WEBVTT - KJ Live - Jerica Williams 0:00:01.280 --> 0:00:10.479 This is kJ Live with Chris Johnson, and Chris is 0:00:10.520 --> 0:00:14.520 having conversations with influencers in the sports world and entertainment 0:00:14.520 --> 0:00:21.040 and astray. Now here's Chris Johnson. You're now tuned in 0:00:21.079 --> 0:00:25.159 to kJ Live. Today's guest on the show is a 0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:30.480 former ball player, current day coach, and was named Associated 0:00:30.480 --> 0:00:34.159 Press and Detroit Free Press Coach of the Year in 0:00:34.200 --> 0:00:37.120 their very first season at Detroit Country Day High School. 0:00:37.760 --> 0:00:42.360 She was recently brought back home to be head coach 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:45.280 at Wynward High School. Let's welcome in Jericho Williams to 0:00:45.280 --> 0:00:50.160 the show. Jericho. Hello, Hi, thanks for having me. Thanks 0:00:50.240 --> 0:00:53.680 for having us in your world, in your zone. I 0:00:53.720 --> 0:00:56.760 appreciate it. I know you're a busy lady to make 0:00:56.800 --> 0:01:00.520 time for something like this, I truly appreciate it. Um. 0:01:00.600 --> 0:01:03.240 We're excited to kind of find out your about your 0:01:03.320 --> 0:01:08.199 journey and can obviously talk about your your president, coaching 0:01:08.280 --> 0:01:10.160 job and when we're but I want to get started 0:01:10.600 --> 0:01:12.399 before we get into all that. I want. I want 0:01:12.400 --> 0:01:15.440 to introduce you to my audience. This is something we 0:01:15.480 --> 0:01:18.440 do here at kJ live. We go back. Um. I 0:01:18.480 --> 0:01:22.080 think people get um some value out of understanding where 0:01:22.080 --> 0:01:26.240 a person has come from to understand who they are now. Um, 0:01:26.280 --> 0:01:29.080 if you don't mind, where were you born in the city, 0:01:29.319 --> 0:01:34.600 like the area, the neighborhood. Yeah, a lot of people 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:36.679 don't know this, But I was actually born in Albany, Oregon, 0:01:36.959 --> 0:01:40.520 which is a small town. Uh, right outside of Salem, 0:01:40.600 --> 0:01:44.560 so about the hour south of Portland's but like right 0:01:44.600 --> 0:01:48.760 in the middle of Oregon and Oregon State. Um Civil 0:01:48.840 --> 0:01:56.880 War countries. Yeah, um, super super super small town. Um. 0:01:57.080 --> 0:02:00.400 We lived there for until I was seven or eight, 0:02:00.640 --> 0:02:04.480 and then we moved to San Diego because my mom 0:02:04.800 --> 0:02:09.200 got accepted into a master's program and my dad it 0:02:09.320 --> 0:02:11.720 was like okay, like here we go. So he went 0:02:11.760 --> 0:02:14.680 ahead and got in a car and went and lived 0:02:14.680 --> 0:02:17.240 in a hotel for three months and then found us 0:02:17.280 --> 0:02:21.000 a house and we moved and they're still living in 0:02:21.000 --> 0:02:24.440 the same neighborhood that we moved to San Diego that 0:02:24.560 --> 0:02:28.120 we originally moved to San Diego back in however or 0:02:28.120 --> 0:02:31.240 whatever it was. So, but I so I grew up 0:02:31.240 --> 0:02:33.320 in San Diego. How WoT I tell peop? What? So 0:02:33.400 --> 0:02:39.680 I'm from um Spring Valley, which is like southeast San Diego. Um, 0:02:39.760 --> 0:02:41.320 what I'd like to say, Like I grew up on 0:02:41.360 --> 0:02:47.880 like the hill above the hood. So like like I 0:02:47.960 --> 0:02:52.280 went to all inner city schools, but like my little 0:02:52.320 --> 0:02:55.440 neighborhood was like kind of the hill above, you know, 0:02:55.480 --> 0:02:59.079 where all the stuff happened. Um, but yeah, that's where 0:02:59.080 --> 0:03:03.799 I'm from. Okay, sounds similar to um, kind of Viewpark 0:03:03.919 --> 0:03:05.520 where I grew up. And then you have South Central 0:03:05.560 --> 0:03:07.440 and Crunch show, like we're right up on the hill, 0:03:07.520 --> 0:03:09.799 but we're like three minutes away from the action. When 0:03:09.840 --> 0:03:13.760 you said Southeast, it reminded me of my boy Jelanie 0:03:13.800 --> 0:03:15.840 McCoy because he used to write that on his shoes. 0:03:15.880 --> 0:03:18.639 He's from San Diego. I think he might be from 0:03:18.639 --> 0:03:24.079 the Southeast area. Is that where like Hoover is And yeah, 0:03:23.600 --> 0:03:26.240 it's the hood San Diego, Like that's where the hood 0:03:26.320 --> 0:03:29.680 is A yeah, exactly, exactly. So yeah. So so okay, 0:03:29.760 --> 0:03:33.160 so Southeast. Now what did your parents do? You said 0:03:33.200 --> 0:03:35.680 your mom got accepted to masters, so she was, uh 0:03:36.680 --> 0:03:38.960 in academics or what was going on her? And what 0:03:39.040 --> 0:03:42.880 was your dad involved in? So they actually good question. 0:03:42.880 --> 0:03:46.760 I actually both got their masters in psychology. Um. So 0:03:46.880 --> 0:03:51.000 my dad was in uh juvenile delinquency. He got masters 0:03:51.040 --> 0:03:53.080 from San Diego State, and then my mom got her 0:03:53.080 --> 0:03:56.560 masters and then went for her PhD UM in Marriage 0:03:56.560 --> 0:03:59.160 and Family THERAPI. So always tell people, you know, part 0:03:59.200 --> 0:04:02.200 of like my coaching expertise and why I'm so good 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:04.720 with people, or so I've heard, is because I was 0:04:04.800 --> 0:04:08.280 raised by psychologists. So I mean it was connect with 0:04:08.280 --> 0:04:11.160 people on a different level. But um So, now, my 0:04:11.240 --> 0:04:14.640 mom when she was in her PhD program, she actually 0:04:15.120 --> 0:04:17.280 got into insurance to help. She was a young mom. 0:04:17.360 --> 0:04:20.680 She had me a nineteen UM and so she needed 0:04:20.720 --> 0:04:24.560 to you know, survive and UM, so she took off 0:04:24.600 --> 0:04:26.760 in the insurance world. So now she's the VP of 0:04:26.839 --> 0:04:32.039 Alliance Insurance Group. UM. And my dad he's retired now, 0:04:32.320 --> 0:04:38.320 but he was like in UM like Polinski Center, like 0:04:38.520 --> 0:04:41.960 Foster Homes, like he was the director of all that stuff. 0:04:42.000 --> 0:04:45.200 So he worked with at risk youth UM and helped 0:04:45.279 --> 0:04:47.320 and he really was able to connect with them and 0:04:47.320 --> 0:04:49.800 and you know, he became like a second father and 0:04:49.800 --> 0:04:52.479 to a lot of those people who were in the system. UM. 0:04:52.480 --> 0:04:54.360 But he's retired now, so they like to my mom 0:04:54.440 --> 0:04:57.440 still working, but she's a boss boss. So they go 0:04:57.480 --> 0:05:00.200 out and they got their motorcycle license and they just 0:05:00.560 --> 0:05:02.680 ride up and down the coast of California. So they're 0:05:02.680 --> 0:05:04.880 in their third chapter now, the thought the hook, that's 0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:08.120 what That's where I want to be someday, Chill retired. 0:05:08.200 --> 0:05:09.719 Let me let me ask you this about your dad 0:05:10.000 --> 0:05:12.000 and what he was doing with at risk kids. Were 0:05:12.040 --> 0:05:15.000 you ever like around did he take you to like, 0:05:15.279 --> 0:05:16.920 you know, camps or hang out with the kids, and 0:05:17.160 --> 0:05:20.320 if when you did go to those situations, what did 0:05:20.640 --> 0:05:23.360 what did you learn or how did it affect you? Yeah? 0:05:23.440 --> 0:05:29.760 Good question. Uh. He took me to UM the court like. 0:05:30.000 --> 0:05:32.000 He took me to the juvenile center, so I got 0:05:32.040 --> 0:05:34.160 to walk through that. He took me to the court 0:05:34.200 --> 0:05:39.880 when he had to sit UM with his it's UM. 0:05:39.920 --> 0:05:44.080 He took me to UM like where they housed the 0:05:44.240 --> 0:05:47.560 foster kids. And I remember walking through the juvenile center 0:05:47.560 --> 0:05:50.760 and I was like scared, and I remember him telling 0:05:50.760 --> 0:05:52.520 me like, don't be like, don't be afraid. These are 0:05:52.560 --> 0:05:55.839 just people, you know UM. And so I think, and 0:05:55.880 --> 0:05:58.440 my dad is from the hood, you know, like he 0:05:58.480 --> 0:06:01.000 grew up you know, game and all of that and 0:06:01.040 --> 0:06:04.400 found his way. But he really want I feel like 0:06:04.400 --> 0:06:07.400 he really wanted to show me like the two separate 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:10.400 ways that I could go UM. And so I was 0:06:10.440 --> 0:06:12.880 really able to internalize that, but also see how he 0:06:12.960 --> 0:06:16.760 impacts people and how like let's humanize everybody, you know 0:06:16.760 --> 0:06:19.760 what I mean, Like just because they're in juvenile hall 0:06:20.120 --> 0:06:23.440 or made these decisions doesn't make them less of people. 0:06:23.640 --> 0:06:25.359 And I think that that's what I was able to 0:06:25.480 --> 0:06:30.599 take away, um the most, going with him in those situations. Yeah, 0:06:30.960 --> 0:06:34.200 I had the opportunity to work at a foster home 0:06:34.240 --> 0:06:38.919 in college that was years old somewhere around there. But 0:06:39.000 --> 0:06:41.839 I have to go every weekend, you know, two days. 0:06:42.200 --> 0:06:45.480 I think I worked like four hours a day, UM, 0:06:45.520 --> 0:06:48.400 And it was an amazing experience because once you step 0:06:48.440 --> 0:06:51.200 foot in there, you realize that these kids who look 0:06:51.279 --> 0:06:53.719 like you, your age or you know, and do the 0:06:53.760 --> 0:06:56.000 same things and like the same things you like, or 0:06:56.640 --> 0:07:01.320 a lot less fortunate than you, and you you realize like, dang, 0:07:01.400 --> 0:07:04.880 I got a lot, or I'm blessed or you know 0:07:05.400 --> 0:07:08.520 these things that I consider issues or stuff I'm tripping about. 0:07:08.560 --> 0:07:11.680 Basically I kind of started to change my perspective a 0:07:11.680 --> 0:07:14.640 little bit, and it was it was I would say 0:07:14.640 --> 0:07:18.200 it was a life changing the experience for me. UM. 0:07:18.240 --> 0:07:21.800 That's that's I can see why, Um it shaped you 0:07:21.880 --> 0:07:24.600 and it's affected you, and to come from that stock 0:07:25.240 --> 0:07:28.600 of dealing of dealing with those type of personalities and 0:07:28.800 --> 0:07:32.080 those beings, if you will, that's just that's like special people. 0:07:32.240 --> 0:07:34.920 It's not it's not something that's easy to do. What 0:07:35.400 --> 0:07:40.320 basketball at this time on your radar at all. So 0:07:40.880 --> 0:07:44.080 in a good segue from my dad, So I got 0:07:44.120 --> 0:07:46.200 introduced to basketball. I was always like an athlete. I 0:07:46.240 --> 0:07:48.240 love baseball. Baseball is my first four I was a 0:07:48.240 --> 0:07:51.360 picture on all boys team like so, I was always athletic. 0:07:52.120 --> 0:07:55.360 Um one of my friends when I was in fifth grade, 0:07:55.400 --> 0:07:56.800 she came to me and she was like, hey, I 0:07:56.840 --> 0:07:58.240 don't want to be the only girl in this free 0:07:58.280 --> 0:08:00.840 throw shooting contest? Will you come with me? I was 0:08:00.920 --> 0:08:03.560 horrible at bosby, no interest in basketball at all. I 0:08:03.600 --> 0:08:06.080 was in fifth grade and I made like two out 0:08:06.080 --> 0:08:08.520 of five, which was enough to advance. And so we 0:08:08.560 --> 0:08:11.040 go to like the regional thing and I made like 0:08:11.160 --> 0:08:13.840 one out of twelve and I didn't like to lose. 0:08:14.240 --> 0:08:17.160 And my dad took me out back and he goes, hey, 0:08:17.200 --> 0:08:18.880 do you want to win this thing? And I was 0:08:18.920 --> 0:08:21.640 like yeah, Like so he lined me up. He was like, look, 0:08:21.680 --> 0:08:24.240 put your foot right here, put your elbow right here, 0:08:24.240 --> 0:08:25.760 and just hold your hand like that when you shoot 0:08:25.760 --> 0:08:26.960 the ball. And I went back in and I made 0:08:26.960 --> 0:08:30.960 eleven out of twelve, and then I went back to school. 0:08:30.960 --> 0:08:33.360 I'm like, hey, I want to play this, like play 0:08:33.400 --> 0:08:35.199 with the boys at recess. I'm gonna figure it out. 0:08:35.720 --> 0:08:37.920 And then somebody came to the elementary school and was 0:08:37.920 --> 0:08:40.520 handing out flyers to play for the local rec league. 0:08:40.520 --> 0:08:42.640 And I took it home to my parents and they 0:08:42.679 --> 0:08:44.640 tell me. Now, They're like, look, this league costs like 0:08:44.679 --> 0:08:46.720 fifty dollars and for us back then, that was a 0:08:46.720 --> 0:08:49.480 lot of money. But this is what you wanted to do. 0:08:50.160 --> 0:08:52.360 And uh so I went and I signed. They signed 0:08:52.360 --> 0:08:55.160 me up, and I got a really good coach and 0:08:55.280 --> 0:08:58.000 I won like it was like basically all boys, like 0:08:58.040 --> 0:09:00.640 I was one of the only girls, and uh I 0:09:00.679 --> 0:09:03.880 got a really good coach and he really saw something 0:09:03.960 --> 0:09:07.280 in me and was very fundamental, and I won the 0:09:07.520 --> 0:09:10.040 Most Improved Player my first year, and then my second 0:09:10.120 --> 0:09:12.000 year I won m v P over all the boys. 0:09:12.600 --> 0:09:15.760 So they still give me a hard time with that 0:09:15.800 --> 0:09:18.280 now because some of them are in the NFL and 0:09:18.360 --> 0:09:21.880 like these high level athletes. Um So I was like, man, 0:09:21.920 --> 0:09:24.000 but you won m VP that year, you know. So 0:09:24.600 --> 0:09:26.280 that was that was where it all started. But so 0:09:26.400 --> 0:09:28.880 my dad, Um, I think I had a spark in 0:09:28.960 --> 0:09:31.200 me somewhere, but I think my dad taking me outside, 0:09:31.240 --> 0:09:33.319 like hey, do you want to win? That's that's where 0:09:33.640 --> 0:09:37.680 it all started. So it was over the free throw contest. 0:09:38.040 --> 0:09:40.200 And so let me ask you this, if you wouldn't 0:09:40.240 --> 0:09:43.360 have made eleven out of twelve, would would we even 0:09:43.400 --> 0:09:45.320 know you today? Or would you have took it like 0:09:45.360 --> 0:09:48.560 a completely different career pass softball, I don't know, you know, 0:09:48.640 --> 0:09:51.960 some other track or or something like that. That's a 0:09:51.960 --> 0:09:54.800 good question maybe, But my my gut reaction to you 0:09:54.880 --> 0:09:57.520 was like I wouldn't have not made a leven out 0:09:57.520 --> 0:10:01.120 of twelve just because of the way my dad hadn't 0:10:01.120 --> 0:10:03.440 stilled that mentality in me, you know, like there was 0:10:03.480 --> 0:10:05.920 no way I was gonna miss. Like we're very my 0:10:06.000 --> 0:10:10.120 family's very vision like visionaries, um, and if we want something, 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:13.240 we're gonna go get it. And so whether it would 0:10:13.240 --> 0:10:15.480 have been basketball or something else, but there was always 0:10:15.480 --> 0:10:19.600 something about basketball, it felt natural to me, and I 0:10:19.600 --> 0:10:23.040 think that that was just the spark. Do you have 0:10:23.080 --> 0:10:26.679 any favorite players at this time that you looked up 0:10:26.720 --> 0:10:29.920 to or were you just locked in on learning this game. 0:10:30.080 --> 0:10:32.640 Loving this game kind of being local at your spots, 0:10:32.679 --> 0:10:36.600 you're not really tripping on all that. Yeah, I didn't 0:10:36.640 --> 0:10:39.560 even know what basketball like. I saw people play it, 0:10:39.679 --> 0:10:41.760 but I had no knowledge of it at all, so 0:10:41.800 --> 0:10:43.920 I didn't know who was good who wasn't. I think 0:10:43.920 --> 0:10:47.040 I had heard of Michael Jordan at a point um. 0:10:47.120 --> 0:10:50.080 And then when I really got put on was when 0:10:50.120 --> 0:10:53.080 I think I was like eleven maybe, and my brother 0:10:53.160 --> 0:10:55.600 took me to see Loving Basketball whenever that came out, 0:10:56.760 --> 0:11:00.520 and I was like, oh, Magic Johnson. Like, so then 0:11:00.559 --> 0:11:04.120 I started to like, Pistol Pete is somebody that I 0:11:04.160 --> 0:11:07.240 did research on, like, so I started to seek stuff out. 0:11:07.440 --> 0:11:10.480 But at the very very beginning, it was literally like, 0:11:10.559 --> 0:11:13.240 should to practice because it's exciting to be here, and 0:11:13.320 --> 0:11:15.920 I want to be a contributor to the team, and 0:11:15.920 --> 0:11:17.880 I want to learn the sport. And then I think 0:11:17.920 --> 0:11:19.640 as I started to fall in love with the game, 0:11:19.720 --> 0:11:22.000 then I started to pay attention and do some intentional 0:11:22.040 --> 0:11:24.840 research on the types of players that were out there. 0:11:25.400 --> 0:11:27.439 But that didn't come until later. I would say, like 0:11:28.000 --> 0:11:30.079 middle like in the middle school, high school is when 0:11:30.080 --> 0:11:33.520 I really started to find people that inspired me in 0:11:33.559 --> 0:11:36.320 the basketball world. Yeah, and so when you got to 0:11:36.360 --> 0:11:40.040 middle school, you knew and you had goals kind of 0:11:40.040 --> 0:11:42.000 set on, Hey, I want to be a Division one 0:11:42.000 --> 0:11:45.840 college basketball player. Or did you have goals outside of 0:11:45.880 --> 0:11:49.600 basketball that you were you were focused on. That's such 0:11:49.640 --> 0:11:54.719 a good question. Uh, I didn't have a desire to. 0:11:55.160 --> 0:11:57.880 I was so focused on the process, which is interesting 0:11:57.920 --> 0:11:59.720 because that's how I coach now. So it's really this 0:11:59.800 --> 0:12:02.240 is really a good conversation that we're having in this 0:12:02.280 --> 0:12:05.600 particular moment um. I was so focused on the process. 0:12:05.600 --> 0:12:08.200 And then when I got to high school, my parents 0:12:08.200 --> 0:12:12.360 would tell me this, that's that's when college became an option. 0:12:12.800 --> 0:12:14.440 So it wasn't like it is now where like the 0:12:14.559 --> 0:12:16.480 w b A was on TV all the time, like 0:12:16.679 --> 0:12:19.000 that's you know, social media, Like we didn't have any 0:12:19.000 --> 0:12:20.720 of that. I have what was in my neighborhood. So 0:12:20.800 --> 0:12:23.120 I would go to the park to the y m 0:12:23.200 --> 0:12:24.960 c A, and I would just play, And that was 0:12:25.000 --> 0:12:27.640 the most exposure that I really had to the game. 0:12:28.080 --> 0:12:31.280 So once I figured out, like, oh, if you're good 0:12:31.400 --> 0:12:35.600 enough you can play basketball, you can continue to play basketball, 0:12:35.960 --> 0:12:38.480 right Like, I didn't learn about getting scholarships and all 0:12:38.480 --> 0:12:41.560 of that until later. Once I figured it out. I 0:12:41.600 --> 0:12:44.840 started to watch college basketball, and I loved Duke like 0:12:44.880 --> 0:12:47.079 I loved Elaine and Beard at Duke like she could 0:12:47.120 --> 0:12:52.120 do it all. And then, um, I got really good, 0:12:52.440 --> 0:12:55.560 like like it started high school. I got really good 0:12:55.600 --> 0:12:58.600 and I worked really hard, and I started to get 0:12:58.640 --> 0:13:02.400 like letters from con and Vanderbilt and Duke, and I 0:13:02.480 --> 0:13:05.920 was like, oh, okay, this is this is getting interesting. 0:13:06.679 --> 0:13:08.680 And then I remember I went and visited Duke my 0:13:08.760 --> 0:13:11.240 junior year and I didn't like it. Like I was like, 0:13:11.320 --> 0:13:13.800 oh this is you know, I don't want to do 0:13:13.840 --> 0:13:16.120 this anymore. But I didn't want I didn't want to 0:13:16.160 --> 0:13:19.840 go to this school. But and this is important, in 0:13:19.960 --> 0:13:23.760 fifth grade, I gave a speech in my fifth grade graduation. 0:13:23.800 --> 0:13:27.080 This is right when I started to like basketball, and 0:13:27.120 --> 0:13:28.959 I had said I'm gonna go to U c l 0:13:29.040 --> 0:13:32.760 A and play basketball. Um, but I forgot that I 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:36.120 said that. So then what I like, what's going through 0:13:36.120 --> 0:13:39.440 my recruiting process and U c l A ultimately ended 0:13:39.520 --> 0:13:43.040 up being where I landed. My dad reminded me like, hey, 0:13:43.120 --> 0:13:46.240 you you sproke this into fruition back when you first 0:13:46.240 --> 0:13:49.439 started playing the game. Um, so to answer your question 0:13:49.559 --> 0:13:52.640 now that that really didn't I was so focused on 0:13:52.640 --> 0:13:55.800 the process, man, that that all that stuff came as like, oh, 0:13:55.920 --> 0:13:58.000 like okay, this is this is what we're doing next, 0:13:58.320 --> 0:14:00.800 and so that's kind of how it transpired. That's that's 0:14:00.840 --> 0:14:04.080 that's a very cool breakdown of how because I wondered 0:14:04.200 --> 0:14:08.760 because a lot of times when you aren't even in 0:14:08.960 --> 0:14:14.040 tune with the noise surrounding like rankings and basically your competition, 0:14:14.120 --> 0:14:15.960 you don't know who it is, you're not You're just 0:14:16.080 --> 0:14:19.760 locked in on your process and you pushing yourself. I 0:14:19.840 --> 0:14:22.680 used to kind of live that existence a little bit 0:14:22.920 --> 0:14:25.800 with my dad growing up. We were kind of off 0:14:25.880 --> 0:14:28.080 in bell Air, so he kind of had you know, 0:14:28.240 --> 0:14:29.880 he was trying to make an NBA comeback, but he 0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:32.800 so he had workout stuff and we're you know, far away. 0:14:32.840 --> 0:14:34.480 We lived on a private road, so it was hard, 0:14:34.560 --> 0:14:37.760 you know, twenty an hour to get there. So it's 0:14:37.800 --> 0:14:40.400 like I was just on the workout. I was running hills, 0:14:40.400 --> 0:14:43.800 swimming in the pool, riding the bike and not really so. 0:14:43.880 --> 0:14:46.960 But but when I got out and kind of thrown 0:14:47.000 --> 0:14:51.080 to the wolves and kind of got around other people competition, 0:14:51.960 --> 0:14:55.120 it wasn't that fear factor that's associated. It wasn't that 0:14:55.280 --> 0:14:58.760 did you experience the same thing I did. I'll never 0:14:58.800 --> 0:15:02.800 forget I was in and uh. Two examples. One, I 0:15:02.840 --> 0:15:04.440 was in eighth grade and they put me in the 0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:06.040 what it was called the Super sixty. It was in 0:15:06.040 --> 0:15:08.200 San Diego, and I was like all these top players 0:15:08.960 --> 0:15:10.960 and my coach at the time was like, we're just 0:15:10.960 --> 0:15:12.840 gonna put you in it. I was like, okay, cool. 0:15:13.240 --> 0:15:15.040 And it was like Kendice Wiggins was in it, Charlie 0:15:15.120 --> 0:15:18.520 Houston was in it, like right, and I'm in eighth grade. 0:15:18.920 --> 0:15:21.760 But to your point, because I had that mentality of like, oh, 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:24.680 I'm just hooping, I think there was kind of that 0:15:25.120 --> 0:15:27.000 moment like right when I walked in and I knew 0:15:27.000 --> 0:15:29.880 who they were, but I didn't compare myself to them necessarily, 0:15:29.920 --> 0:15:32.600 like I wasn't working to be better than them. I 0:15:32.680 --> 0:15:35.480 just wanted to be the best version of myself. Man. 0:15:35.520 --> 0:15:39.040 I went out there and killed and I'll never get 0:15:39.200 --> 0:15:45.520 like an hour and got buckets like it was. It 0:15:45.600 --> 0:15:49.480 was a fun time. And then the I can't remember 0:15:49.480 --> 0:15:51.120 the other example, I was gonna get but no, so 0:15:51.200 --> 0:15:53.120 I never really felt oh. And then the other one 0:15:53.200 --> 0:15:55.320 was I was playing AU it was like I was 0:15:55.440 --> 0:15:58.080 I was a freshman going into my sophomore year, and 0:15:59.040 --> 0:16:00.760 I was playing up. I was playing with a lot 0:16:00.840 --> 0:16:04.080 of juniors and seniors, and like Yukon was watching, like 0:16:04.160 --> 0:16:06.000 you know, was in the building, Pat, someone was in 0:16:06.040 --> 0:16:09.760 the building. We're playing against this high level team, and 0:16:10.720 --> 0:16:13.880 something happened. I win, I got fout, they got a technical. 0:16:13.960 --> 0:16:15.840 So I got to shoot six free throws in a 0:16:15.960 --> 0:16:20.560 row and I made it all. But it was like 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:22.960 there was no one on the line. The gym was 0:16:23.080 --> 0:16:25.480 quiet at all of six free throws. That's when I 0:16:25.680 --> 0:16:29.119 that's when I got put on everybody's list. Was that 0:16:29.120 --> 0:16:35.120 that moment. So to answer your question, no, never, I'm 0:16:35.120 --> 0:16:37.360 grateful that I didn't grow up in this generation where 0:16:37.840 --> 0:16:41.120 the competition is like placed in front of you all 0:16:41.200 --> 0:16:43.400 the time. You know what I mean. It's hard to 0:16:43.560 --> 0:16:47.560 just compete against you. It's harder to just compete against yourself. UM, 0:16:47.640 --> 0:16:49.720 So I'm grateful that back then, that's that's really what 0:16:49.760 --> 0:16:52.400 I feel like I was I was doing. Yeah, I 0:16:52.440 --> 0:16:54.520 was locked in. I was a lot like you when 0:16:54.520 --> 0:16:58.080 you're just locked in with the competition against yourself, or 0:16:58.240 --> 0:17:02.280 that competition, not even the competition, but that that one 0:17:02.440 --> 0:17:04.800 inside of used to like show your dad, or show 0:17:04.840 --> 0:17:07.840 your mom, or prove to your to your your parents. Me, 0:17:07.920 --> 0:17:09.800 it was it was my dad. I wanted to show 0:17:09.880 --> 0:17:12.840 him that, you know, I was ready. I was out 0:17:12.840 --> 0:17:14.919 here doing it because he talked everything up. You know, 0:17:14.920 --> 0:17:16.639 he get me all hype. You know, you got so 0:17:16.720 --> 0:17:18.480 and so tonight. Man, Hey, man, I don't know. Man, 0:17:18.520 --> 0:17:20.560 he's really good. You know, he's just always, you know, 0:17:20.600 --> 0:17:23.119 making it like everybody was better than me. So whenever 0:17:23.160 --> 0:17:24.840 i'd go because he's like, man, they don't know you, man, 0:17:24.880 --> 0:17:26.440 you haven't been on the scene. What you gonna do. 0:17:26.600 --> 0:17:28.360 So he would really psych me up. And I get 0:17:28.359 --> 0:17:29.879 out there and I just try to be an animal. 0:17:29.920 --> 0:17:32.920 I try to get thirty rebounds, twenty five points and 0:17:33.520 --> 0:17:36.479 just and just be absolutely nuts to two more points. 0:17:36.560 --> 0:17:40.159 And then I wanted to segue off into your U 0:17:40.200 --> 0:17:44.040 c L. A experience that albeit the brief one um 0:17:44.119 --> 0:17:48.159 Elena Beard has been on this show. She currently is 0:17:48.200 --> 0:17:51.000 involved with the group that is trying to bring a 0:17:51.160 --> 0:17:53.879 w NBA for franchise to the city of Oakland. And 0:17:53.920 --> 0:17:56.399 so I had her on thirty minutes, and uh, we 0:17:56.520 --> 0:17:59.000 talked about it. So she is a friend of the show. 0:17:59.040 --> 0:18:03.840 It was it was, yeah, I'll send you the link 0:18:03.880 --> 0:18:05.960 to the episode when she was dope, she broke it down. 0:18:06.200 --> 0:18:08.560 It was a quick, quick interview, but she was gracious 0:18:08.640 --> 0:18:12.400 enough to appear on the show. Fox Sports Radio has 0:18:12.440 --> 0:18:15.360 the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all 0:18:15.400 --> 0:18:18.720 of our shows at Fox sports Radio dot com and 0:18:18.800 --> 0:18:21.359 within the I Heart Radio app search f s R 0:18:21.480 --> 0:18:24.800 to listen live. The other thing I forgot, but I 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:26.480 want to talk about u c l A. You wrote 0:18:26.520 --> 0:18:28.399 as a five as in the fifth grade that your 0:18:28.480 --> 0:18:30.159 dream school was u c l A. So when and 0:18:30.200 --> 0:18:32.159 who was recruiting you at the time. Who recruited you 0:18:32.200 --> 0:18:33.320 to go to u c l that First of all, 0:18:33.840 --> 0:18:39.359 Kathy Olivier coach Olivier. So Cathy Olivier, um when she 0:18:40.200 --> 0:18:42.240 you first heard for her from her or when she 0:18:42.320 --> 0:18:46.159 first offered you just described that moment? Was it a 0:18:46.160 --> 0:18:48.160 phone call? Was it in person? When she at your game? 0:18:48.440 --> 0:18:50.679 Described the moment when you first got offered to go 0:18:50.720 --> 0:18:55.280 to u c l A. Yeah, Well, interestingly enough, so 0:18:55.320 --> 0:18:57.840 they didn't come into the picture until late Okay. And 0:18:57.880 --> 0:19:00.480 like I said, I had said I play into the sea, 0:19:00.560 --> 0:19:01.800 that I wanted to go to u c l A. 0:19:01.960 --> 0:19:05.760 And then I forgot, So by the time I was 0:19:05.840 --> 0:19:08.000 being actively recruited by all these people. U c l 0:19:08.040 --> 0:19:11.120 A was not my dream school at that time. So 0:19:11.320 --> 0:19:14.679 like it took my parents bringing it back to my attention. Um, 0:19:14.680 --> 0:19:18.400 it's crazy how powerful seeds are. And you know. Anyways, 0:19:18.760 --> 0:19:22.760 so my coach at the time was like, Jericho, U 0:19:22.800 --> 0:19:25.280 c l A is looking for a point guard. So 0:19:25.359 --> 0:19:26.800 when you go out here, I don't want you to 0:19:26.840 --> 0:19:28.439 look to score. I want you to look to pass. 0:19:29.080 --> 0:19:31.879 I was not a point guard. I was a shooting guard. Like, 0:19:32.000 --> 0:19:35.159 passing me the ball, I'm going to score. Um, But 0:19:35.240 --> 0:19:38.440 I thought, but I listened. Um, this was the last 0:19:38.480 --> 0:19:40.760 tournament of my junior year, going into my senior year, 0:19:40.760 --> 0:19:43.720 so this is the last viewing tournament. They saw me, 0:19:43.920 --> 0:19:47.239 she liked me. They offered me a visit. So I 0:19:47.280 --> 0:19:51.320 came and visited, and as I was leaving, Um, we 0:19:51.320 --> 0:19:53.359 were driving back to San Diego when she called and 0:19:53.400 --> 0:19:54.679 she was like, hey, we want to offer you a 0:19:54.680 --> 0:19:58.280 full scholarship. I'm gonna be honest. When I went to 0:19:58.320 --> 0:20:02.840 the campus, I didn't love it, Like I was what 0:20:02.880 --> 0:20:04.680 was it? What was it? What was it? It wasn't 0:20:04.680 --> 0:20:10.040 the campus, it was I didn't connect with the coaches 0:20:10.080 --> 0:20:14.160 and stuff you know, um, and and I was being 0:20:14.160 --> 0:20:18.679 recruited by uh St John's in New York, and I 0:20:18.840 --> 0:20:22.080 connected with those coaches, like so I had a comparison. 0:20:22.720 --> 0:20:25.439 And I wasn't like sold on St. John's or anything, 0:20:25.440 --> 0:20:27.520 but I was like like and people know who go 0:20:27.560 --> 0:20:29.399 through the recruiting process, like when you know, you know 0:20:31.240 --> 0:20:34.639 it's true. And so I didn't feel super connected, but 0:20:34.680 --> 0:20:39.719 I remember my parents feeling so being so excited, like 0:20:39.720 --> 0:20:41.760 like our daughter just got offered to u c l A. 0:20:41.840 --> 0:20:43.400 And like that you know as U c l A, 0:20:43.560 --> 0:20:47.280 Like that's all you gotta say. Um. So I wasn't 0:20:47.320 --> 0:20:49.400