March 13, 2024 • 45 mins
A special opportunity to listen to the best of Dwyane's behind the scenes podcast called the Wine Down. Dwyane and his friend Bob Metelus discuss a wide range of things including Dwyane's intense competition with Kobe Bryant, what Shaq did to help him become a superstar, how he figured out how to play with LeBron James, dealing with becoming the leader of his family at a young age and moment that motivated Dwyane to become one of the best players of all-time.
For more of the "Wine Down" podcast check out Dwyane YouTube page - www.youtube.com/@DwyaneWade
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
What's up, everybody. This is Dwayne Way. Listen everyone who's listening,
who's taking time out of their days, thank you for
listening to the Why Podcast. I've been getting people from
all around the world everywhere that I go. I've been
telling me that they're tuning in, So I thank you
so much for tuning in. We have many more guests
to come, but right now we have a little break
(00:37):
in the White Podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
But we're not going to leave you guys alone.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
We're going to make sure that you guys have some
content and I shoot another show called the wind Down.
I shoot this in my office with my good friend
Bob and tell us that you guys here in the
White Podcast. We both sit and we have evergreen conversations
about everything dealing with life, by dealing with fashion, by
dealing with marriage, by dealing with fatherhood, dealing with things
(01:00):
in life.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
That we all have to deal with.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
And so we put together some clips, some reels from
the wind Down. We hope you guys enjoy it. We
will be back very soon with the White Podcast, but
please enjoyed this other green conversation on the wind Down.
And I can't wait you guys to see who our
next guest is going to be on the White podcast.
(01:25):
Let's start this podcast off.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Can you is that close enough?
Speaker 3 (01:30):
As you've gotten older into this world, do you feel like,
what was the biggest change you've noticed since you've gotten
to that forty year old age now? And physically? So
what was that change like as a man in the
aspect of like just getting up just when you tell
the twenty year old person when you turn forty, this
(01:50):
is look out for this ship.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
Yeah, you don't believe it. Now, let's let's the on
the ones out. We got all the technology out here,
get all the things. But I think I've done it
twice because an athlete. As an athlete, I got older
and so I had to that when I used to
listen when I take when I take you baseline, all
I need is one step and I'm taking off. Then
he got the point where I needed that one step
(02:13):
and half then the two step.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
Then I couldn't take off. And so I felt myself
aging as.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
An athlete, Right, I know what that explosive leg feel
like and how much closer I gotta go?
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Right?
Speaker 1 (02:23):
And so now in life, I'm on this side of forty,
I'm turning forty two. And I feel it like I
feel the like you're not.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
Like I'm not immortal anymore. Like I feel like I
feel human. Like you know, he's like watching and they
start bleeding. He's like, now I feel human.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Now do you remember the day that happened? But I
keep is there a moment that you can go back to?
It says the fuck, No, I can't. I don't know.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
It just it just happened. I just I tried to
get out of a chair one day and it just occurred.
That's me right now. I try to get out of
and I was like, oh, like you know me, like
excuse me, microphone.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
You know when up, man, you start getting older baby,
like that first.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Right right right right?
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Yeah. So when I hit that level, like then I
started taking my body seriously.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
And so as a group as man and you know
what I'm saying, we all try to build this like
we're building a brotherhood that is pretty cool.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
And so even in.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
That, like I used to lift weights a lot because
that's what as an athlete, that's what that's what we did.
We left weights a lot, and so even in that,
I was like, all right, I need something different. And
then my brother was doing yoga right, And I was like, dang,
I don't want to do yoga. I don't want to
do that. It's uncomfortable, it's hot. He was doing hot
yoga six in the morning.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
I want to do that.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
But I gave it a try, and then it maysta
of getting a try, Like I felt gains over the
course of doing doing yoga, not just obviously physical gains,
but I got mental gains. And so like it's just
playing a different You just got to learn how to
play a different game with your body, you know, And
you know, I think same. The same effort that I
put in as an athlete who wanted to be able
(04:08):
to take those hits and be able to have that
first step, I got to take those same initiatives and
in this life when it comes to my health, and
for everybody out there who do now, I want to
check themselves out because we all are scared to see
behind the cart. We'll go get I go get Mann's
and page like effect you, I do all the things, right,
I go get we go, get massages, get scralled, haircut,
(04:28):
you get whatever your thing is. But you will not
go check the inside of your body. And that's the
that's the engine of the car. Card don't run without
the engine, baby.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
And so you got to go check it. Not just
you gotta get not just get all change, you gotta
check the whole thing.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
So I'm just on that journey of life where I'm like, oh,
I want to feel good as I get older, and
I want to do all the things I want to
be able to do where it starts on the inside.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
So that journey is now, I'm right now with you.
Speaker 1 (04:58):
I gave so much to the game that when I
got to that fifteenth season and Bob was there, you know,
after we played we played Philly in the playoffs, and
so I get traded back to Miami, you know, from
the Calves, and we ended up getting in the playoffs
and we played Philly, and so Game two had a
great game. I had that game. I had that game
(05:18):
that she wanted, the old dude that come off the bench.
You know, I'm a hero, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
I had that.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
I was on the roll and then swats swap and
we were in Game five and the game was and
the seriously all was over and I was just dribbling
the ball. And as I was dribbling the ball, I
just I just remembered that my first NBA game was
right here on this court. I played against Allen iverson Philadelphia.
I Toober twenty eight, two thousand and three, and I
(05:45):
was like, man, this to me feels poetic enough. I
ended well, I started it. I'm done, and so we
went off into I went off into that mindset that
I was done. I feel like I gave everything to it.
But as I talked about, someone always told me, when
you feel like you're done, play one more year. And
so a lot of things have to go right for
(06:05):
me before I even decided to play that one more year,
and a lot of conversations needed to happen, And so
I felt like I gave everything to it, and that
last year I did was really I didn't. It was
no moment where I was like, no, I need to
come back, no matter how well I thought I was
playing like, I was like, no, I want to go
do something else. Like I've mastered this as good as
(06:26):
I can. Now it's time for me to go and
try to build something and master something else, right, and
so never never, I don't have no ill will about
nothing about the game, even the money that everybody's making,
even you know, like for real, like people think you
a hater because you didn't get that or that person
got that. I've released it all that hatred if I
(06:48):
ever if it's ever creeped in my body about what
someone else have that I don't.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
So I'm cool with driving my little car, my little.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Lane, and I'm at peace with that. But everything else
it's chaos. Having a ball with seven seconds left in
the garden on the road and you got to hit
this game winner, and it's chaos. And as we talked about,
how do you calm yourself down? How do you calm
your nerves in a moment of chaos? And so we
(07:15):
talk about the game of basketball. People say, do you
miss playing? No, I don't miss playing the game of basketball,
but I miss those moments of chaos. I miss those
moments where I can control my heart rate, well, I
control my mind, and I also control everybody in this
arena because I don't know what's about to happen. I
miss those moments because I can't get those moments no
matter why I go, Like, people celebrate me around the world,
but I can't. I can't get the ball in the
(07:37):
garden at the top of the key knowing I'm about
to shoot this step back.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
You know what I'm saying. How do you center yourself
without making it all about you?
Speaker 1 (07:50):
That was what I wrote. How do you center yourself
but not make it all about you? That's playing with
Lebron James. You got to know how to center yourself,
but you also got to know that you can't make
it about you. You know you're not going to have
the success that you want to have, that you crave,
that you stay up every night for. And so the
(08:10):
goal for me, and I put it on my vision
board for twenty twenty four.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Is that right?
Speaker 1 (08:15):
And how do I how do I continue to understand
that message?
Speaker 2 (08:20):
And how I continue to do that?
Speaker 1 (08:21):
Like in everything that we're building as a family, that
you're building with businesses, all these things, how do you
center yourself and understand that me centering myself is exactly
what is needed, is what everyone needs. But I ain't
gonna make it all about me.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
How do you do that?
Speaker 1 (08:39):
Everybody can't do that right, And so that's one of
the journeys, and that's to go And that's one of
the hardest things to do is to be the center
of attention.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
When I make it about you. That's real.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
So I put that on my vision board. You know
something that I want to continue to try to learn
how to do. And I've done it before, but it's
a constant, constant journey in my life that it continues
to show itself.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
And so this is my journey as a forty one
year old man, is how do I do that?
Speaker 3 (09:06):
I'm still in that. I'm still in that.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
He said, I'm still in that.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
I'm still in that.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Are you like that?
Speaker 3 (09:12):
I like that?
Speaker 2 (09:12):
All right, don't put that on your T shirts. I'm
using that. I'm using for my own brand.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Like that.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
Did I say, Bob, if you had if the doctor
told you have one week to live, how would you
live it?
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Remember this conversation?
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (09:32):
And I said, would you live it like you live
in it today? If he said you have one week
to live? And he said no, So what are you
waiting for?
Speaker 3 (09:41):
Right?
Speaker 1 (09:41):
What are we waiting for to live life the way
that you will live it? If doc said you have
one week to live, because you might not.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
Even have that.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
So to go back there and a question without getting
so like dark and all that, It's like that's real,
Like I live life that way, and anybody in the
way of that for me, you in the way of
my my path, my journey in this life that I
get to get to and I don't know when in
my I don't even know when my lifes are up.
And so I got to get to it because I
know that it hasn't stopped because the Big Guy keep
(10:13):
putting me in these different rooms, in these different places,
in these different spaces.
Speaker 2 (10:17):
So that means it's more life. And so the my
eyes open.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Baby, you're in the Hall of Fame fame. Yeah, how
does that? It's crazy because you not always have a
recap conversation a lot of times about being like this life.
You're in the Hall of Fame and you're in the
(10:41):
Hall of Fame with a class that's highly regarded. Like
what does that feel like for you? Like looking back
and you wake up every like you said, you wake
up and you look at life and say you're just happy.
You just hay by life. But that was the part
of your life, being in the Hall of Fame.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Yeah, that was a big part.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
So what does that feel like when you look back?
And this every time I want to look back.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
Man, it's the body of work, you know what I mean?
Like anything that we do in life. If someone tells
you that, you know you, let me take all your
body of work and it's going to end up being
in this exclusive club. And in basketball, the most exclusive
club is the Hall of Fame. And so let me
take your body of work and you're gonna end up
(11:28):
in the most exclusive club in the sport that you
dreamed of play. How does that support to feel? How
do you feel? That is what I'm saying, Like, I
don't know how it feels to really be in the
Hall of Fame. I say the words, I write the
tough down. But come on, my dude, this is the
Hall of Fame. This is this is this is the
Holy Girl, this is everything. This is you are one
(11:50):
of the greatest to play this. You know how long
this game been?
Speaker 2 (11:52):
Around seventy five years? I got a tattooed.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
And now we ain't like that was five years not
play So now we're going into year what of the
NBA that quick? So yeah, yeah, it really means something.
But I think as life go on, as my family grows,
as I get to see when my kids accomplished, and
how I can you know, be someone that can be there,
(12:17):
you know, and help them, you know, in their way
of accomplishing. I will see what Hall of Fame really
feels like. I think right now, I'm just like, it's
it's so surreal right now that it don't make sense
even though I can say it and I can go
back and watch.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
The speech that I can remember being there. Thank you
very much. I wrote that I ain't in the business
right nobody's speeches.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
But but now also I would say on my end,
just watching how you had a chance to be able
with your daddy and your son.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Oh my dad, let me, can I get all love please?
Speaker 1 (12:53):
So I was trying to I was trying to to
come up with the idea to start my speak, like
I waited till the last three months. And I was like,
because it's like when I was in school, I waited
to allows me to do my work because I got
it done right, that's one.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
Of the clock ticking baby.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
So I waited to the last three months to start
sitting down and putting together this this Hall of Fame speech.
And I remember on my birthday, all right, well, I
landed in Chicago from Paris.
Speaker 2 (13:24):
I had my birthday trip from Paris, and I landed
Chicago on my birthday.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
And it hit me then what my speech should be about.
It should be about Chicago. It should be about the beginning, right,
it should be it get about what started it all.
And so then I started from there, I wrote down, okay,
on this day, you know what I mean, Like, I
wrote that down in my notes.
Speaker 2 (13:44):
And then from there I was like, well.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
Who, so my dad, this doesn't happen without Danne Wade Singer,
And so I based my speech around that. And if
you see my speech, I started with my dad. I
started acknowledging my dad and talking about how he introduced
me to the game. And then I ended my speech
with my dad, and I wanted to really, you know,
(14:06):
this is my dad dream, just like it's.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
My dream right, like we shared in his dream like
and so that moment I thought, I was like, all right,
how can and so? And I said that to say.
I remember the day I was driving up to my home.
Speaker 1 (14:19):
And it just clicked in my head. I was like, oh,
I'm about to fuck my dad head up. I'm about
to bring him on stage. At the end of my speech,
it just I didn't even have no words. I knew
what it was going to be about, and I knew
what the ending was gonna be. So this entire time,
I'm sitting here and I know that in three months
(14:42):
that his life is about to change because everything we
went through in life, everything he put into this, that
moment was so big for him. Bro, that's his name
going into Hall of Fame. He started that. Yeah, he
was the first dwaange Wade. And so for me to
be able to bring him on stage and walk into
the Hall of Fame with them and give him that
acknowledgement and give men the acknowledge men that they deserve,
(15:06):
because we do get left out of a lot of stories.
And it's not saying we're doing it to be in stories,
but we do get left out a lot. And it's
not saying that the ones that don't don't have the
right to be in that story, like Okay, something happened,
but the ones that are there, we left out a
lot of stories.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
Father's Day, we got to do better. You see these
gifts anyway, Just send your father's on golf tournaments. Everybody,
just stop buying.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
Yes, I hate to see when father's they come up
on TV versus when Mother's Day.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
I'll be like, ain't this But for me like that
was for the men.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
That was for us.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
And that's not a perfect relationship. That's a relationship that
has been through a lot of shit. We've been through
a lot. And so for all the fathers out there
has had hard relationships with their kids, tough to figure
you out to you too much like me, you two stuff,
whatever you've had, that was a moment for all of
us that that's a healing moment for my dad and
(15:58):
I in front of the word world because we always, man,
we needed to we want to hug our dad. Now
you get to a point in life where nothing matters
but the relationship with your parents are. They're still alive
for these moments that you can create with these people
who are just like you. And so for me, man,
I just wanted to give my dad something that I
knew that would be, you know, probably one of the
(16:19):
most important things that I can do.
Speaker 2 (16:21):
No house I can buy, no car I.
Speaker 1 (16:23):
Can get them, nothing I can give them, but more
than the acknowledgement in front of the world to say
thank you, and the reason I'm set on the stage
because not only you put the ball in my hand,
but you put these other things inside of me.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
And so yeah, that was a moment. It was a moment.
Shout out to the dad, Shout out to my pops.
Speaker 3 (16:40):
Man, hell dogs, I must switches who because your cold.
(17:02):
Had some battles, but they were close. But I had
some battles, like I remember you told the story about
when you broke his nose.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Yeah, and when I broke his nose in All.
Speaker 3 (17:13):
Star and he was like, yo, you like this ship right?
But I've always had this this start or question. But
the question has always been asked, like can I be
friends and still compete and go at each other? Like
you go at Code breaking his nose. You playing against Chris,
You're playing against Broun, You're playing against the guys you
(17:33):
that you have great relationships with.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Do you have great relationships with people in your same field?
I do, And it's but you guys are friendly, and
you guys are also competitive.
Speaker 3 (17:47):
Okay, I guess I see what you did there. You
put it on me. I like that.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
I put it on everybody who's listening.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
I see that.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
I said, yeah, okay, So like don't they people like
to make it because it's a game of basketball, and
you know, these guys like I did never understood that.
Speaker 2 (18:01):
I never understood why. Like and it was a rule
before we got in the NBA.
Speaker 1 (18:05):
First of all, Like and pat Riley was a part
of this right not fragnizing with the other opponents because
you know, maybe it makes you look weak or softens
you out, whatever the mentality is, and I respect it
and I understand it. Mellow just actually told another story
about when I when I couldn't talk to him because
of that. And that's respect in the workplace, whatever the
(18:25):
case may be. But out of the workplace, you you
have the relationships that you have on your own that
don't have nothing to do with the work. They don't
have nothing to do with my job. And I want
to be and me want to be the best at
my job. I don't what I'm going to take less
shots when I play you. I'm going to not hit
you as hard like I grew up with brothers. You
know who I competed hardest against my brother's.
Speaker 3 (18:47):
True my dad.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
Like we go to Broves, you got something to prove,
we got something, yeah, and so like I won't.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
I want to have my best games against my friends.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
I want to hit all like you won't think I
want to hit that game went over bron my last game,
and and that's smart sucker. He knew what move I
was gonna do, and he took it away from me.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
I saw that, Remember that.
Speaker 1 (19:08):
I was about to go to that left I was
about to put that ball in that left hand and
side step his ass and go for that game winner
in the in the stable.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Centers my last game, and he took it away. You
don't think I wanted that moment?
Speaker 3 (19:17):
Fair?
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Yeah, So that whole notion, that's that's not real. That's
that's that's somebody who's never been in the heat of
the battle versus someone they love. I can love you,
but I'm It's not a movie where you like, let
me let go because I want him to win. No,
I'm not letting go of nothing. You gotta take it
from me. And that's the way we played versus each other.
(19:39):
You gotta take this homeboy, And it's gonna be love.
Before the game, We're gonna do our handshake. It's gonna
be loved after the game. We may if we stay overnight,
we're gonna go to dinner, We're gonna hang out. Feli
is gonna say high. No, man, that whole notion, and
to me, it was never a real thing. And if
you if anybody think it was, then just go to
the Robins Illinoise and ask anybody who was neighbor of
(20:00):
my family's growing up, and they'll tell you how we
went at each other and that's that's that's blood, that's love,
and we go at each other harder than anybody. The
Draft is the one thing that I try to watch
if I can, every year because that moment right there,
that's to that point in your life, that's everything that
(20:21):
you work for, it's everything that you dreamed of, and
that moment coming true is one of the greatest feelings
that you can have. So it's probably one of the
first times that life shows you that it's gonna show
up for you the way you want it to, you
know what I mean, Like you, you pray for it,
you work hard for something, and eventually you know you
(20:44):
get it in whatever capacity that you know the Big
God bless you with.
Speaker 2 (20:48):
But that moment for me is the moment.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
So every time I watch the Draft and I see
these young kids and I see their families and I
see them like they crying, and I know I know
what's to come, and I know what's coming. I know
what that day feels like like what that moment feels like.
And so I'm I'm filled with so much joy for
them because you know, for a lot of that's the
best time of your NBA career, the moment you get drafted,
because then the business takes over.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
It ain't ain't all.
Speaker 1 (21:16):
Yeah, chill, No moment's work is working.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
Ain't no, it ain't all roses.
Speaker 1 (21:22):
Up there, But it's still it's still beautiful that you
know that you get to live that dream out. And
so that's the one thing that I probably try to
watch every year when I when I get an opportunity,
you know, just to see what these young kids like,
where they're going, what they're going to say, what their
parents like, what their parents gonna say, what they're wearing.
You know, I remember the outfit's been a big deal,
And I tell myself, I was like, the outfits are
(21:43):
such a big deal in the draft that I'm going
to wear an outfit and no one is ever going
to want to talk about me because it's just going
to be basic, Ma what you mean? Like, I was like,
you know me, Like I'm like even though like I've
grown and I've taken chance since you know, as I've
gotten older, but I've always been a person who is
(22:04):
you know, who had a little style and a little flair.
And on the draft, look at my suit. Just look
at my draft suit. Ain't no style, ain't no flair.
Not I ain't talking about the cut of it. I
ain't talking about the make of it, you know. Shout
out to Willie Scot who made my draft suit, black
brother from Chicago. I remember it was a big deal
for me. Is the first thing I ever got made.
So shout out to Willie Scott. But I was like, Willie,
(22:24):
I just want a blue suit, something really easy.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
I remember, I can see that, I can see it.
Speaker 2 (22:31):
I was like, just real chill. And then Willie was
like about this blue shirt. But I'm like cool, whatever, whatever.
I just wanted to be.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
And then and I still because of the draft class
I was in as well, that comes up every year.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
That's that's that picture. And they always called me a
pastor like Wae. But and I tried my hardest to
stay out of that conversation. I was like, this is
going to get it done. And I was like afterwards,
I was like, probably of the water Blacks.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
I got two suits made blue and black, and I
chose the blue one because blue was my favorite color
at the time.
Speaker 3 (23:08):
Okay, well I ain't mad at that. Now. You know
you've ever etched, you were the first passed away. All right,
What are some of the toughest conversations you've ever had
with loved ones and how did they take them? Oh?
Speaker 1 (23:31):
I mean, listen, I've been a leader in my family
for a very long time, and so I've had a
lot of tough conversations with love ones. Most of my
conversations are tough conversations with loved ones. And it starts
with no. You know how you take no? You don't
know how to take it. Everyone wants yes, and so
(23:52):
the toughest thing to do is to look at your
loved ones in the face and say no. Right, And
because these other people who you know, they those art
strings get.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
To you know. And so.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Being in this position that I've been in in my family,
where I've been, you know, kind of put in a
position to be the leader of my family.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
I mean, I've I've had tough conversations with my dad.
What I had to tell my dad, and my dad
say this all the time that.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
I told him that my dad came to me with
this old elaborate plan how he wanted some money. And
he came in with this plan and I listened to it,
and then afterwards, like I think stole cold faced it.
I was just like, bro, you got to go and
work on yourself. You got to rebuild yourself.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Like my dad was in there.
Speaker 1 (24:40):
He was beenning out of it, like he was out
of control. Copy And when I was a kid, you
don't say nothing. You can't say nothing.
Speaker 2 (24:48):
But when I.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Became the leader of the family and I became the
one of everybody, was like, hey, I need well, this
is how it's going to go. And so I remember
telling my dad really just seriously, like yo, you gotta
go get yourself straight. You got to go start all
over before you can come.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
And what was that like that?
Speaker 1 (25:06):
It was tough. It was tough as hell. I remember
my dad came. We always in Chicago. My dad came
to my condo. We sat down and we ate, and
you know, he had all these ideas and things he
wanted to do. But I wasn't in a place where
I was gonna give him money because he wouldn't have
known what to do with money at that time, right,
And so I had to, you know, in a sense
(25:28):
the reverse changed quickly and I had to tell him
what was hard for me to tell him. And at
the time, my dad was you know, he was in
the alcohol heavy, heavily, and he didn't he didn't handle
it well when he would you know, would enjoy you know, liquor,
and so with that he would become a whole different beast.
Speaker 2 (25:45):
We all know that, we all know that way.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
And so I was just at the point where I
was like, Bro, you gotta go. You need you need
a form of help in some way for you know,
before you think you want to enjoy this life and
before I give you some money to go and just
blow it, you need to go fix yourself, right Like
we all have these moments where we need to grow up.
And I've been there and I will continue. I hope
(26:08):
somebody keep telling me go grow up, because so I
can go do that because I know you love me
if you if you go tell me something like that.
And so that was hard to have with my father,
you know what I mean. And if you talk to
my father to day, he didn't like it, but he
respects it and he's thankful for it today because of you.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Know the place he is.
Speaker 1 (26:27):
In life now, but I had to look him stir
in the face and tell him to go pretty much
go grow up.
Speaker 3 (26:32):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (26:33):
Yeah, that was one one many conversations with my loves.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
And the thing is how people take it is that
they only take yes.
Speaker 3 (26:42):
It's great. Wow.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
People only take yes, it's great. Anything outside of it, Yes,
it's not going to be taken.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Greatly.
Speaker 1 (26:52):
Maybe ain't even taken greatly. It leaves some hope, but
nobody want to maybe and knows are.
Speaker 2 (26:59):
How dare you? How dare you say no to me?
That's how nos are taken.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
And so it's a tough place to be in because
it's gonna be way more nose and way more maybes
than yes.
Speaker 3 (27:13):
Hopefully you if you watch them right now, do you
remember talk about when you became the leader of the family,
And I'm sure that happened when you became the biggest
bread wind in the family.
Speaker 1 (27:24):
Yeah, it was only bread it once. My dad could
have put his paws on at any point.
Speaker 3 (27:31):
But now that's a lot of responsibility like that.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
Yeah, college out of nowhere, twenty one years old.
Speaker 1 (27:39):
I went from broke to no responsibilities to having a kid,
getting married to run being a leader of my entire
family in one year.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
The transition like, and I know it wasn't. It couldn't
because you have to learn how to say no, obviously,
because you're gonna lose all your money if you don't. Yeah, Like,
what's that like? Because you got you talk about your brothers,
are you you got sisters, you got you got everybody
in your family? Like what was that like learning how
to say nope?
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Well, I mean I had to be taught. I had to,
I had to be taken advantage of. I had to
I had to say no.
Speaker 1 (28:16):
For the first time, Like all you got to do
all these things. In my college coach Coach Crean, that
was something that he always talked to me about was
where I was going. You know, he knew that my
where my path was going. I didn't know that where
I'm going. You're gonna have to learn how to say no.
These are the conversation that he sat down and had
with me. And that's why I love Coach Crean. It
wasn't just a coaching, you know, player relationship where we
(28:39):
sat down and we have man and man conversation.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
You're going to have to learn how to say no.
You know how hard it is going to be.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
And so I was, you know, taught that and why
why are you gonna have to say no? And these
are the reasons you do say no? Like you just
always you just don't say no for no.
Speaker 3 (28:54):
No? You know what?
Speaker 2 (28:55):
All right? You want to do something, well, here's the
work you gotta do. You do that work? Come to me?
Speaker 1 (28:59):
And then with talk right because everybody just wanted right away.
And so learning how to say no was something that
I had to work at because who wants to say
no to people they love? Especially not me. I have
a personality where I want everything to be fine. But
I also had a personality where I say no, right,
I will. I don't want to, but I will.
Speaker 3 (29:23):
Let's less. I love it. Know.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
The Capricorn to me, baby, the Capricorn to me, Okay,
this won't be the best no I've ever got, but
it's the best no I can think about that I've
ever got. So when I was in high school, Darius
Miles just told the story on the OG Show with
(29:47):
DN and Mike Miller.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
I was in high school. I played au basketball one year.
It's my junior year.
Speaker 1 (29:52):
I played for Illinois Warriors and Darius Miles was the
best player on our team. Darius Miles ended up being
coming out of high school being drafted number three overall.
But throughout that year, like, I was pretty damn good.
If them out scored thirty, I have twenty eight or
thirty myself. Like we were hooping and I was hooping,
and so it was time for It was getting time
(30:14):
for Nike Camp. And this is what all the players
want to You want to get invited to Nike Camp.
This is the biggest camp in the world at this time.
All the best players are going there. So we were
one of the best teams. We were a Nike team.
We had the best player, so you know, obviously everyone
got a chance to see us and scout us all
the time.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
Now not saying I was the second best player on
the team, but I was pretty good.
Speaker 1 (30:34):
I was up there, And I remember getting ready for
Nike Camp. Right thinking that I was going to Nike Camp.
I was told that, hey, we're going to get you
a Nike Camp. He's just got to do some paperwork,
but it's all good. And I remember the day that
I was like, have my bags ready to go to
Nike Camp. I'm waiting on my coach. If he was
supposed to show up at one, he showed up at
like four. I'm waiting hours for him. And he finally
(30:56):
pulled up and I walked out with my bags ready
to go, and I saw his head down and he
was like, de you ain't get you ain't get invited
to Nike Camp. And I was just shocked, and I
was like, well, who got invited from Auntie? About seven
of the dudes from my team now seven of dudes
better than me. Seven of the dudes, now they were good,
(31:18):
good players, but like I was pretty good, and that
crushed me. And that know that they gave me. I've
never been the same player since that. No, I've never
been the same person since that. No, says I walked
back in the house with my damn bags and I
had to tuck my tail between my ass. I've never
been the same person or player. And so for my career,
(31:39):
that was the best know I ever got. So thank
you Nike for not inviting me to Nike Camp. I
appreciate that because it made me. It really woke up
that inner beast in me. And see, and that's on
the record, and then everyone who played against me knows
that and everyone who played with me know that, and
so that.
Speaker 2 (31:56):
Was the best know I ever got.
Speaker 3 (31:57):
Do you know why this why you was?
Speaker 2 (32:00):
Now? I do multiple things don't matter. Okay, let's because but.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
I was seventeen years old when it happened. About twenty one,
I was the face of Converse, one of the Nike brands.
I was the leading face of it. Four years later,
I didn't get anybody's Nike camp, but I'm leading one
of the brands four years later. So for me, that
was a little sweet when I.
Speaker 2 (32:23):
Walked into when I walked around the Nike people like, Yo,
what's up? How y'all doing?
Speaker 3 (32:29):
Oh? I love it.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
I love that out here.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
As a.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
One who's been who was considered a superstar in this
league when this league no longer at this moment because
you don't play anymore, but you were a superstar.
Speaker 2 (32:58):
And sometimes you're gonna say that, I know I'm be
talking about.
Speaker 1 (33:01):
Okay, so you have an author, yes, yes, all right,
let's get to it.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
So who are superstars? Now?
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Well, it's okay. What makes you great?
Speaker 1 (33:14):
Question to me is more than one version of a superstar.
So you have basketball superstars and then you have worldly superstars. Okay,
so basketball superstars are guys who are multiple All Stars.
You're out the year book it okay, we can go
down the line and book who the Lebron's, the Steph
(33:36):
Curry's to Kevin Durant that we can go down the
line and book who are superstars in a game of basketball?
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Right?
Speaker 1 (33:42):
And so you got All Star, you got a star,
you got superstar. Then you let me not put brown
and I'm sorry. Then you got above that, Katie, and
you got above that, right, But I'll say that to
say their superstars. Jason Tatum is a young, younger superstar.
Anthony Edwards is a young superstar. We have superstars in
the game of basketball now when it comes to worldly conversations.
(34:05):
To me, in the definition I got of what a
superstar was was we need to care. We need to
care about who you're dating. We need to care about
what you're eating. We need to think about you when
you're not on TV playing basketball. We need to care
enough about you in that way, and that makes you
a superstar. That makes you to me, that makes you
outside of the game of basketball. To go from this,
(34:26):
it's a lot of superstars in the game because they're
very great players. How do you become a superstar in
the world. People have to care about things besides how
many points you're scoring.
Speaker 2 (34:35):
So to me, that's why I.
Speaker 1 (34:37):
Said, like, the game of basketball has superstars, right, you
have those elite stars that are superstars that if you
on a platform like ESPN, you're on TNT, you on
all these platforms, there are gonna continually continuously talk about you.
James Harden is a superstar, Russell Westbrook is a superstar,
and so forth and so on. We have we have superstars,
and then it's to me, it's other superstar. It's the
(35:00):
it's the culture. It's the pop culture superstars. It's the
ones that you care about what they're doing when they're
not playing a game of basketball and not just when
it's a negative story that comes out.
Speaker 2 (35:10):
Those is a that's a whole other level of superstar.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
Them that I feel that a lot of guys don't
cross over into some because they just won't cross over
into it, and some don't want to. And sometimes it
depends on who you're dating. Sometimes it depends on what
what invitations you get to certain events. Right, Like, it
continues to grow, and that's why I like, even though
I'm retired, you can still call me a superstar because
(35:33):
you still see.
Speaker 2 (35:34):
Me in these superstar lanes.
Speaker 1 (35:36):
And I'm not playing a game of basketball, right, I'm
not calling myself a superstar saying someone can call me
a superstar.
Speaker 3 (35:42):
Which is right now, right, No, you set it up
so it's right.
Speaker 2 (35:48):
Okay, So yeah, that's how I think about it.
Speaker 3 (35:50):
But now, so the question is I'm going ask the
next question. The real question is do you think there
are any superstars in NBA?
Speaker 1 (35:57):
Now the I think or or others thing is the
whole different what you think.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
Because we're talking to you, let me give what you think. Yes,
tell me to put you on the spot. But go ahead, yes, okay,
you want to name any of them?
Speaker 1 (36:11):
No, okay, because I had to sit and really think
about who I think. I mean, I can name one
Lebron James.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
Okay, this exclude Lebron and stuff.
Speaker 1 (36:22):
Because we know, like, okay, like an example for me,
Anthony Howards is becoming a superstar. He's in the very
early stages of it. He's maturing into a superstar. And
only at the same time he's maturing into an NBA
basketball superstar, and we're actually starting to care about Anthony
Edwards away from the game.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
Right, the stuff that he's saying in his interview is
how he is.
Speaker 1 (36:43):
How like we're starting to care about him now, right,
you have a little bit like when he comes up,
you ain't just looking for points, Like.
Speaker 2 (36:48):
Let me see what Anthony ever said.
Speaker 1 (36:50):
So now he's in the he's in the early stages
of like, Okay, he's building this now it has to
it has to keep going.
Speaker 2 (36:57):
We have to continue to care about him.
Speaker 1 (36:59):
The same way we care about what he does on
a basketball court, we have to continue to care about
what he does away from the game of basketball. That's
how you build to be a global a superstar.
Speaker 3 (37:12):
Remember you mentioned that story back when Shot got to
to the he and he said he's gonna teach you
how to be a superstar.
Speaker 2 (37:20):
Yeah he did.
Speaker 3 (37:22):
Like what was that like for you?
Speaker 2 (37:24):
He said, I'm gonna make you a superstar and then
I'm gonna teach you along the way.
Speaker 3 (37:28):
Yeah, So what was that like? Like, how did that
Now I'm going back to now because you became one,
because how was that for you? Like you coming in
you second year in the league, you know, you had
a great playoffs run and Shot comes in and tells
you you gonna make you a superstar uncomfortable.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
Anybody who know me before a Shock came around, you
might have heard me say five words in a row,
the most words I will say.
Speaker 2 (37:56):
I was very shy. I was very quiet.
Speaker 1 (37:59):
I always listen to everything that's going on and always
observed things that's going on.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
But I didn't talk much. I didn't have superstar written
on me.
Speaker 1 (38:06):
First, let's say that shot came in and it kind
of walked me through how to be myself to be
a superstar, because I didn't know that people were actually like,
I didn't know that people would care about anything about
me outside of what I do on the basketball floor.
But what I did on the floor had to be
(38:27):
so loud that people had to start looking. So I
had to take care of that first. Pirali always say,
keep the main thing, the main thing. The main thing
was I had to get them. I had to get
to it on the floor. And then once I started
getting to it on the floor, and we started traveling,
and it wasn't just three hundred thousand people outside for
Shock and maybe one hundred was for me, Like I
(38:48):
started seeing like, oh wait, like he gave me flash,
he gave me a character. He gave me something that
people can buy into, right, he gave me that nickname,
and so I had to live up to that, Like
it's a lot of things I had to also live
up to.
Speaker 2 (39:00):
But he saw it in me. I just didn't know how.
And so the education that I.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Got from Shaq was things that I used throughout my brands.
Like one of my favorite commercials that I ever done
was the Converse commercial where I say from Robins, Illinois,
six foot four guard. That commercial was written off of
my poem that I wrote to the game of basketball.
(39:26):
And what I got from Shaka Run that time was
to allow myself to be my own brand.
Speaker 2 (39:35):
Like whatever you want to do, you do it.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
And you make sure that the people who are your
partners or whatever that they know what you want to
do and you make sure that they do that. And
so when it came to that commercial, I remember they
had set like three or four different spots in front
of Lisa and I and I didn't like any one
of them, and the meeting just kind of was like quiet, right,
like think about it. They lied, they come up, they've
(39:59):
been working. Here goes option one and me at Lisa's
like he goes option two three, and I didn't like
need none of them. And this was a big deal
that this commercial. I was one of the top athletes.
I have my own signature shoe. This commercial will have
to be a big commercial. And I laid and then
Lisa said, once you share your porn with them, and
I was like yeah, and I shared my porn with
them because this is who I am. So I need
(40:21):
y'all get to know who I am and not and
not me and not me fall into what y'all trying
to make me right, right, because superstar, if you're if
you're fake with it, everyone's gonna know. So I think
what he taught me is authenticity in building your your
stardom and open your mouth and let people in on
(40:41):
who you are. We know you quiet and you ain't
saying much, but we know it's something in there because
you're not this good because you you got something in there.
So let it out. And so I started letting it out.
Not only on the court, I started letting out the meetings.
I started letting it out. Baby and q Rich actually
just talked about this on the Old g podcast. Shout
out to u D and Mike Miller for the O
(41:03):
G Show. He just talked about this on the OG Show.
He was like, he was like he remembered when everything
changed for me because deep deep mousing curage. I've been
knowing since I was seventeen years old. So they know
to quiet me, and then they found out the twenty
two year old not quiet me and curas it goes
and explained the moment he realized that shit didn't change right,
(41:25):
and it was really it was the shock. It was
a Damon Jones era. It was the Heatles we are
the Heatles coming in the town era, and a lot
of them had to do with Shock, for sure, the
confidence that he put in me, but also the you know,
the teaching of watch me. I'm going to show you
how that's done, bringing me to his commercials, making me
a part of his commercials. There's a lot of things
(41:47):
that big fella did behind the scenes. A lot of
people don't know. And I watched and he showed me
how to be a superstar. And it's just being who
you are. That's who shock is.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
He's just shocked.
Speaker 3 (41:56):
Yeah, right, I think it's been in general, it's always
been tough, hard for us. It's been to talk about
anything that's not tough. Why just just just the way,
just think about it, just think about at least for me,
(42:16):
I had a friend of mine, as I told him,
I said, I never talked to my I remember my
dad first. I can remember my dad hugged me for
the first time. I remember I was seventeen years old
and I graduately, I got my diploma money. He gave
me a hug and I said, whoa, this is real, right, yes,
And for me, like, it's so crazy because we grew
(42:38):
so our lives so different as we got older. But
at that moment, remember, at seventeen years old, my dad
was trying to like give me a little hugging. I'm
I'm sure for him it was different because he never
did it, and it was different for both of us.
And I'm like, you know, this is kind of awkward, okay,
you hugging me? And I'm like, and I think about it.
I remember to this day when it happened. Look at
(43:00):
my kids now. I'm trying to be so opposite of that.
But the process of going up through that, I remember
going as a kid like, man, if I want this.
Then I started crying my dad like what you're crying
for yeah, man, like what you're doing. And I'm like,
so you can't cry. You gotta hide it, you gotta
like And it's crazy how growing up as a young
(43:22):
black man as how much we have to kind of
shield our emotions. Yeah, like cover, like I need to
cover and need to cover and get aide and it's
just I just don't I don't need to see.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
Well, a lot of circumstances is the reason we have
to do that, right, Like, you know, everyone is not
in a position where they can just be freely expressive
because of the circumstances that your family has in half.
And so I think one we have to give grace
to the generations before us as parents about the circumstances
(43:55):
which wouldn't Allot, listen, I may want to hug you,
but you know what's on outside of that door. I'm sorry,
I can't. I can't even I can't even chance you're
going to be soft in any way because I need
you to be hard.
Speaker 2 (44:09):
I need you to be tough.
Speaker 1 (44:10):
And whether that's being chased by unleashed dogs in the
neighborhoods or being bullied or whatever it is, I need
you to be tough. And I need you to be
tough minded, and so this is my way of teaching
you how to be tough minded, because this is what
I learned.
Speaker 2 (44:23):
And so giving that grace to people before us.
Speaker 1 (44:26):
But now when you know and you have the opportunity
to that's where you and I come in at now,
because one, we know because we didn't like that, but it.
Speaker 2 (44:35):
Helped build us, right, to help build character in us.
Speaker 1 (44:38):
But also too, we have the opportunity and our kids
have the opportunity because of you know, resources or finances
and all these things to be to not have to
have that right. So I tell people all the time,
and this is where I think my relationship with my
kids flourish is because it and it flourishes. And I
say this because my relationship with my mom and dad,
(44:59):
no matter what we've all been.
Speaker 2 (45:00):
Through, it continues to flourish because.
Speaker 1 (45:03):
It is a no judgment zone. And if you're not
in a space where you're in a no judgment zone,
you're never going to be fully who you want to
be and who you are if I feel any judgment
coming from you. And that's why we have a lot
of failed relationships. And I'm not just talking about you
know marriages. I'm talking about relationships period, because they're not
(45:26):
free judgment zones.
Speaker 2 (45:28):
It's a lot of.
Speaker 1 (45:28):
Judgment and a lot of our relationships and so I
tell my mom and dad all the time. It's like
we so we could tell each other anything. We can
go through anything and be able to support each other
because ain't no judgment here, none, and a lot of
people don't have that
What's up, everybody. This is Dwayne Way. Listen everyone who's listening,
who's taking time out of their days, thank you for
listening to the Why Podcast. I've been getting people from
all around the world everywhere that I go. I've been
telling me that they're tuning in, So I thank you
so much for tuning in. We have many more guests
to come, but right now we have a little break
(00:37):
in the White Podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
But we're not going to leave you guys alone.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
We're going to make sure that you guys have some
content and I shoot another show called the wind Down.
I shoot this in my office with my good friend
Bob and tell us that you guys here in the
White Podcast. We both sit and we have evergreen conversations
about everything dealing with life, by dealing with fashion, by
dealing with marriage, by dealing with fatherhood, dealing with things
(01:00):
in life.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
That we all have to deal with.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
And so we put together some clips, some reels from
the wind Down. We hope you guys enjoy it. We
will be back very soon with the White Podcast, but
please enjoyed this other green conversation on the wind Down.
And I can't wait you guys to see who our
next guest is going to be on the White podcast.
(01:25):
Let's start this podcast off.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Can you is that close enough?
Speaker 3 (01:30):
As you've gotten older into this world, do you feel like,
what was the biggest change you've noticed since you've gotten
to that forty year old age now? And physically? So
what was that change like as a man in the
aspect of like just getting up just when you tell
the twenty year old person when you turn forty, this
(01:50):
is look out for this ship.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
Yeah, you don't believe it. Now, let's let's the on
the ones out. We got all the technology out here,
get all the things. But I think I've done it
twice because an athlete. As an athlete, I got older
and so I had to that when I used to
listen when I take when I take you baseline, all
I need is one step and I'm taking off. Then
he got the point where I needed that one step
(02:13):
and half then the two step.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
Then I couldn't take off. And so I felt myself
aging as.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
An athlete, Right, I know what that explosive leg feel
like and how much closer I gotta go?
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Right?
Speaker 1 (02:23):
And so now in life, I'm on this side of forty,
I'm turning forty two. And I feel it like I
feel the like you're not.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
Like I'm not immortal anymore. Like I feel like I
feel human. Like you know, he's like watching and they
start bleeding. He's like, now I feel human.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Now do you remember the day that happened? But I
keep is there a moment that you can go back to?
It says the fuck, No, I can't. I don't know.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
It just it just happened. I just I tried to
get out of a chair one day and it just occurred.
That's me right now. I try to get out of
and I was like, oh, like you know me, like
excuse me, microphone.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
You know when up, man, you start getting older baby,
like that first.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Right right right right?
Speaker 2 (03:15):
Yeah. So when I hit that level, like then I
started taking my body seriously.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
And so as a group as man and you know
what I'm saying, we all try to build this like
we're building a brotherhood that is pretty cool.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
And so even in.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
That, like I used to lift weights a lot because
that's what as an athlete, that's what that's what we did.
We left weights a lot, and so even in that,
I was like, all right, I need something different. And
then my brother was doing yoga right, And I was like, dang,
I don't want to do yoga. I don't want to
do that. It's uncomfortable, it's hot. He was doing hot
yoga six in the morning.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
I want to do that.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
But I gave it a try, and then it maysta
of getting a try, Like I felt gains over the
course of doing doing yoga, not just obviously physical gains,
but I got mental gains. And so like it's just
playing a different You just got to learn how to
play a different game with your body, you know, And
you know, I think same. The same effort that I
put in as an athlete who wanted to be able
(04:08):
to take those hits and be able to have that
first step, I got to take those same initiatives and
in this life when it comes to my health, and
for everybody out there who do now, I want to
check themselves out because we all are scared to see
behind the cart. We'll go get I go get Mann's
and page like effect you, I do all the things, right,
I go get we go, get massages, get scralled, haircut,
(04:28):
you get whatever your thing is. But you will not
go check the inside of your body. And that's the
that's the engine of the car. Card don't run without
the engine, baby.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
And so you got to go check it. Not just
you gotta get not just get all change, you gotta
check the whole thing.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
So I'm just on that journey of life where I'm like, oh,
I want to feel good as I get older, and
I want to do all the things I want to
be able to do where it starts on the inside.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
So that journey is now, I'm right now with you.
Speaker 1 (04:58):
I gave so much to the game that when I
got to that fifteenth season and Bob was there, you know,
after we played we played Philly in the playoffs, and
so I get traded back to Miami, you know, from
the Calves, and we ended up getting in the playoffs
and we played Philly, and so Game two had a
great game. I had that game. I had that game
(05:18):
that she wanted, the old dude that come off the bench.
You know, I'm a hero, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
I had that.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
I was on the roll and then swats swap and
we were in Game five and the game was and
the seriously all was over and I was just dribbling
the ball. And as I was dribbling the ball, I
just I just remembered that my first NBA game was
right here on this court. I played against Allen iverson Philadelphia.
I Toober twenty eight, two thousand and three, and I
(05:45):
was like, man, this to me feels poetic enough. I
ended well, I started it. I'm done, and so we
went off into I went off into that mindset that
I was done. I feel like I gave everything to it.
But as I talked about, someone always told me, when
you feel like you're done, play one more year. And
so a lot of things have to go right for
(06:05):
me before I even decided to play that one more year,
and a lot of conversations needed to happen, And so
I felt like I gave everything to it, and that
last year I did was really I didn't. It was
no moment where I was like, no, I need to
come back, no matter how well I thought I was
playing like, I was like, no, I want to go
do something else. Like I've mastered this as good as
(06:26):
I can. Now it's time for me to go and
try to build something and master something else, right, and
so never never, I don't have no ill will about
nothing about the game, even the money that everybody's making,
even you know, like for real, like people think you
a hater because you didn't get that or that person
got that. I've released it all that hatred if I
(06:48):
ever if it's ever creeped in my body about what
someone else have that I don't.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
So I'm cool with driving my little car, my little.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Lane, and I'm at peace with that. But everything else
it's chaos. Having a ball with seven seconds left in
the garden on the road and you got to hit
this game winner, and it's chaos. And as we talked about,
how do you calm yourself down? How do you calm
your nerves in a moment of chaos? And so we
(07:15):
talk about the game of basketball. People say, do you
miss playing? No, I don't miss playing the game of basketball,
but I miss those moments of chaos. I miss those
moments where I can control my heart rate, well, I
control my mind, and I also control everybody in this
arena because I don't know what's about to happen. I
miss those moments because I can't get those moments no
matter why I go, Like, people celebrate me around the world,
but I can't. I can't get the ball in the
(07:37):
garden at the top of the key knowing I'm about
to shoot this step back.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
You know what I'm saying. How do you center yourself
without making it all about you?
Speaker 1 (07:50):
That was what I wrote. How do you center yourself
but not make it all about you? That's playing with
Lebron James. You got to know how to center yourself,
but you also got to know that you can't make
it about you. You know you're not going to have
the success that you want to have, that you crave,
that you stay up every night for. And so the
(08:10):
goal for me, and I put it on my vision
board for twenty twenty four.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Is that right?
Speaker 1 (08:15):
And how do I how do I continue to understand
that message?
Speaker 2 (08:20):
And how I continue to do that?
Speaker 1 (08:21):
Like in everything that we're building as a family, that
you're building with businesses, all these things, how do you
center yourself and understand that me centering myself is exactly
what is needed, is what everyone needs. But I ain't
gonna make it all about me.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
How do you do that?
Speaker 1 (08:39):
Everybody can't do that right, And so that's one of
the journeys, and that's to go And that's one of
the hardest things to do is to be the center
of attention.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
When I make it about you. That's real.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
So I put that on my vision board. You know
something that I want to continue to try to learn
how to do. And I've done it before, but it's
a constant, constant journey in my life that it continues
to show itself.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
And so this is my journey as a forty one
year old man, is how do I do that?
Speaker 3 (09:06):
I'm still in that. I'm still in that.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
He said, I'm still in that.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
I'm still in that.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Are you like that?
Speaker 3 (09:12):
I like that?
Speaker 2 (09:12):
All right, don't put that on your T shirts. I'm
using that. I'm using for my own brand.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Like that.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
Did I say, Bob, if you had if the doctor
told you have one week to live, how would you
live it?
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Remember this conversation?
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (09:32):
And I said, would you live it like you live
in it today? If he said you have one week
to live? And he said no, So what are you
waiting for?
Speaker 3 (09:41):
Right?
Speaker 1 (09:41):
What are we waiting for to live life the way
that you will live it? If doc said you have
one week to live, because you might not.
Speaker 2 (09:48):
Even have that.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
So to go back there and a question without getting
so like dark and all that, It's like that's real,
Like I live life that way, and anybody in the
way of that for me, you in the way of
my my path, my journey in this life that I
get to get to and I don't know when in
my I don't even know when my lifes are up.
And so I got to get to it because I
know that it hasn't stopped because the Big Guy keep
(10:13):
putting me in these different rooms, in these different places,
in these different spaces.
Speaker 2 (10:17):
So that means it's more life. And so the my
eyes open.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Baby, you're in the Hall of Fame fame. Yeah, how
does that? It's crazy because you not always have a
recap conversation a lot of times about being like this life.
You're in the Hall of Fame and you're in the
(10:41):
Hall of Fame with a class that's highly regarded. Like
what does that feel like for you? Like looking back
and you wake up every like you said, you wake
up and you look at life and say you're just happy.
You just hay by life. But that was the part
of your life, being in the Hall of Fame.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Yeah, that was a big part.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
So what does that feel like when you look back?
And this every time I want to look back.
Speaker 1 (11:07):
Man, it's the body of work, you know what I mean?
Like anything that we do in life. If someone tells
you that, you know you, let me take all your
body of work and it's going to end up being
in this exclusive club. And in basketball, the most exclusive
club is the Hall of Fame. And so let me
take your body of work and you're gonna end up
(11:28):
in the most exclusive club in the sport that you
dreamed of play. How does that support to feel? How
do you feel? That is what I'm saying, Like, I
don't know how it feels to really be in the
Hall of Fame. I say the words, I write the
tough down. But come on, my dude, this is the
Hall of Fame. This is this is this is the
Holy Girl, this is everything. This is you are one
(11:50):
of the greatest to play this. You know how long
this game been?
Speaker 2 (11:52):
Around seventy five years? I got a tattooed.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
And now we ain't like that was five years not
play So now we're going into year what of the
NBA that quick? So yeah, yeah, it really means something.
But I think as life go on, as my family grows,
as I get to see when my kids accomplished, and
how I can you know, be someone that can be there,
(12:17):
you know, and help them, you know, in their way
of accomplishing. I will see what Hall of Fame really
feels like. I think right now, I'm just like, it's
it's so surreal right now that it don't make sense
even though I can say it and I can go
back and watch.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
The speech that I can remember being there. Thank you
very much. I wrote that I ain't in the business
right nobody's speeches.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
But but now also I would say on my end,
just watching how you had a chance to be able
with your daddy and your son.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Oh my dad, let me, can I get all love please?
Speaker 1 (12:53):
So I was trying to I was trying to to
come up with the idea to start my speak, like
I waited till the last three months. And I was like,
because it's like when I was in school, I waited
to allows me to do my work because I got
it done right, that's one.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
Of the clock ticking baby.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
So I waited to the last three months to start
sitting down and putting together this this Hall of Fame speech.
And I remember on my birthday, all right, well, I
landed in Chicago from Paris.
Speaker 2 (13:24):
I had my birthday trip from Paris, and I landed
Chicago on my birthday.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
And it hit me then what my speech should be about.
It should be about Chicago. It should be about the beginning, right,
it should be it get about what started it all.
And so then I started from there, I wrote down, okay,
on this day, you know what I mean, Like, I
wrote that down in my notes.
Speaker 2 (13:44):
And then from there I was like, well.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
Who, so my dad, this doesn't happen without Danne Wade Singer,
And so I based my speech around that. And if
you see my speech, I started with my dad. I
started acknowledging my dad and talking about how he introduced
me to the game. And then I ended my speech
with my dad, and I wanted to really, you know,
(14:06):
this is my dad dream, just like it's.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
My dream right, like we shared in his dream like
and so that moment I thought, I was like, all right,
how can and so? And I said that to say.
I remember the day I was driving up to my home.
Speaker 1 (14:19):
And it just clicked in my head. I was like, oh,
I'm about to fuck my dad head up. I'm about
to bring him on stage. At the end of my speech,
it just I didn't even have no words. I knew
what it was going to be about, and I knew
what the ending was gonna be. So this entire time,
I'm sitting here and I know that in three months
(14:42):
that his life is about to change because everything we
went through in life, everything he put into this, that
moment was so big for him. Bro, that's his name
going into Hall of Fame. He started that. Yeah, he
was the first dwaange Wade. And so for me to
be able to bring him on stage and walk into
the Hall of Fame with them and give him that
acknowledgement and give men the acknowledge men that they deserve,
(15:06):
because we do get left out of a lot of stories.
And it's not saying we're doing it to be in stories,
but we do get left out a lot. And it's
not saying that the ones that don't don't have the
right to be in that story, like Okay, something happened,
but the ones that are there, we left out a
lot of stories.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
Father's Day, we got to do better. You see these
gifts anyway, Just send your father's on golf tournaments. Everybody,
just stop buying.
Speaker 1 (15:26):
Yes, I hate to see when father's they come up
on TV versus when Mother's Day.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
I'll be like, ain't this But for me like that
was for the men.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
That was for us.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
And that's not a perfect relationship. That's a relationship that
has been through a lot of shit. We've been through
a lot. And so for all the fathers out there
has had hard relationships with their kids, tough to figure
you out to you too much like me, you two stuff,
whatever you've had, that was a moment for all of
us that that's a healing moment for my dad and
(15:58):
I in front of the word world because we always, man,
we needed to we want to hug our dad. Now
you get to a point in life where nothing matters
but the relationship with your parents are. They're still alive
for these moments that you can create with these people
who are just like you. And so for me, man,
I just wanted to give my dad something that I
knew that would be, you know, probably one of the
(16:19):
most important things that I can do.
Speaker 2 (16:21):
No house I can buy, no car I.
Speaker 1 (16:23):
Can get them, nothing I can give them, but more
than the acknowledgement in front of the world to say
thank you, and the reason I'm set on the stage
because not only you put the ball in my hand,
but you put these other things inside of me.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
And so yeah, that was a moment. It was a moment.
Shout out to the dad, Shout out to my pops.
Speaker 3 (16:40):
Man, hell dogs, I must switches who because your cold.
(17:02):
Had some battles, but they were close. But I had
some battles, like I remember you told the story about
when you broke his nose.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
Yeah, and when I broke his nose in All.
Speaker 3 (17:13):
Star and he was like, yo, you like this ship right?
But I've always had this this start or question. But
the question has always been asked, like can I be
friends and still compete and go at each other? Like
you go at Code breaking his nose. You playing against Chris,
You're playing against Broun, You're playing against the guys you
(17:33):
that you have great relationships with.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Do you have great relationships with people in your same field?
I do, And it's but you guys are friendly, and
you guys are also competitive.
Speaker 3 (17:47):
Okay, I guess I see what you did there. You
put it on me. I like that.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
I put it on everybody who's listening.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
I see that.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
I said, yeah, okay, So like don't they people like
to make it because it's a game of basketball, and
you know, these guys like I did never understood that.
Speaker 2 (18:01):
I never understood why. Like and it was a rule
before we got in the NBA.
Speaker 1 (18:05):
First of all, Like and pat Riley was a part
of this right not fragnizing with the other opponents because
you know, maybe it makes you look weak or softens
you out, whatever the mentality is, and I respect it
and I understand it. Mellow just actually told another story
about when I when I couldn't talk to him because
of that. And that's respect in the workplace, whatever the
(18:25):
case may be. But out of the workplace, you you
have the relationships that you have on your own that
don't have nothing to do with the work. They don't
have nothing to do with my job. And I want
to be and me want to be the best at
my job. I don't what I'm going to take less
shots when I play you. I'm going to not hit
you as hard like I grew up with brothers. You
know who I competed hardest against my brother's.
Speaker 3 (18:47):
True my dad.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
Like we go to Broves, you got something to prove,
we got something, yeah, and so like I won't.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
I want to have my best games against my friends.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
I want to hit all like you won't think I
want to hit that game went over bron my last game,
and and that's smart sucker. He knew what move I
was gonna do, and he took it away from me.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
I saw that, Remember that.
Speaker 1 (19:08):
I was about to go to that left I was
about to put that ball in that left hand and
side step his ass and go for that game winner
in the in the stable.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Centers my last game, and he took it away. You
don't think I wanted that moment?
Speaker 3 (19:17):
Fair?
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Yeah, So that whole notion, that's that's not real. That's
that's that's somebody who's never been in the heat of
the battle versus someone they love. I can love you,
but I'm It's not a movie where you like, let
me let go because I want him to win. No,
I'm not letting go of nothing. You gotta take it
from me. And that's the way we played versus each other.
(19:39):
You gotta take this homeboy, And it's gonna be love.
Before the game, We're gonna do our handshake. It's gonna
be loved after the game. We may if we stay overnight,
we're gonna go to dinner, We're gonna hang out. Feli
is gonna say high. No, man, that whole notion, and
to me, it was never a real thing. And if
you if anybody think it was, then just go to
the Robins Illinoise and ask anybody who was neighbor of
(20:00):
my family's growing up, and they'll tell you how we
went at each other and that's that's that's blood, that's love,
and we go at each other harder than anybody. The
Draft is the one thing that I try to watch
if I can, every year because that moment right there,
that's to that point in your life, that's everything that
(20:21):
you work for, it's everything that you dreamed of, and
that moment coming true is one of the greatest feelings
that you can have. So it's probably one of the
first times that life shows you that it's gonna show
up for you the way you want it to, you
know what I mean, Like you, you pray for it,
you work hard for something, and eventually you know you
(20:44):
get it in whatever capacity that you know the Big
God bless you with.
Speaker 2 (20:48):
But that moment for me is the moment.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
So every time I watch the Draft and I see
these young kids and I see their families and I
see them like they crying, and I know I know
what's to come, and I know what's coming. I know
what that day feels like like what that moment feels like.
And so I'm I'm filled with so much joy for
them because you know, for a lot of that's the
best time of your NBA career, the moment you get drafted,
because then the business takes over.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
It ain't ain't all.
Speaker 1 (21:16):
Yeah, chill, No moment's work is working.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
Ain't no, it ain't all roses.
Speaker 1 (21:22):
Up there, But it's still it's still beautiful that you
know that you get to live that dream out. And
so that's the one thing that I probably try to
watch every year when I when I get an opportunity,
you know, just to see what these young kids like,
where they're going, what they're going to say, what their
parents like, what their parents gonna say, what they're wearing.
You know, I remember the outfit's been a big deal,
And I tell myself, I was like, the outfits are
(21:43):
such a big deal in the draft that I'm going
to wear an outfit and no one is ever going
to want to talk about me because it's just going
to be basic, Ma what you mean? Like, I was like,
you know me, Like I'm like even though like I've
grown and I've taken chance since you know, as I've
gotten older, but I've always been a person who is
(22:04):
you know, who had a little style and a little flair.
And on the draft, look at my suit. Just look
at my draft suit. Ain't no style, ain't no flair.
Not I ain't talking about the cut of it. I
ain't talking about the make of it, you know. Shout
out to Willie Scot who made my draft suit, black
brother from Chicago. I remember it was a big deal
for me. Is the first thing I ever got made.
So shout out to Willie Scott. But I was like, Willie,
(22:24):
I just want a blue suit, something really easy.
Speaker 3 (22:28):
I remember, I can see that, I can see it.
Speaker 2 (22:31):
I was like, just real chill. And then Willie was
like about this blue shirt. But I'm like cool, whatever, whatever.
I just wanted to be.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
And then and I still because of the draft class
I was in as well, that comes up every year.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
That's that's that picture. And they always called me a
pastor like Wae. But and I tried my hardest to
stay out of that conversation. I was like, this is
going to get it done. And I was like afterwards,
I was like, probably of the water Blacks.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
I got two suits made blue and black, and I
chose the blue one because blue was my favorite color
at the time.
Speaker 3 (23:08):
Okay, well I ain't mad at that. Now. You know
you've ever etched, you were the first passed away. All right,
What are some of the toughest conversations you've ever had
with loved ones and how did they take them? Oh?
Speaker 1 (23:31):
I mean, listen, I've been a leader in my family
for a very long time, and so I've had a
lot of tough conversations with love ones. Most of my
conversations are tough conversations with loved ones. And it starts
with no. You know how you take no? You don't
know how to take it. Everyone wants yes, and so
(23:52):
the toughest thing to do is to look at your
loved ones in the face and say no. Right, And
because these other people who you know, they those art
strings get.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
To you know. And so.
Speaker 1 (24:05):
Being in this position that I've been in in my family,
where I've been, you know, kind of put in a
position to be the leader of my family.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
I mean, I've I've had tough conversations with my dad.
What I had to tell my dad, and my dad
say this all the time that.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
I told him that my dad came to me with
this old elaborate plan how he wanted some money. And
he came in with this plan and I listened to it,
and then afterwards, like I think stole cold faced it.
I was just like, bro, you got to go and
work on yourself. You got to rebuild yourself.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Like my dad was in there.
Speaker 1 (24:40):
He was beenning out of it, like he was out
of control. Copy And when I was a kid, you
don't say nothing. You can't say nothing.
Speaker 2 (24:48):
But when I.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Became the leader of the family and I became the
one of everybody, was like, hey, I need well, this
is how it's going to go. And so I remember
telling my dad really just seriously, like yo, you gotta
go get yourself straight. You got to go start all
over before you can come.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
And what was that like that?
Speaker 1 (25:06):
It was tough. It was tough as hell. I remember
my dad came. We always in Chicago. My dad came
to my condo. We sat down and we ate, and
you know, he had all these ideas and things he
wanted to do. But I wasn't in a place where
I was gonna give him money because he wouldn't have
known what to do with money at that time, right,
And so I had to, you know, in a sense
(25:28):
the reverse changed quickly and I had to tell him
what was hard for me to tell him. And at
the time, my dad was you know, he was in
the alcohol heavy, heavily, and he didn't he didn't handle
it well when he would you know, would enjoy you know, liquor,
and so with that he would become a whole different beast.
Speaker 2 (25:45):
We all know that, we all know that way.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
And so I was just at the point where I
was like, Bro, you gotta go. You need you need
a form of help in some way for you know,
before you think you want to enjoy this life and
before I give you some money to go and just
blow it, you need to go fix yourself, right Like
we all have these moments where we need to grow up.
And I've been there and I will continue. I hope
(26:08):
somebody keep telling me go grow up, because so I
can go do that because I know you love me
if you if you go tell me something like that.
And so that was hard to have with my father,
you know what I mean. And if you talk to
my father to day, he didn't like it, but he
respects it and he's thankful for it today because of you.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Know the place he is.
Speaker 1 (26:27):
In life now, but I had to look him stir
in the face and tell him to go pretty much
go grow up.
Speaker 3 (26:32):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (26:33):
Yeah, that was one one many conversations with my loves.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
And the thing is how people take it is that
they only take yes.
Speaker 3 (26:42):
It's great. Wow.
Speaker 1 (26:45):
People only take yes, it's great. Anything outside of it, Yes,
it's not going to be taken.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Greatly.
Speaker 1 (26:52):
Maybe ain't even taken greatly. It leaves some hope, but
nobody want to maybe and knows are.
Speaker 2 (26:59):
How dare you? How dare you say no to me?
That's how nos are taken.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
And so it's a tough place to be in because
it's gonna be way more nose and way more maybes
than yes.
Speaker 3 (27:13):
Hopefully you if you watch them right now, do you
remember talk about when you became the leader of the family,
And I'm sure that happened when you became the biggest
bread wind in the family.
Speaker 1 (27:24):
Yeah, it was only bread it once. My dad could
have put his paws on at any point.
Speaker 3 (27:31):
But now that's a lot of responsibility like that.
Speaker 2 (27:35):
Yeah, college out of nowhere, twenty one years old.
Speaker 1 (27:39):
I went from broke to no responsibilities to having a kid,
getting married to run being a leader of my entire
family in one year.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
The transition like, and I know it wasn't. It couldn't
because you have to learn how to say no, obviously,
because you're gonna lose all your money if you don't. Yeah, Like,
what's that like? Because you got you talk about your brothers,
are you you got sisters, you got you got everybody
in your family? Like what was that like learning how
to say nope?
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Well, I mean I had to be taught. I had to,
I had to be taken advantage of. I had to
I had to say no.
Speaker 1 (28:16):
For the first time, Like all you got to do
all these things. In my college coach Coach Crean, that
was something that he always talked to me about was
where I was going. You know, he knew that my
where my path was going. I didn't know that where
I'm going. You're gonna have to learn how to say no.
These are the conversation that he sat down and had
with me. And that's why I love Coach Crean. It
wasn't just a coaching, you know, player relationship where we
(28:39):
sat down and we have man and man conversation.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
You're going to have to learn how to say no.
You know how hard it is going to be.
Speaker 1 (28:44):
And so I was, you know, taught that and why
why are you gonna have to say no? And these
are the reasons you do say no? Like you just
always you just don't say no for no.
Speaker 3 (28:54):
No? You know what?
Speaker 2 (28:55):
All right? You want to do something, well, here's the
work you gotta do. You do that work? Come to me?
Speaker 1 (28:59):
And then with talk right because everybody just wanted right away.
And so learning how to say no was something that
I had to work at because who wants to say
no to people they love? Especially not me. I have
a personality where I want everything to be fine. But
I also had a personality where I say no, right,
I will. I don't want to, but I will.
Speaker 3 (29:23):
Let's less. I love it. Know.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
The Capricorn to me, baby, the Capricorn to me, Okay,
this won't be the best no I've ever got, but
it's the best no I can think about that I've
ever got. So when I was in high school, Darius
Miles just told the story on the OG Show with
(29:47):
DN and Mike Miller.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
I was in high school. I played au basketball one year.
It's my junior year.
Speaker 1 (29:52):
I played for Illinois Warriors and Darius Miles was the
best player on our team. Darius Miles ended up being
coming out of high school being drafted number three overall.
But throughout that year, like, I was pretty damn good.
If them out scored thirty, I have twenty eight or
thirty myself. Like we were hooping and I was hooping,
and so it was time for It was getting time
(30:14):
for Nike Camp. And this is what all the players
want to You want to get invited to Nike Camp.
This is the biggest camp in the world at this time.
All the best players are going there. So we were
one of the best teams. We were a Nike team.
We had the best player, so you know, obviously everyone
got a chance to see us and scout us all
the time.
Speaker 2 (30:30):
Now not saying I was the second best player on
the team, but I was pretty good.
Speaker 1 (30:34):
I was up there, And I remember getting ready for
Nike Camp. Right thinking that I was going to Nike Camp.
I was told that, hey, we're going to get you
a Nike Camp. He's just got to do some paperwork,
but it's all good. And I remember the day that
I was like, have my bags ready to go to
Nike Camp. I'm waiting on my coach. If he was
supposed to show up at one, he showed up at
like four. I'm waiting hours for him. And he finally
(30:56):
pulled up and I walked out with my bags ready
to go, and I saw his head down and he
was like, de you ain't get you ain't get invited
to Nike Camp. And I was just shocked, and I
was like, well, who got invited from Auntie? About seven
of the dudes from my team now seven of dudes
better than me. Seven of the dudes, now they were good,
(31:18):
good players, but like I was pretty good, and that
crushed me. And that know that they gave me. I've
never been the same player since that. No, I've never
been the same person since that. No, says I walked
back in the house with my damn bags and I
had to tuck my tail between my ass. I've never
been the same person or player. And so for my career,
(31:39):
that was the best know I ever got. So thank
you Nike for not inviting me to Nike Camp. I
appreciate that because it made me. It really woke up
that inner beast in me. And see, and that's on
the record, and then everyone who played against me knows
that and everyone who played with me know that, and
so that.
Speaker 2 (31:56):
Was the best know I ever got.
Speaker 3 (31:57):
Do you know why this why you was?
Speaker 2 (32:00):
Now? I do multiple things don't matter. Okay, let's because but.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
I was seventeen years old when it happened. About twenty one,
I was the face of Converse, one of the Nike brands.
I was the leading face of it. Four years later,
I didn't get anybody's Nike camp, but I'm leading one
of the brands four years later. So for me, that
was a little sweet when I.
Speaker 2 (32:23):
Walked into when I walked around the Nike people like, Yo,
what's up? How y'all doing?
Speaker 3 (32:29):
Oh? I love it.
Speaker 2 (32:30):
I love that out here.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
As a.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
One who's been who was considered a superstar in this
league when this league no longer at this moment because
you don't play anymore, but you were a superstar.
Speaker 2 (32:58):
And sometimes you're gonna say that, I know I'm be
talking about.
Speaker 1 (33:01):
Okay, so you have an author, yes, yes, all right,
let's get to it.
Speaker 3 (33:08):
So who are superstars? Now?
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Well, it's okay. What makes you great?
Speaker 1 (33:14):
Question to me is more than one version of a superstar.
So you have basketball superstars and then you have worldly superstars. Okay,
so basketball superstars are guys who are multiple All Stars.
You're out the year book it okay, we can go
down the line and book who the Lebron's, the Steph
(33:36):
Curry's to Kevin Durant that we can go down the
line and book who are superstars in a game of basketball?
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Right?
Speaker 1 (33:42):
And so you got All Star, you got a star,
you got superstar. Then you let me not put brown
and I'm sorry. Then you got above that, Katie, and
you got above that, right, But I'll say that to
say their superstars. Jason Tatum is a young, younger superstar.
Anthony Edwards is a young superstar. We have superstars in
the game of basketball now when it comes to worldly conversations.
(34:05):
To me, in the definition I got of what a
superstar was was we need to care. We need to
care about who you're dating. We need to care about
what you're eating. We need to think about you when
you're not on TV playing basketball. We need to care
enough about you in that way, and that makes you
a superstar. That makes you to me, that makes you
outside of the game of basketball. To go from this,
(34:26):
it's a lot of superstars in the game because they're
very great players. How do you become a superstar in
the world. People have to care about things besides how
many points you're scoring.
Speaker 2 (34:35):
So to me, that's why I.
Speaker 1 (34:37):
Said, like, the game of basketball has superstars, right, you
have those elite stars that are superstars that if you
on a platform like ESPN, you're on TNT, you on
all these platforms, there are gonna continually continuously talk about you.
James Harden is a superstar, Russell Westbrook is a superstar,
and so forth and so on. We have we have superstars,
and then it's to me, it's other superstar. It's the
(35:00):
it's the culture. It's the pop culture superstars. It's the
ones that you care about what they're doing when they're
not playing a game of basketball and not just when
it's a negative story that comes out.
Speaker 2 (35:10):
Those is a that's a whole other level of superstar.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
Them that I feel that a lot of guys don't
cross over into some because they just won't cross over
into it, and some don't want to. And sometimes it
depends on who you're dating. Sometimes it depends on what
what invitations you get to certain events. Right, Like, it
continues to grow, and that's why I like, even though
I'm retired, you can still call me a superstar because
(35:33):
you still see.
Speaker 2 (35:34):
Me in these superstar lanes.
Speaker 1 (35:36):
And I'm not playing a game of basketball, right, I'm
not calling myself a superstar saying someone can call me
a superstar.
Speaker 3 (35:42):
Which is right now, right, No, you set it up
so it's right.
Speaker 2 (35:48):
Okay, So yeah, that's how I think about it.
Speaker 3 (35:50):
But now, so the question is I'm going ask the
next question. The real question is do you think there
are any superstars in NBA?
Speaker 1 (35:57):
Now the I think or or others thing is the
whole different what you think.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
Because we're talking to you, let me give what you think. Yes,
tell me to put you on the spot. But go ahead, yes, okay,
you want to name any of them?
Speaker 1 (36:11):
No, okay, because I had to sit and really think
about who I think. I mean, I can name one
Lebron James.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
Okay, this exclude Lebron and stuff.
Speaker 1 (36:22):
Because we know, like, okay, like an example for me,
Anthony Howards is becoming a superstar. He's in the very
early stages of it. He's maturing into a superstar. And
only at the same time he's maturing into an NBA
basketball superstar, and we're actually starting to care about Anthony
Edwards away from the game.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
Right, the stuff that he's saying in his interview is
how he is.
Speaker 1 (36:43):
How like we're starting to care about him now, right,
you have a little bit like when he comes up,
you ain't just looking for points, Like.
Speaker 2 (36:48):
Let me see what Anthony ever said.
Speaker 1 (36:50):
So now he's in the he's in the early stages
of like, Okay, he's building this now it has to
it has to keep going.
Speaker 2 (36:57):
We have to continue to care about him.
Speaker 1 (36:59):
The same way we care about what he does on
a basketball court, we have to continue to care about
what he does away from the game of basketball. That's
how you build to be a global a superstar.
Speaker 3 (37:12):
Remember you mentioned that story back when Shot got to
to the he and he said he's gonna teach you
how to be a superstar.
Speaker 2 (37:20):
Yeah he did.
Speaker 3 (37:22):
Like what was that like for you?
Speaker 2 (37:24):
He said, I'm gonna make you a superstar and then
I'm gonna teach you along the way.
Speaker 3 (37:28):
Yeah, So what was that like? Like, how did that
Now I'm going back to now because you became one,
because how was that for you? Like you coming in
you second year in the league, you know, you had
a great playoffs run and Shot comes in and tells
you you gonna make you a superstar uncomfortable.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
Anybody who know me before a Shock came around, you
might have heard me say five words in a row,
the most words I will say.
Speaker 2 (37:56):
I was very shy. I was very quiet.
Speaker 1 (37:59):
I always listen to everything that's going on and always
observed things that's going on.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
But I didn't talk much. I didn't have superstar written
on me.
Speaker 1 (38:06):
First, let's say that shot came in and it kind
of walked me through how to be myself to be
a superstar, because I didn't know that people were actually like,
I didn't know that people would care about anything about
me outside of what I do on the basketball floor.
But what I did on the floor had to be
(38:27):
so loud that people had to start looking. So I
had to take care of that first. Pirali always say,
keep the main thing, the main thing. The main thing
was I had to get them. I had to get
to it on the floor. And then once I started
getting to it on the floor, and we started traveling,
and it wasn't just three hundred thousand people outside for
Shock and maybe one hundred was for me, Like I
(38:48):
started seeing like, oh wait, like he gave me flash,
he gave me a character. He gave me something that
people can buy into, right, he gave me that nickname,
and so I had to live up to that, Like
it's a lot of things I had to also live
up to.
Speaker 2 (39:00):
But he saw it in me. I just didn't know how.
And so the education that I.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Got from Shaq was things that I used throughout my brands.
Like one of my favorite commercials that I ever done
was the Converse commercial where I say from Robins, Illinois,
six foot four guard. That commercial was written off of
my poem that I wrote to the game of basketball.
(39:26):
And what I got from Shaka Run that time was
to allow myself to be my own brand.
Speaker 2 (39:35):
Like whatever you want to do, you do it.
Speaker 1 (39:39):
And you make sure that the people who are your
partners or whatever that they know what you want to
do and you make sure that they do that. And
so when it came to that commercial, I remember they
had set like three or four different spots in front
of Lisa and I and I didn't like any one
of them, and the meeting just kind of was like quiet, right,
like think about it. They lied, they come up, they've
(39:59):
been working. Here goes option one and me at Lisa's
like he goes option two three, and I didn't like
need none of them. And this was a big deal
that this commercial. I was one of the top athletes.
I have my own signature shoe. This commercial will have
to be a big commercial. And I laid and then
Lisa said, once you share your porn with them, and
I was like yeah, and I shared my porn with
them because this is who I am. So I need
(40:21):
y'all get to know who I am and not and
not me and not me fall into what y'all trying
to make me right, right, because superstar, if you're if
you're fake with it, everyone's gonna know. So I think
what he taught me is authenticity in building your your
stardom and open your mouth and let people in on
(40:41):
who you are. We know you quiet and you ain't
saying much, but we know it's something in there because
you're not this good because you you got something in there.
So let it out. And so I started letting it out.
Not only on the court, I started letting out the meetings.
I started letting it out. Baby and q Rich actually
just talked about this on the Old g podcast. Shout
out to u D and Mike Miller for the O
(41:03):
G Show. He just talked about this on the OG Show.
He was like, he was like he remembered when everything
changed for me because deep deep mousing curage. I've been
knowing since I was seventeen years old. So they know
to quiet me, and then they found out the twenty
two year old not quiet me and curas it goes
and explained the moment he realized that shit didn't change right,
(41:25):
and it was really it was the shock. It was
a Damon Jones era. It was the Heatles we are
the Heatles coming in the town era, and a lot
of them had to do with Shock, for sure, the
confidence that he put in me, but also the you know,
the teaching of watch me. I'm going to show you
how that's done, bringing me to his commercials, making me
a part of his commercials. There's a lot of things
(41:47):
that big fella did behind the scenes. A lot of
people don't know. And I watched and he showed me
how to be a superstar. And it's just being who
you are. That's who shock is.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
He's just shocked.
Speaker 3 (41:56):
Yeah, right, I think it's been in general, it's always
been tough, hard for us. It's been to talk about
anything that's not tough. Why just just just the way,
just think about it, just think about at least for me,
(42:16):
I had a friend of mine, as I told him,
I said, I never talked to my I remember my
dad first. I can remember my dad hugged me for
the first time. I remember I was seventeen years old
and I graduately, I got my diploma money. He gave
me a hug and I said, whoa, this is real, right, yes,
And for me, like, it's so crazy because we grew
(42:38):
so our lives so different as we got older. But
at that moment, remember, at seventeen years old, my dad
was trying to like give me a little hugging. I'm
I'm sure for him it was different because he never
did it, and it was different for both of us.
And I'm like, you know, this is kind of awkward, okay,
you hugging me? And I'm like, and I think about it.
I remember to this day when it happened. Look at
(43:00):
my kids now. I'm trying to be so opposite of that.
But the process of going up through that, I remember
going as a kid like, man, if I want this.
Then I started crying my dad like what you're crying
for yeah, man, like what you're doing. And I'm like,
so you can't cry. You gotta hide it, you gotta
like And it's crazy how growing up as a young
(43:22):
black man as how much we have to kind of
shield our emotions. Yeah, like cover, like I need to
cover and need to cover and get aide and it's
just I just don't I don't need to see.
Speaker 1 (43:31):
Well, a lot of circumstances is the reason we have
to do that, right, Like, you know, everyone is not
in a position where they can just be freely expressive
because of the circumstances that your family has in half.
And so I think one we have to give grace
to the generations before us as parents about the circumstances
(43:55):
which wouldn't Allot, listen, I may want to hug you,
but you know what's on outside of that door. I'm sorry,
I can't. I can't even I can't even chance you're
going to be soft in any way because I need
you to be hard.
Speaker 2 (44:09):
I need you to be tough.
Speaker 1 (44:10):
And whether that's being chased by unleashed dogs in the
neighborhoods or being bullied or whatever it is, I need
you to be tough. And I need you to be
tough minded, and so this is my way of teaching
you how to be tough minded, because this is what
I learned.
Speaker 2 (44:23):
And so giving that grace to people before us.
Speaker 1 (44:26):
But now when you know and you have the opportunity
to that's where you and I come in at now,
because one, we know because we didn't like that, but it.
Speaker 2 (44:35):
Helped build us, right, to help build character in us.
Speaker 1 (44:38):
But also too, we have the opportunity and our kids
have the opportunity because of you know, resources or finances
and all these things to be to not have to
have that right. So I tell people all the time,
and this is where I think my relationship with my
kids flourish is because it and it flourishes. And I
say this because my relationship with my mom and dad,
(44:59):
no matter what we've all been.
Speaker 2 (45:00):
Through, it continues to flourish because.
Speaker 1 (45:03):
It is a no judgment zone. And if you're not
in a space where you're in a no judgment zone,
you're never going to be fully who you want to
be and who you are if I feel any judgment
coming from you. And that's why we have a lot
of failed relationships. And I'm not just talking about you
know marriages. I'm talking about relationships period, because they're not
(45:26):
free judgment zones.
Speaker 2 (45:28):
It's a lot of.
Speaker 1 (45:28):
Judgment and a lot of our relationships and so I
tell my mom and dad all the time. It's like
we so we could tell each other anything. We can
go through anything and be able to support each other
because ain't no judgment here, none, and a lot of
people don't have that
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
The Nikki Glaser Podcast
Every week comedian and infamous roaster Nikki Glaser provides a fun, fast-paced, and brutally honest look into current pop-culture and her own personal life.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.