09,800
Speaker 1: was like yeah, I could hang, I could ball. Had

541
00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:12,639
Speaker 1: moments where it's like I stood out, but it was

542
00:28:13,840 --> 00:28:15,919
Speaker 1: it was tough. It was tough to really crack that

543
00:28:16,000 --> 00:28:19,000
Speaker 1: D'Antoni lineup, and that was and that was gut wrenching,

544
00:28:19,480 --> 00:28:24,600
Speaker 1: you know, to get to to experience that um because

545
00:28:25,280 --> 00:28:27,520
Speaker 1: they sent me down to the D League. That they

546
00:28:27,560 --> 00:28:29,399
Speaker 1: sent me down to the D League. My my my

547
00:28:29,520 --> 00:28:35,600
Speaker 1: rookie year, and I was like, damn already. So let

548
00:28:35,600 --> 00:28:39,080
Speaker 1: me just break this down. So, how many games into

549
00:28:39,160 --> 00:28:42,840
Speaker 1: the season before D'Antoni and them sent you down to

550
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:46,240
Speaker 1: the G League. It was off top, It was off top.

551
00:28:46,360 --> 00:28:48,600
Speaker 1: It was Yeah, it might have been kind of more

552
00:28:48,680 --> 00:28:50,640
Speaker 1: so off top because the D League was starting to

553
00:28:50,680 --> 00:28:52,800
Speaker 1: get developed in it was they were still trying to,

554
00:28:53,360 --> 00:28:55,840
Speaker 1: you know, get that implemented and acclimated. So it was

555
00:28:56,520 --> 00:28:58,560
Speaker 1: they were still testing it out, so they needed players.

556
00:28:58,560 --> 00:29:00,880
Speaker 1: So it was like perfect, boom, send them down there.

557
00:29:00,960 --> 00:29:03,640
Speaker 1: So it wasn't long. So it was after training camp

558
00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:05,960
Speaker 1: and then had to do a D League training camp.

559
00:29:06,000 --> 00:29:08,360
Speaker 1: I was like, oh, I just came from training camp.

560
00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:11,800
Speaker 1: I gotta do another one. So this is word coach Cooper,

561
00:29:11,840 --> 00:29:16,600
Speaker 1: Michael Cooper, he was my coach at the and he

562
00:29:16,680 --> 00:29:19,000
Speaker 1: was like DT. He's like, I know, you just did

563
00:29:19,040 --> 00:29:21,200
Speaker 1: training camp. He's like, I ain't gonna kill you like that. Man.

564
00:29:21,240 --> 00:29:23,920
Speaker 1: He's like, you gotta do some stuff, but I ain't

565
00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:27,160
Speaker 1: gonna kill you like that. That's wrong. Cool. So he

566
00:29:27,280 --> 00:29:29,440
Speaker 1: looked out for me and I was. I loved it

567
00:29:29,480 --> 00:29:32,240
Speaker 1: down there, man. I played probably about two or three

568
00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:35,640
Speaker 1: games Max killed him and they called me right back

569
00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:41,920
Speaker 1: up and I was like, yes, play Like yes, Nah,

570
00:29:42,200 --> 00:29:45,719
Speaker 1: let's sit right back on this bench out like let

571
00:29:45,720 --> 00:29:47,520
Speaker 1: me go back down the album Querty Like it was

572
00:29:47,560 --> 00:29:49,800
Speaker 1: fun down there. We had Tony Bland, I had Joe

573
00:29:50,000 --> 00:29:53,080
Speaker 1: jip Ed. You came down and played like I had

574
00:29:53,080 --> 00:29:54,720
Speaker 1: my l a guys down there with me. So it

575
00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:57,440
Speaker 1: was fun for me and he was winning. Coach Cooper,

576
00:29:58,000 --> 00:30:02,360
Speaker 1: I loved it. So when you you go down to

577
00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:05,320
Speaker 1: the G League, who did you come back up? Phoenix?

578
00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:08,960
Speaker 1: What they called you back up because somebody got hurt

579
00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:12,160
Speaker 1: and they needed a roster, a roster spot to field,

580
00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:14,400
Speaker 1: or they wanted you to come in and actually play,

581
00:30:14,480 --> 00:30:16,720
Speaker 1: and you did. Did you get into the opportunity to play?

582
00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:19,040
Speaker 1: Is what I want to get at. I didn't get

583
00:30:19,080 --> 00:30:21,520
Speaker 1: the opportunity to play. I think somebody was sick. Bar

584
00:30:21,600 --> 00:30:23,959
Speaker 1: Bolsa made it got sick or cold or something, so

585
00:30:24,000 --> 00:30:27,480
Speaker 1: they needed an extra body up there. I really thought

586
00:30:27,520 --> 00:30:29,480
Speaker 1: I was about to play now because I proved myself

587
00:30:29,480 --> 00:30:31,400
Speaker 1: in the Dally I could put up some numbers. So

588
00:30:32,360 --> 00:30:34,480
Speaker 1: but yeah, it just didn't. It just didn't happen that way.

589
00:30:34,520 --> 00:30:37,640
Speaker 1: It just didn't happen that way and then uh, probably

590
00:30:37,680 --> 00:30:40,719
Speaker 1: about February March. I ended up having knee surgery. Had

591
00:30:40,760 --> 00:30:46,600
Speaker 1: microfractury in my rookie season. Rookie season. That was a

592
00:30:46,600 --> 00:30:50,600
Speaker 1: gut punch. Um That same year, March start Tomorrow had

593
00:30:50,640 --> 00:30:53,200
Speaker 1: his microfracture, so he had had his right out of

594
00:30:53,240 --> 00:30:56,640
Speaker 1: training camp. So I was watching him, seeing him go

595
00:30:56,720 --> 00:30:59,880
Speaker 1: through his rehab all year, and then once the team

596
00:31:00,120 --> 00:31:03,840
Speaker 1: the doctor said I had one, I was like, oh no,

597
00:31:05,960 --> 00:31:08,440
Speaker 1: amor designed he was hand a million dollar contract. I

598
00:31:08,480 --> 00:31:11,080
Speaker 1: was still sitting on this drink and I like, oh,

599
00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:13,520
Speaker 1: this ain't a good look for me. This ain't a

600
00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:16,000
Speaker 1: good look. But I was like, no, I can't go

601
00:31:16,040 --> 00:31:18,640
Speaker 1: out like that. I had to. I had to rehab,

602
00:31:18,720 --> 00:31:21,960
Speaker 1: get better and came back. I came back full strength,

603
00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:26,280
Speaker 1: so good. Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk

604
00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:29,000
Speaker 1: lineup in the nation. Catch all of our shows at

605
00:31:29,080 --> 00:31:32,440
Speaker 1: Fox Sports Radio dot com and within the I Heart

606
00:31:32,520 --> 00:31:36,160
Speaker 1: Radio app search f s R to listen live. At

607
00:31:36,200 --> 00:31:40,320
Speaker 1: what point, though, did you decide in your head like

608
00:31:40,880 --> 00:31:43,880
Speaker 1: I'm tired of chasing this league stuff. And you know,

609
00:31:43,960 --> 00:31:47,720
Speaker 1: I because as ball players that are elite, and you

610
00:31:47,760 --> 00:31:51,280
Speaker 1: have an actual opportunity to try out for the NBA

611
00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:53,400
Speaker 1: and if you could do it year after year, because

612
00:31:53,400 --> 00:31:55,280
Speaker 1: I did it like four or five straight years where

613
00:31:55,320 --> 00:31:57,920
Speaker 1: I was going to training camps and all that. At

614
00:31:58,200 --> 00:32:00,280
Speaker 1: some point I was like, man, funk all that ship.

615
00:32:00,520 --> 00:32:02,640
Speaker 1: I'm done. I'm tired of this, you know what I'm saying.

616
00:32:02,640 --> 00:32:04,840
Speaker 1: I'm just tired of being a body and training camp,

617
00:32:04,960 --> 00:32:07,000
Speaker 1: tired of not getting a real look even though I'm

618
00:32:07,080 --> 00:32:11,440
Speaker 1: killing these dudes in training camp. I'm tired of this feeling.

619
00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:14,440
Speaker 1: I'm gonna get go somewhere where I'm loved with a

620
00:32:14,600 --> 00:32:17,240
Speaker 1: you know, Cris Cris Joe whe you know, they said

621
00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:20,640
Speaker 1: your name real loud. At what point did that realization

622
00:32:20,720 --> 00:32:28,240
Speaker 1: happen for you? D Jones? I think it was. I

623
00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:30,000
Speaker 1: can't remember. It was. I was coming back from my

624
00:32:30,080 --> 00:32:33,200
Speaker 1: knee injury. Uh, I gotta call up. Came back to

625
00:32:33,240 --> 00:32:38,120
Speaker 1: Phoenix rehab the whole year when started the D League,

626
00:32:38,400 --> 00:32:42,800
Speaker 1: got called to Atlanta Hawks, played there for a two

627
00:32:42,840 --> 00:32:45,920
Speaker 1: ten day contracts. The Numbers game happened, So I'll go

628
00:32:45,920 --> 00:32:47,720
Speaker 1: back finish the rest of the season in the D League.

629
00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:53,240
Speaker 1: That following summer, um, I think I have a training

630
00:32:53,280 --> 00:32:57,360
Speaker 1: camp with the Cleveland Cavaliers. I go into that training camp,

631
00:32:57,520 --> 00:33:01,080
Speaker 1: the mini training camp, played really really well and end

632
00:33:01,200 --> 00:33:06,040
Speaker 1: up making the roster for for Vegas whatever. I was

633
00:33:06,200 --> 00:33:08,680
Speaker 1: probably the third guy on that team. You had, uh

634
00:33:08,720 --> 00:33:13,560
Speaker 1: you got Daniel Gibson on that team and um uh Shannon,

635
00:33:15,040 --> 00:33:17,920
Speaker 1: I'm blanking on his last thing. But they were two rookies.

636
00:33:18,000 --> 00:33:20,239
Speaker 1: They were two rookies at the time, so they were

637
00:33:20,320 --> 00:33:22,040
Speaker 1: they were. There were some of leagus for the rookies,

638
00:33:22,120 --> 00:33:23,560
Speaker 1: you know, the guys that didn't really get to play,

639
00:33:23,560 --> 00:33:25,200
Speaker 1: and they was coming to They saw more season to

640
00:33:25,240 --> 00:33:27,560
Speaker 1: the time for them, and I was probably the third

641
00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:29,680
Speaker 1: guy outside of them as far as on the floor

642
00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:33,000
Speaker 1: and as far as touches and getting a notoriety. But hey,

643
00:33:33,040 --> 00:33:34,520
Speaker 1: they took all the shots, so I was like, cool,

644
00:33:34,520 --> 00:33:37,240
Speaker 1: I gotta figure it out. But still played well within

645
00:33:37,280 --> 00:33:39,600
Speaker 1: the minutes. So after that, they're like, I come to

646
00:33:39,600 --> 00:33:42,480
Speaker 1: training camp basically for no money. That's when I was like,

647
00:33:42,800 --> 00:33:45,720
Speaker 1: you know what, I gotta make a business decision. My

648
00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:47,680
Speaker 1: agent at the time, Sam Go for the He was

649
00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:50,360
Speaker 1: just like, man, this is a business man. Let's let's

650
00:33:50,360 --> 00:33:52,200
Speaker 1: just go get some money. How about that. I was like,

651
00:33:52,280 --> 00:33:55,760
Speaker 1: you know what, You're right, let's go get some money overseas, man.

652
00:33:56,440 --> 00:33:59,080
Speaker 1: So that was that was my once they once they

653
00:33:59,240 --> 00:34:01,440
Speaker 1: once I played well in summer league and you know,

654
00:34:01,480 --> 00:34:02,880
Speaker 1: they didn't even want to give me no money to

655
00:34:02,960 --> 00:34:04,880
Speaker 1: kind of training camp. That's when I was like, all right,

656
00:34:05,240 --> 00:34:09,640
Speaker 1: it's it's that's not right. Yeah, that hurts, man, It hurts.

657
00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:14,000
Speaker 1: And it shows you, Joe, how they they treat you. Man,

658
00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:15,680
Speaker 1: if you're not one of them guys, you know you're

659
00:34:15,680 --> 00:34:18,520
Speaker 1: not one of their guys, and look, it's all up

660
00:34:18,520 --> 00:34:20,440
Speaker 1: to them. I don't I don't hate the NBA. I

661
00:34:20,480 --> 00:34:22,799
Speaker 1: don't hate the people that made the scouting decisions that

662
00:34:22,880 --> 00:34:25,440
Speaker 1: they made or the choices they made. But you know,

663
00:34:25,520 --> 00:34:27,440
Speaker 1: you look back on it, you just kind of sometimes

664
00:34:27,480 --> 00:34:30,400
Speaker 1: you think. I wonder if you think sometimes like man,

665
00:34:30,440 --> 00:34:32,239
Speaker 1: I wish I just had one more shot, or I

666
00:34:32,320 --> 00:34:36,320
Speaker 1: wish I had a real legitimate chance to play where

667
00:34:36,440 --> 00:34:39,359
Speaker 1: I was getting shots, or or if I actually got

668
00:34:39,440 --> 00:34:41,400
Speaker 1: time and my numbers called. You see it in the

669
00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:44,160
Speaker 1: league today, Man, some of these guys, like the Clippers,

670
00:34:44,160 --> 00:34:46,200
Speaker 1: they got a guy named a Mirror Coffee. I don't

671
00:34:46,200 --> 00:34:48,040
Speaker 1: know if you've seen a Mirror Coffee play. This dude

672
00:34:48,040 --> 00:34:50,680
Speaker 1: had thirty five thirty seven dog like, like he just

673
00:34:50,719 --> 00:34:52,920
Speaker 1: needed some minutes do you feel like he was one

674
00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:56,399
Speaker 1: of them guys that just you didn't. Yeah, it's it's

675
00:34:56,440 --> 00:34:59,600
Speaker 1: it's minutes his opportunity. It's timing. I mean, it's a

676
00:34:59,600 --> 00:35:02,160
Speaker 1: lot of area was coming to it. But yeah, I

677
00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:04,360
Speaker 1: do believe I was talented enough to be on the

678
00:35:04,360 --> 00:35:06,960
Speaker 1: floor and and get major minutes. Of course, I think

679
00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:10,160
Speaker 1: I was that skilled enough. Yeah, sure you gotta be

680
00:35:10,200 --> 00:35:13,840
Speaker 1: that skill And talk about now your first real overseas experience.

681
00:35:13,880 --> 00:35:16,080
Speaker 1: So Sam tells you, hey, let's go get some money.

682
00:35:16,640 --> 00:35:19,000
Speaker 1: What was the first job that he brought to your table,

683
00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:22,600
Speaker 1: and just talk about that country, that city, that team.

684
00:35:22,880 --> 00:35:26,040
Speaker 1: Uh first job was in Germany, Berlin, so that the

685
00:35:26,080 --> 00:35:30,760
Speaker 1: city was amazing. Um, it wasn't the most warming experience

686
00:35:30,800 --> 00:35:33,239
Speaker 1: because i mean, first time overseas, you just like, you know,

687
00:35:33,320 --> 00:35:36,120
Speaker 1: here the lights, you just like a deer in the headlights,

688
00:35:36,160 --> 00:35:39,640
Speaker 1: Like what the hell? The ambulance is different. First time

689
00:35:39,680 --> 00:35:43,520
Speaker 1: I'm experienced jet lag, I'm like, what you gotta wake

690
00:35:43,600 --> 00:35:45,560
Speaker 1: up in like two hours to do a physical where

691
00:35:45,560 --> 00:35:47,759
Speaker 1: they're gonna have you running on the treadmill. So I

692
00:35:48,080 --> 00:35:50,600
Speaker 1: remember calling my mom. I'm like I ain't about to

693
00:35:50,680 --> 00:35:54,360
Speaker 1: make it at this time. You got Skype was I

694
00:35:54,360 --> 00:35:56,440
Speaker 1: mean it was Skype, but you had to get you

695
00:35:56,480 --> 00:35:58,560
Speaker 1: had to have calling cars. I remember buying like a

696
00:35:58,640 --> 00:36:01,640
Speaker 1: pack of calling cars mobile car card right before I

697
00:36:01,760 --> 00:36:04,759
Speaker 1: left from my homie because I was like, man, I'm

698
00:36:04,760 --> 00:36:06,440
Speaker 1: gonna all kind of man. That was the lick. That

699
00:36:06,480 --> 00:36:08,160
Speaker 1: was the list the homie had to call and car

700
00:36:08,280 --> 00:36:11,040
Speaker 1: that the call. I spent O fifty getting fifty bucks,

701
00:36:11,680 --> 00:36:13,720
Speaker 1: so I had calling card dial to me. I remember

702
00:36:13,719 --> 00:36:15,160
Speaker 1: calling my mom like I ain't gonna make it, like

703
00:36:15,200 --> 00:36:17,279
Speaker 1: I'm tired. I can't even go to sleep. I gotta

704
00:36:17,280 --> 00:36:19,080
Speaker 1: get up and run like I ain't gonna pass that.

705
00:36:19,280 --> 00:36:21,719
Speaker 1: She's like, how you'd be all right, you know, just

706
00:36:21,719 --> 00:36:23,760
Speaker 1: just try to go to sleep, you know, calm me down.

707
00:36:23,800 --> 00:36:27,600
Speaker 1: But played in Germany, Berlin before a serving coach out

708
00:36:27,640 --> 00:36:32,440
Speaker 1: the gate and I had a Serbian too, I have, Yeah,

709
00:36:32,480 --> 00:36:36,680
Speaker 1: I got baptized out the gate um. So it was

710
00:36:36,760 --> 00:36:39,280
Speaker 1: it was tough. It was tough on the basketball side.

711
00:36:39,360 --> 00:36:42,319
Speaker 1: This the city kind of saved me as far as

712
00:36:42,480 --> 00:36:46,080
Speaker 1: you know, entertainment, you know, just stuff to disconnect from basketball,

713
00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:50,120
Speaker 1: because the the narrative from for a serving coach, they

714
00:36:50,160 --> 00:36:52,200
Speaker 1: could take they could take the fun out of basketball. Man,

715
00:36:52,239 --> 00:36:55,920
Speaker 1: they're gonna drill you, run you and it's it's very militant,

716
00:36:56,040 --> 00:37:01,120
Speaker 1: you know. So it was Berlin City saving. Yeah, speaking that,

717
00:37:01,280 --> 00:37:04,480
Speaker 1: that's fascinating because I played for a Serbian coach when

718
00:37:04,520 --> 00:37:08,360
Speaker 1: I was in Lebanon Um and he was a little psychotic,

719
00:37:08,600 --> 00:37:10,359
Speaker 1: you know what I mean, Like he was on one

720
00:37:10,719 --> 00:37:12,799
Speaker 1: uh he always, he used to tell me because he

721
00:37:12,840 --> 00:37:16,520
Speaker 1: had coached Darryl Armstrong and Greece. Remember Daryl Armstrong. He's

722
00:37:16,560 --> 00:37:18,640
Speaker 1: like he was trying to give me to play like Armstrong,

723
00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:20,960
Speaker 1: like dog, I can't play like GARYL. Armstrong. Man, that's

724
00:37:20,960 --> 00:37:22,719
Speaker 1: a whole another type of dude. I'm gonna do me,

725
00:37:22,880 --> 00:37:26,879
Speaker 1: Bro this turnaround jumper and this mid post like I'm

726
00:37:26,880 --> 00:37:28,880
Speaker 1: gonna do me. So he was. But but the thing

727
00:37:28,920 --> 00:37:30,400
Speaker 1: he loved about me because you know I had I

728
00:37:30,440 --> 00:37:32,880
Speaker 1: had a crazy work ethic. So I was there. I

729
00:37:32,920 --> 00:37:35,880
Speaker 1: was getting to the gym like at six, like before

730
00:37:35,880 --> 00:37:38,080
Speaker 1: the nine o'clock morning practice. I was already like an

731
00:37:38,120 --> 00:37:40,480
Speaker 1: hour and a half, two hours, sweaty. I was stay

732
00:37:40,480 --> 00:37:42,520
Speaker 1: in the whole facility all day. So he loved he

733
00:37:42,520 --> 00:37:45,080
Speaker 1: he was rolling. He knew what time it was with me.

734
00:37:45,160 --> 00:37:47,160
Speaker 1: So I was like, bro, I'm gonna give you this

735
00:37:47,200 --> 00:37:49,200
Speaker 1: fifty ball, like, don't even talk to me about none

736
00:37:49,239 --> 00:37:52,480
Speaker 1: of this nothing, Okay, I don't want to hear nothing.

737
00:37:52,960 --> 00:37:56,360
Speaker 1: D you know when when you go overseas and you

738
00:37:56,480 --> 00:37:58,719
Speaker 1: ball out and you know you have that that thing

739
00:37:58,800 --> 00:38:04,040
Speaker 1: that they love. Yeah, you can call your own shots, Britt. Yeah. Yeah,

740
00:38:05,000 --> 00:38:07,160
Speaker 1: I hadn't been on both sides of the spectrum. Man.

741
00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:09,200
Speaker 1: You can beat a man and you know, call your

742
00:38:09,200 --> 00:38:11,839
Speaker 1: shots and being the last gun on the bench. So

743
00:38:11,920 --> 00:38:15,040
Speaker 1: it's over. Excuse it was a great career, man, I

744
00:38:15,080 --> 00:38:17,480
Speaker 1: loved it. Like you said a serving coach, he he

745
00:38:17,640 --> 00:38:21,960
Speaker 1: killed us, but he actually he actually primed me for

746
00:38:21,960 --> 00:38:23,920
Speaker 1: the rest of my career, to be honest, like that

747
00:38:23,960 --> 00:38:26,560
Speaker 1: mental toughness and and new it ticks that grind like

748
00:38:27,640 --> 00:38:29,840
Speaker 1: it was no surprises after that, Like I knew what

749
00:38:29,880 --> 00:38:33,719
Speaker 1: to expect from every team and I and I that's

750
00:38:33,719 --> 00:38:35,520
Speaker 1: how I just performed after that. It was just like

751
00:38:35,640 --> 00:38:38,920
Speaker 1: straight like m like now I ain't messed around like he.

752
00:38:39,280 --> 00:38:42,040
Speaker 1: So I give it to him. He helped him. Yeah,

753
00:38:42,520 --> 00:38:45,600
Speaker 1: I thought you were you had achieved or been honored

754
00:38:45,640 --> 00:38:49,920
Speaker 1: with like all euro Cup selections overseas, did you You

755
00:38:49,960 --> 00:38:54,120
Speaker 1: guys want to champion? You want championships over there. Uh

756
00:38:54,640 --> 00:38:58,440
Speaker 1: one in Ukraine? Uh shout out to Ukraine. Uh did

757
00:38:58,440 --> 00:39:00,719
Speaker 1: win a championship? U claim to marry you people? Uh

758
00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:05,000
Speaker 1: so my blessings go out to them. Um, that was

759
00:39:05,040 --> 00:39:08,200
Speaker 1: the only place I really want, like a championship in

760
00:39:08,239 --> 00:39:10,160
Speaker 1: the cup and stuff for the for the euro Cup.

761
00:39:10,200 --> 00:39:12,120
Speaker 1: We've made it to the final four. We we really

762
00:39:12,120 --> 00:39:15,359
Speaker 1: just had a really good team, underdog team and really

763
00:39:15,360 --> 00:39:17,040
Speaker 1: made it to the to the final four against some

764
00:39:17,120 --> 00:39:19,560
Speaker 1: really really top team. So that was a really good

765
00:39:19,600 --> 00:39:24,000
Speaker 1: year for me. Actually, what's what's the country of Ukraine?

766
00:39:24,040 --> 00:39:26,080
Speaker 1: What is it like out there? How are the people?

767
00:39:26,280 --> 00:39:28,399
Speaker 1: What was you know? Just described it or talk about

768
00:39:28,400 --> 00:39:31,080
Speaker 1: it a little bit? I mean, be honest, is what

769
00:39:31,160 --> 00:39:35,399
Speaker 1: you see on TV Ukraine hasn't really changed from when

770
00:39:35,400 --> 00:39:39,320
Speaker 1: I when I was playing, Um, it's it's very underdeveloped.

771
00:39:40,080 --> 00:39:43,200
Speaker 1: The it's the money. They don't really put money back

772
00:39:43,239 --> 00:39:47,160
Speaker 1: into the city. It's very poor. Um. I remember playing that.

773
00:39:47,239 --> 00:39:50,360
Speaker 1: The closest McDonald's to me was like an hour away,

774
00:39:50,440 --> 00:39:53,319
Speaker 1: and I was looking for that McDonald's, Like we're looking

775
00:39:53,320 --> 00:39:56,160
Speaker 1: for McDonald's overseas And it's crazy to say, but we

776
00:39:56,239 --> 00:40:01,080
Speaker 1: are thirsty for McDonald's overseas as a mill like because

777
00:40:01,160 --> 00:40:05,160
Speaker 1: we know what what to expect, so hour away and

778
00:40:05,200 --> 00:40:07,200
Speaker 1: we would have to fly out of that airport. So

779
00:40:07,280 --> 00:40:09,560
Speaker 1: you just I just remember loading up on apple pies

780
00:40:09,640 --> 00:40:11,319
Speaker 1: on the bus, like I'm going back to my city

781
00:40:11,360 --> 00:40:13,320
Speaker 1: of our white cheeseburger so I could eat them a

782
00:40:13,320 --> 00:40:16,320
Speaker 1: little bit later. Like but yeah, Ukraine it was cool,

783
00:40:16,680 --> 00:40:21,600
Speaker 1: like we want to chip. The culture was there, loved it.

784
00:40:21,600 --> 00:40:25,000
Speaker 1: It was just the city was just crazy. Yeah. Man,

785
00:40:25,000 --> 00:40:29,040
Speaker 1: that's how my experience in Russia was. So. So I

786
00:40:29,080 --> 00:40:32,040
Speaker 1: was in Moscow for a little bit, and then I

787
00:40:32,080 --> 00:40:36,840
Speaker 1: was in Saratov, which is like near Siberia. It's like

788
00:40:36,880 --> 00:40:40,000
Speaker 1: way in the in the cut. Uh yeah, Like like

789
00:40:40,040 --> 00:40:43,719
Speaker 1: you said, I was there in so the economy had collapsed,

790
00:40:43,800 --> 00:40:46,880
Speaker 1: like the ruble wasn't worth nothing, and so people was

791
00:40:46,920 --> 00:40:49,759
Speaker 1: out there just really hungry, thirsty. You know. They were

792
00:40:49,760 --> 00:40:53,200
Speaker 1: trying to get me to throw a game. On to

793
00:40:53,320 --> 00:40:54,840
Speaker 1: throw the game. They were trying to get me to

794
00:40:54,960 --> 00:40:57,759
Speaker 1: throw the game. The Russian old school Russian come talk

795
00:40:57,800 --> 00:41:00,000
Speaker 1: to you on the side and they were trying to

796
00:41:00,040 --> 00:41:02,600
Speaker 1: get you to throw the game. Like I was like, man,

797
00:41:02,640 --> 00:41:04,480
Speaker 1: I can't do all that. I'm trying to hoop bro,

798
00:41:04,719 --> 00:41:06,879
Speaker 1: like I don't even get down with the throw the game,

799
00:41:08,400 --> 00:41:10,319
Speaker 1: you know. But but anyway that it was, it was

800
00:41:10,360 --> 00:41:15,319
Speaker 1: crazy experience. I'll never forget though Russia. I went to uh,

801
00:41:15,440 --> 00:41:19,239
Speaker 1: these nightclubs out there, and I'll never forget this scene. Bro.

802
00:41:19,920 --> 00:41:23,239
Speaker 1: I'm walking in behind like two big gass like Serbian

803
00:41:23,360 --> 00:41:26,920
Speaker 1: Bosnian looking dudes, right, and so they just started pulling

804
00:41:26,920 --> 00:41:30,719
Speaker 1: out heaters and they had like a little cubicle where

805
00:41:30,719 --> 00:41:32,880
Speaker 1: they were checking in. They gave the dude the ticket,

806
00:41:32,920 --> 00:41:35,600
Speaker 1: they checked in the gats like before they got to

807
00:41:35,640 --> 00:41:37,800
Speaker 1: the club. Okay, here ever set it here, they checked

808
00:41:37,800 --> 00:41:39,759
Speaker 1: it in and they got a ticket for the I

809
00:41:39,800 --> 00:41:42,960
Speaker 1: was like, okay, it's one of them. I get inside

810
00:41:43,000 --> 00:41:46,400
Speaker 1: the club and there's nothing but Tupac being bumped for

811
00:41:46,440 --> 00:41:50,040
Speaker 1: two hours, two straight hours of pock stuff I've never heard.

812
00:41:50,080 --> 00:41:52,319
Speaker 1: I was. I couldn't believe I was. I was just like,

813
00:41:52,880 --> 00:41:54,000
Speaker 1: what the hell was going on? I got a big

814
00:41:54,080 --> 00:41:56,480
Speaker 1: day of service steak. I got a big as steak

815
00:41:56,520 --> 00:41:59,520
Speaker 1: in this spot. Need just to say I had. I

816
00:41:59,520 --> 00:42:04,400
Speaker 1: had a pretty solid experience in Russia. Um thirteen years overseas,

817
00:42:04,560 --> 00:42:08,799
Speaker 1: right yea? Than uh? I mean the way I think

818
00:42:08,800 --> 00:42:11,600
Speaker 1: about longevity overseas, I feel like and and tell me

819
00:42:11,680 --> 00:42:14,520
Speaker 1: if you feel like this. I feel like when you're

820
00:42:14,520 --> 00:42:18,080
Speaker 1: going that long, typically it's what seven six, seven months

821
00:42:18,120 --> 00:42:22,120
Speaker 1: on four or five months back at the house. When

822
00:42:22,120 --> 00:42:25,160
Speaker 1: you're going that long, you you you miss out on

823
00:42:25,200 --> 00:42:29,160
Speaker 1: a lot of things. Do you feel like over those

824
00:42:29,200 --> 00:42:32,080
Speaker 1: thirteen years when you came back after you retired, do

825
00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:37,200
Speaker 1: you feel like not? Has it been an easy transition

826
00:42:38,320 --> 00:42:40,440
Speaker 1: to come back to the States into sort of the

827
00:42:40,520 --> 00:42:45,400
Speaker 1: real world after being a pro internationally for thirteen years. No,

828
00:42:45,560 --> 00:42:50,680
Speaker 1: it's never easy. It's it's it doesn't matter where you are.

829
00:42:50,800 --> 00:42:53,399
Speaker 1: Transition is never easy for nobody. You know, you used

830
00:42:53,400 --> 00:42:57,319
Speaker 1: to doing something for thirteen plus years, ten plus years,

831
00:42:57,280 --> 00:43:01,960
Speaker 1: however long somebody plays. It's it's never easy. You. Um,

832
00:43:02,040 --> 00:43:07,759
Speaker 1: so being over there that long, I missed out on

833
00:43:07,800 --> 00:43:10,520
Speaker 1: a lot of things. Um. One of my close friends,

834
00:43:11,040 --> 00:43:13,600
Speaker 1: he would always say, just press play when you get

835
00:43:13,640 --> 00:43:16,280
Speaker 1: back this, press play, man, we missed all on stuff.

836
00:43:16,280 --> 00:43:18,200
Speaker 1: But we're not. We're over there working, we're doing what

837
00:43:18,239 --> 00:43:22,319
Speaker 1: we'd love to do. But so we didn't really miss

838
00:43:22,320 --> 00:43:24,080
Speaker 1: out on a lot, but we missed. You missed out

839
00:43:24,080 --> 00:43:26,680
Speaker 1: on connections, you missed out on network, missing out on

840
00:43:26,920 --> 00:43:30,920
Speaker 1: you know, just that that feel, that that texture, just

841
00:43:31,040 --> 00:43:36,200
Speaker 1: that engagement. So it's when you stop, you got to

842
00:43:36,280 --> 00:43:40,480
Speaker 1: reconnect all over again. Like, oh, you know, now you've

843
00:43:40,480 --> 00:43:42,759
Speaker 1: got social media, you can't have social media that that,

844
00:43:42,880 --> 00:43:44,799
Speaker 1: you know, so it's hard to keep up with folks.

845
00:43:44,800 --> 00:43:46,759
Speaker 1: And I don't really have that much social media, so

846
00:43:46,840 --> 00:43:49,160
Speaker 1: it's it's really hard to keep up with me as well.

847
00:43:49,200 --> 00:43:54,160
Speaker 1: But transition is hard. It's it's hard, but you know,

848
00:43:54,239 --> 00:43:56,320
Speaker 1: that's that's why you you go to U C. L

849
00:43:56,360 --> 00:43:59,600
Speaker 1: A for the network and got guys like you. I

850
00:43:59,600 --> 00:44:03,439
Speaker 1: could call all big brothers, you know, band everybody that's

851
00:44:03,480 --> 00:44:07,000
Speaker 1: that's that's been down that journey and kind of you

852
00:44:07,000 --> 00:44:08,960
Speaker 1: know kind of guys. You would just be that lighthouse

853
00:44:09,239 --> 00:44:12,480
Speaker 1: rightly young, you know. So a lot of guys have helped.

854
00:44:12,680 --> 00:44:16,240
Speaker 1: You know, it's not easy, but everybody goes through it. Yeah,

855
00:44:16,400 --> 00:44:18,839
Speaker 1: I just feel like, you know, it's it's it's good

856
00:44:18,880 --> 00:44:20,759
Speaker 1: to talk about it with other people that have gone

857
00:44:20,760 --> 00:44:24,279
Speaker 1: through it too. I felt like when my time overseas

858
00:44:24,320 --> 00:44:25,879
Speaker 1: like I missed out on a lot. When I say

859
00:44:25,960 --> 00:44:28,080
Speaker 1: missed out, I mean obviously talking about the family and

860
00:44:28,640 --> 00:44:30,600
Speaker 1: kids and things like that that are close to you,

861
00:44:31,280 --> 00:44:34,359
Speaker 1: but I was talking to more about like professionally it's

862
00:44:34,440 --> 00:44:37,960
Speaker 1: like you you spent eight years hooping, so you're equipped

863
00:44:37,960 --> 00:44:39,840
Speaker 1: to come back home and do something in the field

864
00:44:39,840 --> 00:44:42,840
Speaker 1: of basketball. Now, the jobs that pay in the field

865
00:44:42,840 --> 00:44:46,520
Speaker 1: of basketball, typically in the college and the program um,

866
00:44:46,560 --> 00:44:49,440
Speaker 1: those jobs are far and few between. There are not

867
00:44:49,520 --> 00:44:51,879
Speaker 1: a lot of those jobs. Those jobs are already kind

868
00:44:51,880 --> 00:44:54,600
Speaker 1: of spoken for, and plugs and hookups and you know,

869
00:44:54,640 --> 00:44:57,879
Speaker 1: nepotism in the whole nine. So being overseas for eight

870
00:44:57,960 --> 00:45:01,560
Speaker 1: years and then coming back and then trying to, you know,

871
00:45:01,680 --> 00:45:05,120
Speaker 1: find your way into the coaching industry or the television

872
00:45:05,160 --> 00:45:07,879
Speaker 1: game or or these different games where people have been

873
00:45:07,920 --> 00:45:11,439
Speaker 1: grinding while you were gone overseas eight years. You're short

874
00:45:11,440 --> 00:45:13,759
Speaker 1: of behind the eight ball. You have a they got

875
00:45:13,840 --> 00:45:15,920
Speaker 1: a hit start on you, and so now you gotta

876
00:45:15,960 --> 00:45:18,200
Speaker 1: get you gotta bone up real quick. You gotta get

877
00:45:18,280 --> 00:45:22,560
Speaker 1: up to speed real quick. Uh. I think it's necessary

878
00:45:22,960 --> 00:45:26,680
Speaker 1: for guys that played internationally overseas that when they come back,

879
00:45:27,680 --> 00:45:29,680
Speaker 1: they have to get some type of certification. So like

880
00:45:29,719 --> 00:45:32,800
Speaker 1: whether it be real estate, whether it be an accounting license,

881
00:45:32,880 --> 00:45:35,040
Speaker 1: whether it be something you gotta get be able to

882
00:45:35,080 --> 00:45:38,319
Speaker 1: get into the game with some type of certification that

883
00:45:38,520 --> 00:45:41,600
Speaker 1: puts you on a level where somebody feel comfortable hiring you,

884
00:45:42,120 --> 00:45:45,360
Speaker 1: or you can make your own bread legally and do

885
00:45:45,440 --> 00:45:47,320
Speaker 1: it in a way like real estate. You know what

886
00:45:47,360 --> 00:45:51,120
Speaker 1: I'm saying, Where you your own boss. Um, it's a

887
00:45:51,160 --> 00:45:54,359
Speaker 1: tough game, bro, It's a tough game. Dog. The only

888
00:45:54,480 --> 00:45:57,200
Speaker 1: I mean, you just gotta just you know, we as men,

889
00:45:57,880 --> 00:46:00,439
Speaker 1: you just gotta keep stepping up. You's gotta keep waking

890
00:46:00,520 --> 00:46:02,200
Speaker 1: up every day, man, and trying to go get that,

891
00:46:02,560 --> 00:46:04,440
Speaker 1: go get it, no matter how old you get. Ship,

892
00:46:04,520 --> 00:46:07,839
Speaker 1: I'm almost fifty, bro, So you know I met you.

893
00:46:08,080 --> 00:46:11,840
Speaker 1: We was young, and you know, I was way more handsome.

894
00:46:11,840 --> 00:46:14,080
Speaker 1: You still handsome, and Ship, I was way more handsome.

895
00:46:16,200 --> 00:46:19,919
Speaker 1: But Joe, that's facts, Bro, That's yeah, that's that's real man.

896
00:46:19,960 --> 00:46:23,600
Speaker 1: It's it's it's just being an athlete. I mean you,

897
00:46:24,320 --> 00:46:26,239
Speaker 1: it's it's funny you say that that were behind the

898
00:46:26,280 --> 00:46:29,080
Speaker 1: eight ball and a lot of things, but we're not

899
00:46:29,280 --> 00:46:32,120
Speaker 1: in a way because we have characteristics that a lot

900
00:46:32,200 --> 00:46:35,040
Speaker 1: of people don't have. And that's that grit. Going overseas,

901
00:46:35,040 --> 00:46:38,480
Speaker 1: you gotta have grit. You gotta have discipline, You gotta

902
00:46:38,520 --> 00:46:43,040
Speaker 1: be patient, resilient. You got that ain't for everybody. So

903
00:46:43,080 --> 00:46:46,200
Speaker 1: to be able to survive overseas and come back like, yeah,

904
00:46:46,239 --> 00:46:48,279
Speaker 1: the transition is hard, but we, like I said in

905
00:46:48,280 --> 00:46:50,440
Speaker 1: the beginning, we built for it. We built for We're

906
00:46:50,440 --> 00:46:52,520
Speaker 1: not gonna stop with competitive You're gonna tell us no,

907
00:46:52,560 --> 00:46:54,480
Speaker 1: We're gonna figure out another way how to figure it out,

908
00:46:54,880 --> 00:46:57,120
Speaker 1: you know what I mean. So, yeah, we missed out

909
00:46:57,120 --> 00:46:59,040
Speaker 1: on some things, but we have a lot of other

910
00:46:59,080 --> 00:47:01,799
Speaker 1: traits that a lot of people don't have either. Absolutely,

911
00:47:01,800 --> 00:47:04,239
Speaker 1: and I think it's important that we we uh, we

912
00:47:04,320 --> 00:47:07,480
Speaker 1: give ourselves those props. We recognize those traits. You know,

913
00:47:07,520 --> 00:47:10,759
Speaker 1: that's my brotherhood and and things like that are so important, man,

914
00:47:10,840 --> 00:47:12,480
Speaker 1: just to be able to talk to cats that went

915
00:47:12,480 --> 00:47:15,600
Speaker 1: through the same experience as you and they have sources

916
00:47:15,600 --> 00:47:18,520
Speaker 1: of inspiration and motivation, you know, because our our motivation

917
00:47:18,520 --> 00:47:20,560
Speaker 1: ain't gonna be the same like as everybody else is.

918
00:47:20,600 --> 00:47:22,640
Speaker 1: Like you know, so we got a certain type of

919
00:47:22,719 --> 00:47:24,640
Speaker 1: dudes get motivated us, Like we got to hear from

920
00:47:24,920 --> 00:47:27,400
Speaker 1: you know, a certain type of dude like, look, I

921
00:47:27,440 --> 00:47:29,799
Speaker 1: ain't trying to listen to all this motivation. I'm one

922
00:47:29,880 --> 00:47:32,239
Speaker 1: of these dudes that motivate. I need somebody way up

923
00:47:32,239 --> 00:47:35,359
Speaker 1: here motivate me, bro. And and that's just how it is.

924
00:47:35,440 --> 00:47:38,719
Speaker 1: Dog us you this. What's the last time you've been

925
00:47:38,760 --> 00:47:42,920
Speaker 1: in the gym? Man, who I was in the gym Saturday?

926
00:47:42,960 --> 00:47:47,920
Speaker 1: A matter of fact, you coach it. Yeah, but it's yeah.

927
00:47:48,040 --> 00:47:51,120
Speaker 1: But I mean to answer the real question, man, I'm

928
00:47:51,160 --> 00:47:54,279
Speaker 1: not in the gym like that, honestly, Man, I'm I'm not.

929
00:47:54,320 --> 00:47:56,160
Speaker 1: I'm trying to pick it up here and there so

930
00:47:56,200 --> 00:47:59,239
Speaker 1: I don't get all stiff and stuff. But yeah, you know,

931
00:48:00,080 --> 00:48:03,080
Speaker 1: never thought about working with anybody man, working with some

932
00:48:03,120 --> 00:48:06,120
Speaker 1: of these youngsters man on that on their own jumper

933
00:48:06,520 --> 00:48:09,040
Speaker 1: and game. I mean you you would be first of

934
00:48:09,080 --> 00:48:12,120
Speaker 1: all from a demonstration standpoint, just seeing you shoot around

935
00:48:12,120 --> 00:48:14,239
Speaker 1: and stuff. I mean, I mean, I'm just man, I'm

936
00:48:14,320 --> 00:48:18,640
Speaker 1: listening to Dog, I'm watching shoot I'm listening. Bro. Yeah,

937
00:48:18,680 --> 00:48:21,480
Speaker 1: I mean I ain't. I ain't never never really looking forward.

938
00:48:21,680 --> 00:48:24,680
Speaker 1: But i mean somebody asking, you know, approach me with Yeah,

939
00:48:24,719 --> 00:48:27,879
Speaker 1: I'm always open to health of you. That's dope. That's dope, man,

940
00:48:28,040 --> 00:48:30,200
Speaker 1: that's dope. Man. That's a good place to be in. Man.

941
00:48:30,360 --> 00:48:33,560
Speaker 1: I still try to get help out when I can, Bro.

942
00:48:33,760 --> 00:48:36,520
Speaker 1: You know what I'm saying, help out when I can. Well, Man, listen,

943
00:48:37,280 --> 00:48:40,200
Speaker 1: It's been a great conversation. Brother. I appreciate you for

944
00:48:40,480 --> 00:48:43,000
Speaker 1: coming on the platform and sharing your story, sharing your

945
00:48:43,040 --> 00:48:47,919
Speaker 1: basketball journey with us. Man. Um, you got any shoutouts? Man,

946
00:48:47,960 --> 00:48:50,239
Speaker 1: I don't do the shoutout things. Shout out to everybody. Man,

947
00:48:50,280 --> 00:48:52,640
Speaker 1: do you see it? That community? Everybody gonna start up.

948
00:48:52,719 --> 00:48:55,960
Speaker 1: Everybody just just love. What's up with your startup? What's

949
00:48:56,000 --> 00:48:57,640
Speaker 1: up with your startup? Bro? Dont we try to get

950
00:48:57,640 --> 00:48:59,319
Speaker 1: that in? Don't we try to snick that in? What's

951
00:48:59,400 --> 00:49:01,560
Speaker 1: up with the start try sneaking in? I mean, yeah,

952
00:49:01,560 --> 00:49:04,080
Speaker 1: that's the reason why I'm not really you know, doing

953
00:49:04,080 --> 00:49:07,560
Speaker 1: the basketball or in the gym, Like that's the transition

954
00:49:07,560 --> 00:49:10,280
Speaker 1: is to start up into the tech space just dealing

955
00:49:10,320 --> 00:49:14,040
Speaker 1: with data, you know, biometric data. So it's that's more

956
00:49:14,040 --> 00:49:17,000
Speaker 1: of a challenge. I like the challenge. The startup life

957
00:49:17,040 --> 00:49:21,760
Speaker 1: is collaborative, is still team oriented, and yeah it's pretty cool.

958
00:49:21,800 --> 00:49:24,960
Speaker 1: Man's dope, Man dope. I lived that life for about

959
00:49:25,080 --> 00:49:27,200
Speaker 1: seven years from two thousand and eleven to about two

960
00:49:27,239 --> 00:49:30,880
Speaker 1: thousand eighteen. That was with a company up by US Saslito, California,

961
00:49:30,960 --> 00:49:34,120
Speaker 1: right outside of San Francisco. This dude he designed this

962
00:49:34,239 --> 00:49:37,239
Speaker 1: app that made that made it easy to scout right

963
00:49:37,280 --> 00:49:39,960
Speaker 1: so we were just we were collecting data with the iPhone.

964
00:49:40,040 --> 00:49:42,040
Speaker 1: We gotta serve, we gotta server in the cloud. We

965
00:49:42,080 --> 00:49:50,120
Speaker 1: shoot it up to so no man, if you ever

966
00:49:50,120 --> 00:49:51,960
Speaker 1: want to chop it up about any of that experience

967
00:49:52,080 --> 00:49:56,200
Speaker 1: or whatever, Man, my phone is always open to you. Brother. Again, man,

968
00:49:56,239 --> 00:49:59,360
Speaker 1: I appreciate you coming on the show. Uh, ladies and gentlemen,

969
00:49:59,400 --> 00:50:03,560
Speaker 1: the John, I appreciate it, y'all. Peace,