Darius Miles | LeBron's early years, CRAZY Stories with ZBo in Portland, Being held at gun point 🤯

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:15):
You show respect, you get respect, You disrespect, you get disrespected.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
It's all hard, great crime. Hey, I gotta make it.
It's Alpha bud Man.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
Yo yo yo, back at it again. Me and my
boy Cody on first Team. And today we got a
special guest man, my brother man, no one other than
a famous legendary d Miles.

Speaker 3 (00:48):
Darius Miles. What's up, brother?

Speaker 2 (00:50):
What's up? What is show man? Gad blessing our platform? Man?
You already know I had to be on here. Man.

Speaker 3 (00:57):
That's a real treat, bro. We appreciate that, brother, show
so growing up.

Speaker 4 (01:01):
In East Saint Louis, bro to to give us a
rundown on how it was growing up in East St.

Speaker 2 (01:05):
Louis. East Saint Louis is eighty nine blocks, three different ways.
A lot of people don't know it's in Illinois. It's
not in Missouri. People think when you say East St.
Louis is Saint Louis, Missouri, right, But we're on the
Illinois side, and you know, rough one of the murder
capitals of the world, and you know, just came up,

(01:28):
you know, with chip on your shoulder when you come
from there. So you know, you just gotta take it
for what it.

Speaker 4 (01:33):
Is man who was the first person to put you
in in the basketball man.

Speaker 2 (01:38):
Frame of think. My whole family really was like sports.
Like my uncle who passed away earlier, he played baseball, football,
My mom played softball. My cousin he played basketball. My
other cousin played basketball. So it was in it. Everybody
on my daddy's side was like even the females was

(02:01):
at least six to two in taller like my grandmother was.
Like on my day's side, it was like six fold.
My granddaddy was like six five sixty six. So we
was all like just tall, skinny, dark skinned, you know
what I'm saying on my daddy's side. And I always
was tall and stuff, but I ain't never really played
organized ball until like fifth sixth grade.

Speaker 1 (02:22):
Word man, Like I said, Man, you know, man, we
just been through it, man, And then you know, I
got the pleasure, same class pleasure, you know, just playing
with you being my teammate, battling for years and all that.
And I know, mom, man, rest in peace, Like tell
me about you know, because me and you get like

(02:43):
the same situation, like you know, GA two like your mom,
you know what I mean, Like he was close to
your mom how I was like, how did that? You
know that keep you focused on basketball, you know what
I mean, and not getting you know, you come you
from one of the rougher cities, you know what I mean.

Speaker 3 (02:59):
He's saying, you know, so how you navigated that?

Speaker 2 (03:01):
My mom never graduated from high school. She dropped out,
so she really used to be on me or at
least graduating from high school and doing something for yourself,
to basketball, pushing me to basketball. She made me play
basketball in fifth grade, like I thought at first, well,
she made me start going to practice and stuff like that.

(03:22):
I thought she was taking away my outside time. You
know what I'm saying, Like in fifth sixth grade, shit
about time I go to practice, get out of practice,
the streets, lights on, I gotta come in the house.
It's like shit. So I'm like, man, you're taking away
me kicking it with my friends. So every chance I got,
I tried to quit. Like every chance I got, coach

(03:42):
did something. I'm like, man, fuck that. I quit like
I was trying to quit, and she just kept on
just making me play, Like I leave my shots in
my shoes for practice at home after school, she pulling
up with my shorts and shoes, like, nah, you going
to practice. So we got to the point where I
started loving it, you know what I'm saying, started loving it.

(04:05):
The crowd, you know, the people come to see us.
And then I just stuck with it, and then everything
just started happening. This stuff just started happening. Like I
was playing program and in all that stuff before I
even played high school basketball. Like where I'm from seven
through nights with Junior high, ten through twelfth was high school.
Oh okay, So I was playing in the program against

(04:28):
college dudes and pros before I even played AAU ball
or high school ball. That's great.

Speaker 4 (04:35):
It was reported once that he was in a situation
where somebody had put a gun in your head and
you're talking about Mom Dukes being able to save Seapoll
asks you about Mom Dukes.

Speaker 2 (04:45):
I thought you was gonna run that bas but give us. Yeah,
you know, back in the day, I was like I
was the youngest out of the people I was hanging
around with, but I was the tallest. It like I
was the older looking, like you do you know what
I'm saying, But really I was the baby of the crew.
So one day we were just hooping outside on like
roll Away, Rollaway Gold and I see dude coming down

(05:07):
the street and I see him with the pistol. But
it's normal to see people with guns, you know where
we're from. So when he walked up, he instantly I
was about to run through the crowd, but I ain't
want to feel like I did something wrong or I
was being guilty or something, so I just stood there.
I'm like, nah, he can't run up on me or
walk up on me and say nothing. So out of everybody,

(05:29):
he walked up on me. He walked up on me,
put the pistol to my face, time about man, tried
to steal my car last night. I was like, man,
I don't need to steal cars, what you're talking about?
So he, you know, put the pistol my face, talking
and all that stuff. So I stood there and then
he walked off. I was like, man, I'm gonna fuck
y'all up bout this by that, So I instantly went home.

(05:52):
When I went home, I told my mama, like, man,
dude just walked up on me with the straps. Yeah,
my cousin happened to just let's pull up, So my
mama grabbed us strapped my cousin grabbed this ship out
the trunk and they went back around the corner, kicked
in the door, ran in their own dude and ship.
The police kind of came and then just got them

(06:13):
and all that stuff, and she really went on. Now.

Speaker 4 (06:20):
Yeah, meanwhile, so and when you say the murder capital
of the world, obviously you can tell it's a lot
of it's easy to get into bullshit. You did you
have any ogs just letting you know, like, man, bro,
you're gonna be something special.

Speaker 2 (06:34):
What your og was, like, I had o gs. That
was that was you know, kind of keeping me out
of trouble or keeping it out the way. But it's
hard to not get in trouble because this is all
it it is around so you know you have a mentality.
That's that's why your mentality was like that on the court.
But I definitely had O g's that was just giving

(06:55):
me history because we got a rich history in East
Saint Louis. Like my my high school coach was the
first black coach to win a state title in Illinois.
He was the first coach to win three state titles
in the row in Illinois, you know what I'm saying.
And so the history was there from the eighties and
the seventies of my coach. So they used to just
tell me about the guys who came through, the guys

(07:18):
that was good. And then I kind of put myself
in a way where I was like, I want to
be the best ever from around here, you know what
I'm saying. We only had one other guy that went
to the pros before me, and that was Fonzo Ellis all.

Speaker 3 (07:32):
The fellas from shout out of Fonso.

Speaker 2 (07:36):
Yeah, so he was the only guy that went to
the pros from where I'm from. So I always wanted
to be the best. He won like two state titles
out of their three in the road that they won,
and I just, uh, I just put in my mind
that I wanted to be the best and kind of
give my hood like a bright light you go with

(07:57):
a hood on your back. Old hood was just coming
to see me play like and it just it just changed.

Speaker 3 (08:03):
Talk about the high school experience too though, because.

Speaker 2 (08:06):
Yeah, high school, like I said, I only played three
years of high school. I didn't get to like I say,
seventh through Nights was junior high. My ninth grade year,
I had a guy from Chicago named Larry Butler who
coached the Illinois Warriors. He U. He came down to
He came down to East Saint Louis, and he went
to all the high schools like in the area or whatever,

(08:27):
and they just kept on saying like he was like,
it's this kid in junior high. He ain't never played
in high school for but he gonna be the best
probably ever around here. I didn't even know they know
me because I only played six games in junior high
my ninth grade year. Like it was. It was it's
only three junior high schools and we didn't play like
the suburb school, so we only played six games the

(08:47):
whole you know what I'm saying season. I never played
au ball. So he came down there. We had a conversation.
He got me out of my class. I'm talking to him.
You know them shotdown guys. You know, he talking all slick,
and I'm looking at him. I'm like, man, I ain't
fucking with you, bro. He gave me his number, So

(09:07):
I went home and I didn't even give the number
to my mama. I'm just done on about my day
and all that. But my mama, she went to school
with my teacher. They went to school together. So my
teacher called my mama about about him. He asked me
to go to a spotlight. I went to the spotlight.
That's when I met Q Now. We all met q Now.

(09:29):
He asked me to play on the AAU team and
I was like, nah, I ain't fucking with the AAU team.
And I was like, all right, well, my mama can
come on the trips I I fuck with. So my
mom came on the trip and then since then I
played with them. I got invited to Jordan Camp that summer.
This is all, but I even to play a high
school gaw went to Jordan Camp, played against Mike the

(09:52):
first game, like everybody was scared to guard at Mike,
and you know me, I'm like, shit, I got him, man,
So I got on you know, he death. He bust
my ass, but I blocked this shot like twice, and
he was like he was respecting how I was willing
to compete, even though he was yeah, yeah, he respected
like I was willing to compete. I'm coming back down,

(10:14):
crossing over all that shit. Next day, I'm on his team.
The rest of the camp. For the next two weeks,
I'm on Mike team. He picking me on this team
to play with him. So went through the summer, played
with Cut and them quting him. Only lost one game
the whole summer. Then I finally played high school, and shit,
when I got to high school, it was really like

(10:34):
a lot of people weren't really going to the games.
But when I got there, every game with jam packed
from there. So three years it just sold out. Jam
Pack Man.

Speaker 3 (10:43):
You know, it's so crazy.

Speaker 1 (10:44):
I always seen your name in the rankings, like you always,
d Miles, Like when I was looking at back then
looking at the rankings, before I was even ranked, I
always seen you rank.

Speaker 3 (10:54):
Would you say after you left the Jordan camp, that's
how you shot up?

Speaker 2 (10:58):
Like I said when I met When I met Butler,
I went to the Spotlight. Our first tournament was the
Purdue Tournament, the Speech Turnament Speech. That was the first
tournament I played, and that's when I ran into Karan Butler. Uh.
I played that tournament. When I came back home, I
look in the streets and Smith, that's just say D
Miles number three. I was crack man. As though the

(11:21):
summer going into my my sophomore year, I never met Ringing.
People didn't even know who I was, and none of
that stuff. I went to that one tournament and it
was Craig for I used to when I got to school,
I used to carry them books in my book bag
because my name was just in that motherfucker. You know
what I'm saying, that's.

Speaker 1 (11:38):
So crazy you say you after you left speech he
was the top playing the country. Because I was at
the tournament with you, and they used to be tugging to.

Speaker 3 (11:49):
Illinois Warriors.

Speaker 1 (11:50):
Man, I ain't gonna lie bro y'all y'all au team
so hard to me, Bro I was head band.

Speaker 2 (11:55):
Who was who is the coach? Larry Brother Larry. He
slid on you at school. Yeah, he came away down
South Illinois, came all the way to southern Illinois, and
like everybody was raving about me that I didn't even
know knew me because, like I say, we had six
games my ninth grade year. We only had six games

(12:18):
the whole season. Our whole season was six games. But
I was playing like prorams and and you know what
I'm saying, playing against X pros and college dudes. So
that was like, well, I was I was playing against
like grown men. I really wasn't even playing like high
school balls against high school kids. You was ahead of
the car. I didn't even know they even knew me

(12:39):
to even tell him like who I was. But he
came to me and shit after that, after I went there, Shit,
I was ranked top five, just out of nowhere.

Speaker 3 (12:50):
Instantly, you became the hunting motherfuckers wanted to run up
on the males. Now, how did that feel? Knowing you
that rank that high? Now you got to talk.

Speaker 2 (12:57):
I don't think I was the hunter. I think I
was the one that doing it. Oh yeah, I was
looking for them. Everybody who I seen on the list,
no matter who it was, Jowett, Jared, Jeffery, Corn Butler,
Marcus Taylor, like uh, Gerald Wallace, like like all them,
I was. I was hunting them. I was even hunting

(13:18):
the guys that weren't even in our class because I
was playing up with Q them Like I never played
in my same age group. Always played up like you
and them. Q Q was about to be a singer
when I was finna be a sophomore, So I was
playing with them and playing with the juniors. So I
always played like higher levels because if I played my

(13:41):
age group, I dominate, dominate.

Speaker 4 (13:44):
But I think that I think that helped a lot, though,
Like you get not only the experience, but the toughness
in that, you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (13:50):
But Zo no, Like we went to McDonald's, like when
I when I run into Andre Bird and Old war
Cook and all them. Man, they was like me and
it was like the meanest dudes there because we didn't
even play with them. So y'all playing in the same
Mickey D. Yeah, they put us when they put us
on the same train. That was the wrong thing they did.

(14:12):
But we was doing that on fold. They thought we
didn't like nonehing, but we ain't even had no problem
with none of them. It were just that aggressive toward
z bo onon m VP, I was, I was running
up and.

Speaker 3 (14:24):
I had like twelve dumps man show.

Speaker 4 (14:28):
We put on the show and our practices we're probably
better than the damn game.

Speaker 3 (14:33):
What going at it? Going at it? I didn't like.

Speaker 4 (14:36):
That experience going to Mickey D's. Man, when you when
you first got the call, you pretty much already knew.

Speaker 2 (14:41):
I didn't. You didn't know because I slipped like ship
me and Bow slipped like like earlier, I was, I
was ranked top five, but then all of a sudden
it was Chris Duhein, Jill Waller, Eddie Griffin was the
number one Griff me and z Bo was like ninth
to tenth. And I couldn't believe it because I'm like, man,

(15:01):
they got these dudes ranked above me, Like I'm damn
near averaging the quadruple double. You know what I'm saying.
I'm acting like eight blocks, like thirteen boys, like seven
eight assists, like twenty three, twenty five points. I'm doing
it all. But they had us ranked their ship. So
when I seen that, I had a chip on my
should because I didn't get a chance to play against

(15:22):
like drill some of them guys that was on the nikes,
I mean on the adda's side. I ain't get a
chance to run into them. I used to run in
Jared Jeffries every now and then here and that, but shit,
it was over after that. I was here hunting.

Speaker 1 (15:36):
Show at McDonald's game. That game was live though. Yeah,
what would you say, like about your college?

Speaker 2 (15:42):
Like what you think I committed to Saint John's.

Speaker 3 (15:46):
Yeah, so you was gonna go to Saint John's.

Speaker 2 (15:47):
Yeah, I committed to Saint John. I followed. I was
following Omar. I was remember I was trying to see,
but you were so stuck on what I wanted to
do some Fab five shit. I wanted to, like us
just go somewhere. And just because I was so into
the Fab five, I wanted this to be a crew
of us because I told North Carolina, if you get

(16:08):
Omar and you get Eddie Griffin, shit, you don't even
got to ask me to sign. I'm cunning. Anyway, I'll come.

Speaker 3 (16:14):
I'd been a cold duo.

Speaker 2 (16:15):
But they chose Adam Boone over over Omar. But I
knew Omar out of the class. I knew Omar was
the guard I wanted to play with because he was
a past first guard you play, and Omar led the
nation and assist his freshman year. So just imagine if
I was running the floor with him and he dining

(16:37):
and that thing run. Yeah. So I chose Saint John's early,
like November.

Speaker 4 (16:43):
Who was your influences to make you make that jump,
because obviously if you'd have went there, you know no
telling what sky was the limit that same way, I.

Speaker 2 (16:51):
Don't really think I had like influence. I definitely watched
KG and other guys like Kobe KG and Jermaine O'Neill
and you know Sean Louis h l Her and I
watched them guys go before me. But I wasn't even
thinking about about the league. You know what I'm saying.
I wouldn't thinking like the whole year like they were
saying it, like I had NBA scouts at my name

(17:14):
and all that stuff. But you know, we're from the hood.
If you ain't show it to us, we don't really
believe it. Like right, but after I had a good
McDonald's game, I had a good USA game, you was
mister basketball. Yeah, I was mister basketball in Illinois. Like
when I had them games, that's when I was like, oh, yeah,

(17:34):
this this is real. Zebo asked like, what you gonna do.
I'm like, shit, I think I'm going I was.

Speaker 1 (17:39):
I was, he was, you know what's so crazy? Like
he was like I was. We was talking like I
was really like, like, okay, bro, you're gonna make that
movie like Ship after the McDonald's because after McDonald's, all
you heard was d Miles going into the going into
the draft.

Speaker 2 (17:54):
There was the buzz.

Speaker 1 (17:55):
They really weren't saying my name, but you would hear
d Miles going to the league and he would be
hot on draft boards. So he like, shit, Jim after
McDonald's he I'm gone.

Speaker 2 (18:05):
That's why. That's why we telling these kids the ramps
don't even really matter to Like, I won't the number
one player in the nation. You want who Eddy Griffin?
Eddie Griffin, he's the number one player in the nation.
Him and him and Chris Douhan like he was like
the number one, number two player in the nation. Me
and Bo was like, like, I say, like nine, ten, eleven.

(18:26):
But I went the highs, like I broke the record.
You know, ain't nobody a high school play. I ain't
never win as high as I went when I came out.
But Mike Jarvis and my AAU coach was like shit,
they saying you top ten. Yeah. Then I worked out
for a few teams and they was like, shit, you
top three, top five? Man? Who are you worked out with? Uh?
I worked out with Houston the Bulls New Jersey. That

(18:51):
was like, really all my Orlando. I worked out Orlando too.
So I worked out with fourteen individual workout. Yeah. No,
I worked out with other guys. I worked out with
Mike Miller and somebody else. I worked out bro the
New Jersey Nets had the first pick right. So at
the last minute, they wanted me to work out, but

(19:13):
they wanted somebody to work out with me. Me and
Q was standing in the apartment in Chicago, so they
asked you to come in the workout. Me and Q
worked out against each other. They looking at us work out.
We went so hard at each other that they looking
at each other. They looking at us like it's y'all cool.

(19:34):
They're like, it's y'all cool. They're like, yeah, we shit.
We finna go and get a sandwich and go back
to the apartment. So that's how hard we went.

Speaker 3 (19:42):
Like we step on the court.

Speaker 2 (19:43):
If that's your partner, this respect, you know what I'm saying, Like,
you better go hard cause I'm gonna bust your fucking ass.
If you don't, I'm embarrassed. But we went so hard
at each other, they was like, damn, and y'all finna
get in the car together, Like yeah, So you know,
I just went hard in the workout. Worked out with
Mike Miller. Different guys. Guys weren't really trying to really

(20:07):
work out with me. They was kind of ducking. Yeah,
they were ducking the smoke. You know what I'm saying.
I'm familiar, so we were cool. But after I did
the workouts, they was like, shit, you top you, top five,
top three. So I got drafted third. You know, it
was a fifty to fifty chance that I could go
to New Jersey with Kenyan Martin, and they chose Kenyan

(20:29):
Martin at the last minute over me, and then stro
Mile Vancouver had the second pick, and my mom was like, fuck, nah,
he ain't going to no Vancouver. And the year before,
Steve Francis, you know, remember he bagged out out of Vancouver.
Vancouver picked him and he bagged out and he was like,
ain't going. So they didn't want to do that again

(20:51):
when somebody said they ain't going, so they ain't pick me.
I never even worked out for the Clippers.

Speaker 3 (20:57):
You know.

Speaker 2 (20:57):
Interesting, nobody was trying to work out for the Clipper
because it was the worst organization in the league's and
the Clippers picked me.

Speaker 3 (21:06):
Talk talk about talk about draft night. Brow explained that
project because he was in the green room.

Speaker 2 (21:11):
Yeah, and you know myself, I.

Speaker 4 (21:13):
Ain't gonna lie like I told you on the blop
three four hundred chicken wing bottle Champagne.

Speaker 3 (21:18):
I was that I was in the hood give us
that experience.

Speaker 4 (21:21):
Man, everybody don't get to go because they be the
scared for that embarrassment.

Speaker 3 (21:26):
So let talk to us about the green room.

Speaker 2 (21:28):
Draft night was dope.

Speaker 3 (21:29):
Man.

Speaker 2 (21:30):
I brought two of my homeboys out there with me.
I had my grandmama, my granddad, my mom, my pops,
and man, we went out there. That was the first
kind of like family trip that my family really kind
of got on the plane and went somewhere that I'm recognizing.

(21:52):
So we got there. You know the NBA, Man, they
rolled out the red carpet. You know, it was in
Minnesota and like it won in New York. Now they
was back in the day they used to go to
different states, different cities and have the draft. I ain't
know that. I always thought that was in there. So
I was in Minnesota and you know we was there
were chilling the draft night. You know, I got my suit,

(22:17):
my suit straight out of Chicago, you know what I'm saying.
When I got my had that great thing, great thing,
you know what I'm saying. And man, when he called
my name, like man, it was just like a flashback,
you know what I'm saying, Just like everything that I
went through to get to this this point kind of surreal, like, damn,

(22:38):
I'm finna go. I ain't even going to college. I'm
gonna go straight out of high school to this joint.
So walking up the steps, so you definitely was nerves.
You know, I got big feet where I started eighteen.
I'll make sure I ain't trip up the goddamn stuff.
So I kind of took my time. And one of
the funny things when I shook David's stern hand. I
shook his hand and I put my hand on his

(22:59):
head like this. He was like he was like he was,
he was like, chill out, be cool. He's like en George,
just to be stilly you look at yo. So but yeah,
they drafted me, and then you know, we did the interview.
After me and the family, we went to Prince Club

(23:21):
and celebrated. I ain't supposed to be in the club
because you know, I want old enough, but my guy
told me, you know what I'm saying, he was throwing
this draft party up in there. So man, they let
us up in there. So we was way back in
the side in the cut, you know, he was up
in there kicking. And then first time on the private jet,
we hopped on the private jet me and Q and

(23:43):
flew to LA. So he ended up drafting q Umber
seventeen eighteen eighteen. Q slipped, he slipped in the draft.
He slipped in the draft, and it got to the
point it was just like shit, that's my guy, Like
he didn't work out for Clippers, so it was just

(24:04):
that was one of the best I was hyped, like
super hype about that.

Speaker 4 (24:08):
Many homie, That's what I'm saying, y'all get drafted to
the same team both.

Speaker 2 (24:14):
Yeah, so he just worked out all summer, had apartment
together all summer, and then we get to the draft.
You know, his family learned all that stuff, and man,
we get drafted to the same team and we hopped,
both of us hopped on the private jet, flew from
LA to Minnesota, I mean from Minnesota to LA. And
that was my first time being in LA. So, you know,

(24:36):
even though they was the worst team, like kind, they
kind of went all the way out the windows. They
were talking about how how I broke history. Like the
highest pick ever was KG straight out of high school.
You know what I'm saying, He was fifth, and so
I broke history by being third coming straight out of
high school. That's all you say.

Speaker 4 (24:56):
You ain't never been to LA that's considering you was
missed the basketball and playing all these big time camp
on surprised, you know whatever, But what was your experience, Like.

Speaker 2 (25:05):
You remember in Illinois, we couldn't we couldn't play more
than two hundred miles outside of our state. Yeah, yeah,
Illinois had a rule where we couldn't go no more
than two hundred miles outside the state to play. So
like they they when I was being ranked, Like, they
definitely offered me to player in the tournament in Philly
and in different places, but we couldn't fly. Like now

(25:29):
the rules changed where they can go anywhere. But back then,
I think it was two hundred. It might have been
a hundred. You know, you couldn't play one hundred miles outside,
no further than one hundred miles outside of the state.
But that's why a lot of teams when teams was
kind of big ranked, like even qten them when QNAM
was playing against big ranked team even though they was

(25:49):
a top team in the nation, teams kind of had
to come to Illinois to really play them.

Speaker 3 (25:55):
And I ain't gonna lie when you got drafted, but
they picked you right.

Speaker 4 (25:57):
A lot of the whole city was like damn, he
mouths went yeah.

Speaker 2 (26:02):
When I announced I got drafted. I remember I went
back to school. It took the city kind of like
a week to kind of realize what I just announced. It.
They was just it was slow to it and then
it ain't seem real like it was. That ship was
really like a dream. You know what I'm saying.

Speaker 3 (26:23):
I ain't gonna lie you. Sh you was you.

Speaker 1 (26:26):
You was living that dream. I was living that dream
through you. I was calling folks every other week.

Speaker 2 (26:30):
What's it like?

Speaker 1 (26:31):
I'm coming, Gee, I'm coming me in the league. I'm
calling text me what that ship like? I'm living through?
But you know what's freshman year? I'm talking.

Speaker 3 (26:40):
I'm texting, calling folks, man, what's that league?

Speaker 2 (26:42):
Like?

Speaker 3 (26:43):
You like, shit, gee this ship or like woo woo woo.

Speaker 1 (26:45):
I'm like, but that motivated me though, you know what
I mean. You motivated me, bro in so many ways.
You know what I mean, just how we was come
up together and play together and just tight. So ye
give your flowers, Bro, when you went to the league
out of high school, because I was gonna do that.

Speaker 3 (26:59):
I told you I was.

Speaker 2 (27:01):
I was gonna do it.

Speaker 3 (27:01):
I was talking to him about it.

Speaker 2 (27:03):
He should have did.

Speaker 3 (27:05):
He was going back and forth with McDonald's.

Speaker 2 (27:06):
Like, Zbo was the problem for me. Like everybody else
in our class, I can kind of manipulate them to
do stuff out of the ordinary that they wouldn't do,
like either I'm too taller than you, I'm bigger than you,
or I'm faster than you or something like that. ZBO
game was just strictly what you couldn't make him do.
Nothing else about what he's doing. He gonna rebound, he

(27:30):
gonna jump hook your ass to death, he gonna be
physical with you, and I couldn't get out of that.
Like I used to get mad playing against frustrated shit
because I'm trying to frustrate him, and he wound up
frustrating me because I'm trying to get him out his game.
But everybody else I kind of can manipulate. You know
what I'm saying. I can bring you out on the
rent wing if you ain't really a wing guy, I

(27:51):
can take you in the post if you ain't really
If you're a wing guy and you ain't used to
the post, I was so versatile with everything, ain't but
shit Zebo that motherfucker. He's gotta fight with him, and
just every step of the way.

Speaker 4 (28:07):
And one thing about your game though, Man, listen, I
promise you watching u Q and y'all go to the Clippers, Bro.

Speaker 3 (28:16):
One thing about y'all, Bro, y'all kept shot toown on y'all.

Speaker 4 (28:19):
Y'all represented I'm talking about y'all got there and just
started doing this ship right here.

Speaker 3 (28:24):
Bro.

Speaker 4 (28:24):
You had so many motherfuckers around the world doing that. Bro,
Explain to us what does that mean?

Speaker 2 (28:31):
Bro? We like Trevor Reza. He went to Westchester. So
when I got to l A, you know, I'm in
the circuit, I kind of know. I knew has sign Adams,
you know what I'm saying, you know, with a zone. Yeah,
went to Arizona, so I knew a sign. The sign
was a Singior, so he was right up on. Remember
playing against him, so I was cool with him and

(28:53):
and Bottoms, so you know, they asked me to come
to the game. So I used to go to west
Chester game, Crenshaw games, the high school games and stuff.
Used to make Cue go with me, so, uh, we
used to go to the games. And one of the
things they used to do they was one of the
top team and the next one of the things they
used to do. They used to do that in the games.
So we go to their game, they hype they get

(29:15):
a dunk and anything. They're like that. So the guy
who who they was like their trainer or something. The
guy who like told him to do that, he was
a cute dog, you know what I'm saying. So he couldn't.
You know, if you're not AQ doll, you can't just
throw queue up like that, you know what I'm saying.

(29:38):
That's disrespecting the Q dolls. So what they used to
do with ball their fists and kill a and so
we invited them to a game. You know how you
get to you know how, you get a school and
you give them all tickets to the game. So we
got Westchester. They hold basketball squad tickets to the game.
So when they came to the game, they was like, yeah, man,

(29:58):
y'all need to do ourselves bration in the game. Show.
Look the first day, you know, I get nothing but dunks.
I'm dumping that thing. I'm so Q wasn't really getting
dunks like that. So Q started getting pissed. So Q
start doing that ship for everything. He do you get

(30:20):
a steel of reflection? He just like that. Nigga get rebound,
He's just like that. So I'm like, fuck that, you
can't do it every time. So every time I scored
or anything, I did it, and the next game we
didn't do it no more. And then the fans was like, yeah, bigga,
bring that ship back. We need y'all to be doing that.

(30:41):
So we started doing it. But if you realize when
we was in the league, like guys weren't celebrating how
they celebrate now. That ship was a sign of disrespect,
you know what I'm saying. Yeah, that shit was a
sign of disrespect. So a lot of players and a
lot of coaches I felt there was dis respectful for
us to be. They felt it was like we were

(31:03):
show boating exact. But you know, we we're from where
we're from. We ain't really care ybody. That's why it
be funny when I be seeing these guys, like at
the end of the game, if they dumped the ball
or something like that, the guys get mad. Like if
you look at that highlight with me and Lamar Older
when Lamar throw the live to me, if you look

(31:25):
at the score we won the game. The game is
over with. Like if you look at the score, we
already up like six points. We got that still we
still he still threw that bitch down court. Lamar threw
that bitch up and got the live and I dumped
the whole We didn't even care. If we get a
chance to beat your ass, We're gonna beat your ass.

Speaker 4 (31:46):
That's just what it is, right, So man finishing up
that year Man, that Ricky year Man, you made, you know,
first team All Ricky Hot. Getting that accomplishment, you know
that that want you did that drive you to do
more after that?

Speaker 2 (31:58):
Yeah? Yeah, because I was the I was the first
guy straight out of high school to make first team
All Rookie, you know what I'm saying. And I'm looking
at the guys before me, like the KG, the Kobe's
and all that stuff. I thought that was that was
a transition of me trying to be something in this league.
Like the biggest thing in this league is you want
to prove yourself to your periods. You want to prove

(32:20):
the other team and your teammates that you good enough
to play, especially if you from out of high school.
You know what I'm saying, Not only as people they
trying you. I mean, is he good enough, is he
tough enough? All that? You know, you got to be
all of the above, you know, to be in this league.
Y'all know, like you got to give it your all.
So to get that accomplishment and to be straight out

(32:43):
of high school and be the first one to do it,
I felt that was dopey.

Speaker 3 (32:48):
And y'all had a great court, bro.

Speaker 2 (32:49):
They had what Kian Doling my older We was the
youngest team ever as symbol when we got there. It
was it was never a team youngest us in the
NBA until like after us. You know, now teams be
super young. But I think the nexture of the Bulls

(33:10):
was the youngest team because they had Tyson Eddie.

Speaker 4 (33:14):
Yeah, but they, like y'all was bro exciting to watch.
Folks stayed up late at night trying to get something
of the game for real. That was decent, man. I
ain't a lot of them Clipper Day, Bro, ain't a
lot of other head game, but y'all put that.

Speaker 2 (33:28):
Y'all put that on the map.

Speaker 3 (33:29):
Bro.

Speaker 2 (33:30):
The notice thing is like the culture, man, Like we
start to see our jerseys everywhere, Like you ain't see
a clip of jersey before we got there. Like you
ain't see no clip of jersey at All Star. Now
you seeing our jerseys everywhere, our jerseys and and and
music videos. You know what I'm saying. They they screaming

(33:51):
our names and rap songs, and you know what I'm saying,
y'all shook the walk, Like the culture was really rocking us.
We're Jordan Brand, you know, and our hood you know
folks and died over Jay's. You know what I'm saying.
The fact Jordan is a is a golden when the
golden symbols in the black community and we were being
sponsored by Jordan's, so that was just even crazier. And

(34:16):
you know, like the coach has just kind of changed.
So we love how everybody kind of rocked with us.
Still to this day.

Speaker 3 (34:23):
I don't ask you.

Speaker 1 (34:23):
It was like you came in a clip with that
young core with Lamar Michael o'canby.

Speaker 3 (34:30):
What was that chemistry?

Speaker 2 (34:31):
Like we were super competitive, Like it looked on TV,
it looked like we all show our chemistry was there.
But you gotta remember, like Lamar was only like nineteen twenty.
He was our best player on our team. He was
like the guy we was going through Michael Candy really
won that old we got ill in the next year.
We was like, if you've seen our practices, like we

(34:52):
used to kick the first team ass because it used
to be me and Q and them. Look from the bench.
We used to beat the ass all the time. Like
I used to be going at lamar as like all
the time. But when we got in the game, we
all cheered for each other, but off it me Corey
Q Lamar, Like we all kind of lightweight play the
same position, so it was super competitive. Like y'all would

(35:16):
probably think that we ain't really like each other like that,
but when you looked at the games, you will see
us up and cheering for each other left and right,
because that's just what it was. We were super close.
We used to be together all the time, like my
mom used to cook. Everybody will be over my house
Thanksgiving and different stuff. We on the road were hanging out,

(35:37):
like the chemistry was just we hung out and all that.
But when we got between the lines, it looked like
we really didn't like each other, you know what I'm saying.
So that's how it was.

Speaker 3 (35:48):
I loved your game, bro, and I ain't gonna lie that.

Speaker 4 (35:50):
The fact of the matter, you being sixteen, bro being
able to get off the rebound push it make a sense.
You play real unselfish and I'm talking about it. It
was real pre Lebron, like before you know Lebron came
into the league. Can you can you give me a
rundown on how was the culture shock coming to LA
and being from East St.

Speaker 2 (36:10):
Louis super coach shot? Uh where I'm from, Like the
streets fucked up. You don't got sidewalks. You get to
l A, you see sidewalks. Motherfucker's walking dogs down. You
see straight dogs. You know what I'm saying. You don't
really see dogs on collars and you know what I'm saying,
leashes and ship It was a super super like culture shot,

(36:36):
Like I remember Zbo, Like Zebo asked me for some bread,
Uh what we got when I got to the league,
and I wanted to give it to him, but I
couldn't because I've never even been in the bank before.
Like I've never been in a bank. All came. I

(36:58):
didn't have Let me tell you how you my money.
I had a credit card that I can just swipe
for anything. My mom gave me a bank card and
she was like you can get three hundred you put
this cold in, you can get you three hundred dollars
out a day. So basically every day or every other day,
if I needed something with some cash, I was go
and get three hundred dollars out to acm any other

(37:20):
money I spent, I swiped on the card. I didn't
go into a bank until like my third year, until
I got to Cleveland to realize, like, damn, I got
like eight hundred thousand in that bit, you know what
I'm saying. Yeah, but I never was taught. You know
what I'm saying, coming from the hood, you never was
talked to going to bank. We got shoe box money,

(37:41):
you know what I'm saying. Like I had shoe box
money when I got drafted. Fact, so I didn't know
how to go on the bank. So there was things
that you just had to learn them along the way.

Speaker 1 (37:52):
And speaking of at me, actually, for some money you
with your lead with the nil shit, I would have
had a bank, bro.

Speaker 3 (37:58):
I wouldn't have to ask.

Speaker 2 (37:59):
For them already.

Speaker 3 (38:03):
Know what you think about that, nil bro, Because.

Speaker 2 (38:06):
I think it's dope, man, Because shit, I think it's dope, man.
These kids getting paid in high school they getting paid
in college well deserved. It's billions of dollars being made
off these kids, off their likeness. Like I remember when
the Fab five was the hottest thing on the market.
I had that. I went to J. C. Penny and
got that Michigan number four. You know what I'm saying.

(38:29):
It ain't had well a name on the back of it.
But you know, remember they had that Michigan, they had
that shine Rest, but they had that cabal chaining, they
had like for jerseys that you can just go and
get like they used for their likeness, and they made
millions and billions off that. And these kids, kids from
where we're from. You know, they come from the hood. Man.
They Mama can't pay the bills, can't keep the light on.

(38:51):
Sometimes you can't have the heat on. So yeah, I
think it's it's a gift. In the course, they need
to be structured a little bit more. I think they
just jumped into it and just now it's the wild,
wild West.

Speaker 1 (39:02):
But put a cap on the numbers, not really put
a cap on it, but just structure a structure a
little bit more, you know, put these let these kids
sign a deal or something like that, like Center Base Yeah,
Like say, if if you come to my school, like
and I say, I'm gonna give you two hundred and
fifty thousand a year, you signed a four year deal.

(39:24):
So if you come to school and after your first
year or after your second year you decide to go pro,
I don't have to give you that last five hundred thousand,
but it's guaranteed that you're getting to fifty every year
or something like that.

Speaker 2 (39:39):
You know what I'm saying. It just got to be
structured more instructed on down. But I think it's definitely
a blessing because man, guys got they heisman took, or
guys got investigated, or guys didn't get the opportunity, got
ineligible and didn't get the opportunity to go pro or
fucked up their life. And they was calling for that
too because they took some money to take care of something.

(40:04):
It got to the point where if you can fuck
up your el ability, by motherfucker pine, you dinner even
a chance to benefit off this, you know what I'm saying.
And the crazy think about it, they was doing it anyway.
It was a bunch of guys getting money on a
bunch of guys getting paid under the table. They was
doing it anyway, so why not live. So that's why

(40:27):
these coaches that was getting all these recruits and had
that short money, they're not getting it no more. Not
these kids can go anywhere like shit, it's four five
schools can offer you four hundred thousand. No, they was
getting that money.

Speaker 3 (40:40):
I know, I know my hood.

Speaker 2 (40:41):
My hood took care of me.

Speaker 4 (40:43):
So it was like, man, I know I can't put
this ship in my name, but the walk on. Man,
we're gonna say you about fat grand We already know
take that run that go one hundred.

Speaker 2 (40:58):
Yeah, it was going on.

Speaker 4 (41:00):
So but to see guys get their eligibility to man
and now that the nil isn't play, you make perfect
sense with them being that.

Speaker 2 (41:07):
Like this story I just said about the z BO
never heard the story. I never told you the real
reason why, brother, it's red. It wasn't that I didn't
want to, but I ain't want to be like bro.
I wasn't even walking in banks for real. You know
what I'm saying. Cause it's like how you don't know
that you got million dollars eight hundred thousand in a

(41:27):
bank account and you take them? Like I said, my
first three years in the league cash wise, I wasn't
getting no cash like people thought. I had all this
money and I did, but I didn't know how to
access this like right right, Like I said, I had
an unlimited credit card. I can swipe that bitch thirty times,
forty times a day. But when it came to going

(41:47):
and get some real cash and put it in your hand, man,
put that cold in, you get you three hundred dollars.
That's the limit. That's three hundred dollars.

Speaker 4 (41:58):
Try tell us about the jet ski incident over the
Alonzo morning, what really happened over that man?

Speaker 2 (42:06):
Man, So Lonzo, when we got to the league, we
got the same agent as Line, right, So Lonzo is
one of the guys like Lonzo to Kenbay GP Patrick
Ewing if I'm forgetting your name, and I'm sorry, but
it was some of them og guys that instantly took

(42:26):
like loved be and Q you know what I'm saying.
So we was over Lonzo house and you know, he
was like, man, I could you don't drive the jet skis?
But he was like, man, watch out for that boat.
It's a boat like it's like a boat, half of
it sticking out the water. But they got a flag
on it, like stay away from that boat because it's

(42:47):
just in the water. It's just sitting there. They just
got it there. They never pulled it out and none.
So we're like, all right, cool. So I'm riding je ski.
We out there having fun. This's my first time being
in ocean water, right, So I'm really I'm really suspect
because I really didn't want to get in it because
I don't fuck with ocean water and I can't see
everything up in there. I don't want to be thinking
about this, you know. So I'm like, fuck it. So

(43:07):
I get out there, you know, first time in Miami.
Get out there. We righte and I just like hit
something and just that motherfucker broke and I just like
fell off that motherfucker you flew. Yeah. So now my
jeski way over there, and you know, it's seaweed, so
I can feel the seaweed on my fucking and I'm like, oh, ship,
I'm fanning. I'm telling you, man, come get me, Come

(43:30):
get me. That boy pulling up laughing, just surfing boy
that he pissed me off so bad man. When I
got back on that motherfucker ship, I went back to
the house. He hit just off that broke that boy.
Zoe looked at me. You know how big Zold is.
You just thoughto just from the beat your ass man.

(43:52):
But Zoe looked at me. He really wanted tripping. It
was all good word that. I got a funny story.
I was a situation with the bullies.

Speaker 3 (44:00):
Get bullied.

Speaker 2 (44:00):
Man.

Speaker 3 (44:00):
We're a Nike camp.

Speaker 1 (44:02):
Oh and uh, I'm playing against a dude from Camden,
big way bigger than me, big old me. I'll just
tell you how me and d Mile locked in.

Speaker 2 (44:11):
Right.

Speaker 1 (44:12):
So I'm telling the nigga like, hey, hey, bro, you
quit hit me like that. I'm talking about big I'm
talking about and talking plenty of shit.

Speaker 2 (44:22):
Right.

Speaker 1 (44:23):
I said, all right, I said, okay, I said, we
are Nike camp. So I said, all right, I'm gonna
get up with you. Right, I said, I'm gonna get
up with you. We gotta get down. Uh you're doing
all this ship. So after the camp, after we finished
our festive you know what, be doing the games and ship,
we go back to the hotel we int Innnapolis.

Speaker 3 (44:41):
So I get all let the crib with the camp
like you.

Speaker 2 (44:44):
All American can, like all the American camp.

Speaker 1 (44:48):
I get d mind me d mind all the New
York old Mark cuk man. We deeping them up from
all the New York, New York, all New York guys rights.

Speaker 3 (45:01):
We mobing through the hotel. I'm looking for dude.

Speaker 1 (45:04):
Dude, Hi, I'm talking about man, dude, big old he
must he must got there kite of something. Man, hey
looking man, he won them want to wait looking for
y'all something, gosh the god bro.

Speaker 3 (45:13):
We went to his room and he wasn't in his room, right,
I ain't gonna lie.

Speaker 2 (45:18):
Man.

Speaker 3 (45:18):
We took his ship through all the wire. He had
big shitty draws.

Speaker 1 (45:22):
And we do all this ship in the tub, this ship,
and we had a roommate. Man oh man, trash cans
on even all kinds of ships. That just funny. I
just tell that funny story.

Speaker 2 (45:33):
But a lot of story. We got a lot of story.
And we've been locked in there since then because you know,
I seen Zebo, I seen Zevel, and we always spoke.
We was always cool, but we we didn't really know
each other. But when he came and got me, I
looked at him like, man, im from I ain't trying
to get in no trouble or nothing like that z

(45:56):
Bou boys on the mission. So I'm seeing everybody, nobody
else behind it. I'm like, I can't say no because
the boy might get on my ass. I'm like, Hoky,
I'm like, I'm with you. Come on, let's go and
we win. I hit that ball with that trash can
and I walked out put it in your little birk
that on going. I just had to show that I'm

(46:19):
with it.

Speaker 1 (46:21):
I got on out of That's funny, man. Not a
great times, no man, Yeah, yeah, a lot of great times, bro,
a great time.

Speaker 3 (46:29):
So look in two thousand and two, Bro, you get
traded to Cleveland.

Speaker 4 (46:32):
Yeah, tell me what it was like coming to a
new team, moving that process and moving and getting traded
and having to adapt to a whole new team.

Speaker 2 (46:41):
How did you even?

Speaker 4 (46:42):
It?

Speaker 2 (46:43):
Was crazy? I got drafted. I got drafted to the
worst team in the NBA. You know what I'm saying.
We're the youngest team ever assemble. That team won eighteen
out of eighty two games. The year before we got there,
we won. We won thirty one out of eighty two.
Then our second year, we was one game out of

(47:03):
the playoffs. So we was about to be like the
shit and we would have made the playoffs. Our second year,
we would play the Lakers in the first round and
they would have been crazy. That's what they were talking about.
But we was one game out the playoffs. So next
year we like, we know it's gonna be there. So
I got a chance to do a movie. They asked
me to do a movie called Perfect Score with Scollar,

(47:26):
Johansson and Chris Evans. So I decided to do the movie.
I didn't want to do the movie at first. My
agent made me do the movie. So I decided to
do the movie. So I had to go to Vancouver
for like a month and a half to do this movie.
In Vancouver doing the movie. Out of everybody who thought
they would got traded, everybody thought that I was the

(47:48):
one that was untouchable, like on some lucashit, you know
what I'm saying. They thought I was the one that
was untouchable. So they called and my agent Collins, told
me I got traded, so they had to come Cleveland,
had to come to Vancouver and take me through the
physical right for me to go to Cleveland. So now

(48:09):
I just got traded to the worst team in the NBA.
So when I get traded to the worst team in
the NBA. Shit, we won seventeen out of eighty two here,
So it was like I was when I got traded.
I was sad because I'm leaving my homeboys, you know
what I'm saying. Like I was in a perfect situation,

(48:30):
you know what I'm saying. I felt I was in
you know what I'm saying. But I didn't really realize
what the NBA was really about until you get that
first trade. So I got traded after I was sad that,
you know, I ain't gonna play with Q no more,
I ain't gonna play with my guys. I was excited,
you know what I'm saying. They did a whole article
on me in the ESPN magazine because I'm like, yeah, shit,

(48:53):
that's my turn. Now I'm gonna getting busy on it.
For It's definitely Finn Averry about twenty twenty five. But
when I got over there, the organization really was trying
to lose to get Lebron the next year. So we
won like seventeen games, and shit, the next year we
got Lebron.

Speaker 3 (49:10):
It was all that hype, like before you know, Lebron
coming in. It was a lot of hype.

Speaker 2 (49:17):
I used to be man. I used to be a
Lebron game. Bro. I used to be at his game.
His game used to be jam pat Like. They used
to have to start playing at the I think it
was a junior college or something like that. I don't
know if it was official cardage, but they used to
have to start playing in the college because it was
that many people coming to his games. Like you're talking
about how I used to call out. I used to

(49:38):
call back to the crib and I used to tell
my homeboys. I was like, Bro, it's this dude in
high school. Bro, he might be the best high school
player ever because I seen him throw it twin his
legs in the game. I'm like, he might be the
six best high school player. Them boys like, nah, folk,
no it can't. No, No, ain't no, ain't he ain't

(50:01):
better than you. I'm like, Bro, I'm watching this dude.
This dude is going through one and it's looking effortless
east and I'm arguing with my homeboys about him being
better than me, and I'm calling him about about him
so you know, shit, and he got there. Shit, he
was nice. He was real, Like I was already hooping
with him. Before he got there. I had a relationship

(50:23):
with him, like we was cool, family was cool, Like
I knew Rich mav All, and shit, he was the
real deal. What do you say about the hype?

Speaker 4 (50:33):
But not even the hype when people was enjoying the hype,
you know what I'm saying, him coming in him actually
living up to the hype. A lot of you know,
we've seen on camera with guys saying like Carlos Booze.
You heard his comments in the media, Yeah, and a
lot of people saying that, you know, they had guys
better than.

Speaker 2 (50:51):
Him at the time. It was like that, that's not
a like they you know, the media, Bro, they'll take
a statement from you and they make it out of
something like the stuff that I said. If they really
broke down the whole interview and seeing every word to
say it, I was actually taking up for him, okay,
because they was putting all this pressure on him to

(51:11):
trying to say this this kid from high school for
to come and just completely turn this whole organization around. Bro,
we ain't seen Kobe, we ain't seen kg we ain't
seen none of them just hop in and just instantly
just change this shit around. They gradually got good and
got better and being the franchise player. So I was
defending him. But you know how the media is, they

(51:33):
tried to spind it another way, which I wasn't tripping.
I don't give a fuck even with Boozer, Like yes,
at the time when he got to the league, like
Ricky was better than him, Like I was probably better
than him. Like you know what I'm saying. That's not
no knocking him or not saying that he wasn't good.
He was a kid coming out of high school. He eventually,

(51:55):
of course, he eventually got better than us, but that
wasn't Everybody took it like that was just a false
statement or he was hating on them. Booster wasn't hating
on Brian, like we never had a problem, but they
was making it seem like guys was hating they had
a problem. His locker was put right next to mine, exactly,

(52:16):
like they knew me and him was that tight and
that cool. That's the reason they put this locker right
next to mine. They knew we already had a relationship,
you know what I'm saying. So, but the media will
take it and put it somewhere else. And you know,
we're from the hood the words that I might have used. Yeah,
it might sound funny like that, but we don't got

(52:39):
no media training. That's the reason they don't have the camp.
They don't have the mics in our face all the time.
But we're gonna say something that it don't even it
don't come out right, you know what I'm saying. So,
but it's all love and good. You know what, how
many years did y'all actually play together? I played You
got Me and Ricky ass about it there.

Speaker 3 (52:58):
That year all that year.

Speaker 2 (52:59):
Yea, that year, like we played the probably the first quarter.
So I got traded in January. Ricky got traded in
the December. Yeah, yeah, So I got traded to Portland City,
the hot about Portland. Portland made the playoffs eighteen years
in the row. So mind you, Like I said, I
get drafted to the worst team in the NBA. I

(53:22):
get traded to the worst team in the NBA. So
now finally on the team where this is what they do.
They make the playoffs. I get a chance to play
the playoffs and all that shit, they blowing that shit up.
I get to this team. They ain't even trying to
make the playoffs no more. They just finna blow it up.
Sheet about it here, They finna get everybody up out

(53:43):
of here and just start completely over. And it's like, oh,
I never played on a team that was like built
to compete or built to even make the playoffs, let
alone compete for a championship. But you know it is
what it is, and you know you make your name
from the playoffs. That's how you make your name. Like

(54:04):
z Bo been good, z Bo been getting twenty and ten,
z BO bench poster, made an All Star team. Z
Bo should have never played for three different teams before
he played in Memphis. He was already a leader. He
was already like a double double machine. It took him
to get to Memphis, started making the playoffs and doing

(54:25):
what y'all doing for them to even have started appreciating
what folks were doing. You know what I'm saying. But
he's been doing that, made the All Star team in
Portland two ago. He had to go to New York,
then go to LA. Then you finally then started appreciating
z Bo for what ve Bo really brought to the
table until he got to Memphis and they it was

(54:47):
a gritten grind, not for sure. The team was based
around his style for sure.

Speaker 3 (54:53):
You know what, I should always tell us that I
come run up, hey Bro, we go as you go.

Speaker 2 (54:58):
Yeah, you know, but they don't. They don't. They don't
want to remember when when they lost sheet in the
playoffs before I got there, z Bo plugged in an
average twenty in team team that whole playoff.

Speaker 3 (55:13):
Man, that's my coming out partner.

Speaker 2 (55:14):
Bron been doing this, No, he's been there. But you
know how the league is. It's a politic league. It's
a situation league. You don't get respected for your defense
until you play on a team that actually win games
or go to the playoffs so they appreciate your defense.
It's a lot of defenders that's out there. Actually, there's
good defenders that are playing on bullshit team. But they're

(55:35):
not gonna make no all defense. They're not gonna do
none of that because their team is losing. You put
them on a good team that's winning some game next,
you know, they all defense.

Speaker 4 (55:47):
It's funny you say that because I always look at
Matt Barnes like, damn bro, all defenders. Yeah, and you
know what I'm saying, he ain't really get his kudos,
But motherfuckers hate it running up against Matt Barr. He
was gonna try to fight if you try to scrap
with you. So when you was in Portland, though you
had you had tension with more cheeks.

Speaker 2 (56:10):
Yeah, while we're on the out, the mud pot here
explained us how that went down. Uh man, Like, first
of all, to get to when I heard I was
going to Portland, you know, I was excited, Man, z
Bo is that bro? But this this is my guy?
Like like I thought me and z Bo was really brother.
I malmost looked at like that there. You know, they

(56:32):
looked like they was sisters. It felt like we was
just family already. So z Bo there, so you know,
I was super excited to get there. More cheeks were there.
So it's all started the year before. I had a
good year. You know what I'm saying. I fit in perfectly.
I felt that I definitely felt z Bo sposed to

(56:52):
have been the first option, you know what I'm saying.
But I felt that I spposed to have been the second
option because you gave me the ball. I had a
missman every game, like either you put somebody big on
me and I can dribble around, or you put somebody
small on me and I'll post them up. But you
know Da and Damon. You know these the veteran guys,

(57:14):
so they took a lot of the other other shots.
Cheeks used to always tell me, like, man, you so good,
which all coaches did once I got to the league,
say you so good that I don't need to call
plays for you for you to do your thing right,
you know what I'm saying. So I thought I had
a good year. I started the whole year. So the
next year they gave me a contract. You know what

(57:34):
I'm saying. They made me one of the franchise guys.
So when they gave me the contract the next year,
they said they want to get rid of Sharif, so
they wasn't gonna start me. So I'm like, what you
getting rid of Sharif? I'll do right hand. Gotta do
what you starting me. So now I got to share

(57:56):
minutes off the bench with Rude Patterson. When the year
before this I started and rub came off off the bench.
And mind you, Sharif having played the three since he
first got in the league, just like a year and
they and he got knee problems, so he can't even

(58:17):
run or guard a three. He don't play the three
at all them ll he basically a power forward, but
they didn't want to put him have him back up Zebra.
But the year before I felt it worked out well
because Zbo starting, he getting all the minutes. But then
you bring Sharif in, it's like still having another that

(58:39):
a guy that can score on the box. I felt
like that worked out good for us. But the next
year they told me, yeah, we're gonna give you franchise
type money, but we're gonna start Shariff. So that was
the tension from the get go, you know what I'm saying.
And then that whole year I was just frustrated, Like
I was just frustrated. It just coming off the bench,

(59:01):
frustrating having to shure minutes with Ruben, and it was
just like, you paid me all this money for nothing,
you know what I'm saying. So we get in the
locker room and we get into the locker room, I
guess everybody know that he about to get on my ass,
which you know, I don't care. It's something I did

(59:21):
in the game. I guess I don't really care. But damon, like,
don't say nothing to him, just let him talk DA
and day, Like, say nothing to him, just let him
talk z bo over there. Crime. So we get we
get to looking at the tape, right and mind you,
I'm not playing. I'm coming off the mitch. I got

(59:42):
a short minute. Cheez is snapping at nobody else but me,
So I let him talk with frustrating me. He's snapping,
he's still snapping about me, and he's showing stuff on us.
I'm not even in the game, you know what I'm saying. Bro,
I'm not even in the game. So then I got

(01:00:02):
to the point where he was talking like one thing
I don't got. I got respect for coaches. You can talk,
you can yield, you can do what whatever. But when
you you're talking to me like you can try me,
like you trying me, That's when I got a problem.
Like I'm the man of my house. I'm the man
of my family. You can't talk to me like you're
gonna beat my ass, Like talk to me and like
yell at me in a different way, you know what
I'm saying. So when I got up, I was just like, man,

(01:00:25):
what you gonna do? You know? He got frustrated and
went east St. Louis on the I was just like,
what you're gonna do. I don't really, he raised, yeah,
I ain't really, And you know it most crazy to
me saying this story. This happened in locker rooms. This

(01:00:45):
ain't nothing new, Like it's worry worse stuff than this.
But Zebo, no Cheeks was my guy. Checks was zebo
guy love cheeks. Cheeks is he's a cool coach like
I ain't. Never had no problem with cheeks. But Cheeks
was just as frustrated as me because the situation he
was in too. Checks wound up getting fired and they

(01:01:07):
wound up getting Cheeks out of Chicks. Didn't even finished
the whole season because they put him in a messed
up position. I feel like Chiefs wanted to start me.
He didn't want to start cherif he wanted to coach
the team the way he wanted to coach the team.
But this is what the orders came from above. So
it made me and him so frustrated. With me and
him always been cool, where we just got frustrated with

(01:01:31):
each other, but shut off the cheeks. Man. I never
had a problem with cheeks, but they made it a
big deal. And you know when Charles went, I think
it was Charles Barklay who said something about it on TV.
Man Checks made the phone call and told Charles like, nah,
that ain't what it is because he knew it wasn't.
That wasn't what it is. And you could tell that
was messed up because we in the locker room. Only

(01:01:53):
people in the locker room as the coaches and the player.
How did that even get outside of the locker room?
The practice facility got a leak in the operation, so
you can tell how how the system was just kind
of messed up. But it really wasn't no problem. I
never really had problem.

Speaker 4 (01:02:10):
Meanwhile, I look, you had your you had a forty
seven point game in that Portland uniform.

Speaker 2 (01:02:13):
What was clicking that day? Had good night that night? Yeah?
Good when you see them type of time too where
you got to them? Man, then was the type of
night that I knew I was capable of. You know

(01:02:33):
what I'm saying, Like I being versatile and being able
to do everything, you know, with these organizations, it's kind
of a gifting a curse. Every coach that I had
in the NBA always told me, like, man, you so
good that you don't really need plays. You can average
twenty without a play getting called for you. You you slash,
you play d you do all this stuff. But in

(01:02:56):
this league, you know, it's about options. Like back in
our you know it'd be a bunch of options now,
but back in our day, it's only two guys really
getting all the shots. You know what I'm saying. Everybody
else is kind of sticking in right there. Like I
felt our team was good. Like I say, z Bo
posted to been the first option. I never questioned that,

(01:03:18):
but I didn't feel I thought. I thought I was
the best player on the team outside of z Bo.
You know what I'm saying. I feel like I was
the option you go to outside of z BO, and
I felt like we could have won with that. But
we was the two young guys even though we were
the best player. And I think that he such a
mentment wasn't the same. But that's no disrespect to da
and and Damon because like I love playing with them, guys.

(01:03:42):
I rock with d A and Dame like I love playing.
They taught me a lot, but I felt like it
supposed to went through me and Zebra, Greg Oden and
b Roy.

Speaker 4 (01:03:50):
Can you can you talk to me about like what
was what would have been the upside had they not
got hurt.

Speaker 2 (01:03:55):
Once b Roy and them came, I was hurt, but
I could I got so I got to the point
where I could play. But they wasn't. They really weren't
working with me and Zebo at that point. Yeah, we
was on the chopping block. Yeah, we was on the
chopping block. They were trying to get us out there.
They found b Roy and in l a Mark, they

(01:04:15):
seen they got some talent. Then the next year they
got Greg at number one. They was like, yeah, we
don't get the last of them. About it, Me and Zebo,
you know what I'm saying. We were the last of
the Mohicans, me and Zebo. Like when Zebo left, it
was just me.

Speaker 3 (01:04:33):
Damn.

Speaker 2 (01:04:33):
Yeah, So I never got a chance to play with them. Like,
but if we would have played, I thought I thought
we had a dope squad. Be Roy was b Roy
like that boy was cold. He was if he never
got hurt, he was he was problem. I'm talking about.
His pace is stop and go. How he can go

(01:04:56):
the fast to slow, like you couldn't rush him, Like
he wants to against the best, Kobe's, the d wads
and all that. I'm watching him like going right back
at him. Greg Oldham would have been one of the
best centers of his era if he would got a
chance to play, because he was he was old school.
The way he played was old school left hand, right

(01:05:18):
hand hook. He blocked everything, he rebound everything. And he
a shitter. I'm talking about when I mean, should have
he get on that mug and he's sitting on the
rim like shack. He sit on the rim. That's how
I used to do all the time. If he got
an opportunity to play, he definitely would have been been.

Speaker 4 (01:05:36):
What's something with the injury report up in Portland? She
didn't guy had the micro fraction? You had the micro fraction?
Greg older than had to be rydy.

Speaker 2 (01:05:45):
But who the heck?

Speaker 3 (01:05:47):
Who? We gotta find that training either? Whoop his ass?

Speaker 2 (01:05:49):
Man?

Speaker 3 (01:05:50):
I ain't even not to we gotta whoop they ad
man when we found them?

Speaker 2 (01:05:54):
Man, Man, I don't know I had What was it?

Speaker 3 (01:05:57):
How did that injury just keep a current in that
in that I'm just confused.

Speaker 2 (01:06:01):
I don't I don't know. I can't put pinpoint on it.
I don't want to put no point, no fingers to
blame nobody, But I don't know. It was just knee injury.
After knee injury. Everywhere it seemed like folks weren't even
getting injured, no other way. Yeah, knee injury after knee injury.
You know, I gotta tell you a funny story. Though,

(01:06:21):
Nate mc miller would come the head coach, and so
we got to go to training camp.

Speaker 1 (01:06:28):
Uh.

Speaker 2 (01:06:28):
So our training camp is like like probably an hour
away from Portland. We get to. Uh, we get to
training camp and we in like a holiday in or
a day's in or some shit like that. Like it
ain't even the type of hotels that we stay in,
but we there for training camp. This is where. It's
a small town, so I understand they ain't even no

(01:06:49):
big time hotels there. So we get we get there.
And when we get there, mind you, I'm like seven
eight years in the league. Z bow and did about
about about five or six in the league. The first
thing they say, we got to shut rooms. No, I
was like, and z Bo looked at them. I said,

(01:07:12):
hold up. So I got to sit in the room
with another dude smelling ship, and like, I gotta what
if I wanted to be on the phone, my own
all that stuff. So me and ze Bo took offist
of that so I'm like, bro, I got a black
card in my wallet. Bro. So me and ze Bo

(01:07:32):
wound up getting our own rooms, right, Yeah, So we
get in. After we get our rooms and we put
our stuff up in our rooms. Me and ze Bo
go to the meeting the team and the me first
thing that man say, who in her got their own room?
The only person got their own room? And me and
Zebo that was said, ye'all can get the fuck about her,

(01:07:58):
And me and z walked about it. We went to
Fridays and got something to eat. We went straight to
Friday and got some need and then you know, when
we he came back, he talked to us and you know,
we got fund but we had our own room the
whole time. I just didn't respect that, Like we came
too far. This is not AU days. But I understood

(01:08:20):
what Nate was trying to do. He was trying to
give some type of camaraderie. But that wasn't the way
you do.

Speaker 3 (01:08:27):
The way you ain't like a sergeant.

Speaker 1 (01:08:30):
Yeah, told to stop wearing the head you know, it
was d minds thing, you know, our head Yeah, no headbands,
no rids bands, like man, they was on some sergeant
ship though, but I think they told him. I think
he probably got there from the upper higher out, you
know what I mean.

Speaker 2 (01:08:44):
So, yeah, we was like the last of Mohegan, Bro.
They they wanted to get us out the city. So
you went first?

Speaker 3 (01:08:52):
Was you? Was you there when we went to Minnesota
and they had me?

Speaker 2 (01:08:56):
He told me my meeting was right after you.

Speaker 1 (01:08:58):
Oh yeah, you walking down the hole s flaking the
Minnesota Bro. I think it's the play preseason or something.

Speaker 2 (01:09:05):
No, this was our first of the season.

Speaker 3 (01:09:08):
So he called.

Speaker 1 (01:09:08):
We get to the hotel, right, we got meet and
so I got to meet d miles Worth got me.

Speaker 3 (01:09:13):
So we don't know what's going on. So I go
to his room. He coming there.

Speaker 1 (01:09:17):
He's sitting there. You know, they got the pend, you know,
they got the big room coaches. So he's sitting at
the big long table, just him in there, and so
I sit down. So coaching, he say, I'm thinking about
not starting you this this year. I looked at him
like what, like, man, you got me fucked up. I
was like, nigga, trade me. Then the Miles coming in,

(01:09:41):
the mouse walking right out. You're like, damn jee, what's up?

Speaker 3 (01:09:44):
Man? They still got me fucked up? Bro?

Speaker 2 (01:09:47):
Hey, I get off the elevator, I walk with Dad.
I just heard it. I was snapping. I'm like, damn,
what what's this happened? That boy open the Doe club?
Off the room. Boy. It's like, man, he got me
fucked up. I'm like, damn. So he walked me in
the room. So I guess after they beating. He ain'tn't
tell me nothing about me. He was just like, Hey,
I'm gonna need you to get your boy together.

Speaker 3 (01:10:08):
Man.

Speaker 2 (01:10:11):
Bow was like, I'm like, what, I'm supposed to take
you an eighty million dollar man? Bro? What you want
me to say? Got it? I had thirty I had
thirty one on the next gate of thirty one on
ticket was like, boy, you made it. I was killing
trend house.

Speaker 4 (01:10:34):
That's funny, all right. Bet Well you know, man, we
show appreciate man. You know you coming and blessing the platform.

Speaker 1 (01:10:40):
Man.

Speaker 2 (01:10:40):
You obviously you always a legend in my eye.

Speaker 4 (01:10:42):
You first appreciate it, bro, you know, and more than anything, Bro,
we appreciate what you're doing with the knuckleheads man.

Speaker 2 (01:10:51):
Big heads man, you know what I mean? Sure? And
like I say, man, you like you the biggest in
my eyes. Bro, I appreciate it, man, thank you for
coming on off. Man. Y'all guys, man, like I said,
I've been wanting my guy to show their personality and talk.
I've been telling them that. Man. I love what y'all
got going on here. Man. You know you'll have me
an annual member man Like anytime, Man, I'll be back

(01:11:12):
the show man.

Speaker 3 (01:11:13):
We're giving your flowers.

Speaker 1 (01:11:14):
Man, I appreciate you, man, and you know it's love
family for life, man, right up, straight up.

Speaker 3 (01:11:18):
Love the great out the mud d mindshit did did it?

Speaker 2 (01:11:23):
We did it?

Speaker 3 (01:11:24):
We did it a