Mental Wellness

In this episode, Spencer Haywood welcomes the President of the Stamina Foundation, former NBA player and current NBPA Mental Health Counselor Derek Anderson, and the NBPA's Director of Mental Health & Wellness, Loyola Marymount University Professor Dr. William Parham. They discuss their lives and issues related to mental health both in and outside of the NBA. They also talk about how a player's upbringing, struggles, and sudden celebrity status all affect their mental health and well-being. Dr. Parham then implores the players to begin sharing their life stories with each other to hopefully spark a movement that helps normalize and address this growing problem.

Key Takeaways
- Brief background of Dr. William Parham and Derek Anderson
- Discussion of mental health and wellness in the NBA
- Why it's important for players to share the stories of their struggles
- Happenings during Derek's college days
- Spencer’s anecdotes on sobriety
- How retired NBA players finally got funding for health insurance
- Spencer, Derek, and Dr. Parham make their NBA Finals predictions

Quote Takeaways
Our struggles during childhood are like invisible tattoos. It is painful and it hurts, but once it's there, it's a nice picture and often symbolic of something about you. -Dr. Parham

The past doesn't hold on to you, you hold on to the past, and you don't have to. -Dr. Parham

Your test became your testimonial. -Dr. Parham

We teach them the Spencer Haywood Way, FIGHT UNTIL YOU WIN IT. You set the standards and we follow those standards in this league. - Derek

About The Speaker

Spencer Haywood | https://twitter.com/SpencerHaywood
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer | Olympic Gold Medalist | NBA Champion | 5x NBA All-Star, 4x All-NBA | 1970 ABA MVP & ROY

Derek Anderson | https://twitter.com/dereklanderson
NBPA Mental Health Counselor | Former NBA Player | President at staminafd.com

Dr. William Parham
NBPA Director of Mental Health and Wellness | Professor at Loyola Marymount University School of Education

Time Stamps
[00:00] Show intro
[00:59] Episode and guest intro
[01:58] Brief background of Dr. William Parham
[04:10] Brief background of Derek Anderson growing up in Flint, MI
[05:55] Derek's experience at Ohio State
[07:49] Spencer falls asleep at practice for the 1980 NBA Finals
[08:40] Spencer’s anecdotes on sobriety
[16:50] Derek’s current life
[19:27] DeMar DeRozan and Kevin Love have great years after discussing their struggles
[20:20] Impact of mental wellness initiatives in the league
[22:41] Dr. Parham contextualizes the BLM movement with Kelly Oubre, Reggie Jackson, Tyronn Lue, and others speaking out
[24:57] Dr. Parham talks about Jerry West's book "West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life"
[27:01] Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld, and others boycott the 1968 Olympics
[28:12] The ABA goes after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
[28:32] The influence of Will Robinson in Detroit
[29:45] John McLendon and Spencer's first contract with the Denver Rockets
[31:17] Jerry Colangelo raids the ABA and signs Connie Hawkins
[34:35] The players threaten to boycott the 1964 All-Star Game
[35:52] Understanding the lessons our struggles can teach us
[39:17] Invisible tattoos
[46:21] How Chris Paul and Stephen Curry helped retired players secure health insurance
[48:21] NBA Finals predictions

Book about Spencer Haywood
The Spencer Haywood Rule: Battles, Basketball, and the Making of an American Iconoclast
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