1
00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:10,240
Speaker 1: Hey, we welcome in. I'm Doug Gottlieb. This is all

2
00:00:10,280 --> 00:00:13,280
Speaker 1: ball man. You're gonna love this one. You're gonna love

3
00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:17,120
Speaker 1: this one. Um. T J. Klein was a great player

4
00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:21,360
Speaker 1: at Richmond. Of course he plays overseas. Now we're gonna

5
00:00:21,360 --> 00:00:25,240
Speaker 1: get his thoughts on growing up in the house of

6
00:00:25,920 --> 00:00:30,120
Speaker 1: arguably the greatest women's bastment player of all time. Um,

7
00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:31,920
Speaker 1: why it took him so long? He was a j

8
00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:34,640
Speaker 1: V player his junior year in high school in Plain,

9
00:00:34,720 --> 00:00:38,040
Speaker 1: oh Texas, not exactly a basketball powerhouse. But how that

10
00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:41,200
Speaker 1: all changed, and how his life, why his life changed,

11
00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:43,720
Speaker 1: Plus what's really like to play overseas, what it was

12
00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:46,760
Speaker 1: like during the pandemic, all that stuff kind of amazing.

13
00:00:47,000 --> 00:00:49,199
Speaker 1: I want to give you my thoughts quickly though, on

14
00:00:49,320 --> 00:00:52,959
Speaker 1: the foul heard around the NBA world. Look, if you're

15
00:00:52,960 --> 00:00:54,920
Speaker 1: listening to this, you're probably a ball guy, or at

16
00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:58,040
Speaker 1: least you love the storytelling that we have on this show.

17
00:00:59,240 --> 00:01:01,200
Speaker 1: I will say that all of us in basketball, no

18
00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:03,120
Speaker 1: like I don't know. The rule very early on to

19
00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:05,319
Speaker 1: me was don't ever mess with somebody when they're up

20
00:01:05,319 --> 00:01:09,039
Speaker 1: in the air. You just don't. That's how people get hurt,

21
00:01:09,080 --> 00:01:11,600
Speaker 1: and that's exactly what happened. I'm not willing to say

22
00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:14,160
Speaker 1: it's a dirty play, but it was so incredibly dangerous

23
00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:17,280
Speaker 1: with Dylan Brooks did there should be a multi game suspension,

24
00:01:17,720 --> 00:01:20,120
Speaker 1: but even a multi game suspension, god, how bad does

25
00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:23,240
Speaker 1: that hurt the Warriors? Like GP two is not he's

26
00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:26,400
Speaker 1: one of those guys You're like, wow, he's not one

27
00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:29,760
Speaker 1: of their five best players, but he's incredibly important for

28
00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:34,520
Speaker 1: their ability to change you up and play small and

29
00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:36,920
Speaker 1: he you know, he basically plays like the four and

30
00:01:37,080 --> 00:01:39,720
Speaker 1: just a duncan fool and unbelievable. I mean, for example,

31
00:01:39,760 --> 00:01:41,520
Speaker 1: is John Marine goes for seven? Why one of the

32
00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:45,120
Speaker 1: reason was they couldn't put GP two on him. So

33
00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:51,760
Speaker 1: that's a big loss. That's a sizeable, sizeable loss, and

34
00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:55,560
Speaker 1: I think that, um, it's gonna affect the series. But

35
00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:58,560
Speaker 1: more than anything, like, I do understand a little bit

36
00:01:58,600 --> 00:02:01,200
Speaker 1: better why they kicked Draymond out of Game one just

37
00:02:01,240 --> 00:02:04,080
Speaker 1: so there wouldn't be the elevation of the escalation of fouls.

38
00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:07,600
Speaker 1: But it didn't matter that that fall was, that push

39
00:02:07,720 --> 00:02:11,680
Speaker 1: was it was awful. Okay, that's there's no place in basketball.

40
00:02:12,120 --> 00:02:16,000
Speaker 1: And instead of worrying about guys getting dinged in the

41
00:02:16,040 --> 00:02:18,200
Speaker 1: head when somebody's going for a block instead of worrying

42
00:02:18,200 --> 00:02:21,400
Speaker 1: about elbows, which is part of basketball, and you know

43
00:02:21,480 --> 00:02:24,080
Speaker 1: you're gonna catch an elbow. A purpose failbow is different

44
00:02:24,080 --> 00:02:26,919
Speaker 1: than just catching an elbow, because it's impossible to play

45
00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:28,959
Speaker 1: basketball without your elbows. It's a contact sport. On a

46
00:02:29,000 --> 00:02:32,920
Speaker 1: collision sport. That one, well, that one's gotta be rectified.

47
00:02:33,720 --> 00:02:37,760
Speaker 1: Gotta be rectified. And yes, old school NBA is Dylan

48
00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:40,480
Speaker 1: Brooks drives, he goes to the deck. That's the next

49
00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:43,760
Speaker 1: time you see him on the court. That's likely what's

50
00:02:43,760 --> 00:02:46,960
Speaker 1: gonna happen. You know. It reminds me actually of a

51
00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:51,320
Speaker 1: story I'll tell when when I played in Russia, we

52
00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:55,600
Speaker 1: had a guy Sergey Chakulkin and Chico was uh Willie

53
00:02:55,600 --> 00:02:57,840
Speaker 1: Burton was our best player. Sergic chakal Kin, Chico was

54
00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:00,640
Speaker 1: our best Russian player. And I'll never forget. We're playing

55
00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:03,200
Speaker 1: against Seska, which is the Red Army team at that time.

56
00:03:03,240 --> 00:03:04,799
Speaker 1: They were they had no one had beaten them for

57
00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:07,600
Speaker 1: the Russian championship we did that year, and we're playing

58
00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:09,640
Speaker 1: them actually in the Nevel Cup championship and we end

59
00:03:09,720 --> 00:03:12,519
Speaker 1: up beating him in that as well, and late in

60
00:03:12,560 --> 00:03:15,760
Speaker 1: the game, late in the game, I think it was

61
00:03:15,840 --> 00:03:19,600
Speaker 1: Andre fatissof we've played the NBA foul Serge chakulk and

62
00:03:19,680 --> 00:03:22,400
Speaker 1: Chica uh and put him on the deck pretty hard.

63
00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:25,920
Speaker 1: And at the end of the game, towards the end

64
00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:27,840
Speaker 1: of the game, the president of our team was up

65
00:03:27,880 --> 00:03:31,480
Speaker 1: in that little area where the where the communists used

66
00:03:31,520 --> 00:03:34,160
Speaker 1: to sit back in the day, and he gets up

67
00:03:34,200 --> 00:03:36,400
Speaker 1: and he walks down and he whispers to something. A

68
00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:37,880
Speaker 1: guy on the end of our bench was this big,

69
00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:42,560
Speaker 1: strong player, but he wasn't really great. Um. He could

70
00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:44,520
Speaker 1: shoot a little bit and could set screens, but he

71
00:03:44,560 --> 00:03:48,000
Speaker 1: was kind of our our thug really And the game

72
00:03:48,080 --> 00:03:49,880
Speaker 1: is over. We go to the middle of the court,

73
00:03:49,920 --> 00:03:51,680
Speaker 1: we do the clap and point to the fans thing,

74
00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:54,200
Speaker 1: and then we go off our way to our locker room.

75
00:03:54,600 --> 00:03:58,119
Speaker 1: And that guy follows Saska to their locker room, goes

76
00:03:58,160 --> 00:04:02,360
Speaker 1: into the shower and beats up Andre Fatissa comes back

77
00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:05,080
Speaker 1: to our locker room and our president says, this is

78
00:04:05,080 --> 00:04:07,680
Speaker 1: what we do here at your old grade, and he

79
00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:13,720
Speaker 1: gives him five thousan dollars cash. Uh. That's the that's

80
00:04:13,720 --> 00:04:16,480
Speaker 1: the vigilating justice that happens. I don't know if it happens,

81
00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:18,360
Speaker 1: because I don't know if Dylan Brooks plays, but it

82
00:04:18,400 --> 00:04:21,720
Speaker 1: wouldn't surprise me. You can't touch a guy when he's

83
00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:23,919
Speaker 1: in the air. Everybody knows that. Reminded The Doug Olive

84
00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:26,320
Speaker 1: Show daily three to six Eastern, twelve three Pacific on

85
00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:28,680
Speaker 1: your I Heart radio app, Fox Sport Tradio or Fox

86
00:04:28,680 --> 00:04:32,039
Speaker 1: Sport Tradeo dot com. Let's get to my discussion with

87
00:04:32,120 --> 00:04:39,599
Speaker 1: t J. Klein. So your your story is fascinating, but

88
00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:43,440
Speaker 1: for anybody who watches a clip of this unsoon, I'm

89
00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:48,159
Speaker 1: looking and there's like dope mountains behind you. It looks

90
00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:50,719
Speaker 1: like you're at a ski resort. Where are you right now?

91
00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:54,839
Speaker 1: So I'm I'm in Andorra. It's okay, So I say,

92
00:04:54,880 --> 00:04:57,120
Speaker 1: and Dora, Spain, just to give a little context, but

93
00:04:57,240 --> 00:04:59,320
Speaker 1: and Dora is actually its own country, right and so

94
00:04:59,360 --> 00:05:02,880
Speaker 1: it's about two hours north of Barcelona. And uh, it's

95
00:05:02,920 --> 00:05:05,560
Speaker 1: in the mountains. I mean that's behind me. This is

96
00:05:05,720 --> 00:05:07,760
Speaker 1: it's this is the whole country right here. So it's

97
00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:11,839
Speaker 1: about sixty eight thousand people. And uh it's it's part

98
00:05:11,839 --> 00:05:13,720
Speaker 1: of the A c B. So the Spanish League. You

99
00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:16,160
Speaker 1: know you're familiar with overseas ball. So it's a great

100
00:05:16,200 --> 00:05:20,000
Speaker 1: opportunity and an unbelievably gorgeous I had no idea, you know,

101
00:05:20,040 --> 00:05:22,640
Speaker 1: what to expect over here, and it's it's only I mean,

102
00:05:22,680 --> 00:05:25,440
Speaker 1: I've only been here three weeks, but uh but indoor

103
00:05:25,520 --> 00:05:27,280
Speaker 1: Spain is a is a beautiful place. So that's where

104
00:05:27,279 --> 00:05:30,640
Speaker 1: I'm at right now. Okay, So in the States, it's

105
00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:34,960
Speaker 1: NBA playoffs, right, So now are you prepping for next year?

106
00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:37,120
Speaker 1: Are you guys still playing this year? What's going on

107
00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:39,840
Speaker 1: right now? No, so we're still playing this year. So

108
00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:43,279
Speaker 1: what's interesting about overseas basketball? It's different than the NBA.

109
00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:47,000
Speaker 1: And I actually saw something about like the XFL the

110
00:05:47,080 --> 00:05:50,080
Speaker 1: winner and the winner of the XFL and the last

111
00:05:50,080 --> 00:05:52,640
Speaker 1: place team in the NFL switch or like a relegation

112
00:05:52,680 --> 00:05:55,640
Speaker 1: type thing. So that's kind of the situation they're in there.

113
00:05:55,960 --> 00:05:58,800
Speaker 1: They've had a great euro Cup, which is international, and

114
00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:00,800
Speaker 1: now they're in the A C B and they've struggled,

115
00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:03,520
Speaker 1: so they're kind of about that relegation stage and they're

116
00:06:03,560 --> 00:06:06,040
Speaker 1: fighting with about three other teams. So there's it's very

117
00:06:06,120 --> 00:06:08,080
Speaker 1: much in you know, the thick of this season. We've

118
00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:10,839
Speaker 1: got three games left, and two of them against like

119
00:06:10,880 --> 00:06:12,760
Speaker 1: the bottom two teams with us, so it's our own

120
00:06:12,800 --> 00:06:15,920
Speaker 1: little playoff as it is. And uh, that's what really

121
00:06:15,920 --> 00:06:18,320
Speaker 1: makes Overseas interesting is like even if you're at the bottom,

122
00:06:18,360 --> 00:06:20,520
Speaker 1: you're fighting to not get relegated, to not get the

123
00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:24,400
Speaker 1: second division. So that's where we're at right now. Um, okay,

124
00:06:24,440 --> 00:06:26,560
Speaker 1: are you signed just this year? You just are you

125
00:06:26,680 --> 00:06:28,280
Speaker 1: here just to say today you're riding in at a

126
00:06:28,400 --> 00:06:31,760
Speaker 1: white horse. I mean, I don't want to say it

127
00:06:31,839 --> 00:06:34,360
Speaker 1: like that, but I think you know, I definitely have been,

128
00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:37,520
Speaker 1: um you know, brought in to uh to help us

129
00:06:37,560 --> 00:06:39,720
Speaker 1: stay in the league. And yeah, so it's about it

130
00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:42,960
Speaker 1: was about a month contract and as you know Overseas,

131
00:06:43,279 --> 00:06:45,120
Speaker 1: uh you know, it can be a month. It give

132
00:06:45,120 --> 00:06:46,920
Speaker 1: me ten months, it can be two years. It's it's

133
00:06:46,920 --> 00:06:49,640
Speaker 1: not like the NBA, so just a one month deal.

134
00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:52,359
Speaker 1: I was with the Go Go and Capitol City earlier

135
00:06:52,360 --> 00:06:55,640
Speaker 1: this season, and when the G League playoffs ended, I

136
00:06:55,800 --> 00:06:58,599
Speaker 1: came over here. Yeah, guys used to do that with

137
00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:00,480
Speaker 1: the c b A. They used to do. But Pezuela

138
00:07:00,560 --> 00:07:05,000
Speaker 1: a lot you know, uh, Puerto Rico, um, some of

139
00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:08,279
Speaker 1: the other stuff in in South America for some quick money. Right.

140
00:07:08,440 --> 00:07:13,560
Speaker 1: Uh yeah, I think used to Philippines also as well. Yeah,

141
00:07:13,600 --> 00:07:15,560
Speaker 1: Philippines is big to go get quick cash, you know,

142
00:07:15,560 --> 00:07:17,360
Speaker 1: whereas you you know, you didn't make a ton of

143
00:07:17,360 --> 00:07:19,040
Speaker 1: money in the States and you can make some quick

144
00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:22,040
Speaker 1: cash overseas. And then is the plan to go to

145
00:07:22,080 --> 00:07:24,680
Speaker 1: summer league? Like what's where are you right now with

146
00:07:24,680 --> 00:07:28,800
Speaker 1: your pro career? Um, So I'm you know, I'm a

147
00:07:29,080 --> 00:07:32,120
Speaker 1: twenty seven right now, and I'm really kind of understanding

148
00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:34,680
Speaker 1: that I got till like thirty two thirty three for

149
00:07:34,720 --> 00:07:37,720
Speaker 1: that kind of prime range to be done and now

150
00:07:37,800 --> 00:07:40,360
Speaker 1: seeing the game. So right now, like I said, I

151
00:07:40,400 --> 00:07:43,200
Speaker 1: did the G League. I'm you know, we're talking with

152
00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:45,320
Speaker 1: the with the Wizards, maybe go do summer league with

153
00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:48,480
Speaker 1: them this year, um t VT as we talked about

154
00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:50,920
Speaker 1: the web just to announce their in. So i'e running

155
00:07:50,920 --> 00:07:52,920
Speaker 1: with them hopefully if they get in. If not, I'll

156
00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:56,640
Speaker 1: open that back up. Um there is and I'll say

157
00:07:56,720 --> 00:07:59,720
Speaker 1: there's consideration some my mom coaches in the Big Three,

158
00:08:00,960 --> 00:08:03,640
Speaker 1: so there might be a plan you know, to to

159
00:08:03,760 --> 00:08:06,040
Speaker 1: do that and kind of you know, that would be

160
00:08:06,080 --> 00:08:08,240
Speaker 1: special too. So I don't know, it's just there's so

161
00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:11,360
Speaker 1: many leagues and I feel like there's so many opportunities

162
00:08:11,360 --> 00:08:14,200
Speaker 1: to just keep playing basketball while my body allows me

163
00:08:14,240 --> 00:08:16,920
Speaker 1: to that. I really have no plan going forward. It's

164
00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:19,400
Speaker 1: just keep getting better. The dream is obviously the NBA.

165
00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:21,720
Speaker 1: That's why I did the G League this year. I

166
00:08:21,800 --> 00:08:24,239
Speaker 1: was a little late getting there on the code waves

167
00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:27,080
Speaker 1: and everything like that, but that that's just the play

168
00:08:27,120 --> 00:08:30,200
Speaker 1: and it's just enjoy where you're at and play. You know.

169
00:08:30,280 --> 00:08:34,160
Speaker 1: It's interesting. I mean, obviously seen at Richmond, I would

170
00:08:34,160 --> 00:08:37,280
Speaker 1: have never thought that you were like a j V

171
00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:40,040
Speaker 1: player most of your high school career. We would you

172
00:08:40,080 --> 00:08:43,200
Speaker 1: like a super late bloomer. What was that about? Super

173
00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:47,319
Speaker 1: late bloomer? Super um just not a hard worker. Like

174
00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:49,640
Speaker 1: like I said, my mom coached and I kind of

175
00:08:49,679 --> 00:08:52,760
Speaker 1: took the physical skills for granted. And as you know,

176
00:08:52,880 --> 00:08:54,600
Speaker 1: that's that's really easy to do. When you have a

177
00:08:54,640 --> 00:08:56,559
Speaker 1: you know, comfortable life and you're playing, you don't really

178
00:08:56,600 --> 00:08:59,120
Speaker 1: have to, you know, fight as much at the time

179
00:08:59,120 --> 00:09:00,719
Speaker 1: because you're gonna be on the teams. You're gonna be

180
00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:02,560
Speaker 1: put on this au team, put on this team, put

181
00:09:02,559 --> 00:09:05,280
Speaker 1: in situations to succeed. And I think that it kind

182
00:09:05,280 --> 00:09:07,600
Speaker 1: of caught up to me. Um my junior year when

183
00:09:07,640 --> 00:09:09,640
Speaker 1: I was on JV and I'm like, you know, what's

184
00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:12,840
Speaker 1: what's going on here? My friend John varsity? And uh,

185
00:09:12,880 --> 00:09:15,560
Speaker 1: I think that summer it's just it's like my dad

186
00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:17,320
Speaker 1: looked to me, He's like, you're you might go to

187
00:09:17,480 --> 00:09:19,640
Speaker 1: Colin County Community College, Like if you want to play

188
00:09:19,679 --> 00:09:21,480
Speaker 1: basketball and you want to go to college, Like, I'm

189
00:09:21,520 --> 00:09:23,360
Speaker 1: just letting you know if you don't put in the work.

190
00:09:23,800 --> 00:09:26,080
Speaker 1: So that summer, I trained as hard as I could,

191
00:09:26,120 --> 00:09:30,800
Speaker 1: like dropped everything and went from unranked on JV too

192
00:09:31,080 --> 00:09:32,720
Speaker 1: to all state and we were so we were in

193
00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:35,760
Speaker 1: Marcus Smart and Phil Fortes district, so that was our rival.

194
00:09:35,760 --> 00:09:38,040
Speaker 1: When you talk about like top dog. We could never crack.

195
00:09:38,440 --> 00:09:41,040
Speaker 1: That was the team like always match up, matchup, and

196
00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:43,160
Speaker 1: they would Marcus would take a charge or hit a

197
00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:46,760
Speaker 1: three or something, and uh, but I think that was

198
00:09:46,840 --> 00:09:49,160
Speaker 1: just it was just like failure and kind of honestly

199
00:09:49,200 --> 00:09:52,120
Speaker 1: being scared, like being scared that I'm not gonna I

200
00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:54,240
Speaker 1: was never worried about living up to my family name,

201
00:09:54,320 --> 00:09:57,280
Speaker 1: but worried about if I don't want to be at

202
00:09:57,280 --> 00:09:58,959
Speaker 1: a junke at a juke, Oh, I don't want to

203
00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:01,480
Speaker 1: be at a community I find basketball like I want

204
00:10:01,520 --> 00:10:03,600
Speaker 1: to live my dream out I want to play college basketball,

205
00:10:03,679 --> 00:10:06,200
Speaker 1: and so I don't know what clicked, but that summer

206
00:10:06,320 --> 00:10:09,080
Speaker 1: something clicked. I grew a couple of inches and you know,

207
00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:11,240
Speaker 1: everything kind of fell into place. But yeah, it was.

208
00:10:11,320 --> 00:10:14,400
Speaker 1: It was really scared being on JV that junior year. Um,

209
00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:19,800
Speaker 1: what was what was it like growing up? It was?

210
00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:22,680
Speaker 1: It was cool. It was I mean I tried not

211
00:10:22,720 --> 00:10:24,640
Speaker 1: to put pressure at the time, and I don't think

212
00:10:24,640 --> 00:10:26,640
Speaker 1: I ever really did, and my mom never did. But

213
00:10:26,679 --> 00:10:28,280
Speaker 1: it was it was really cool getting to go to

214
00:10:28,320 --> 00:10:31,080
Speaker 1: the easy events and meeting these people and all Star

215
00:10:31,160 --> 00:10:33,440
Speaker 1: games and going to back with Jordan's Hall of Fame induction,

216
00:10:33,520 --> 00:10:35,920
Speaker 1: like things that I kind of took for granted where

217
00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:38,400
Speaker 1: the norm back then. Now you kind of sit back

218
00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:41,040
Speaker 1: and you see all your peers and now they grew

219
00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:44,080
Speaker 1: up and you're like wow, and and you really hit

220
00:10:44,160 --> 00:10:46,920
Speaker 1: you how blessed I really was. So it was it

221
00:10:47,000 --> 00:10:49,080
Speaker 1: was a really cool childhood Like it was the norm

222
00:10:49,160 --> 00:10:51,520
Speaker 1: for me. But looking back now, it was the coolest

223
00:10:51,559 --> 00:10:54,440
Speaker 1: thing a kid could have ever asked for. To to

224
00:10:54,480 --> 00:10:56,640
Speaker 1: have your mom breakdown film with you, you know, watching

225
00:10:56,679 --> 00:10:59,520
Speaker 1: the game with a coach, Like those are little nuances

226
00:10:59,559 --> 00:11:01,760
Speaker 1: that like I look back and I'll never forget. But

227
00:11:02,000 --> 00:11:05,199
Speaker 1: but in the moment, you don't appreciate it as much. No,

228
00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:06,800
Speaker 1: I mean, I look, I have the same thing with

229
00:11:06,840 --> 00:11:09,920
Speaker 1: my son where he's he's a laid bloomer, and I

230
00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:12,400
Speaker 1: think he takes a little bit for granted that like

231
00:11:13,480 --> 00:11:16,480
Speaker 1: you know, you you you're good, but you got like

232
00:11:16,559 --> 00:11:19,720
Speaker 1: there's a ton. Uh he's only thirteen, right, but there's

233
00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:24,520
Speaker 1: just a ton that you gotta do because uh, everybody

234
00:11:24,520 --> 00:11:27,480
Speaker 1: else is working, you know, and there's so many great

235
00:11:27,520 --> 00:11:30,120
Speaker 1: rewards like this. It's like the life that you get,

236
00:11:30,160 --> 00:11:31,959
Speaker 1: you've gotten to live was because of her hard work.

237
00:11:32,000 --> 00:11:34,439
Speaker 1: And then but you know, for your kids, it's kind

238
00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:35,760
Speaker 1: of the same thing. And I think you know it

239
00:11:35,760 --> 00:11:38,360
Speaker 1: does at some point that light bulb goes on. So

240
00:11:38,800 --> 00:11:40,160
Speaker 1: all of a sudden, you kind of blow up your

241
00:11:40,160 --> 00:11:45,280
Speaker 1: senior year. Right, Um, what was what was the college decision? Like,

242
00:11:47,200 --> 00:11:49,520
Speaker 1: it's pretty easy one. So I went, I had a

243
00:11:49,520 --> 00:11:53,160
Speaker 1: couple two offers, right, So I had the Air Force Academy,

244
00:11:53,280 --> 00:11:54,840
Speaker 1: and I would have had to go to the prep school,

245
00:11:54,880 --> 00:11:57,000
Speaker 1: and I went to my fishing with it, and I

246
00:11:57,040 --> 00:11:59,560
Speaker 1: looked through my dad and believe me, the mountains are there,

247
00:11:59,679 --> 00:12:01,600
Speaker 1: They're right I'm sure they're gorgeous too. And I looked

248
00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:04,200
Speaker 1: at my dad and I remember, please don't make me

249
00:12:04,280 --> 00:12:05,679
Speaker 1: go to this. Please don't make me go to the

250
00:12:05,720 --> 00:12:08,000
Speaker 1: Air Force. Like I swear, I'll do my chores, I'll

251
00:12:08,040 --> 00:12:10,880
Speaker 1: do everything you want. You'll never hear a complaint. Ten

252
00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:15,719
Speaker 1: o'clock bedtime, no worries, and uh so I think that

253
00:12:15,800 --> 00:12:17,920
Speaker 1: my mom. My dad was really like, no, this isn't

254
00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:19,880
Speaker 1: set you up long term, and my mom was kind

255
00:12:19,920 --> 00:12:23,440
Speaker 1: of okay, Tim, that's my dad. So Tim, you know,

256
00:12:23,559 --> 00:12:25,160
Speaker 1: maybe this isn't the right maybe t JS and the

257
00:12:25,200 --> 00:12:27,480
Speaker 1: military guy. So I had that, so I had to

258
00:12:27,720 --> 00:12:31,079
Speaker 1: I passed that up. And I had to then go

259
00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:35,720
Speaker 1: play a a U after my senior year, which which

260
00:12:35,760 --> 00:12:38,480
Speaker 1: back then it wasn't as as common as it is

261
00:12:38,520 --> 00:12:40,640
Speaker 1: now because now you can transfer, you can do everything.

262
00:12:40,760 --> 00:12:43,560
Speaker 1: So it's kind of weird, like, you know, uh, just

263
00:12:43,600 --> 00:12:46,680
Speaker 1: a senior doing that. So I do well, and I

264
00:12:46,679 --> 00:12:49,120
Speaker 1: get a Facebook message from this coach, Mike Fairley at

265
00:12:49,160 --> 00:12:51,559
Speaker 1: Niagara who now you know going down the road is

266
00:12:51,600 --> 00:12:54,320
Speaker 1: one of my favorite coaches. So get a Facebook message,

267
00:12:54,400 --> 00:12:56,600
Speaker 1: reach back out immediately, we get on a call. I

268
00:12:56,640 --> 00:13:00,439
Speaker 1: go to Niagara University like in the summer. No one's

269
00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:04,559
Speaker 1: there in next to Canada, Buffalo, so I go up.

270
00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:07,840
Speaker 1: A few guys came down, I mean tanks Lee, Wanya

271
00:13:07,880 --> 00:13:11,200
Speaker 1: Green who was a legend at Hofster, and coach Joe

272
00:13:11,280 --> 00:13:14,040
Speaker 1: Mahlleck was the coach at at Magor fell in love

273
00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:16,400
Speaker 1: with him. Kind of my only offer, and it was

274
00:13:16,480 --> 00:13:18,720
Speaker 1: kind of like, okay, let's go, bet on yourself, let's go.

275
00:13:18,800 --> 00:13:20,520
Speaker 1: You know, if you really love basketball, you'll go to

276
00:13:20,559 --> 00:13:22,920
Speaker 1: You'll go to dan near Canada to go play. So

277
00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:24,960
Speaker 1: we packed my bags up, my dad and I drove

278
00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:27,640
Speaker 1: eighteen hours and and uh it was a special first

279
00:13:27,720 --> 00:13:30,520
Speaker 1: year like we had if we all would have stayed,

280
00:13:30,640 --> 00:13:32,320
Speaker 1: we had our top twenty five like so we had

281
00:13:32,360 --> 00:13:35,320
Speaker 1: Tiger McCall who went up going to Tennessee State. He played,

282
00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:37,520
Speaker 1: got a ten day in the n B a um

283
00:13:37,600 --> 00:13:41,040
Speaker 1: just he is killing the Australian League. Janya Green only

284
00:13:41,040 --> 00:13:43,040
Speaker 1: a thousand points on like one of four guys to

285
00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:46,000
Speaker 1: score a thousand points at Hofster at two schools hofter Niagara,

286
00:13:46,400 --> 00:13:49,360
Speaker 1: we had Antoine Mason, Anthony Mason's son as our three

287
00:13:49,400 --> 00:13:51,760
Speaker 1: who when we left second in the nation and scoring

288
00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:54,400
Speaker 1: behind Doug McDermott. So we had and we were all

289
00:13:54,480 --> 00:13:57,040
Speaker 1: freshmen and sophomores, and so if we would have stayed,

290
00:13:57,040 --> 00:13:59,560
Speaker 1: but when coach Mahelleck left after that year, it was

291
00:14:00,040 --> 00:14:01,960
Speaker 1: was kind of a max exodus and we all just left.

292
00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:04,080
Speaker 1: But it was it worked out being such a blessing

293
00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:05,640
Speaker 1: to go to that school and be so good as

294
00:14:05,640 --> 00:14:09,520
Speaker 1: a freshman that team. Okay, so, and obviously this is

295
00:14:09,559 --> 00:14:12,200
Speaker 1: before the day of the transfer portal. But so you

296
00:14:12,240 --> 00:14:15,240
Speaker 1: go from a little alone dude to scholarship offers. One

297
00:14:15,320 --> 00:14:17,800
Speaker 1: was air Force, right, we had to go to Prep two.

298
00:14:17,880 --> 00:14:21,600
Speaker 1: Now you have a little bit of substance. Obviously everybody

299
00:14:21,600 --> 00:14:25,800
Speaker 1: knows your mom, right, and you've grown. What was the

300
00:14:25,920 --> 00:14:29,520
Speaker 1: what was the process of transferring Richmond? Like, well, it

301
00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:32,920
Speaker 1: was you know, I was really it was nervous because

302
00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:35,000
Speaker 1: I was nervous because, well, two things that are different.

303
00:14:35,040 --> 00:14:36,840
Speaker 1: You knew. I knew that I have to sit out

304
00:14:36,840 --> 00:14:39,040
Speaker 1: a year. It's not like now when your coach leaves,

305
00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:41,120
Speaker 1: like you just said, where it's like one year, you

306
00:14:41,160 --> 00:14:42,520
Speaker 1: get a waiver and you're good. I knew that I

307
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:44,920
Speaker 1: had to sit out a full year. Right, So if

308
00:14:44,920 --> 00:14:46,560
Speaker 1: you want to go to a place that you know

309
00:14:46,680 --> 00:14:49,400
Speaker 1: values you is going to develop you and Richmond when

310
00:14:49,400 --> 00:14:50,960
Speaker 1: I got that feel like, you know, I had a

311
00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:54,480
Speaker 1: few high major calls, nothing crazy, but you know, it

312
00:14:54,520 --> 00:15:00,200
Speaker 1: was really down to Richmond, Charlotte, Boise State, and one

313
00:15:00,240 --> 00:15:02,400
Speaker 1: other school. And I remember going to Richmond. I went

314
00:15:02,440 --> 00:15:05,480
Speaker 1: to Charlotte then Richmond, and Charlotte was cool. You know,

315
00:15:05,520 --> 00:15:08,000
Speaker 1: it was a little uneasy the coaching staff that I

316
00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:09,880
Speaker 1: mean not in a bad way, but they were you know,

317
00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:12,520
Speaker 1: just in a in a kind of do or die year.

318
00:15:12,560 --> 00:15:16,600
Speaker 1: The next year, so Richmond came in, saw the facilities.

319
00:15:16,640 --> 00:15:20,600
Speaker 1: Coach Mooney is just the man, like second dad, love

320
00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:23,480
Speaker 1: that dude. Like immediately you felt like a connection. And

321
00:15:23,520 --> 00:15:25,880
Speaker 1: they showed me film film of Dan Jero, who the

322
00:15:25,920 --> 00:15:29,080
Speaker 1: coach of the Cleveland or Cleveland Charge the league team

323
00:15:29,120 --> 00:15:33,280
Speaker 1: for the uh the the Canton Charge for Cleveland League team.

324
00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:34,720
Speaker 1: So they showed me filmed him and it was like

325
00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:37,840
Speaker 1: a mirror image of me and uh I filed. I mean,

326
00:15:37,920 --> 00:15:40,040
Speaker 1: we left campus and I was like, okay, well I'm

327
00:15:40,040 --> 00:15:42,840
Speaker 1: gonna sign when I get back mess THEDEO and and

328
00:15:42,880 --> 00:15:45,040
Speaker 1: so it was a really easy decision. The hardest thing

329
00:15:45,120 --> 00:15:47,360
Speaker 1: was just okay, now you really are not gonna play

330
00:15:47,400 --> 00:15:51,320
Speaker 1: for over sixty five days. Can you do that? Fox

331
00:15:51,400 --> 00:15:54,480
Speaker 1: Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation.

332
00:15:54,800 --> 00:15:57,720
Speaker 1: Catch all of our shows at Fox Sports Radio dot

333
00:15:57,760 --> 00:16:01,160
Speaker 1: com and within the I Heart Radio search f s

334
00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:04,080
Speaker 1: R to listen live and so so, so I will

335
00:16:04,120 --> 00:16:06,600
Speaker 1: give you my perspective. So when I left Notre Dame,

336
00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:12,120
Speaker 1: you know, um, so what I did was I sat

337
00:16:12,360 --> 00:16:14,440
Speaker 1: at home for a year and went to a junior

338
00:16:14,480 --> 00:16:17,920
Speaker 1: college where my first high school coach was coaching, and

339
00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:21,160
Speaker 1: so I got to practice with them every day, and

340
00:16:21,200 --> 00:16:22,880
Speaker 1: I was like on the you know, the scout team.

341
00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:24,640
Speaker 1: So I just got to go and be at Alpha

342
00:16:24,640 --> 00:16:26,840
Speaker 1: and do whatever, right, and then I got to got

343
00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:30,240
Speaker 1: to help coach in the games. And then my brother

344
00:16:30,400 --> 00:16:32,920
Speaker 1: was coaching it at cow Poli sand Less Piso. It's

345
00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:35,760
Speaker 1: like a four hour drive, and so I go up

346
00:16:35,760 --> 00:16:38,600
Speaker 1: and watch them play on Saturdays, week play on usually

347
00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:41,880
Speaker 1: on on Friday, sometimes really in the week. I helped that,

348
00:16:41,920 --> 00:16:43,160
Speaker 1: and I get in the car and I go drive.

349
00:16:43,680 --> 00:16:45,520
Speaker 1: And I had a girlfriend at the time who was

350
00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:47,320
Speaker 1: at you see Santa Barb, which is like on the way,

351
00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:50,560
Speaker 1: so just like stack my weekends. Well that stuff, right,

352
00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:56,320
Speaker 1: But I truly believe that, like now we're in this hey,

353
00:16:56,640 --> 00:16:58,440
Speaker 1: I want to transfer, I want to play right away,

354
00:16:58,480 --> 00:17:03,400
Speaker 1: and that sounds great. But having played a year and

355
00:17:03,440 --> 00:17:06,800
Speaker 1: then getting a chance to work on your game, it's

356
00:17:06,880 --> 00:17:10,480
Speaker 1: so great because you you truly know what you're missing.

357
00:17:10,520 --> 00:17:13,840
Speaker 1: We truly know what you need to play at the

358
00:17:13,840 --> 00:17:17,000
Speaker 1: college level. Whereas when you're prepping up into it, everybody

359
00:17:17,000 --> 00:17:19,600
Speaker 1: can tell you, but you don't actually know. I think

360
00:17:19,640 --> 00:17:23,800
Speaker 1: it's really valuable. Um, but you've actually experienced it on

361
00:17:23,840 --> 00:17:27,320
Speaker 1: a college campus. What now that you have perspective, what

362
00:17:27,359 --> 00:17:29,280
Speaker 1: do you think about that kind of gap year? If

363
00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:32,960
Speaker 1: you will, I've I mean you, I couldn't have said

364
00:17:32,960 --> 00:17:35,000
Speaker 1: it better. Like I've always said in my family has

365
00:17:35,000 --> 00:17:37,640
Speaker 1: always said my most important year was that red shirt year,

366
00:17:38,000 --> 00:17:40,080
Speaker 1: because not only was it a year that I was

367
00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:43,600
Speaker 1: when you get humbled in college very quick, and you

368
00:17:43,640 --> 00:17:46,320
Speaker 1: know that first year you realized, okay, this isn't the same.

369
00:17:46,480 --> 00:17:48,760
Speaker 1: You know. Side, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, rough, I'm gonna

370
00:17:48,760 --> 00:17:50,520
Speaker 1: give you a quick one. Okay, So I was retreat.

371
00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:52,120
Speaker 1: The only reason I took now to day shows Notre

372
00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:55,520
Speaker 1: Dame was John mccloude, NBA coach. You know, first year

373
00:17:55,520 --> 00:17:57,760
Speaker 1: in the Big East Notre Dame helps you out post

374
00:17:57,800 --> 00:18:01,200
Speaker 1: career grade school touchdown, jeez make at three point Jesus.

375
00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:03,440
Speaker 1: Fran McCaffrey was the coach, like it was the coach

376
00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:06,200
Speaker 1: of recruited me. I loved him and I remember coming

377
00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:09,760
Speaker 1: into his office three weeks in the practice and the

378
00:18:09,800 --> 00:18:11,880
Speaker 1: other point guard who I was supposed to just kind

379
00:18:11,880 --> 00:18:13,600
Speaker 1: of be I felt like, given the starting job, was

380
00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:15,960
Speaker 1: going to add more white. And when I say add

381
00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:18,080
Speaker 1: more white, kicked my ass every day for three weeks

382
00:18:18,080 --> 00:18:20,439
Speaker 1: in practice. Like in pickup ball, I was good. I

383
00:18:20,520 --> 00:18:22,359
Speaker 1: was fine right because pick up all I was just

384
00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:24,560
Speaker 1: open and just playing. It was like it was just hooping.

385
00:18:25,080 --> 00:18:29,400
Speaker 1: But you get into where people are like screening and

386
00:18:29,600 --> 00:18:32,359
Speaker 1: like and these are grown ass men and you're running

387
00:18:32,359 --> 00:18:35,480
Speaker 1: like a real motion offense. You're playing real defense. And

388
00:18:35,680 --> 00:18:37,720
Speaker 1: I can't tell you how many times the show we

389
00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:39,359
Speaker 1: didn't have a shot clock in high school, so the

390
00:18:39,359 --> 00:18:41,160
Speaker 1: shot clock goes off and like you're the point guard,

391
00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:43,800
Speaker 1: it's your fault, like all these things. I remember bawling

392
00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:48,320
Speaker 1: in tears. I was like, Fran, I fucking suck. And

393
00:18:48,480 --> 00:18:52,119
Speaker 1: she's like he's like he's like yo, broll, hold hold on,

394
00:18:52,160 --> 00:18:57,639
Speaker 1: hold on. Like three weeks you're nineteen, Like take a breath,

395
00:18:58,119 --> 00:19:01,080
Speaker 1: But I just you're exactly right like I was. I

396
00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:03,199
Speaker 1: was the cocky asshole that was gonna come in and

397
00:19:03,480 --> 00:19:06,760
Speaker 1: wreck shop. And three weeks into practice, I'm bawling in tears.

398
00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:08,840
Speaker 1: I need to go home because I can't do this.

399
00:19:08,920 --> 00:19:11,840
Speaker 1: I'm not any good right, It's it's really true. It

400
00:19:11,920 --> 00:19:14,800
Speaker 1: does truly humble you. And then you get a chance, like,

401
00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:18,000
Speaker 1: all right, I'm gonna fix all that ship. Um what

402
00:19:18,040 --> 00:19:20,840
Speaker 1: was do you remember a humbling moment when you're yeah,

403
00:19:20,880 --> 00:19:24,439
Speaker 1: I mean I I came off. I wasn't. I claimed

404
00:19:24,440 --> 00:19:26,399
Speaker 1: if I was in Marcus s Marts districts in high school,

405
00:19:26,440 --> 00:19:28,479
Speaker 1: they were, they were state champions. I ever did. I

406
00:19:28,520 --> 00:19:30,320
Speaker 1: was coming in on my high horse, you know, out

407
00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:33,200
Speaker 1: of nowhere. And I remember, you know, a one moment,

408
00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:34,720
Speaker 1: this dude, I mean Tanksly and he's one of my

409
00:19:34,760 --> 00:19:37,359
Speaker 1: good friends now, but I came off and I set

410
00:19:37,359 --> 00:19:39,880
Speaker 1: a screen on him and we kind of got tangled

411
00:19:39,960 --> 00:19:42,400
Speaker 1: up that the shot goes down and this is a dude,

412
00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:44,320
Speaker 1: and I remember, I'm from the suburbs of Dallas. I'm

413
00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:46,840
Speaker 1: from playing text and not not to my fault. That's

414
00:19:46,840 --> 00:19:50,439
Speaker 1: where I grew up, and so he's from he went

415
00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:54,680
Speaker 1: to MOTEP Charter in Philadelphia. Okay, so he grabs me

416
00:19:54,880 --> 00:19:57,480
Speaker 1: and I just flips me over on my back to

417
00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:00,199
Speaker 1: where coach coach my how it comes in like yo, yo,

418
00:20:00,280 --> 00:20:01,840
Speaker 1: yo yo. I mean, get the hell out of it,

419
00:20:01,920 --> 00:20:03,879
Speaker 1: you know, I mean kind of like saved in the situation.

420
00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:06,199
Speaker 1: But at that point I realized, like, none of the

421
00:20:06,280 --> 00:20:08,120
Speaker 1: Chicken Wings, like we don't play that. You know, these

422
00:20:08,119 --> 00:20:11,280
Speaker 1: guys for real, dudes like all that trash talk. If

423
00:20:11,320 --> 00:20:13,399
Speaker 1: you if you met it in college, you gotta meet it.

424
00:20:13,440 --> 00:20:15,159
Speaker 1: You gotta be you know, you gotta be willing to

425
00:20:15,200 --> 00:20:18,480
Speaker 1: set the tough screens battle download like it's a different live,

426
00:20:18,720 --> 00:20:21,000
Speaker 1: different level of physicality. I learned that. It was like

427
00:20:21,080 --> 00:20:23,440
Speaker 1: my fourth week. He flipped me in the middle of practice.

428
00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:25,879
Speaker 1: I'm on my back. I was like, okay, I'll never

429
00:20:25,920 --> 00:20:27,560
Speaker 1: stick out of Chicken Wing like that again. And for

430
00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:29,679
Speaker 1: you know what I mean, you just you'll do anything

431
00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:31,480
Speaker 1: in high school because you said you're the top dog.

432
00:20:31,600 --> 00:20:33,639
Speaker 1: But you know, you kind of realize that when you

433
00:20:33,640 --> 00:20:36,000
Speaker 1: know you're a senior enough freshman does that stuff, Hey,

434
00:20:36,359 --> 00:20:38,800
Speaker 1: we don't do that around here. So it's a it

435
00:20:38,920 --> 00:20:42,640
Speaker 1: was a that was probably my humbling moment. Of college. Um,

436
00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:47,479
Speaker 1: but but just over you know that. Uh, I just

437
00:20:47,520 --> 00:20:50,480
Speaker 1: can't stress that enough. Like, I completely agree. I wish

438
00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:53,000
Speaker 1: that these kids some could choose to sit out a year,

439
00:20:53,040 --> 00:20:56,600
Speaker 1: you know what I mean? Or like, look, I think

440
00:20:56,640 --> 00:20:59,199
Speaker 1: we all and part of it is the world we

441
00:20:59,240 --> 00:21:02,120
Speaker 1: live in, right, don't wait for anything anymore. We want

442
00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:05,640
Speaker 1: it out. And I'll just you know, a candid like,

443
00:21:06,160 --> 00:21:08,760
Speaker 1: I'm just as bad as anybody because I chose to

444
00:21:08,800 --> 00:21:11,840
Speaker 1: school because I wanted to start right away, right And

445
00:21:11,880 --> 00:21:13,960
Speaker 1: then I didn't want to sit, you know, I said, like,

446
00:21:14,040 --> 00:21:15,920
Speaker 1: hey man, you got city year he sitt and I know, thanks,

447
00:21:16,119 --> 00:21:18,960
Speaker 1: Like I have no interest, so I wanted to play

448
00:21:19,080 --> 00:21:22,320
Speaker 1: right away. And then sure, I'm sure if I could

449
00:21:22,320 --> 00:21:25,199
Speaker 1: have transferred and played right away, I would have wanted to.

450
00:21:25,800 --> 00:21:28,520
Speaker 1: But what what I think more people need is the

451
00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:31,359
Speaker 1: perspective of people like us who have been through it,

452
00:21:31,359 --> 00:21:33,640
Speaker 1: which is like, I understand it feels like you should

453
00:21:33,680 --> 00:21:36,760
Speaker 1: do it right away, and that would satisfy that need

454
00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:40,360
Speaker 1: to play right away. And it's really really hard and

455
00:21:40,359 --> 00:21:42,440
Speaker 1: and I'm sure you can speak to this. That first

456
00:21:42,440 --> 00:21:44,840
Speaker 1: half year you come back, it's kind of an out

457
00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:47,280
Speaker 1: of body experience because you hadn't played so long you're

458
00:21:47,320 --> 00:21:49,800
Speaker 1: just like so it takes you a while to just

459
00:21:49,880 --> 00:21:51,439
Speaker 1: kind of even settle in, even if you've been in

460
00:21:51,480 --> 00:21:56,160
Speaker 1: the program um. But it's actually the best thing for

461
00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:59,439
Speaker 1: you because you can actually one you can be the

462
00:21:59,480 --> 00:22:03,000
Speaker 1: alpha in practice, right, whereas a lot of times the

463
00:22:03,040 --> 00:22:05,880
Speaker 1: freshman you're not the alpha. Usually when you transfer your

464
00:22:05,880 --> 00:22:07,400
Speaker 1: first year, you're not gonna be there, but you can

465
00:22:07,720 --> 00:22:10,000
Speaker 1: you can kind of expand your game as a score

466
00:22:10,040 --> 00:22:11,840
Speaker 1: because you're like, fun, I ain't playing, so if I

467
00:22:11,880 --> 00:22:13,320
Speaker 1: want to shoot a little bit atually, whether they can

468
00:22:13,320 --> 00:22:16,560
Speaker 1: do sit me out, I'm already sitting right. Usually coaches

469
00:22:16,640 --> 00:22:18,680
Speaker 1: encourage that as well. While you're sitting out, like go

470
00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:21,120
Speaker 1: go get your work on your game. The other part

471
00:22:21,240 --> 00:22:24,280
Speaker 1: is you do you got to learn about the school

472
00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:27,439
Speaker 1: and kind of being a student and all that works

473
00:22:28,000 --> 00:22:31,120
Speaker 1: because you know, once you get there, you're you're you're

474
00:22:31,280 --> 00:22:33,879
Speaker 1: you're actually playing. You don't have time to kind of

475
00:22:34,240 --> 00:22:38,040
Speaker 1: ingratiate yourself to other people around campus oftentimes, and it

476
00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:40,560
Speaker 1: improves I think that, and then I think it helps

477
00:22:40,600 --> 00:22:44,040
Speaker 1: you in terms of your development of understanding the culture

478
00:22:44,119 --> 00:22:46,480
Speaker 1: of the place, the culture of the program. But but

479
00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:48,720
Speaker 1: we just you know, it's that need we have for

480
00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:52,440
Speaker 1: instant gratification. And again I'm as guilty of it as anybody,

481
00:22:52,480 --> 00:22:54,920
Speaker 1: Like I prefer to mobile order more than going and

482
00:22:55,240 --> 00:22:57,120
Speaker 1: do it as anybody. But that doesn't mean that's what's

483
00:22:57,160 --> 00:22:59,879
Speaker 1: best for you. And I think you're saying what I

484
00:23:00,040 --> 00:23:02,600
Speaker 1: read with, which is it really is the best thing

485
00:23:02,640 --> 00:23:05,080
Speaker 1: to sit out. And it's one of the things that

486
00:23:05,119 --> 00:23:07,880
Speaker 1: screws up this whole process, you know, because a lot

487
00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:11,040
Speaker 1: if you're transferring, you're not going to league bro you like,

488
00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:14,520
Speaker 1: you gotta work on your game for college now, but

489
00:23:14,640 --> 00:23:17,320
Speaker 1: the end And to counter that, the only positive thing

490
00:23:17,400 --> 00:23:20,120
Speaker 1: I think about this is that guys like who are

491
00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:23,400
Speaker 1: mid major, you know, second round guys like for example,

492
00:23:23,560 --> 00:23:27,160
Speaker 1: Kellen Brady where he went from Davidson to Kentucky because

493
00:23:27,200 --> 00:23:28,879
Speaker 1: he didn't have that one year. It's kind of like

494
00:23:28,960 --> 00:23:31,919
Speaker 1: that almost like a prep kind of year going up

495
00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:34,560
Speaker 1: a yere. But I I agree that, you know, they

496
00:23:34,560 --> 00:23:37,840
Speaker 1: don't understand that. And and I think the human element

497
00:23:37,840 --> 00:23:39,919
Speaker 1: we're forgetting is like, how much fun did you have

498
00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:43,879
Speaker 1: in college? Totally fun? Why would you not want another

499
00:23:43,920 --> 00:23:46,399
Speaker 1: year of college? Like that was I got. I just

500
00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:48,200
Speaker 1: feel like I feel like all these people that want

501
00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:50,560
Speaker 1: these kids to leave college. Really it's like, did you

502
00:23:50,600 --> 00:23:53,040
Speaker 1: not go to college? Did you not have fun in college?

503
00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:57,120
Speaker 1: Your life? You have never And like wait, I get

504
00:23:57,160 --> 00:23:59,000
Speaker 1: to do all the stuff with the team, but like

505
00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:00,679
Speaker 1: I can go out that I've for a game, Like

506
00:24:00,920 --> 00:24:04,440
Speaker 1: I can like what That's what I was And that's

507
00:24:04,440 --> 00:24:06,720
Speaker 1: how you really get you know ingranded in the school

508
00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:10,120
Speaker 1: is like able to be not having limitations. You gotta

509
00:24:10,280 --> 00:24:12,280
Speaker 1: work on your game. There's no pressure of performing at

510
00:24:12,280 --> 00:24:15,000
Speaker 1: the So yeah, that that's what people. I wish they

511
00:24:15,000 --> 00:24:17,639
Speaker 1: would understand it more than I I wish that people

512
00:24:17,680 --> 00:24:20,840
Speaker 1: would take the time to just sit not And like

513
00:24:20,880 --> 00:24:23,280
Speaker 1: you said, we're in instagram edification society, and I think

514
00:24:23,280 --> 00:24:25,400
Speaker 1: that Instagram has really screwed us over with that because

515
00:24:25,440 --> 00:24:27,640
Speaker 1: it's like I go back, he let me get five

516
00:24:28,119 --> 00:24:30,919
Speaker 1: likes and now my confidence will be back up. But

517
00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:33,480
Speaker 1: it's it's they don't appreciate that if you sit out

518
00:24:33,560 --> 00:24:36,320
Speaker 1: this year. And this actually happened to Grant Golden at

519
00:24:36,440 --> 00:24:38,840
Speaker 1: Richmond this year. So he was going to rush back.

520
00:24:38,920 --> 00:24:41,000
Speaker 1: He went down with the heart and dream my senior year.

521
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:43,399
Speaker 1: He was gonna rush back right and try to make

522
00:24:43,440 --> 00:24:46,040
Speaker 1: it for the last ten games this season. Canada not

523
00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:48,440
Speaker 1: rushing back. We said, just get a full year, think

524
00:24:48,480 --> 00:24:51,240
Speaker 1: about this. So in his full year, you know what happened.

525
00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:53,399
Speaker 1: Instead of him playing ten games as my backup and

526
00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:56,520
Speaker 1: making ten minutes a game, and you know, he started

527
00:24:56,640 --> 00:24:58,439
Speaker 1: on a team that went to the n s A tournament.

528
00:24:58,440 --> 00:24:59,480
Speaker 1: He wouldn't have had this year if he had to

529
00:24:59,480 --> 00:25:01,240
Speaker 1: try to rush back. He got to go to the

530
00:25:01,320 --> 00:25:03,439
Speaker 1: n c A tournament. They won the A ten title.

531
00:25:03,920 --> 00:25:06,320
Speaker 1: Like things that if you just have patient will come

532
00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:09,679
Speaker 1: full circle. And I think that's a great like so

533
00:25:09,800 --> 00:25:12,440
Speaker 1: bad it paid off for him, but more people should

534
00:25:12,480 --> 00:25:16,440
Speaker 1: just understand, like when you're older, you're gonna do things better. Yeah,

535
00:25:17,040 --> 00:25:19,080
Speaker 1: by the way, I'm still tripping out of the background.

536
00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:21,720
Speaker 1: It looks fake. It's a squarter guy. It looks it

537
00:25:21,720 --> 00:25:24,320
Speaker 1: looks like it looks like, no, no, you don't have that,

538
00:25:24,400 --> 00:25:26,760
Speaker 1: Like probably I want to show you the city. I

539
00:25:26,800 --> 00:25:28,399
Speaker 1: want to show you the city. So look, so this

540
00:25:28,480 --> 00:25:30,720
Speaker 1: is the mountains up here, and so this is the

541
00:25:30,760 --> 00:25:34,600
Speaker 1: city down here. And this country people speak Spanish. English.

542
00:25:34,680 --> 00:25:39,439
Speaker 1: People speak English. Yeah, so they speak it's like fifty fifty.

543
00:25:39,480 --> 00:25:43,440
Speaker 1: But so it's a it's a variation of Spanish called Catalan.

544
00:25:44,240 --> 00:25:47,200
Speaker 1: And if they get into that, I'm screwed. But if

545
00:25:47,200 --> 00:25:49,200
Speaker 1: they go Spanish, you know, I'm from Texas. I took

546
00:25:49,200 --> 00:25:50,920
Speaker 1: four or five years in high school, so I can.

547
00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:54,720
Speaker 1: I can put things together. But it's it's Catalan, you know, Spanish.

548
00:25:54,720 --> 00:25:58,120
Speaker 1: For the most part, I love it. Um. Okay, So

549
00:25:58,320 --> 00:26:00,680
Speaker 1: what was your then you get to play at Richmond?

550
00:26:00,960 --> 00:26:04,760
Speaker 1: What was your experience? Like, I mean, I think that

551
00:26:05,560 --> 00:26:07,680
Speaker 1: the way that we played just fit my game so well,

552
00:26:07,960 --> 00:26:11,520
Speaker 1: you know, passing big man. Um just the person that

553
00:26:11,760 --> 00:26:14,000
Speaker 1: they give the ball to and they let me kind

554
00:26:14,040 --> 00:26:16,040
Speaker 1: of because I'm a pass first guy, or you know,

555
00:26:16,080 --> 00:26:18,199
Speaker 1: I was in college and I even now, I just

556
00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:20,320
Speaker 1: think to make the right plays is so much better

557
00:26:20,320 --> 00:26:23,560
Speaker 1: than jacking up a shot and getting everybody involved nuts.

558
00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:25,639
Speaker 1: He really wins. So when they when I had the

559
00:26:25,640 --> 00:26:28,760
Speaker 1: ball in my hand, um, kind of as a sophomore,

560
00:26:28,760 --> 00:26:30,480
Speaker 1: it allowed me to have a lot of confidence. And

561
00:26:30,520 --> 00:26:32,120
Speaker 1: like you said, I was I was shooting the ball

562
00:26:32,280 --> 00:26:34,560
Speaker 1: every time, and when I was in a red shirt,

563
00:26:34,680 --> 00:26:37,400
Speaker 1: because not only do you just have the ultimate green light,

564
00:26:37,520 --> 00:26:40,760
Speaker 1: but every day I'm a different character. So I'm gonna

565
00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:42,720
Speaker 1: post up if this guy bangs, if you gotta shoot

566
00:26:42,760 --> 00:26:45,280
Speaker 1: spadeaway shot, I loved it when guys shot crazy shot

567
00:26:45,359 --> 00:26:47,439
Speaker 1: too with my guy on scout because that allowed me

568
00:26:47,480 --> 00:26:50,160
Speaker 1: to do whatever, um, so that you know, my confidence

569
00:26:50,200 --> 00:26:52,840
Speaker 1: was high going in. We had we had a senior,

570
00:26:52,920 --> 00:26:55,439
Speaker 1: Kendell Anthony, who was our point guard, and he really

571
00:26:56,000 --> 00:26:58,880
Speaker 1: allowed me to kind of not take the range with him,

572
00:26:58,880 --> 00:27:01,440
Speaker 1: but really established myself as a guy who could pass

573
00:27:01,520 --> 00:27:04,200
Speaker 1: Joe will shoot and uh and Coach Mooney gave me

574
00:27:04,240 --> 00:27:06,800
Speaker 1: the confidence. I remember we played Davidson my sophomore year

575
00:27:06,840 --> 00:27:09,600
Speaker 1: and it's like the fourth or fifth game of the

576
00:27:09,600 --> 00:27:12,080
Speaker 1: eight ten and I had my biggest game at like

577
00:27:12,080 --> 00:27:13,960
Speaker 1: twenty three or something, and Coach Mooney after that, I

578
00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:15,480
Speaker 1: was like you ready to take the next step, Like

579
00:27:15,520 --> 00:27:17,760
Speaker 1: are you ready? And he's always been good at motivate

580
00:27:17,920 --> 00:27:20,879
Speaker 1: the kind of boosting your confidence that way, and uh,

581
00:27:20,960 --> 00:27:22,720
Speaker 1: I think from there it was just like such a

582
00:27:22,760 --> 00:27:25,680
Speaker 1: snowball effect from and I really think it stems from

583
00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:28,680
Speaker 1: that red shirt ear, like truly like learn how to

584
00:27:28,720 --> 00:27:30,600
Speaker 1: play at that level of confidence all the things we

585
00:27:30,640 --> 00:27:33,360
Speaker 1: talked about too. Now I'm doing it in the game,

586
00:27:33,440 --> 00:27:35,200
Speaker 1: is not even thinking about it at an A ten

587
00:27:35,320 --> 00:27:37,520
Speaker 1: level when I was just in the MAC And so

588
00:27:37,640 --> 00:27:39,119
Speaker 1: I think that it was just you know, when you're

589
00:27:39,160 --> 00:27:40,919
Speaker 1: in a snowball, you just don't you don't think, you

590
00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:43,119
Speaker 1: just keep going. And we had a great year that

591
00:27:43,200 --> 00:27:45,880
Speaker 1: year and uh we went to the n I T Quarters,

592
00:27:45,960 --> 00:27:48,479
Speaker 1: lost to Miami to go to the t MSG, and

593
00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:50,840
Speaker 1: it was a really great year for my confidence and

594
00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:53,679
Speaker 1: kind of taking that next step. So it really just

595
00:27:53,800 --> 00:27:56,840
Speaker 1: put me right into place. What is it for those

596
00:27:56,880 --> 00:27:59,560
Speaker 1: of us who haven't been in it? What is that?

597
00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:07,000
Speaker 1: The see you game? Like craziest game, Like just the environment,

598
00:28:07,040 --> 00:28:08,879
Speaker 1: Like when you go there, you feel like you're the

599
00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:10,879
Speaker 1: most hated team in the world. And I see what

600
00:28:10,920 --> 00:28:14,199
Speaker 1: you mean with the reflection, how this looks fake? Um no,

601
00:28:14,359 --> 00:28:17,119
Speaker 1: but it's so it's uh, it's just like when you

602
00:28:17,160 --> 00:28:19,240
Speaker 1: go there, it's pure hatred. Like they're booing you off

603
00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:21,640
Speaker 1: the bus, they're doing you get in and I'm like, dude,

604
00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:23,919
Speaker 1: this is the eight ten. This isn't Duke Carolina, Like

605
00:28:23,920 --> 00:28:25,080
Speaker 1: what do you? What do you guys? Because you know

606
00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:28,679
Speaker 1: our fans they're nice, they're polite, they're clapp in, they're this,

607
00:28:28,760 --> 00:28:31,679
Speaker 1: they're encouraging, they're not hating, and these guys just hate you.

608
00:28:31,760 --> 00:28:34,200
Speaker 1: I'm getting mess d ms. My mom's getting d ms.

609
00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:36,560
Speaker 1: Everybody like to the point where I'm like, do they

610
00:28:36,760 --> 00:28:39,280
Speaker 1: like I didn't? What did I do? So you know,

611
00:28:39,320 --> 00:28:41,880
Speaker 1: going in, it's it's and you're just nervous as hell

612
00:28:41,960 --> 00:28:44,240
Speaker 1: the entire time. So I got lucky my first game.

613
00:28:44,760 --> 00:28:48,200
Speaker 1: They were number fourteen in the nation, and we went

614
00:28:48,240 --> 00:28:51,280
Speaker 1: in and knocked him off at their place. And so

615
00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:54,000
Speaker 1: like our guard kenn Of Anthony had like thirty you know,

616
00:28:54,120 --> 00:28:56,479
Speaker 1: I hit like two threes. There's the only thing I had,

617
00:28:56,600 --> 00:28:59,040
Speaker 1: just kind of flicked him in with sound nervous and

618
00:28:59,400 --> 00:29:01,320
Speaker 1: we won. So I think that shook the nerves my

619
00:29:01,360 --> 00:29:03,560
Speaker 1: first time, and then we end up beating them my

620
00:29:03,680 --> 00:29:06,360
Speaker 1: sophomore year, or we end up beating him the second

621
00:29:06,400 --> 00:29:10,880
Speaker 1: time at home. Down three. Listen to this. So we're

622
00:29:10,920 --> 00:29:14,000
Speaker 1: down talking about like win probability SPM. We're down three

623
00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:18,480
Speaker 1: with with like three seconds ago, they foulow us intention

624
00:29:18,520 --> 00:29:20,320
Speaker 1: to follow us. Our point guard makes the first one,

625
00:29:20,640 --> 00:29:23,080
Speaker 1: misses the second day tip it out of bounds. We

626
00:29:23,160 --> 00:29:26,120
Speaker 1: run a screenplay, I screen slipped to the basket, lay

627
00:29:26,200 --> 00:29:29,120
Speaker 1: up under the basket, goes into double overtime. We win,

628
00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:32,080
Speaker 1: storm the court. So I'm two and against VCU right,

629
00:29:32,960 --> 00:29:37,239
Speaker 1: never beat him again, never, never again. Played them two

630
00:29:37,280 --> 00:29:39,720
Speaker 1: times in the eight time Tournament, and so like it's

631
00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:41,360
Speaker 1: just to go back to your to go back to

632
00:29:41,400 --> 00:29:45,719
Speaker 1: your question. It's the most rowdy environment you'll ever experience.

633
00:29:45,840 --> 00:29:48,720
Speaker 1: Like it's first, it to be third. You know, people

634
00:29:48,720 --> 00:29:51,960
Speaker 1: four thousand people in an arena, the bands. There's never

635
00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:55,920
Speaker 1: a dull moment. There's people, you know. It's what's funny,

636
00:29:55,960 --> 00:29:59,640
Speaker 1: it's so um. When I was an Notre Dame, we

637
00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:02,800
Speaker 1: didn't really they have a rival right, there's just in basketball,

638
00:30:02,880 --> 00:30:04,480
Speaker 1: you just didn't like we didn't play sc you played

639
00:30:04,520 --> 00:30:06,560
Speaker 1: d C l A. That's like a historic but they

640
00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:08,480
Speaker 1: came in and kicked our asks. We weren't they were

641
00:30:08,520 --> 00:30:11,880
Speaker 1: defending national champions, were in the new league, the Big East.

642
00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:14,880
Speaker 1: We didn't play Marquette that year. It just wasn't like

643
00:30:14,880 --> 00:30:17,240
Speaker 1: a natural rivalry. So I got to Oaklham the state

644
00:30:17,400 --> 00:30:19,480
Speaker 1: and I you know, like everybody talked about the Ou

645
00:30:19,560 --> 00:30:22,560
Speaker 1: game and we were we we were supposed to be

646
00:30:22,760 --> 00:30:24,040
Speaker 1: no one knew were going to be good and we

647
00:30:24,040 --> 00:30:28,600
Speaker 1: were picked last and um, and I just remember, like

648
00:30:28,640 --> 00:30:30,880
Speaker 1: you know, everybody's you know, like I hate OU, fuck

649
00:30:30,920 --> 00:30:33,400
Speaker 1: o you and and we you know, we hate them.

650
00:30:33,480 --> 00:30:35,760
Speaker 1: And they were back then they were really everybody was good.

651
00:30:35,840 --> 00:30:38,440
Speaker 1: Pulsa was good, or Roberts was good, and we were

652
00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:43,760
Speaker 1: good as well. And I remember like, okay, I'm supposed

653
00:30:43,760 --> 00:30:46,040
Speaker 1: to hate them, but I don't. I didn't grow up here.

654
00:30:46,080 --> 00:30:47,640
Speaker 1: I don't know any there's dudes. The only thing I

655
00:30:47,720 --> 00:30:49,920
Speaker 1: knew was like Kelvin Sam's came in super late to

656
00:30:49,960 --> 00:30:52,680
Speaker 1: offer me, but he clearly didn't know anything about my game,

657
00:30:52,720 --> 00:30:57,240
Speaker 1: Like it was just awkward. And um, so we go

658
00:30:57,360 --> 00:31:02,640
Speaker 1: down there and we walk off the bus and you

659
00:31:02,680 --> 00:31:05,560
Speaker 1: walk down the duck down the ramp and you walk

660
00:31:05,600 --> 00:31:08,480
Speaker 1: in two hours for the game, and their places notorious

661
00:31:08,480 --> 00:31:13,720
Speaker 1: for being pa full, right except for Kansas, Texas and

662
00:31:13,840 --> 00:31:16,480
Speaker 1: O s U Right, And so we walk in and

663
00:31:16,640 --> 00:31:19,840
Speaker 1: there's not an empty seat in the student section and

664
00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:22,480
Speaker 1: they and I was like, and they're yelling at you.

665
00:31:23,040 --> 00:31:25,080
Speaker 1: And then I get introduced and they throw credit cards

666
00:31:25,080 --> 00:31:28,960
Speaker 1: at me, and then you know, and I was like, okay,

667
00:31:28,960 --> 00:31:34,200
Speaker 1: it's on. It took me exactly introduction to fucking hate them, right,

668
00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:37,400
Speaker 1: And but you know, but before everybody's just telling like

669
00:31:37,400 --> 00:31:39,000
Speaker 1: we hate them, we hate them, we hate them, Like,

670
00:31:39,080 --> 00:31:41,640
Speaker 1: do tell these guys, I don't even know these guys

671
00:31:42,280 --> 00:31:45,840
Speaker 1: and it's really interesting on how did it did? Was

672
00:31:45,840 --> 00:31:47,680
Speaker 1: there a moment where it clicked We're like, yeah, I

673
00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:50,680
Speaker 1: don't like these dudes at all. Yeah, I mean it's everything.

674
00:31:51,040 --> 00:31:53,280
Speaker 1: It's everything about them. It's the way that Coach Mooney

675
00:31:53,280 --> 00:31:55,800
Speaker 1: talks about it. It was it was just I mean,

676
00:31:55,880 --> 00:31:57,920
Speaker 1: one duy I signed a Richmond. It was the tweets

677
00:31:58,000 --> 00:32:01,040
Speaker 1: at myself, at my friends, at my like, you know,

678
00:32:01,240 --> 00:32:02,920
Speaker 1: you know, welcome to the Loser club. You know, you

679
00:32:02,960 --> 00:32:05,520
Speaker 1: guys suck like you're showing the record and it's just

680
00:32:05,600 --> 00:32:08,960
Speaker 1: like these dudes are such assholes. Then I'm like, you know,

681
00:32:09,160 --> 00:32:12,200
Speaker 1: threw y'all, and and from then on, it's just like

682
00:32:12,200 --> 00:32:15,960
Speaker 1: like Richmond is red and blue. They're black and gold Richmond.

683
00:32:16,000 --> 00:32:17,400
Speaker 1: You know what I mean, Richmond's in this part of

684
00:32:18,440 --> 00:32:20,120
Speaker 1: you know, Richmard. You are in this part of Richmond.

685
00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:22,920
Speaker 1: They're in the city. They're they're completely They play speeded up.

686
00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:24,720
Speaker 1: We played the Princeton. We're trying to move the ball.

687
00:32:25,080 --> 00:32:27,560
Speaker 1: They you know, press you ninety four feet. So everything

688
00:32:27,600 --> 00:32:31,000
Speaker 1: about you hates playing against guys like they're the way

689
00:32:31,080 --> 00:32:33,320
Speaker 1: they act, the way I mean they recruit certain guys

690
00:32:33,360 --> 00:32:35,080
Speaker 1: they were and this is their's this is their brand

691
00:32:35,200 --> 00:32:37,800
Speaker 1: shock you know, built up a great brand. But if

692
00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:39,560
Speaker 1: you are on the other side, it's like, I'm sure

693
00:32:39,600 --> 00:32:41,120
Speaker 1: you love them if that's your team, but if you

694
00:32:41,200 --> 00:32:43,960
Speaker 1: if you don't, you hate them. And the fact they

695
00:32:43,960 --> 00:32:49,120
Speaker 1: were successful, Like god, I just still my blood just boils,

696
00:32:49,280 --> 00:32:51,920
Speaker 1: you know what I mean? Just thinking about people are

697
00:32:51,920 --> 00:32:54,240
Speaker 1: on Mooney's ass all the time, right, there's been especially

698
00:32:54,280 --> 00:32:57,120
Speaker 1: after you left. It was there was a down cycle, right,

699
00:32:57,120 --> 00:33:00,600
Speaker 1: and then this year they obviously recovered. You played for him,

700
00:33:00,640 --> 00:33:04,120
Speaker 1: you experienced the whole thing. What would what would be

701
00:33:04,680 --> 00:33:08,080
Speaker 1: what would be your retort to people who don't love

702
00:33:08,160 --> 00:33:12,040
Speaker 1: Chris Mooney at Richmond. You don't see him every day,

703
00:33:12,080 --> 00:33:14,480
Speaker 1: you don't see what the trial. Well, first of all,

704
00:33:14,800 --> 00:33:17,520
Speaker 1: Richmond's a private school in Virginia. That's you know, a

705
00:33:17,560 --> 00:33:19,160
Speaker 1: great academic. You know how hard it is to get

706
00:33:19,160 --> 00:33:21,480
Speaker 1: students in there, to get athletes, know that you want

707
00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:24,400
Speaker 1: to recruit, and so like, you gotta see where he's

708
00:33:24,440 --> 00:33:27,320
Speaker 1: coming from the way he handles. I'm more about people

709
00:33:27,320 --> 00:33:29,520
Speaker 1: than you know. If you build a good culture and

710
00:33:29,520 --> 00:33:32,080
Speaker 1: you're good to people, good things are gonna happen if

711
00:33:32,120 --> 00:33:33,440
Speaker 1: you do it the right way. He does it the

712
00:33:33,520 --> 00:33:35,160
Speaker 1: right way. You do work us the right way. You

713
00:33:35,200 --> 00:33:37,160
Speaker 1: work on things, you run the right offense, you play

714
00:33:37,200 --> 00:33:39,520
Speaker 1: the right way, you do things on the court. So

715
00:33:39,560 --> 00:33:41,800
Speaker 1: it's like he he doesn't cheat, he doesn't do any

716
00:33:41,840 --> 00:33:44,400
Speaker 1: of the slimmy stuff. But they had a few down

717
00:33:44,560 --> 00:33:47,080
Speaker 1: years and people don't want to like we talked to,

718
00:33:47,120 --> 00:33:48,920
Speaker 1: They don't want to trust the process. They don't want

719
00:33:48,920 --> 00:33:50,880
Speaker 1: to wait, they don't want to be patient. Like we

720
00:33:50,920 --> 00:33:52,960
Speaker 1: had a great group coming up. We were going to

721
00:33:53,080 --> 00:33:55,920
Speaker 1: make the tournament three years ago as an at large

722
00:33:56,120 --> 00:33:59,800
Speaker 1: COVID happened. We came back, we had three separate COVID cases,

723
00:34:00,200 --> 00:34:03,040
Speaker 1: you know, and a fifth yer team. So then they

724
00:34:03,120 --> 00:34:05,840
Speaker 1: run it back this year and finally it's just there

725
00:34:05,840 --> 00:34:08,920
Speaker 1: were billboards and Richmond that said fire Mooney, fire, it's

726
00:34:09,000 --> 00:34:11,719
Speaker 1: just to to go at someone when he's doing all

727
00:34:11,719 --> 00:34:15,279
Speaker 1: the right things. And world pandemic ruined what was going

728
00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:18,040
Speaker 1: to be the most successful season, and just forget about

729
00:34:18,080 --> 00:34:20,720
Speaker 1: that twenty one and eight season. It pisces me off

730
00:34:20,760 --> 00:34:23,359
Speaker 1: because the fan base at Richmond is supposed to be

731
00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:26,120
Speaker 1: a tight knit community, and when you got people putting

732
00:34:26,120 --> 00:34:28,680
Speaker 1: billboards up to a guy you don't know, you've never met,

733
00:34:28,760 --> 00:34:30,560
Speaker 1: you don't even you don't get to be in his

734
00:34:30,640 --> 00:34:33,480
Speaker 1: presence and feel that energy and that love and what

735
00:34:33,560 --> 00:34:36,919
Speaker 1: he does for us after basketball, you don't. You don't

736
00:34:36,920 --> 00:34:38,840
Speaker 1: get to say screw Cood Mooney. You don't get to

737
00:34:38,840 --> 00:34:42,120
Speaker 1: say anything. As far as I'm concerned. Where were you

738
00:34:42,160 --> 00:34:45,120
Speaker 1: when the pandemic first start? Where you playing? It was

739
00:34:45,160 --> 00:34:49,840
Speaker 1: in Israel? Okay, so you're playing for Hello half well Hello, yeah, yeah, okay,

740
00:34:49,840 --> 00:34:53,799
Speaker 1: so you're playing for Upple alone. And then, um, did

741
00:34:53,840 --> 00:34:56,560
Speaker 1: you did? Did you guys? Was it discuss? Did you

742
00:34:56,600 --> 00:34:59,400
Speaker 1: see it coming? Because I'll give you my perspective was

743
00:35:00,120 --> 00:35:03,440
Speaker 1: I was. I remember I was. I was guest toasting

744
00:35:03,640 --> 00:35:06,520
Speaker 1: for Colin Cowherd, and so I was going into the

745
00:35:06,560 --> 00:35:10,080
Speaker 1: Fox lot every day. It's a radio show that's on TV.

746
00:35:10,120 --> 00:35:16,399
Speaker 1: It's simulcast. Okay, So I remember. So I like, you're

747
00:35:16,440 --> 00:35:19,000
Speaker 1: listening to the news coming in, and I talked to

748
00:35:19,000 --> 00:35:20,960
Speaker 1: a couple of my friends are in the NBA. They're like, bro,

749
00:35:21,040 --> 00:35:24,120
Speaker 1: this is bad, Like they may stop playing some games

750
00:35:24,160 --> 00:35:28,799
Speaker 1: for a while. I was like really, yeah. So the

751
00:35:28,840 --> 00:35:30,440
Speaker 1: way that show works, you go in at six in

752
00:35:30,480 --> 00:35:32,120
Speaker 1: the morning, the show starts and nine going six, you

753
00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:34,960
Speaker 1: have a meeting. There's like fifteen people and it starts

754
00:35:35,320 --> 00:35:38,000
Speaker 1: ideas you gotta have graphics on stuff. And I remember,

755
00:35:38,120 --> 00:35:40,960
Speaker 1: like two days before my last day doing it, I

756
00:35:41,040 --> 00:35:43,680
Speaker 1: was like, hey, um, should we be talking about this

757
00:35:43,760 --> 00:35:46,040
Speaker 1: COVID thing because it kind of seems like a big deal,

758
00:35:46,719 --> 00:35:51,279
Speaker 1: and they're like, not a sports topic, and you know,

759
00:35:52,120 --> 00:35:54,439
Speaker 1: people don't want to hear bad news about a really

760
00:35:54,480 --> 00:35:57,319
Speaker 1: bad flu. Right that was that was it? Like I

761
00:35:57,360 --> 00:36:02,000
Speaker 1: was like, yeah, but I they night stop playing sports, Like, well,

762
00:36:02,000 --> 00:36:05,640
Speaker 1: when that happens, we'll talk about it. I was like okay.

763
00:36:05,680 --> 00:36:09,880
Speaker 1: So literally the last day it was like a Wednesday,

764
00:36:10,080 --> 00:36:12,520
Speaker 1: because on Thursday I was leaving for the Big Ten tournament.

765
00:36:12,560 --> 00:36:16,120
Speaker 1: On that Wednesday was when Rudy Gobert came down with

766
00:36:15,920 --> 00:36:19,000
Speaker 1: with with COVID. They canceled that game. So that morning

767
00:36:19,560 --> 00:36:21,160
Speaker 1: we get down with the meeting and I'm walking with

768
00:36:21,200 --> 00:36:24,920
Speaker 1: a guy who's like the connector between the executives and

769
00:36:25,000 --> 00:36:28,640
Speaker 1: the show, and I was like, hey, man, listen, we

770
00:36:28,840 --> 00:36:31,080
Speaker 1: I think we got to talk about this this COVID thing,

771
00:36:31,120 --> 00:36:33,640
Speaker 1: Like I think it's gonna I think it's gonna shut

772
00:36:33,640 --> 00:36:37,960
Speaker 1: down sports. He's like, look, I hear you. It's on

773
00:36:38,000 --> 00:36:42,160
Speaker 1: all the news stations, but it hasn't yet and people

774
00:36:42,160 --> 00:36:44,480
Speaker 1: don't want to just hear about bad news about people

775
00:36:44,520 --> 00:36:46,919
Speaker 1: that like that's just not the that's just not where

776
00:36:46,960 --> 00:36:51,680
Speaker 1: we are. Like I was like, I just I feel

777
00:36:51,719 --> 00:36:53,520
Speaker 1: like okay, but you know, like at some point you're

778
00:36:53,520 --> 00:36:55,400
Speaker 1: still an employee and you're like, okay, I trust you,

779
00:36:55,480 --> 00:36:57,640
Speaker 1: like we'll do whatever. So then that night was the

780
00:36:57,719 --> 00:36:59,840
Speaker 1: Rudy Gobert thing. And the next day I'm driving to

781
00:36:59,920 --> 00:37:02,239
Speaker 1: the airport to do the Big ten tournament and I

782
00:37:02,239 --> 00:37:05,040
Speaker 1: get a text turnaround and I was like, you could

783
00:37:05,120 --> 00:37:08,520
Speaker 1: text it around you like, no, no, don't go to

784
00:37:08,560 --> 00:37:12,480
Speaker 1: the airport. Behind ten tournaments canceled, like what? So then

785
00:37:12,520 --> 00:37:14,960
Speaker 1: I listened to the radio and they're like they actually

786
00:37:14,960 --> 00:37:18,000
Speaker 1: had canceled. They played a Big East game that day

787
00:37:18,080 --> 00:37:22,160
Speaker 1: and it happened. It was razy. So where where are

788
00:37:22,200 --> 00:37:25,520
Speaker 1: you because because in Israel you play what Wednesday and

789
00:37:25,560 --> 00:37:28,879
Speaker 1: Sunday And I think Wednesday and Sunday? Yeah when yeah,

790
00:37:28,880 --> 00:37:31,520
Speaker 1: because you're in the Champions League. Yeah, so Wednesday and

791
00:37:31,760 --> 00:37:35,120
Speaker 1: yeah Sunday because or or after Saturday after the shot

792
00:37:35,440 --> 00:37:39,640
Speaker 1: so weekend week day. But we uh, I remember, you know,

793
00:37:39,640 --> 00:37:42,200
Speaker 1: they were being rumblings of it, and I'm I'm a

794
00:37:42,280 --> 00:37:44,520
Speaker 1: huge college basketball guy, right, So I went and got

795
00:37:44,600 --> 00:37:47,440
Speaker 1: another miniature TV ready to go, you know, got a

796
00:37:47,480 --> 00:37:49,920
Speaker 1: full stack of white you know paper to write on.

797
00:37:50,040 --> 00:37:52,080
Speaker 1: You know, everybody's coming over to watch the games. And

798
00:37:52,120 --> 00:37:54,520
Speaker 1: we're watching and we watched the first one, like you said,

799
00:37:54,520 --> 00:37:57,719
Speaker 1: the Big East game, and our season was still we

800
00:37:57,800 --> 00:38:00,680
Speaker 1: were still played at that time, and we had ad

801
00:38:00,719 --> 00:38:04,480
Speaker 1: off practice that day before because they were talking about

802
00:38:04,520 --> 00:38:07,440
Speaker 1: what's gonna happen, what's pande that? And so when I

803
00:38:07,480 --> 00:38:10,200
Speaker 1: see that end, I was actually over with Marcus Foster

804
00:38:10,360 --> 00:38:15,960
Speaker 1: from he played at Creighton couple or four. Yeah, yeah, exactly,

805
00:38:16,200 --> 00:38:18,799
Speaker 1: this guy exactly. So it's one of my good one

806
00:38:18,800 --> 00:38:20,200
Speaker 1: of my good buddies, and we you know, we had

807
00:38:20,200 --> 00:38:21,960
Speaker 1: a great year that year. But so we're sitting there

808
00:38:21,960 --> 00:38:24,720
Speaker 1: and we're like, what's going on? So then we get

809
00:38:24,760 --> 00:38:27,320
Speaker 1: a text from our team like probably three hours later,

810
00:38:27,880 --> 00:38:32,200
Speaker 1: practice canceled team meeting. We're like, okay, because there hadn't

811
00:38:32,239 --> 00:38:35,920
Speaker 1: so there wasn't cases in Israel yet, right, so because

812
00:38:35,920 --> 00:38:38,680
Speaker 1: if Israel's cases, you know, them being shut down, the borders,

813
00:38:38,719 --> 00:38:41,520
Speaker 1: everything's gonna be. So we're like, okay, what's going on.

814
00:38:42,200 --> 00:38:44,320
Speaker 1: We show up team meeting, they're like, hey, the leagues

815
00:38:44,360 --> 00:38:47,439
Speaker 1: decided because of this coronavirus pandemic, you know, we're gonna

816
00:38:47,520 --> 00:38:49,919
Speaker 1: end the league now. Everybody needs to to get out

817
00:38:49,960 --> 00:38:53,520
Speaker 1: as quickly as possible for they possibility of shutting down borders.

818
00:38:54,680 --> 00:38:59,600
Speaker 1: So Marcus, his wife, his daughter, myself, another teammate, I mean,

819
00:38:59,640 --> 00:39:02,080
Speaker 1: we we we get the first flight in. We you know,

820
00:39:02,080 --> 00:39:05,040
Speaker 1: I take back the TV, right, so take the TV back,

821
00:39:05,600 --> 00:39:07,960
Speaker 1: pack my bags and uh and we're out of there

822
00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:11,359
Speaker 1: in like two days. And so to talk contract negotiation,

823
00:39:11,440 --> 00:39:13,480
Speaker 1: I mean as far as like buy ups, they're not

824
00:39:13,520 --> 00:39:15,080
Speaker 1: gonna make any money for the rest of the season.

825
00:39:15,320 --> 00:39:17,279
Speaker 1: They're gonna have to settle with us. The TV people

826
00:39:17,280 --> 00:39:19,480
Speaker 1: are gonna pay that. So it was just like so

827
00:39:19,560 --> 00:39:22,480
Speaker 1: much stuff happening at once, but you're only focus was like,

828
00:39:22,960 --> 00:39:24,879
Speaker 1: are we gonna die if we get this? Like because

829
00:39:24,920 --> 00:39:26,839
Speaker 1: that's what no one knew what it was. Don't do

830
00:39:27,480 --> 00:39:29,719
Speaker 1: so we're like what first year, like it's it's a

831
00:39:29,719 --> 00:39:31,680
Speaker 1: common cold, and then it's like it's a flesh beating

832
00:39:31,719 --> 00:39:33,919
Speaker 1: bacteria and then it's like, okay, let's just get home.

833
00:39:34,520 --> 00:39:36,920
Speaker 1: So it was it was the craziest thing to be

834
00:39:37,040 --> 00:39:40,439
Speaker 1: overseas because you had to make sure the country we're

835
00:39:40,440 --> 00:39:42,520
Speaker 1: going into didn't have any cases. You know, you're gonna

836
00:39:42,560 --> 00:39:44,439
Speaker 1: be in there, You're gonna be in the airport. Um

837
00:39:44,480 --> 00:39:46,799
Speaker 1: did they have certain regulations that you know what I mean,

838
00:39:46,840 --> 00:39:49,600
Speaker 1: you have to get So it was just a it

839
00:39:49,680 --> 00:39:51,719
Speaker 1: was kind of weird, and the team worked really well

840
00:39:51,719 --> 00:39:53,920
Speaker 1: with us getting back, but to be in a different

841
00:39:53,960 --> 00:39:56,520
Speaker 1: country when the pandemic was going, we had no idea

842
00:39:56,560 --> 00:39:59,400
Speaker 1: what was going on. And I mean we made it back,

843
00:39:59,719 --> 00:40:01,799
Speaker 1: you know, a week before you know, I think the

844
00:40:01,840 --> 00:40:05,919
Speaker 1: lockdown was in place in the States. Um, yeah, because

845
00:40:05,960 --> 00:40:08,200
Speaker 1: that was probably like three or four days after after

846
00:40:08,200 --> 00:40:12,839
Speaker 1: the Gilbert thing. What you do during Lucky stayed at home.

847
00:40:13,360 --> 00:40:16,160
Speaker 1: I mean. The great thing about the lockdown at the time,

848
00:40:16,160 --> 00:40:17,960
Speaker 1: as I was gone for eight months, so it's not

849
00:40:18,080 --> 00:40:21,200
Speaker 1: like I've seen my family every day. I'm like, I'm

850
00:40:21,239 --> 00:40:23,879
Speaker 1: thrilled to be locked in with my siblings and my mom.

851
00:40:24,120 --> 00:40:25,879
Speaker 1: You don't mean to be able to at least hang

852
00:40:25,880 --> 00:40:30,160
Speaker 1: out by about a weekend and got a little tiring. Um. Luckily,

853
00:40:30,200 --> 00:40:32,880
Speaker 1: you know, there was a basketball church that that we

854
00:40:32,920 --> 00:40:34,960
Speaker 1: knew the pastor, and they kind of they let me

855
00:40:35,000 --> 00:40:36,600
Speaker 1: slide in there daily and that was kind of like

856
00:40:36,680 --> 00:40:39,760
Speaker 1: my therapy. But other than that, I mean video games.

857
00:40:39,800 --> 00:40:41,839
Speaker 1: I ran back n C A two K, the one

858
00:40:41,840 --> 00:40:44,560
Speaker 1: with the Reggie Bush on the cover, sharing the championship.

859
00:40:44,719 --> 00:40:46,680
Speaker 1: And I'm sorry to say it, my my dad did

860
00:40:46,680 --> 00:40:49,160
Speaker 1: business with Oklahoma at Learfield, So I grew up a

861
00:40:49,239 --> 00:40:53,200
Speaker 1: Diehart Sooner, I'm sorry, not basketball only football. So I

862
00:40:53,280 --> 00:40:56,040
Speaker 1: run it back. Had Kyler Murray, you know, had Marquis

863
00:40:56,040 --> 00:40:57,719
Speaker 1: Hollywood Bround on my team. So we want a few

864
00:40:57,719 --> 00:41:00,680
Speaker 1: titles in that time and know us about it. Uh okay,

865
00:41:00,719 --> 00:41:02,520
Speaker 1: and I'm sure you watched the last Dance too, right

866
00:41:02,680 --> 00:41:09,480
Speaker 1: like last yeah? Yeah, the last favorite Signfield episode as

867
00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:13,600
Speaker 1: what the super Nazi? No super you, no super You.

868
00:41:13,760 --> 00:41:17,920
Speaker 1: That's that's that's amazing. Um okay. So your first team

869
00:41:17,960 --> 00:41:21,480
Speaker 1: back was was where? Um first team back? So I

870
00:41:21,600 --> 00:41:24,279
Speaker 1: go back overseas and I signed with so me and

871
00:41:24,320 --> 00:41:26,400
Speaker 1: Marcus played really well together that year and when the

872
00:41:26,400 --> 00:41:29,040
Speaker 1: pandemic hit, so that was one positive. Stock was hot.

873
00:41:29,480 --> 00:41:33,000
Speaker 1: So I went to a team in Italy last year Brussia.

874
00:41:33,360 --> 00:41:35,880
Speaker 1: His team called Brussia and there about an hour outside

875
00:41:35,880 --> 00:41:39,880
Speaker 1: of Milan. Um Europe up really good opportunity and it

876
00:41:40,000 --> 00:41:42,840
Speaker 1: was cool. It was like I love living in Spain

877
00:41:42,880 --> 00:41:44,879
Speaker 1: because I've I've been in Israel three years. The new

878
00:41:44,880 --> 00:41:48,560
Speaker 1: experience completely different Italy. I was so excited for the

879
00:41:48,560 --> 00:41:51,640
Speaker 1: food that this it was the most it was the

880
00:41:51,719 --> 00:41:56,879
Speaker 1: worst hit placed by COVID in Italy. Remember Italy hard

881
00:41:56,960 --> 00:42:00,319
Speaker 1: first y. Yeah, most deaths that were that a really

882
00:42:00,360 --> 00:42:03,640
Speaker 1: older population over there. It knocked out a lot of

883
00:42:03,680 --> 00:42:06,399
Speaker 1: them that we were in a red zone. So if

884
00:42:06,400 --> 00:42:08,799
Speaker 1: you left your apart, like left your apartment without you

885
00:42:08,840 --> 00:42:11,239
Speaker 1: have paperwork on your on your desk and I had

886
00:42:11,239 --> 00:42:12,880
Speaker 1: to say I t J klind, I'm leaving at this

887
00:42:12,920 --> 00:42:15,319
Speaker 1: time to go get you can either your haircut, supermarket

888
00:42:15,560 --> 00:42:18,759
Speaker 1: or uh or work. So I say I'm going here,

889
00:42:18,760 --> 00:42:20,440
Speaker 1: And if you didn't, it was like a five euro

890
00:42:20,560 --> 00:42:22,120
Speaker 1: fine if they pulled you over and you didn't have

891
00:42:22,160 --> 00:42:25,000
Speaker 1: the paperwork or there wasn't reasoning, So it wasn't It

892
00:42:25,040 --> 00:42:27,960
Speaker 1: was a cool team and situation, but it just was

893
00:42:28,040 --> 00:42:30,319
Speaker 1: not the same and it was it was the toughest one.

894
00:42:31,280 --> 00:42:34,680
Speaker 1: So you go into play in Italy and it's this

895
00:42:34,760 --> 00:42:40,160
Speaker 1: place that's devastated by the pandemic. Were there any fans, No,

896
00:42:40,160 --> 00:42:43,880
Speaker 1: No fans like on the road the only positive no fans,

897
00:42:43,920 --> 00:42:47,080
Speaker 1: no nothing, only positive thing, your own road, your own

898
00:42:47,160 --> 00:42:50,040
Speaker 1: room on the road code rules. What do you mean

899
00:42:50,080 --> 00:42:52,600
Speaker 1: your own room on the road. Your own room on

900
00:42:52,600 --> 00:42:55,359
Speaker 1: the road. So normally you're bunking out. You know, you're

901
00:42:55,440 --> 00:43:00,440
Speaker 1: up small beds. I know, listen, I know that, but

902
00:43:01,040 --> 00:43:03,759
Speaker 1: everybody else doesn't know that. They think that this is

903
00:43:03,840 --> 00:43:06,400
Speaker 1: they think like, oh, you go to Europe, you're just

904
00:43:06,440 --> 00:43:10,000
Speaker 1: getting paid and you're hooping. It's like the NBA, We're like, no,

905
00:43:10,200 --> 00:43:13,399
Speaker 1: you you practice twice today, you room with somebody else

906
00:43:13,480 --> 00:43:16,320
Speaker 1: on the road. The beds are not luxurious, even in

907
00:43:16,440 --> 00:43:21,080
Speaker 1: nice hotels, right Like it's their singles in every hotel,

908
00:43:21,160 --> 00:43:23,000
Speaker 1: and if you get a queen's size bed, it's two

909
00:43:23,000 --> 00:43:25,399
Speaker 1: singles put together. And you hope those are matters pad

910
00:43:25,520 --> 00:43:28,160
Speaker 1: over it. No, they did. They The luxury we have

911
00:43:28,239 --> 00:43:30,400
Speaker 1: in the States is we take it for granted. For

912
00:43:30,560 --> 00:43:32,799
Speaker 1: what what what's going on over here? Who is the

913
00:43:32,840 --> 00:43:35,680
Speaker 1: other American? Uh? So we had a bunch of We

914
00:43:35,760 --> 00:43:39,360
Speaker 1: had Kenny Cherry last year he went to Bay I

915
00:43:39,520 --> 00:43:41,839
Speaker 1: went to We had Drew Crawford who went to Northwestern

916
00:43:42,719 --> 00:43:45,080
Speaker 1: UM and those were the other those were the two other.

917
00:43:45,120 --> 00:43:48,560
Speaker 1: Oh and Tyler Kalinowski went to Davidson And so those

918
00:43:48,600 --> 00:43:51,160
Speaker 1: are three. Me and me we're the those are the

919
00:43:51,160 --> 00:43:54,360
Speaker 1: three Americans? Are the four Americans? And uh no, it

920
00:43:54,440 --> 00:43:56,719
Speaker 1: was definitely a culture shock me and Kenny probably became

921
00:43:56,800 --> 00:43:59,440
Speaker 1: the closest. He's out in Spain as well. Um, but

922
00:44:00,120 --> 00:44:01,920
Speaker 1: you know it was it was a daily that was

923
00:44:01,960 --> 00:44:04,640
Speaker 1: the hardest year of my professional career. And and the

924
00:44:04,680 --> 00:44:07,160
Speaker 1: thing is that people really don't understand that. I I'm

925
00:44:07,239 --> 00:44:09,640
Speaker 1: so glad I did the league this year to understand.

926
00:44:09,680 --> 00:44:12,640
Speaker 1: And the Wizards, I don't know if they're like most organizations,

927
00:44:12,680 --> 00:44:15,560
Speaker 1: but we share a practice facility with the Wizards, so

928
00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:18,120
Speaker 1: we get the training table, we in the practice facility

929
00:44:18,120 --> 00:44:21,919
Speaker 1: anytime we want that. They really treat us well. And uh,

930
00:44:21,960 --> 00:44:25,280
Speaker 1: I mean it was it was the best professional experience

931
00:44:25,280 --> 00:44:27,839
Speaker 1: as far as facilities, amenities, and that's in the G League.

932
00:44:27,840 --> 00:44:31,200
Speaker 1: And I was making, you know, way less um than

933
00:44:31,320 --> 00:44:34,520
Speaker 1: than you're even making over here. But the style of

934
00:44:34,600 --> 00:44:37,000
Speaker 1: life and and you know, there's nothing that compares to

935
00:44:37,040 --> 00:44:39,279
Speaker 1: what we have in the States, and people don't people

936
00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:42,279
Speaker 1: don't understand that enough. Like guys, how did you you're

937
00:44:42,280 --> 00:44:44,359
Speaker 1: in Italy and everything shut down? How did you eat?

938
00:44:44,600 --> 00:44:46,239
Speaker 1: You have to cook yourself? Or do you door dash?

939
00:44:46,320 --> 00:44:48,680
Speaker 1: Like what is it? Or come on. I'm not missing

940
00:44:48,719 --> 00:44:50,640
Speaker 1: not on that Italian food. So you know it was.

941
00:44:50,719 --> 00:44:52,640
Speaker 1: We had this guy Paco, and he had the best

942
00:44:52,640 --> 00:44:55,120
Speaker 1: restaurant in town. He would stay up late for us

943
00:44:55,320 --> 00:44:57,400
Speaker 1: and uh, you know when we get out of practice,

944
00:44:57,480 --> 00:45:00,839
Speaker 1: order pizza, order some pasta, or some chickens at fish.

945
00:45:00,880 --> 00:45:02,719
Speaker 1: But no, I wasn't missing out on that food and

946
00:45:02,760 --> 00:45:05,000
Speaker 1: that wine. So we had it delivered every night, and

947
00:45:05,160 --> 00:45:07,719
Speaker 1: uh it was cool. I mean it's stunk, but at

948
00:45:07,800 --> 00:45:10,480
Speaker 1: least I got food. Did you guys hang out together?

949
00:45:10,600 --> 00:45:12,880
Speaker 1: Do you have to maintain your distance? Like, how was

950
00:45:12,880 --> 00:45:17,359
Speaker 1: it with with your teammates? Well, I was lucky enough

951
00:45:17,400 --> 00:45:19,640
Speaker 1: to live. There's this guy, Christian Burns and he's been

952
00:45:19,640 --> 00:45:23,040
Speaker 1: playing overseas for a while and uh he his family

953
00:45:23,320 --> 00:45:24,960
Speaker 1: was out there and we lived in this kind of

954
00:45:25,000 --> 00:45:27,200
Speaker 1: it was actually the coolest place I ever lived in

955
00:45:28,680 --> 00:45:31,239
Speaker 1: Negate this you know what I mean? But uh, in

956
00:45:31,360 --> 00:45:34,560
Speaker 1: the Gate tell but it was it was We lived

957
00:45:34,560 --> 00:45:37,200
Speaker 1: in a castle, Doug and we lived in we had

958
00:45:37,200 --> 00:45:40,520
Speaker 1: our own separate little houses. They had like a bigger

959
00:45:40,560 --> 00:45:42,440
Speaker 1: one because they had a family at four, but I

960
00:45:42,480 --> 00:45:46,600
Speaker 1: had my own two floor level and and the Dutch

961
00:45:46,640 --> 00:45:48,680
Speaker 1: or whatever, the guy who was the son of the

962
00:45:48,719 --> 00:45:51,399
Speaker 1: guy was living over here in this in this area,

963
00:45:51,480 --> 00:45:53,319
Speaker 1: this big part of the wing of the house. It

964
00:45:53,400 --> 00:45:55,080
Speaker 1: was nuts. You never saw anybody. Can get it from

965
00:45:55,080 --> 00:45:57,279
Speaker 1: the you can get in from the outside. So I

966
00:45:57,320 --> 00:45:59,480
Speaker 1: got to at least have the family vibe. And I

967
00:45:59,520 --> 00:46:01,440
Speaker 1: missed my little brothers. I have two little brothers and

968
00:46:01,520 --> 00:46:04,239
Speaker 1: little sister, and I missed that interaction of kind of

969
00:46:04,280 --> 00:46:07,320
Speaker 1: just being around, you know, playing with kids, just enjoying

970
00:46:07,360 --> 00:46:10,200
Speaker 1: myself and and uh, just messing around. I'm a kid

971
00:46:10,200 --> 00:46:12,040
Speaker 1: at hard So I at least got to at least

972
00:46:12,040 --> 00:46:14,160
Speaker 1: got to, you know, live and be with them and

973
00:46:14,200 --> 00:46:17,760
Speaker 1: be in that area. But otherwise, no teammates over no nothing.

974
00:46:17,800 --> 00:46:19,880
Speaker 1: You go from the gym to home. Like my teammates

975
00:46:19,880 --> 00:46:25,200
Speaker 1: who are singling by themselves, were miserable. Um, you mentioned

976
00:46:25,400 --> 00:46:28,560
Speaker 1: the three years in Israel. What was it like to

977
00:46:28,680 --> 00:46:35,680
Speaker 1: be your mom's son in Israel. It's the craziest thing

978
00:46:35,719 --> 00:46:39,120
Speaker 1: because that's probably the that place was probably the least

979
00:46:39,120 --> 00:46:42,880
Speaker 1: amount of I I don't this word is a cloud,

980
00:46:42,960 --> 00:46:44,440
Speaker 1: you know what I mean? Like when you tell you

981
00:46:45,760 --> 00:46:50,120
Speaker 1: that was the least that I ever had because Israel

982
00:46:50,160 --> 00:46:52,799
Speaker 1: they're hard working, they're hardworking people. You prove what you

983
00:46:52,840 --> 00:46:56,280
Speaker 1: can do you have? You must come to prove yourself.

984
00:46:56,800 --> 00:46:59,319
Speaker 1: You have to. And you know they've gone, They've gone

985
00:46:59,320 --> 00:47:01,200
Speaker 1: to the army straight out of high school. They've scared

986
00:47:01,239 --> 00:47:03,960
Speaker 1: a rifle like there's nothing that impresses them unless they

987
00:47:04,000 --> 00:47:06,279
Speaker 1: see it with their two eyes. And so that was

988
00:47:06,320 --> 00:47:08,120
Speaker 1: the coolest. And but if they if you do well

989
00:47:08,960 --> 00:47:10,839
Speaker 1: the best man like I literally just tweeted. I got

990
00:47:10,840 --> 00:47:13,239
Speaker 1: a lot of pushback because I tweeted about Hallo and

991
00:47:13,360 --> 00:47:16,840
Speaker 1: fans being great Macawa fans. So I said, Israeli fans

992
00:47:16,840 --> 00:47:19,160
Speaker 1: are the best fans in Europe and they read they really,

993
00:47:19,200 --> 00:47:21,279
Speaker 1: I mean they don't. A thousand people are going to

994
00:47:21,400 --> 00:47:24,680
Speaker 1: Spain for the Champions League game out of Halon, So

995
00:47:24,800 --> 00:47:27,080
Speaker 1: it's really. Uh, I mean if they're with you, there

996
00:47:27,080 --> 00:47:29,160
Speaker 1: with you, it's amazing. But you know, you have to

997
00:47:29,160 --> 00:47:31,160
Speaker 1: prove yourself each and every day. So going in there

998
00:47:31,160 --> 00:47:34,120
Speaker 1: at Nancy Son didn't mean ship on a on a

999
00:47:34,239 --> 00:47:36,080
Speaker 1: on a grand scille. It's can you hoop? Can you

1000
00:47:36,120 --> 00:47:39,960
Speaker 1: make us better? Can we win championships? Um, if you

1001
00:47:40,000 --> 00:47:43,320
Speaker 1: were going to give advice to somebody who's getting ready

1002
00:47:43,360 --> 00:47:50,600
Speaker 1: to go overseas, uh, what what would you tell? Just

1003
00:47:50,719 --> 00:47:54,400
Speaker 1: be prepared to embrace the journey, like there's gonna be

1004
00:47:54,400 --> 00:47:57,000
Speaker 1: things that you've never you're gonna be so battle tested.

1005
00:47:57,080 --> 00:47:58,680
Speaker 1: If you can, it's almost like the red shirt thing.

1006
00:47:58,680 --> 00:48:01,879
Speaker 1: If you can in the moment have perspective of this

1007
00:48:01,960 --> 00:48:03,600
Speaker 1: is gonna be a part of my story about of

1008
00:48:03,640 --> 00:48:05,960
Speaker 1: my journey, like the coolest experiences that I'll get to

1009
00:48:05,960 --> 00:48:09,120
Speaker 1: talk to Doug Gottlieb later about this that like if

1010
00:48:09,160 --> 00:48:11,440
Speaker 1: you can really put that into perspective and pass that

1011
00:48:11,480 --> 00:48:14,000
Speaker 1: down to the next man who's coming out of college,

1012
00:48:14,600 --> 00:48:16,319
Speaker 1: like that's what I would say, is like, you've got

1013
00:48:16,320 --> 00:48:19,080
Speaker 1: to understand there's gonna be some nine ten hour travel

1014
00:48:19,200 --> 00:48:20,799
Speaker 1: days that are gonna suck, and you're gonna go to

1015
00:48:20,800 --> 00:48:23,000
Speaker 1: Slovakia to play a europe Cup game and it's just

1016
00:48:23,040 --> 00:48:25,040
Speaker 1: gonna be miserable, and then you gotta get up at

1017
00:48:25,040 --> 00:48:27,440
Speaker 1: six am the next morning and go home. There's not

1018
00:48:27,440 --> 00:48:29,160
Speaker 1: gonna be any ice, there's not gonna be any cold tub.

1019
00:48:29,160 --> 00:48:30,759
Speaker 1: You're gonna have to make your own food. You're gonna

1020
00:48:30,760 --> 00:48:33,439
Speaker 1: be hungry. You can't read the put embrace every part

1021
00:48:33,480 --> 00:48:35,440
Speaker 1: of it. So it's really if you can just go

1022
00:48:35,480 --> 00:48:37,239
Speaker 1: and nothing prepares you for this. So if you can

1023
00:48:37,280 --> 00:48:39,920
Speaker 1: go in with the mindset of I get to do

1024
00:48:39,960 --> 00:48:43,840
Speaker 1: this rather than I have to do this. It changes everything.

1025
00:48:43,960 --> 00:48:46,200
Speaker 1: And it's been since last year that I kind of

1026
00:48:46,280 --> 00:48:49,120
Speaker 1: adapted that and it's changed everything on how I look

1027
00:48:49,120 --> 00:48:51,600
Speaker 1: at this, how I embrace this journey is you only

1028
00:48:51,640 --> 00:48:53,239
Speaker 1: get a little bit of time to be in your

1029
00:48:53,280 --> 00:48:56,600
Speaker 1: prime and play basketball for a living and go on.

1030
00:48:56,640 --> 00:48:59,000
Speaker 1: It's like a vague like I'm outside of practice. I'm

1031
00:48:59,040 --> 00:49:01,520
Speaker 1: here all day, so it's like I'm living a vacation,

1032
00:49:01,600 --> 00:49:04,799
Speaker 1: but I'm also playing basketball. It's just it's a special thing.

1033
00:49:04,880 --> 00:49:07,279
Speaker 1: So just embrace what embrace what the hell is in

1034
00:49:07,320 --> 00:49:12,720
Speaker 1: front of you. I wish that we would allow the

1035
00:49:12,760 --> 00:49:15,880
Speaker 1: offensive basket interference in the State the way that the

1036
00:49:15,920 --> 00:49:19,200
Speaker 1: gold Teg rule in FEVERA. I like the best. I

1037
00:49:19,280 --> 00:49:21,920
Speaker 1: think you compete for offensive rebounds. You can knock off

1038
00:49:22,320 --> 00:49:25,160
Speaker 1: knock the ball off a rim on a second free throw,

1039
00:49:25,640 --> 00:49:27,719
Speaker 1: you know, when it's bouncing around up there. I don't

1040
00:49:27,719 --> 00:49:31,400
Speaker 1: believe in cylinder protection. I also love the what fourteen

1041
00:49:31,440 --> 00:49:36,080
Speaker 1: second reset um rebound? I love I love that you

1042
00:49:36,760 --> 00:49:40,680
Speaker 1: playing it. Okay, it's a different style of basketball. What

1043
00:49:40,719 --> 00:49:44,280
Speaker 1: parts do you like? What parts do you dislike about

1044
00:49:44,320 --> 00:49:48,799
Speaker 1: the Fever rules and how the game is officiated there. Um,

1045
00:49:48,840 --> 00:49:52,320
Speaker 1: I would definitely say that the I like the rule

1046
00:49:52,760 --> 00:49:55,440
Speaker 1: you know in you know, in theory, but when you're

1047
00:49:55,200 --> 00:49:57,279
Speaker 1: a you know, a white guy who doesn't necessarily play

1048
00:49:57,320 --> 00:49:59,120
Speaker 1: too much above the rim, that can kind of screw

1049
00:49:59,160 --> 00:50:01,360
Speaker 1: you over in a few few cases. So it is

1050
00:50:01,560 --> 00:50:03,719
Speaker 1: nothing more frustrating on a second free through and it's

1051
00:50:03,760 --> 00:50:06,160
Speaker 1: bouncing in and someone just bops it off. But if

1052
00:50:06,160 --> 00:50:08,000
Speaker 1: they tap it mistakenly tap it in, you get two

1053
00:50:08,000 --> 00:50:10,279
Speaker 1: points instead of one. I know, I know, but you

1054
00:50:10,280 --> 00:50:12,440
Speaker 1: know what, that happens very few and far in between

1055
00:50:12,480 --> 00:50:14,640
Speaker 1: these guys. I mean, we have drills where they're practicing

1056
00:50:14,680 --> 00:50:17,360
Speaker 1: tipping it off the rim, so um, I do. What

1057
00:50:17,440 --> 00:50:20,120
Speaker 1: I really like over here is is the physicality. UM.

1058
00:50:20,480 --> 00:50:23,719
Speaker 1: I also love the flag or foul rule. Like if

1059
00:50:23,760 --> 00:50:26,480
Speaker 1: you're on a fast break and it's not it's clear

1060
00:50:26,520 --> 00:50:28,520
Speaker 1: you can even be a step ahead of them, it's

1061
00:50:28,520 --> 00:50:30,160
Speaker 1: a flag or foul two shots that you have to

1062
00:50:30,200 --> 00:50:32,000
Speaker 1: be going for the ball, even if you're guarding the

1063
00:50:32,080 --> 00:50:33,600
Speaker 1: one on one and a half for it and they

1064
00:50:33,640 --> 00:50:35,600
Speaker 1: feel you didn't go for the ball. I mean, some

1065
00:50:35,680 --> 00:50:37,440
Speaker 1: guys will do the hard foul in the NBA, right

1066
00:50:37,840 --> 00:50:39,840
Speaker 1: like overseas, they go, look at that, You're going on

1067
00:50:39,920 --> 00:50:42,359
Speaker 1: line for two. So it's like you can't just get

1068
00:50:42,360 --> 00:50:46,000
Speaker 1: away with them. And I love the the emphasis on

1069
00:50:46,080 --> 00:50:49,760
Speaker 1: wasted on using fouls. So if you're in a closeout

1070
00:50:49,800 --> 00:50:52,279
Speaker 1: situation and the swan swung swung, I gotta get by

1071
00:50:52,360 --> 00:50:54,920
Speaker 1: me drives by. I make a small foul on the

1072
00:50:54,960 --> 00:50:57,080
Speaker 1: arm and I raised my hand. It cuts off the end.

1073
00:50:57,160 --> 00:50:59,239
Speaker 1: Now they gotta take it out run the It's just

1074
00:50:59,400 --> 00:51:04,360
Speaker 1: every possess action means so much more because there's ten minutes,

1075
00:51:04,440 --> 00:51:06,840
Speaker 1: and I mean, you can pack the paint. There's stuff

1076
00:51:07,280 --> 00:51:09,440
Speaker 1: I was playing for. I played for macaby Ronana and

1077
00:51:09,480 --> 00:51:13,160
Speaker 1: we're playing Maccabi Tel Aviv and we're playing in Metro West,

1078
00:51:13,239 --> 00:51:16,440
Speaker 1: which I'm sure you played there. Uh And because now

1079
00:51:16,520 --> 00:51:19,520
Speaker 1: Ranana is what bane HaSharon might the combined with hertually,

1080
00:51:19,640 --> 00:51:23,520
Speaker 1: I think hot hosheron hot hush. Okay. So anyway, we're

1081
00:51:23,520 --> 00:51:25,319
Speaker 1: playing and we're at the end of the first quarter,

1082
00:51:25,360 --> 00:51:28,239
Speaker 1: we're winning, and there was a play where you know,

1083
00:51:28,400 --> 00:51:32,080
Speaker 1: long three or something, and I'm back defensively and instead

1084
00:51:32,080 --> 00:51:34,360
Speaker 1: of the quick foul, like I felt like it was

1085
00:51:34,360 --> 00:51:38,279
Speaker 1: gonna be an intentional flagrant intentional foul whatever, So I

1086
00:51:38,360 --> 00:51:40,680
Speaker 1: didn't do it. And then they messed up on a

1087
00:51:40,719 --> 00:51:42,799
Speaker 1: three on one or three on two or something, and

1088
00:51:42,840 --> 00:51:44,120
Speaker 1: we were up like I don't know eight at the

1089
00:51:44,160 --> 00:51:46,239
Speaker 1: end of the first quarter. And our coach, the guy

1090
00:51:46,320 --> 00:51:48,319
Speaker 1: named Sharon Drew Krey coach the national team. I think

1091
00:51:48,320 --> 00:51:52,560
Speaker 1: he coached the win my coach two years ago in alone. Okay,

1092
00:51:52,880 --> 00:51:55,719
Speaker 1: good lie, good lie, you must have foul. You must

1093
00:51:55,760 --> 00:51:57,239
Speaker 1: have foul. It's like no, no, no, no, no, we

1094
00:51:57,320 --> 00:51:59,479
Speaker 1: must we must get stops and win the game. Dude,

1095
00:51:59,560 --> 00:52:02,920
Speaker 1: I found mention. Well. The other reason is like I

1096
00:52:03,000 --> 00:52:05,240
Speaker 1: was if I it would have been my second foul,

1097
00:52:05,560 --> 00:52:07,239
Speaker 1: and I wasn't. I didn't want to sit, you know,

1098
00:52:07,480 --> 00:52:09,360
Speaker 1: so when he was gonna he was gonna gonna sit me,

1099
00:52:09,360 --> 00:52:12,839
Speaker 1: so like, nah, I'm I right. But that's what they're

1100
00:52:12,880 --> 00:52:14,239
Speaker 1: all about, the good of the team, you know what

1101
00:52:14,280 --> 00:52:15,960
Speaker 1: I mean. Maybe I don't care if you have one foul,

1102
00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:17,680
Speaker 1: make the foul, we'll get another guy in. But you

1103
00:52:17,680 --> 00:52:20,120
Speaker 1: know what stopped that three on two, I know exactly.

1104
00:52:20,160 --> 00:52:22,839
Speaker 1: It's it's frustrating as an American knowing you're over there

1105
00:52:22,840 --> 00:52:25,279
Speaker 1: to produce, so I can't produce on the bench. But

1106
00:52:25,320 --> 00:52:26,799
Speaker 1: they're like, we don't care, we just want to win.

1107
00:52:26,840 --> 00:52:28,760
Speaker 1: We don't we don't care. No, we we we we

1108
00:52:28,760 --> 00:52:31,160
Speaker 1: we we absolutely don't care. Knows that it was that

1109
00:52:31,160 --> 00:52:35,480
Speaker 1: that's always an iNeST okay, Um, what you dislike about

1110
00:52:35,520 --> 00:52:41,240
Speaker 1: the way in which it's officiated or the rules are played, Um,

1111
00:52:41,280 --> 00:52:43,439
Speaker 1: I mean, I think what made the game a lot

1112
00:52:43,480 --> 00:52:45,440
Speaker 1: more fun in the end, Like the G League was

1113
00:52:45,480 --> 00:52:48,239
Speaker 1: like there was no defensive three seconds and over here

1114
00:52:48,320 --> 00:52:50,680
Speaker 1: you can just pack the paint. So like, I'm a

1115
00:52:50,680 --> 00:52:53,279
Speaker 1: fan of good basketball, but I'm also a fan of

1116
00:52:53,400 --> 00:52:55,680
Speaker 1: like play the right way. But you know, you can't

1117
00:52:55,719 --> 00:52:57,080
Speaker 1: just sit in the paint. It kind of takes away

1118
00:52:57,120 --> 00:52:59,520
Speaker 1: from the professionalism of being able to just go get

1119
00:52:59,560 --> 00:53:01,680
Speaker 1: a bucket. You can still be in health defense, but

1120
00:53:01,760 --> 00:53:03,319
Speaker 1: you even have to be more locked in because you

1121
00:53:03,320 --> 00:53:05,520
Speaker 1: have to tag him in. In the NBA, you have

1122
00:53:05,600 --> 00:53:08,239
Speaker 1: to get But I mean, even Lucas said it's so

1123
00:53:08,320 --> 00:53:10,960
Speaker 1: much easier to score in the n b A because

1124
00:53:11,000 --> 00:53:12,920
Speaker 1: of that, And I think it allows you to to

1125
00:53:12,960 --> 00:53:16,400
Speaker 1: showcase your game and kind of separate the level of design.

1126
00:53:16,880 --> 00:53:19,239
Speaker 1: But by design right right, And I like that by

1127
00:53:19,239 --> 00:53:22,040
Speaker 1: design to healthy offense. But I like that a lot

1128
00:53:22,160 --> 00:53:24,920
Speaker 1: because it allows play that's the true essence of basketball,

1129
00:53:25,440 --> 00:53:28,600
Speaker 1: is the beauty of one on one you know, going

1130
00:53:28,640 --> 00:53:29,919
Speaker 1: to get you know what I mean, trying to get

1131
00:53:29,960 --> 00:53:32,600
Speaker 1: more you know, buckets. And that's the one thing I

1132
00:53:32,600 --> 00:53:34,160
Speaker 1: don't like that I really like in the NBA, the

1133
00:53:34,200 --> 00:53:36,239
Speaker 1: space was just so much more fluid and you could

1134
00:53:36,239 --> 00:53:39,520
Speaker 1: really make more plays. Um, all right, give me a

1135
00:53:39,560 --> 00:53:43,680
Speaker 1: guy who you had never heard of before. You played

1136
00:53:43,719 --> 00:53:46,120
Speaker 1: against him and you were like, I can't believe how

1137
00:53:46,120 --> 00:53:48,880
Speaker 1: good this dude is. I've never heard of the in

1138
00:53:48,920 --> 00:53:58,080
Speaker 1: this human being before. Oh gosh, um okay, so my

1139
00:53:58,400 --> 00:54:00,279
Speaker 1: and so I'm gonna say I played with him my

1140
00:54:00,320 --> 00:54:04,160
Speaker 1: first year, right, he busted my ass in practice every day.

1141
00:54:04,160 --> 00:54:06,319
Speaker 1: And this dude's like thirty five at the time, just

1142
00:54:06,360 --> 00:54:09,600
Speaker 1: came from Maccabi Tel Aviv, what captain there for like

1143
00:54:09,719 --> 00:54:13,160
Speaker 1: ten years. This guy, Guy Panini, Right, Guy Panini was

1144
00:54:13,160 --> 00:54:17,520
Speaker 1: was eighteen on my team in macaby Ronana and he

1145
00:54:17,560 --> 00:54:19,960
Speaker 1: would and we would and we would, we would kick

1146
00:54:20,040 --> 00:54:21,839
Speaker 1: his ass every day and touch shipped to him because

1147
00:54:21,840 --> 00:54:23,120
Speaker 1: he was he was kind of like a flake, like

1148
00:54:23,120 --> 00:54:26,240
Speaker 1: he was like eighteen, was like no, he like the ladies.

1149
00:54:26,600 --> 00:54:29,400
Speaker 1: He was. He was a good looking Israeli guy with

1150
00:54:29,480 --> 00:54:32,480
Speaker 1: good hair. He was tall and we used to funk

1151
00:54:32,520 --> 00:54:35,120
Speaker 1: with him. So Guy Panini, go ahead, and Guy, it

1152
00:54:35,239 --> 00:54:36,600
Speaker 1: was just I've never heard of him. I'm like, who

1153
00:54:36,600 --> 00:54:38,880
Speaker 1: the hell is guy? There's a guy named Guy. So

1154
00:54:38,880 --> 00:54:41,319
Speaker 1: I'm like, hey, Guy Vanini. So I showed up. He's

1155
00:54:41,360 --> 00:54:43,640
Speaker 1: the guy. I'm like, Okay, I'll start over this thirty

1156
00:54:43,640 --> 00:54:45,920
Speaker 1: four year he can shoot the ship out of it.

1157
00:54:46,160 --> 00:54:49,200
Speaker 1: He can. I mean, he's the smartest player I've ever

1158
00:54:49,239 --> 00:54:51,280
Speaker 1: played with. He'll be a head coach when he retires,

1159
00:54:51,360 --> 00:54:54,080
Speaker 1: no doubt about it. He's still with Hallan makes it.

1160
00:54:54,160 --> 00:54:56,040
Speaker 1: I mean, drops two or three times a game, hits

1161
00:54:56,080 --> 00:54:58,160
Speaker 1: a few threes, like knows his game at thirty six

1162
00:54:58,280 --> 00:55:00,799
Speaker 1: thirty seven. But that was a guy who I came

1163
00:55:00,800 --> 00:55:03,279
Speaker 1: in and I was like, this dude showed me. I

1164
00:55:03,440 --> 00:55:05,080
Speaker 1: say to this day, like I'm as good as a

1165
00:55:05,120 --> 00:55:08,400
Speaker 1: foreman over here, like making reads and stuff because he

1166
00:55:08,520 --> 00:55:10,360
Speaker 1: showed me how to do it. He showed me in

1167
00:55:10,400 --> 00:55:12,480
Speaker 1: a back stream, you know, when they hedge out, you

1168
00:55:12,520 --> 00:55:14,959
Speaker 1: just slip out when they're when they're in a drop,

1169
00:55:15,040 --> 00:55:17,560
Speaker 1: you set that back. Like he taught me those things

1170
00:55:17,560 --> 00:55:20,560
Speaker 1: that I was like, dude, like he's my greatest mentor.

1171
00:55:20,560 --> 00:55:22,600
Speaker 1: I would say on the court that I've had overseas

1172
00:55:23,160 --> 00:55:25,239
Speaker 1: um and I had no idea who he was or

1173
00:55:25,320 --> 00:55:27,839
Speaker 1: when I looked at him, you know, he's thirty four,

1174
00:55:27,880 --> 00:55:30,279
Speaker 1: I'm like, who's this average guy? Yeah, yeah, I know.

1175
00:55:30,360 --> 00:55:32,480
Speaker 1: They come in and they're just still random looking whatever.

1176
00:55:32,640 --> 00:55:35,560
Speaker 1: And then they don't they don't miss, like they don't

1177
00:55:37,360 --> 00:55:40,800
Speaker 1: they don't miss. It's like it's in there is really blood,

1178
00:55:40,840 --> 00:55:43,239
Speaker 1: you know what I mean. Like they're going back, all

1179
00:55:43,280 --> 00:55:45,000
Speaker 1: of them, they get to they get to that age

1180
00:55:45,000 --> 00:55:48,800
Speaker 1: and they just they don't, uh, they don't miss. Um.

1181
00:55:48,840 --> 00:55:53,360
Speaker 1: You mentioned this window of your prime. Obviously the dream

1182
00:55:53,600 --> 00:55:58,239
Speaker 1: is the league. How attainable is that dream? I mean

1183
00:55:58,360 --> 00:56:02,160
Speaker 1: I think that this year show Like I'm not saying

1184
00:56:02,200 --> 00:56:04,360
Speaker 1: that I'm gonna be a ten year guy, you know

1185
00:56:04,360 --> 00:56:06,680
Speaker 1: what I mean? Like, my goal is to play in

1186
00:56:06,680 --> 00:56:09,719
Speaker 1: the NBA. It doesn't matter what. It doesn't matter. If

1187
00:56:09,920 --> 00:56:11,840
Speaker 1: that's why I did, Like it didn't matter about the tender,

1188
00:56:12,120 --> 00:56:13,719
Speaker 1: Like it doesn't matter. But how did you I get

1189
00:56:13,719 --> 00:56:15,920
Speaker 1: attended this year? It seemed like everybody was getting I

1190
00:56:16,040 --> 00:56:18,120
Speaker 1: came late. I was coming off an injury at the

1191
00:56:18,200 --> 00:56:20,080
Speaker 1: end of last season, so we stayed there because there

1192
00:56:20,160 --> 00:56:22,360
Speaker 1: was the war last year in Israel, right, so we

1193
00:56:22,400 --> 00:56:24,839
Speaker 1: had to stay through that and we didn't. You didn't

1194
00:56:24,880 --> 00:56:26,840
Speaker 1: mention any of that ship I asked you about. You

1195
00:56:26,880 --> 00:56:29,040
Speaker 1: said you were in Italy and then you didn't mention

1196
00:56:29,080 --> 00:56:32,840
Speaker 1: about going back. Sorry. Yeah, So halfway through the season

1197
00:56:32,920 --> 00:56:36,200
Speaker 1: last year, Maccabi tele Aviv picks me up, okay, and

1198
00:56:36,320 --> 00:56:38,560
Speaker 1: I go out there. Okay, so hold on. So for

1199
00:56:38,600 --> 00:56:42,120
Speaker 1: people who understand, people understand European basketball, like, okay, mccaby telling.

1200
00:56:42,200 --> 00:56:46,520
Speaker 1: For people who don't like this is like the Lakers, Okay,

1201
00:56:46,719 --> 00:56:49,640
Speaker 1: mid season going like hey, dude, like you used to

1202
00:56:49,640 --> 00:56:53,960
Speaker 1: play for the Kings. The helone is better than the Kings.

1203
00:56:54,000 --> 00:56:57,880
Speaker 1: I understand, okay, but it's it's like the Kings. And

1204
00:56:57,920 --> 00:56:59,960
Speaker 1: then all of a sudden they're like, hey, the Lakers

1205
00:57:00,040 --> 00:57:02,879
Speaker 1: called and they want you on the team. So what's

1206
00:57:02,920 --> 00:57:05,960
Speaker 1: that experience like of of going to play for my

1207
00:57:06,040 --> 00:57:08,840
Speaker 1: copy tel Aviv? So like my agents like, hey, do

1208
00:57:08,880 --> 00:57:11,439
Speaker 1: you want to do this? Like you're just like yeah,

1209
00:57:12,080 --> 00:57:15,160
Speaker 1: I already started packing my bag. So just the cash

1210
00:57:15,239 --> 00:57:17,280
Speaker 1: a of like when you get there, the fans are

1211
00:57:17,280 --> 00:57:20,520
Speaker 1: all yeah, like outside when you're just walking in for

1212
00:57:20,520 --> 00:57:24,080
Speaker 1: shoot around, like so the coolest thing was just you

1213
00:57:24,120 --> 00:57:26,240
Speaker 1: know the fans support from Israel, but you get there

1214
00:57:26,280 --> 00:57:28,480
Speaker 1: and it's like you see who walk in this famous

1215
00:57:28,520 --> 00:57:31,320
Speaker 1: you know, their famous arena, and then you see everybody

1216
00:57:31,320 --> 00:57:33,040
Speaker 1: on the wall, you see all the legends, you see

1217
00:57:33,040 --> 00:57:35,640
Speaker 1: the history, you see the championships they have won. And

1218
00:57:35,720 --> 00:57:38,040
Speaker 1: so it's really just like walking down the hall of

1219
00:57:38,080 --> 00:57:39,840
Speaker 1: like seeing how I'd imagine how it would be in

1220
00:57:39,840 --> 00:57:42,480
Speaker 1: the Lakers, in the Lakers facility, Like it's a great analogy.

1221
00:57:42,880 --> 00:57:44,640
Speaker 1: So getting there and that's kind of like the dream

1222
00:57:44,680 --> 00:57:46,920
Speaker 1: as you get overseas, like can you play in the

1223
00:57:46,920 --> 00:57:49,720
Speaker 1: EuroLeague top league? And so just kind of me to

1224
00:57:49,760 --> 00:57:51,560
Speaker 1: be in the middle of the season was it was

1225
00:57:51,600 --> 00:57:54,520
Speaker 1: a transition and everything, but it was also I got

1226
00:57:54,520 --> 00:57:58,280
Speaker 1: there towards in February and towards the playoffs, we had fans,

1227
00:57:58,280 --> 00:58:00,960
Speaker 1: so I got to experience and I mean to have

1228
00:58:01,400 --> 00:58:05,000
Speaker 1: fifteen thousand rocking in that arena, screaming whether you're down

1229
00:58:05,120 --> 00:58:09,160
Speaker 1: or up, craziness like fans like I've never seen before.

1230
00:58:09,480 --> 00:58:12,440
Speaker 1: It was the true Maccabi experience and and just it

1231
00:58:12,560 --> 00:58:15,120
Speaker 1: was it was the coolest thing that I've had to

1232
00:58:15,120 --> 00:58:19,680
Speaker 1: experience as a pro from a notoriety standpoint, just the team,

1233
00:58:19,800 --> 00:58:23,800
Speaker 1: the level, the travel, the private charters that it was.

1234
00:58:24,000 --> 00:58:27,520
Speaker 1: It was everything is advertised. Okay, so war breaks out?

1235
00:58:28,440 --> 00:58:32,760
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, what what happened? So you know Hamas and

1236
00:58:32,880 --> 00:58:35,240
Speaker 1: there was you know, we're rockets from Gaza fired and

1237
00:58:35,880 --> 00:58:39,280
Speaker 1: we thought it was gonna happen, and it was you know,

1238
00:58:39,680 --> 00:58:41,680
Speaker 1: it was like two in the morning and the sirens

1239
00:58:41,680 --> 00:58:43,840
Speaker 1: just go off. And so you have a bomb room

1240
00:58:43,880 --> 00:58:46,160
Speaker 1: in your apartment. In that standard, you have to have

1241
00:58:46,200 --> 00:58:48,320
Speaker 1: a bomb room and you're somewhere in your apartment in Israel,

1242
00:58:49,200 --> 00:58:50,840
Speaker 1: so whether it be in the hallway whatever. So we

1243
00:58:50,840 --> 00:58:53,080
Speaker 1: had a bomb room in our apartment. So me and

1244
00:58:53,320 --> 00:58:57,800
Speaker 1: you know, Tyler Dorsey from Oregon, Sure, we were huh

1245
00:58:57,840 --> 00:59:00,960
Speaker 1: there exactly. So we with the Americans, two of the

1246
00:59:00,960 --> 00:59:04,680
Speaker 1: Americans out there that were not with family. So we've

1247
00:59:04,720 --> 00:59:07,640
Speaker 1: got in the bomb room. Um, just kind of waited

1248
00:59:07,640 --> 00:59:09,560
Speaker 1: it out. The sirens go off for you know, you

1249
00:59:09,600 --> 00:59:12,160
Speaker 1: hear the missiles and there's an iron dome that protects Asrael.

1250
00:59:12,160 --> 00:59:14,480
Speaker 1: For those who don't know, the iron Dome is nine

1251
00:59:14,480 --> 00:59:18,919
Speaker 1: effect percent effective. So it's like we're pretty sure we're good.

1252
00:59:18,920 --> 00:59:21,720
Speaker 1: But you know the Iron Dome everyone is. It's a

1253
00:59:21,800 --> 00:59:26,040
Speaker 1: missile defense system that shoots down these rockets right right,

1254
00:59:26,440 --> 00:59:29,200
Speaker 1: not an actual dome, but it's like it's a virtual

1255
00:59:29,240 --> 00:59:32,600
Speaker 1: dome that it's you know, like all of this cell

1256
00:59:32,640 --> 00:59:35,280
Speaker 1: phone technology that's all developed in Israel, and it was

1257
00:59:35,320 --> 00:59:38,400
Speaker 1: all developed in Israel for war, right that we used

1258
00:59:38,400 --> 00:59:40,160
Speaker 1: just to to talk on our cell phones, like all

1259
00:59:40,160 --> 00:59:42,720
Speaker 1: of this stuff, and they further did and they have

1260
00:59:42,880 --> 00:59:45,919
Speaker 1: this like the missile defense system that actually shoots down

1261
00:59:45,920 --> 00:59:49,400
Speaker 1: other missiles. So when when the missile rockets are fired, like,

1262
00:59:49,480 --> 00:59:51,480
Speaker 1: did you go outside and you're watching the Iron Dome?

1263
00:59:51,520 --> 00:59:53,400
Speaker 1: Are you in the bottom room? Like what are you doing?

1264
00:59:55,000 --> 00:59:57,520
Speaker 1: So actually, and her friend who just called me was

1265
00:59:57,520 --> 01:00:00,040
Speaker 1: actually out there and she was the one she that

1266
01:00:00,200 --> 01:00:02,200
Speaker 1: on the girl one of the girls teams and so

1267
01:00:02,280 --> 01:00:04,400
Speaker 1: with all the Americans kind together, and she was I

1268
01:00:04,440 --> 01:00:06,919
Speaker 1: was out there filming, so yeah, I mean my thing

1269
01:00:07,040 --> 01:00:09,240
Speaker 1: was like when will I ever get to experience and

1270
01:00:09,280 --> 01:00:11,640
Speaker 1: be in the thicker war again? Like the Iron Dome

1271
01:00:11,720 --> 01:00:14,080
Speaker 1: supposed to be effective, Like let's go, come on, I

1272
01:00:14,120 --> 01:00:18,040
Speaker 1: trust my Israeli people, so you know, I'm out there filming. Finally,

1273
01:00:18,120 --> 01:00:20,240
Speaker 1: get in the bomb room because the thing is when

1274
01:00:20,240 --> 01:00:21,760
Speaker 1: the sirens go off, you want to get in the

1275
01:00:21,760 --> 01:00:24,080
Speaker 1: bomb room because the missiles are done, but what the

1276
01:00:24,160 --> 01:00:26,920
Speaker 1: debris is still falling, so you don't want to be around,

1277
01:00:26,920 --> 01:00:30,200
Speaker 1: say it's your balcony, said it's anything like that. So

1278
01:00:30,560 --> 01:00:33,160
Speaker 1: that was that was the craziest thing. So it happened

1279
01:00:33,160 --> 01:00:35,200
Speaker 1: like two or three nights in a row, carried on

1280
01:00:35,400 --> 01:00:37,320
Speaker 1: for like a week. Just we'd be at practice one

1281
01:00:37,400 --> 01:00:39,760
Speaker 1: day sirens go off going this room in the building.

1282
01:00:40,800 --> 01:00:43,800
Speaker 1: So they postponed the league that half the Americans leave.

1283
01:00:44,680 --> 01:00:46,320
Speaker 1: We all, you know, some of us stick it out

1284
01:00:46,600 --> 01:00:49,240
Speaker 1: and the League got pushed back. So finally, you know,

1285
01:00:49,280 --> 01:00:52,160
Speaker 1: they had the peace treaty and they kind of resolved

1286
01:00:52,160 --> 01:00:54,000
Speaker 1: it within I think it was like two weeks. It

1287
01:00:54,080 --> 01:00:55,520
Speaker 1: was the longest that it had gone in a while.

1288
01:00:56,200 --> 01:00:58,040
Speaker 1: And uh, the first time they had shot in Tel

1289
01:00:58,080 --> 01:01:01,200
Speaker 1: Avivan like fifteen years, so it was it was quite

1290
01:01:01,200 --> 01:01:04,200
Speaker 1: the experience. Um it definitely rattled me a little bit

1291
01:01:04,240 --> 01:01:07,760
Speaker 1: overseas at the time, but I'm I'm really happy that

1292
01:01:07,840 --> 01:01:10,160
Speaker 1: did you get to go through that, because you know what,

1293
01:01:10,160 --> 01:01:12,720
Speaker 1: what what an experience, what a story that people don't

1294
01:01:12,760 --> 01:01:15,800
Speaker 1: get to have. And my perspective changed on why these

1295
01:01:15,800 --> 01:01:18,040
Speaker 1: people are the way they are in Israel. They have

1296
01:01:18,160 --> 01:01:20,280
Speaker 1: to be they have to be you know that. That's

1297
01:01:20,360 --> 01:01:23,600
Speaker 1: that's that's the part that I don't think enough, like

1298
01:01:23,800 --> 01:01:27,440
Speaker 1: we just we don't understand. You cannot tell an American

1299
01:01:27,520 --> 01:01:31,919
Speaker 1: who has hasn't been to Israel. You can't say, hey,

1300
01:01:32,200 --> 01:01:34,000
Speaker 1: you gotta have these ideas and you have to have

1301
01:01:34,120 --> 01:01:37,360
Speaker 1: treat these people like no, no, you don't understand. Like

1302
01:01:37,680 --> 01:01:40,040
Speaker 1: on all sides, they're surrounded by countries that don't want

1303
01:01:40,080 --> 01:01:43,479
Speaker 1: them to exist, right right, right, They don't really want peace,

1304
01:01:43,520 --> 01:01:46,360
Speaker 1: they actually want to they want them off into the sea. Right,

1305
01:01:47,000 --> 01:01:50,240
Speaker 1: So it's a you have to our mentality is one

1306
01:01:50,280 --> 01:01:53,160
Speaker 1: where we can maintain some peaceful sense because we're separated

1307
01:01:53,240 --> 01:01:56,080
Speaker 1: from all the people that don't like us, right right.

1308
01:01:56,760 --> 01:01:59,440
Speaker 1: They don't have that ability. You can't. That's just not

1309
01:01:59,480 --> 01:02:03,160
Speaker 1: the way it works. And it changes your perspective, right

1310
01:02:03,960 --> 01:02:06,720
Speaker 1: and yeah, and and it makes you understand why they

1311
01:02:06,760 --> 01:02:08,840
Speaker 1: carry a chip on their shoulder. They have to. They

1312
01:02:08,880 --> 01:02:10,840
Speaker 1: have to be watching their back at all times. The

1313
01:02:10,920 --> 01:02:13,520
Speaker 1: sirens can go off, and that's what they It was

1314
01:02:13,600 --> 01:02:16,520
Speaker 1: kind of a normalized thing to them. Um that the

1315
01:02:16,600 --> 01:02:18,440
Speaker 1: Israeli teammates are kind of like you know this, you know,

1316
01:02:18,520 --> 01:02:20,920
Speaker 1: not to this extent, but this happens sometimes it happens.

1317
01:02:20,960 --> 01:02:23,040
Speaker 1: That is why we have the Iron Dome. So just

1318
01:02:23,040 --> 01:02:25,400
Speaker 1: to see that that's kind of the atmosphere that they

1319
01:02:25,440 --> 01:02:27,600
Speaker 1: live in and they make the most of it. But

1320
01:02:27,720 --> 01:02:29,800
Speaker 1: it is, it is. It takes you know, I have

1321
01:02:29,840 --> 01:02:32,240
Speaker 1: a lot of credit for them to uh to still

1322
01:02:32,280 --> 01:02:34,320
Speaker 1: carry on and and and live their lives the way

1323
01:02:34,360 --> 01:02:37,280
Speaker 1: they do with like you said, every country around them

1324
01:02:37,360 --> 01:02:40,320
Speaker 1: wants them dead. Like there's there's no negotiating about it.

1325
01:02:40,320 --> 01:02:44,280
Speaker 1: There's no like, well maybe they're kind no like and

1326
01:02:44,320 --> 01:02:47,080
Speaker 1: so no, it's it definitely puts a perspective change in

1327
01:02:47,120 --> 01:02:52,360
Speaker 1: your head, makes you appreciate it. Um, coolest place you've

1328
01:02:52,400 --> 01:02:59,880
Speaker 1: been in your travels. Coolest place, um, I would say,

1329
01:03:00,800 --> 01:03:03,480
Speaker 1: I would say Barcelona went open to go basic. Monico.

1330
01:03:03,720 --> 01:03:06,200
Speaker 1: Monica was sick my from my rookie year. We went

1331
01:03:06,240 --> 01:03:08,200
Speaker 1: to Monica and you look outside, you wake up and

1332
01:03:08,200 --> 01:03:10,840
Speaker 1: it's just yeah yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, just

1333
01:03:11,040 --> 01:03:13,800
Speaker 1: you know, from everything of the city to Lambo. I

1334
01:03:13,800 --> 01:03:16,120
Speaker 1: mean you won't see a regular car out there. So

1335
01:03:16,200 --> 01:03:18,920
Speaker 1: Monica is probably the coolest eye opening thing. As a rookie.

1336
01:03:19,000 --> 01:03:22,800
Speaker 1: I was like, okay, this is Europe, um, okay, place

1337
01:03:22,880 --> 01:03:29,400
Speaker 1: that you least like man, uh that's a big a

1338
01:03:29,440 --> 01:03:32,200
Speaker 1: team that doesn't have a good budget. Um okay, uh

1339
01:03:33,880 --> 01:03:37,960
Speaker 1: at least like he's like you had there, Like, dude,

1340
01:03:38,480 --> 01:03:43,240
Speaker 1: this is rough. Um there's a place in Russia yea, yeah, yeah,

1341
01:03:43,640 --> 01:03:47,040
Speaker 1: mineral in Russia. It was the greatest ugliest place I've

1342
01:03:47,080 --> 01:03:50,240
Speaker 1: ever been in my life. Yes, So what was the

1343
01:03:50,280 --> 01:03:52,720
Speaker 1: name is cy? You just said mineral Vola. It was

1344
01:03:52,720 --> 01:03:55,160
Speaker 1: like mineral water Vota. Okay, So I got another one

1345
01:03:55,200 --> 01:03:57,080
Speaker 1: for you. No, I'm gonna say. I'm gonna say car

1346
01:03:57,160 --> 01:04:00,160
Speaker 1: Shaka Turkey. That was That was a weird one. That

1347
01:04:00,280 --> 01:04:03,280
Speaker 1: was also my freshman year or my rookie year, Keisan freshman.

1348
01:04:03,560 --> 01:04:06,760
Speaker 1: That was my rookie year. Going to car shaka Um

1349
01:04:06,800 --> 01:04:10,520
Speaker 1: Turkey was just it was it's in uh, it's in Ismir,

1350
01:04:11,320 --> 01:04:13,680
Speaker 1: and it was just like I was living in Istanbul

1351
01:04:13,720 --> 01:04:15,560
Speaker 1: and that's kind of like a little bit you know, listen.

1352
01:04:15,840 --> 01:04:19,000
Speaker 1: Was amazing, unreal. So I'm like, okay, this is cool

1353
01:04:19,080 --> 01:04:21,360
Speaker 1: this party. But then you got to go on to

1354
01:04:21,400 --> 01:04:24,040
Speaker 1: see the real side of like kind of the underbelly

1355
01:04:24,040 --> 01:04:26,880
Speaker 1: of Turkey a little bit. And uh, I look outside.

1356
01:04:26,960 --> 01:04:28,760
Speaker 1: There was a there was a dirt road and that

1357
01:04:28,840 --> 01:04:31,320
Speaker 1: was our that was our scenery, just a dirt you know,

1358
01:04:31,440 --> 01:04:33,600
Speaker 1: crop field, and I was like, okay, all right, we're

1359
01:04:33,600 --> 01:04:35,920
Speaker 1: in We're in Turkey. So I would say that was

1360
01:04:36,000 --> 01:04:41,280
Speaker 1: kind of the weird one for me. Um okay, so, uh,

1361
01:04:41,640 --> 01:04:45,400
Speaker 1: last thing in ten years, Where where is t J. Klein?

1362
01:04:45,480 --> 01:04:54,560
Speaker 1: What is he doing? Hopefully you know honestly, Like and

1363
01:04:54,800 --> 01:04:58,200
Speaker 1: it's it's worked, you know, decently to this point. Um, Like,

1364
01:04:58,240 --> 01:05:00,240
Speaker 1: I just want to just keep doing as well can

1365
01:05:00,320 --> 01:05:02,760
Speaker 1: in basketball as far as I know that sounds cliche,

1366
01:05:02,840 --> 01:05:05,000
Speaker 1: but in the sense of like I've said, like just

1367
01:05:05,080 --> 01:05:07,360
Speaker 1: take take what's in front of me and not kind

1368
01:05:07,360 --> 01:05:09,400
Speaker 1: of playing it out, but the end goal is to

1369
01:05:10,520 --> 01:05:13,440
Speaker 1: just make connections that can help pass it on to

1370
01:05:13,560 --> 01:05:15,479
Speaker 1: kind of the younger. Mean, we talked about how much

1371
01:05:16,400 --> 01:05:18,360
Speaker 1: if we could tell someone about the transfer portal. Now,

1372
01:05:18,440 --> 01:05:19,800
Speaker 1: like that's kind of where I'm at. I have a

1373
01:05:19,840 --> 01:05:21,960
Speaker 1: lot of younger siblings. I have a lot of younger

1374
01:05:22,360 --> 01:05:24,640
Speaker 1: you know kids, Grant Gold and Jacob Billiard, guys that

1375
01:05:24,680 --> 01:05:26,880
Speaker 1: are just younger that I've kind of given advice to.

1376
01:05:27,440 --> 01:05:29,919
Speaker 1: And I really see, like that's kind of the whole

1377
01:05:29,960 --> 01:05:32,520
Speaker 1: point of this whole thing. And so I'm just I mean,

1378
01:05:32,560 --> 01:05:34,280
Speaker 1: I want to be able to connect athletes and kind

1379
01:05:34,280 --> 01:05:37,760
Speaker 1: of help them, especially overseas athletes, to get their mindset

1380
01:05:37,840 --> 01:05:40,520
Speaker 1: right before they come over here, and kind of build

1381
01:05:41,200 --> 01:05:43,600
Speaker 1: a network where you can reach out and you can

1382
01:05:43,680 --> 01:05:45,160
Speaker 1: hit up a guy who played for this coach and

1383
01:05:45,240 --> 01:05:48,120
Speaker 1: kind of you can have an understanding and be educated

1384
01:05:48,160 --> 01:05:49,840
Speaker 1: on what it is because if you just go over here,

1385
01:05:49,880 --> 01:05:52,520
Speaker 1: I've seen a lot of guys, myself included. I wasn't

1386
01:05:52,520 --> 01:05:55,360
Speaker 1: ready for a standbul That's a tough place as a rookie,

1387
01:05:55,640 --> 01:05:57,479
Speaker 1: and I left. I went to I told my agent,

1388
01:05:57,600 --> 01:05:59,320
Speaker 1: I gotta leave. I gotta go to Israel. You know

1389
01:05:59,360 --> 01:06:01,800
Speaker 1: that sounds like a replaced but I wish that I

1390
01:06:01,840 --> 01:06:04,120
Speaker 1: would have, you know, just had someone to kind of

1391
01:06:04,560 --> 01:06:06,040
Speaker 1: let me know how it was. So that's what I

1392
01:06:06,040 --> 01:06:07,560
Speaker 1: want to do, just kind of help out the younger

1393
01:06:07,560 --> 01:06:10,480
Speaker 1: generation and in any way that I can. I mean,

1394
01:06:10,560 --> 01:06:15,360
Speaker 1: that's that's kind of the you know, networking, communicating, you know,

1395
01:06:15,440 --> 01:06:18,320
Speaker 1: building people together is kind of where I'm finding myself

1396
01:06:18,440 --> 01:06:20,200
Speaker 1: right now and kind of what I've been doing. How

1397
01:06:20,280 --> 01:06:23,840
Speaker 1: much you get to watch the NBA playoffs, Um, I'm

1398
01:06:23,880 --> 01:06:28,600
Speaker 1: a psychopath, So uh, I'm the one the one thirty game.

1399
01:06:28,640 --> 01:06:30,640
Speaker 1: I'm in one thirty am game. I'm in here. The

1400
01:06:30,640 --> 01:06:32,680
Speaker 1: four o'clock game was just tough because my boy, Luke,

1401
01:06:32,720 --> 01:06:35,640
Speaker 1: I'm from Dallas. That one's recorded for the morning. So

1402
01:06:35,680 --> 01:06:38,480
Speaker 1: we go on morning, then we'll we go. First things first,

1403
01:06:38,480 --> 01:06:41,360
Speaker 1: and I heard see what's going on? Is Luca? Who

1404
01:06:41,480 --> 01:06:46,080
Speaker 1: is Luca the most popular guy? Uh overseas? Or is

1405
01:06:46,120 --> 01:06:50,080
Speaker 1: it KD? Is it step Luca? For sure? Luca for sure,

1406
01:06:50,200 --> 01:06:53,479
Speaker 1: especially in Spain and stuff like seventy seven everywhere because

1407
01:06:53,480 --> 01:06:56,280
Speaker 1: he was at Real Madrid. So I mean, Luca is

1408
01:06:56,320 --> 01:06:58,680
Speaker 1: the biggest one over here. Um when I went when

1409
01:06:58,720 --> 01:07:01,800
Speaker 1: we played in Greece last year, onto the combo jerseys

1410
01:07:01,880 --> 01:07:04,560
Speaker 1: like everywhere and on every corner you know, three four

1411
01:07:04,760 --> 01:07:07,440
Speaker 1: this that. So he's the biggest obviously in Greece. But

1412
01:07:07,520 --> 01:07:10,080
Speaker 1: over all that I've seen in Luca is definitely the

1413
01:07:10,080 --> 01:07:12,640
Speaker 1: the prodigy of Europe. I've tried to explain to people

1414
01:07:12,720 --> 01:07:15,760
Speaker 1: that they don't they don't dig the ice of ball,

1415
01:07:16,000 --> 01:07:19,720
Speaker 1: they don't dig what is it? What about lebron k

1416
01:07:19,920 --> 01:07:23,880
Speaker 1: d those guys, what's the what's the real basketball guys? Was?

1417
01:07:24,320 --> 01:07:27,680
Speaker 1: What's what's the feeling like of those guys overseas? Like

1418
01:07:27,840 --> 01:07:30,160
Speaker 1: what do what do the fans think of them, you know,

1419
01:07:30,240 --> 01:07:35,240
Speaker 1: the fans, uh. The I always I've always got the

1420
01:07:35,240 --> 01:07:40,880
Speaker 1: feeling that the European coaches GMS players, they respect the

1421
01:07:40,920 --> 01:07:44,280
Speaker 1: athletic talent, but they don't they don't like the way

1422
01:07:44,280 --> 01:07:47,800
Speaker 1: they play. They don't think. They don't like guys that

1423
01:07:48,040 --> 01:07:52,600
Speaker 1: you know why, right, what there I mean and this

1424
01:07:52,680 --> 01:07:55,000
Speaker 1: is what this is the culture very structure. Right, we're

1425
01:07:55,000 --> 01:07:57,240
Speaker 1: gonna on the structure here, You're gonna shot early, You're

1426
01:07:57,240 --> 01:07:58,800
Speaker 1: gonna come from the corner. I don't care what the

1427
01:07:58,840 --> 01:08:01,880
Speaker 1: deal is. He's gonna ship down. So that's the system.

1428
01:08:02,040 --> 01:08:04,320
Speaker 1: When you can kind of open that guy opened that

1429
01:08:04,400 --> 01:08:06,080
Speaker 1: up to like the one on one game, you lose

1430
01:08:06,120 --> 01:08:08,280
Speaker 1: a little bit of your structure. You lose a little

1431
01:08:08,280 --> 01:08:10,160
Speaker 1: bit of that on that least that you hold on too.

1432
01:08:10,600 --> 01:08:14,160
Speaker 1: So I think that's why that they're so And I

1433
01:08:14,200 --> 01:08:16,000
Speaker 1: think it's all has to do with that three seconds too,

1434
01:08:16,000 --> 01:08:18,120
Speaker 1: because if you can just pack the paint, now you

1435
01:08:18,160 --> 01:08:19,760
Speaker 1: have to run something where you can't just give it

1436
01:08:19,800 --> 01:08:21,639
Speaker 1: to one guy because even if he gets past there.

1437
01:08:22,240 --> 01:08:24,800
Speaker 1: So they think that it should be more like we are.

1438
01:08:24,840 --> 01:08:28,200
Speaker 1: It should be slowed down. You know, every possession matters, um.

1439
01:08:29,240 --> 01:08:31,599
Speaker 1: But but you know they do you know they still

1440
01:08:31,600 --> 01:08:33,560
Speaker 1: love the low post game, so that they think that

1441
01:08:33,600 --> 01:08:35,120
Speaker 1: it should be thrown in the low post, the four

1442
01:08:35,160 --> 01:08:37,320
Speaker 1: and five and play out of it. Some teams strictly

1443
01:08:37,320 --> 01:08:40,200
Speaker 1: play out of the four and five, like point guards

1444
01:08:40,200 --> 01:08:41,800
Speaker 1: do not do anything, but you throw it in and

1445
01:08:41,840 --> 01:08:43,560
Speaker 1: then you run your flare action and we'll play a

1446
01:08:43,560 --> 01:08:47,080
Speaker 1: step up ball. But but so that they're really back

1447
01:08:47,080 --> 01:08:49,040
Speaker 1: in the old way that their way works, it's a

1448
01:08:49,040 --> 01:08:51,519
Speaker 1: different They take pride that Europe is a different style

1449
01:08:51,520 --> 01:08:55,240
Speaker 1: of basketball and they don't want to to transition that way. Yeah,

1450
01:08:55,320 --> 01:08:57,560
Speaker 1: I would, I would. I would agree. Who do you

1451
01:08:57,600 --> 01:09:01,600
Speaker 1: think gets to the punish right? I mean, look, and

1452
01:09:01,640 --> 01:09:06,160
Speaker 1: I think the sons Um Soult's a good last night now?

1453
01:09:06,200 --> 01:09:09,120
Speaker 1: I think the Heat, sons in the heat. Hmm, what

1454
01:09:09,520 --> 01:09:14,360
Speaker 1: do you got? I think the Warriors. I think the Warriors,

1455
01:09:15,080 --> 01:09:17,160
Speaker 1: like I don't know, like I'm I'm intrigued. I don't

1456
01:09:17,200 --> 01:09:19,400
Speaker 1: know sons were I mean part of his Clay doesn't

1457
01:09:19,479 --> 01:09:22,240
Speaker 1: does not yet looked like Clay, and I don't know

1458
01:09:22,280 --> 01:09:24,880
Speaker 1: if he will. I think the more games are better

1459
01:09:24,960 --> 01:09:27,519
Speaker 1: for him. I'm sure his body is super worn down

1460
01:09:27,520 --> 01:09:29,120
Speaker 1: by it, right, because you don't play for two years now,

1461
01:09:29,120 --> 01:09:30,519
Speaker 1: all of a a sudden, you're playing all these games at

1462
01:09:30,520 --> 01:09:33,439
Speaker 1: this high level. Was hard. But I do think that

1463
01:09:34,000 --> 01:09:35,840
Speaker 1: you know, all you need is a couple of clay

1464
01:09:35,920 --> 01:09:39,000
Speaker 1: games in the playoffs, and that's a completely different team.

1465
01:09:39,320 --> 01:09:42,640
Speaker 1: They haven't gotten that yet. Losing losing Gary Payne, you

1466
01:09:42,640 --> 01:09:47,120
Speaker 1: don't know if you he broke his ankle yesterday, Um,

1467
01:09:47,240 --> 01:09:50,040
Speaker 1: that's gonna hurt and that's gonna change them. Um. But

1468
01:09:50,120 --> 01:09:52,720
Speaker 1: I still think the Warriors, I don't know. I just

1469
01:09:53,320 --> 01:09:55,479
Speaker 1: the way in which they they're so good that small

1470
01:09:55,520 --> 01:09:58,760
Speaker 1: ball that I think that's a really hard thing to

1471
01:09:58,800 --> 01:10:00,960
Speaker 1: stop because eight and will have to come out on

1472
01:10:01,000 --> 01:10:03,640
Speaker 1: the floor and you know, and I also don't know

1473
01:10:03,680 --> 01:10:08,479
Speaker 1: what Chris Paul looks like when you get one more series, right, like, yeah, yeah,

1474
01:10:08,600 --> 01:10:11,320
Speaker 1: that's he's still in his late and he's he's broken

1475
01:10:11,320 --> 01:10:14,639
Speaker 1: down before. He looks great, but there's there's always there's

1476
01:10:14,640 --> 01:10:17,080
Speaker 1: a limit there at that age. Um. And then in

1477
01:10:17,080 --> 01:10:19,960
Speaker 1: the East, the Celtics are great. I agree with you.

1478
01:10:20,000 --> 01:10:21,880
Speaker 1: In the heat, they're just so good defensive, it's like

1479
01:10:21,880 --> 01:10:24,360
Speaker 1: they're unbelievable. And they go a small ball with Tucker

1480
01:10:24,400 --> 01:10:28,000
Speaker 1: at the five, like that's a really top bam bam

1481
01:10:28,040 --> 01:10:29,400
Speaker 1: at the five and go talk. You know what I mean,

1482
01:10:29,479 --> 01:10:32,240
Speaker 1: we have Bam Tucker and you can go with Jimmy

1483
01:10:32,280 --> 01:10:35,479
Speaker 1: Butler and well and then you know, they can just

1484
01:10:35,520 --> 01:10:37,760
Speaker 1: throw dudes out at you. And you know, maybe they

1485
01:10:37,760 --> 01:10:39,360
Speaker 1: have Hero out there who they try and hide a

1486
01:10:39,400 --> 01:10:42,200
Speaker 1: little bit defensively, or or Max s Ruce. I mean,

1487
01:10:42,280 --> 01:10:46,080
Speaker 1: but they just guard. They can just throw so many

1488
01:10:46,160 --> 01:10:48,680
Speaker 1: had that position you go, you're Ductr Robinson, Max and

1489
01:10:48,680 --> 01:10:51,599
Speaker 1: those guys are just keep running, keep running, keep running,

1490
01:10:52,000 --> 01:10:54,760
Speaker 1: and then you throw in Gave Vincent's playing well like

1491
01:10:54,880 --> 01:10:56,600
Speaker 1: and then when they get Lowry back, it's you know

1492
01:10:56,640 --> 01:10:58,840
Speaker 1: what I mean, I I that's a team that just

1493
01:10:58,880 --> 01:11:00,960
Speaker 1: has so many weapons. They is never get tired. And

1494
01:11:01,000 --> 01:11:04,519
Speaker 1: the way that how hard they play on defense, It's

1495
01:11:04,520 --> 01:11:06,240
Speaker 1: gonna be hard to go to Miami and come out

1496
01:11:06,280 --> 01:11:08,080
Speaker 1: of there even if I mean the Celtics and I

1497
01:11:08,080 --> 01:11:10,000
Speaker 1: think the Celtics and Bucks are just gonna beat the

1498
01:11:10,040 --> 01:11:14,800
Speaker 1: living crap out of it have been yeah, I think,

1499
01:11:15,000 --> 01:11:17,000
Speaker 1: I mean, I do think the Celtics have more firepower.

1500
01:11:17,479 --> 01:11:19,320
Speaker 1: Obviously it helps when Jayalen hits all those shots like

1501
01:11:19,400 --> 01:11:22,120
Speaker 1: last night, but the Bucks that that dude is so

1502
01:11:22,200 --> 01:11:24,240
Speaker 1: hard to stop. I don't know, like that's what I

1503
01:11:24,280 --> 01:11:26,000
Speaker 1: look at. Like I watched John Marint last time, Like,

1504
01:11:26,000 --> 01:11:27,840
Speaker 1: how do you guard a guy who if you play off,

1505
01:11:28,280 --> 01:11:31,360
Speaker 1: he just plays downhill. You know, you play up on him.

1506
01:11:31,400 --> 01:11:33,479
Speaker 1: He goes by you and he just makes just enough

1507
01:11:33,520 --> 01:11:36,360
Speaker 1: shots to keep you kind of thinking you can shoot. Yeah.

1508
01:11:36,439 --> 01:11:39,519
Speaker 1: Like and Jan this is a dissimilar but similar in

1509
01:11:39,520 --> 01:11:42,080
Speaker 1: the same way. You know, you play back on him

1510
01:11:42,120 --> 01:11:44,920
Speaker 1: and he starts going downhill into his spin move like

1511
01:11:44,960 --> 01:11:46,880
Speaker 1: that ship is. And then you know, the second you

1512
01:11:46,920 --> 01:11:49,920
Speaker 1: help he he finds the open shooter and it hits

1513
01:11:49,960 --> 01:11:52,719
Speaker 1: you from three. Yeah, So that that team is interesting

1514
01:11:52,760 --> 01:11:55,320
Speaker 1: when they get if they get Middleton back, Yeah, when

1515
01:11:55,360 --> 01:11:57,280
Speaker 1: you hit that pull up three yesterday, I was it's

1516
01:11:57,320 --> 01:11:59,519
Speaker 1: just like that just one pull up three game just

1517
01:11:59,560 --> 01:12:02,320
Speaker 1: adds element where I need to be just a step closer.

1518
01:12:02,640 --> 01:12:05,000
Speaker 1: And that's all he needs to get past that first line,

1519
01:12:05,600 --> 01:12:07,519
Speaker 1: and he's really become a hell of a pastor. Like

1520
01:12:07,560 --> 01:12:10,759
Speaker 1: that's the craziest part to me is his vision after

1521
01:12:10,840 --> 01:12:13,360
Speaker 1: that first line. All right, So look, you who are

1522
01:12:13,360 --> 01:12:16,880
Speaker 1: you taking? I think I said, I said, but I

1523
01:12:16,880 --> 01:12:18,960
Speaker 1: think I said the Bucks and the Warriors, And I'm

1524
01:12:18,960 --> 01:12:22,000
Speaker 1: definitely hedging on the Bucks thing without Middleton m a

1525
01:12:22,000 --> 01:12:25,040
Speaker 1: lot better with Milton. Um. I like the construction of

1526
01:12:25,080 --> 01:12:27,600
Speaker 1: the Celtics. I like the I like most the construction

1527
01:12:27,760 --> 01:12:30,400
Speaker 1: of the Heat. I'm not as big on a Lowry

1528
01:12:30,439 --> 01:12:32,479
Speaker 1: as other people are, just because at this point his

1529
01:12:32,479 --> 01:12:35,439
Speaker 1: his age. He comes back and I don't know if

1530
01:12:35,439 --> 01:12:37,280
Speaker 1: they have the scoring to do it. I mean, I

1531
01:12:37,280 --> 01:12:40,599
Speaker 1: do know Hero can score, but I feel like they

1532
01:12:40,600 --> 01:12:43,040
Speaker 1: want to play through Jimmy Butler, and I don't love

1533
01:12:43,080 --> 01:12:44,840
Speaker 1: that this year. I like Jimmy Butler when he's your

1534
01:12:44,840 --> 01:12:47,160
Speaker 1: third best score, when scoring is just something that happens,

1535
01:12:47,200 --> 01:12:50,160
Speaker 1: you know. Um. So the East, I'm kind I think

1536
01:12:50,200 --> 01:12:52,759
Speaker 1: the East is super competitive. I honestly thought the Nets,

1537
01:12:52,920 --> 01:12:55,680
Speaker 1: had they gotten healthy, had a shot, but they just

1538
01:12:55,800 --> 01:12:57,639
Speaker 1: you can't without If you don't have practice, you don't

1539
01:12:57,640 --> 01:13:00,000
Speaker 1: have healthy dudes. So I think I said the Bucks,

1540
01:13:00,040 --> 01:13:02,800
Speaker 1: but I'm definitely edging on that one. Yeah, that's but

1541
01:13:02,840 --> 01:13:05,400
Speaker 1: I like the Warriors pick though. I really do like

1542
01:13:05,400 --> 01:13:07,080
Speaker 1: I could see if I could see them going to

1543
01:13:07,120 --> 01:13:10,080
Speaker 1: win two straight at home, and then the rest is that,

1544
01:13:10,400 --> 01:13:12,760
Speaker 1: all right, let's let's do this. Let's if you have

1545
01:13:12,880 --> 01:13:14,920
Speaker 1: time later on the playoffs, let's do it again. But

1546
01:13:14,960 --> 01:13:17,920
Speaker 1: we'll do only NBA analysis. What you see, what you like,

1547
01:13:18,040 --> 01:13:20,400
Speaker 1: what you don't like? I love it would be a blast, man,

1548
01:13:20,439 --> 01:13:23,040
Speaker 1: Thanks for having me on. You definitely win the background challenge.

1549
01:13:23,040 --> 01:13:26,559
Speaker 1: You's never been a background okay. And and the and

1550
01:13:26,680 --> 01:13:29,360
Speaker 1: the out taking videos of the Golden Dome is it

1551
01:13:29,560 --> 01:13:32,640
Speaker 1: is a is a big one. Um. You need to

1552
01:13:32,680 --> 01:13:34,200
Speaker 1: send me some of those so we can put some

1553
01:13:34,200 --> 01:13:36,360
Speaker 1: of those clips on because I'm sure that those that's amazing.

1554
01:13:36,439 --> 01:13:39,360
Speaker 1: And I'm happy you're safe and have fun at practice.

1555
01:13:39,400 --> 01:13:41,800
Speaker 1: We'll talk to you soon. I appreciate it, Bro, You'll

1556
01:13:41,800 --> 01:13:44,320
Speaker 1: get those videos soon. I got him say no, TJ

1557
01:13:44,479 --> 01:13:50,320
Speaker 1: the best, thank you? Oh man, see it. That was

1558
01:13:50,360 --> 01:13:52,840
Speaker 1: amazing Right now. I want t J kind to be

1559
01:13:52,920 --> 01:13:57,639
Speaker 1: my NBA analysts the rest of the year. Um uh,

1560
01:13:57,720 --> 01:14:01,400
Speaker 1: super interesting thoughts on the league and fascinating stories on

1561
01:14:01,560 --> 01:14:04,840
Speaker 1: playing overseas. My thanks to him. Of course you can

1562
01:14:05,080 --> 01:14:07,439
Speaker 1: if you like it, you can tweet at t J

1563
01:14:07,840 --> 01:14:11,960
Speaker 1: at at t J clein six client is c l

1564
01:14:12,200 --> 01:14:15,920
Speaker 1: I n E six at t J clein six and

1565
01:14:16,080 --> 01:14:18,360
Speaker 1: give him all the props and love you want because

1566
01:14:18,400 --> 01:14:20,200
Speaker 1: that that was great. Reminder of the doug Otleep shows

1567
01:14:20,240 --> 01:14:22,360
Speaker 1: daily three to six Eastern twelve three Pacific can also

1568
01:14:22,400 --> 01:14:26,000
Speaker 1: download the Doug ot Lip Show podcast where you downloaded

1569
01:14:26,160 --> 01:14:29,479
Speaker 1: this podcast. My thanks for listening. Remember to um to

1570
01:14:29,840 --> 01:14:33,040
Speaker 1: write a review, to download, subscribe, rate it, and I

1571
01:14:33,080 --> 01:14:35,080
Speaker 1: hope you enjoyed it. I'm Doug Gottlie. This is all

1572
01:14:35,120 --> 01:14:35,320
Speaker 1: ball