Latest / Miss Understood with Rachel Uchitel / NBA Champ Matt Barnes of "All The Smoke" Discusses Racism, Kobe Bryant, Will Smith & MORE

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NBA Champ Matt Barnes of "All The Smoke" Discusses Racism, Kobe Bryant, Will Smith & MORE · Miss Understood with Rachel Uchitel

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Speaker 1: real conversations in a new language today. Welcome back to Misunderstood.
1:29
Speaker 1: I'm your host, Rachel Yucatel. I'm so excited about this
1:32
Speaker 1: next guest today. You do not have to be a
1:34
Speaker 1: sports fan to find this interesting, guys. Okay, he's a
1:37
Speaker 1: retired NBA champion whose 14-year career included the Golden State Warriors,
1:42
Speaker 1: the Los Angeles Lakers, and the LA Clippers, just to
1:45
Speaker 1: name a few. He's a leading voice on social justice,
1:48
Speaker 1: a proud father, successful business owner, and the host of
1:51
Speaker 1: the podcast All the Smoke. Please welcome Matt Barnes to
1:55
Speaker 1: the show.
1:56
Speaker 2: Oh, thank you for having me.
1:57
Speaker 1: So I mentioned to my ex-husband, Matt is his name also,
2:01
Speaker 1: that I was talking to you today. And he is
2:05
Speaker 1: a huge sports fanatic. He knows everything about sports. I
2:09
Speaker 1: know basically nothing about sports. And I asked if he
2:12
Speaker 1: knew who you were. And he's like, of course I
2:14
Speaker 1: know who he is. And he's like, but Rachel, you know,
2:19
Speaker 1: he's really hotheaded. And I said, really, why do you
2:24
Speaker 1: think that is? And he's like, oh, you know, well,
2:27
Speaker 1: it's really crazy that he's so hotheaded because he's had
2:29
Speaker 1: it so easy his whole life. I thought that was
2:32
Speaker 1: a really interesting comment. And I said, What do you
2:34
Speaker 1: mean he's had it so easy? He's like, well, he's
2:36
Speaker 1: played for the Lakers and he has a big paycheck
2:38
Speaker 1: and all this stuff. And I wonder if you get
2:40
Speaker 1: that a lot. Do people misunderstand your past?
2:44
Speaker 2: Definitely. You know, but I'm to the point now, you know,
2:47
Speaker 2: I just turned 43 yesterday. You know, I necessarily don't
2:51
Speaker 2: mind people who have an opinion on me that don't
2:54
Speaker 2: know me because everyone's going to have an opinion, you know,
2:57
Speaker 2: whether it's warranted or not. Uh, I leave that to
3:01
Speaker 2: them that that's not my issue, but you know, I
3:03
Speaker 2: had a very rough childhood. Uh, both my parents were
3:07
Speaker 2: functioning drug addicts. I grew up in abuse, um, violence, drugs, um,
3:13
Speaker 2: bounced around as a child. Um, but luckily I was
3:17
Speaker 2: someone who was able to, you know, turn all those
3:19
Speaker 2: negative things that happened to me in my childhood as
3:21
Speaker 2: a fire to continue to motivate me and, keep an
3:26
Speaker 2: edge about me that allowed me to live out my
3:28
Speaker 2: dream and win a championship and now be a father
3:32
Speaker 2: and do a ton of other stuff that I never
3:34
Speaker 2: thought I'd have the opportunity to do. Exactly.
3:37
Speaker 1: So that's exactly what I wanted to get into because
3:40
Speaker 1: I think it's so impressive who you've become. I wanted
3:44
Speaker 1: to get into your pre-MBA career and talk about your childhood.
3:47
Speaker 1: What was it like growing up in a mixed race household?
3:51
Speaker 2: I didn't really... have any issues with the mixed race
3:55
Speaker 2: until i moved from the bay area to sacramento my
3:59
Speaker 2: mom being a full italian my dad being african-american it
4:02
Speaker 2: was never an issue when i lived in the bay
4:04
Speaker 2: because it was very diverse multicultural um a lot of
4:08
Speaker 2: people who look like me um when we moved to
4:11
Speaker 2: sacramento because of some street stuff my dad had got
4:14
Speaker 2: into um although we moved to a neighborhood that was
4:16
Speaker 2: similar uh and i and when i say this people
4:19
Speaker 2: kind of look at me crazy because i'm half italian
4:21
Speaker 2: but my parents started putting me in all predominantly white schools, 95, 97,
4:25
Speaker 2: 98% white. And I never understood. I'm like, why can't
4:29
Speaker 2: I go to school with my kids in the neighborhood?
4:31
Speaker 2: Or why can't I go to school with my basketball friends?
4:34
Speaker 2: And my parents just weren't having it. They always put
4:36
Speaker 2: me in white schools. And I think they probably thought
4:38
Speaker 2: it was because it was a better education to give
4:39
Speaker 2: me a better opportunity to succeed. So I found when
4:45
Speaker 2: we moved to Sacramento and I started getting put in
4:48
Speaker 2: these white schools that that's when the biracial issue kind
4:52
Speaker 2: of started happening. And it was the first time I
4:55
Speaker 2: was around predominantly white kids. And, you know, the word
5:00
Speaker 2: nigger started coming up a lot and I wouldn't understand
5:04
Speaker 2: because I'm third grade this time. So maybe eight or
5:06
Speaker 2: nine years old, why these kids wouldn't let me play kickball,
5:09
Speaker 2: wouldn't let me play a wall ball, wouldn't let me
5:11
Speaker 2: play four score, wouldn't let me play basketball, wouldn't let
5:13
Speaker 2: me play nothing with them ever, ever. And, you know,
5:17
Speaker 2: it was just, it was really frustrating and because it
5:20
Speaker 2: was the color of my skin. And then some of
5:21
Speaker 2: them started getting brave enough, like I said, to start
5:23
Speaker 2: actually calling me nigger. So it was my first time
5:26
Speaker 2: about nine years old, starting to really, uh, experience racism.
5:31
Speaker 2: And as a nine year old, you're heartbroken and confused because,
5:35
Speaker 2: you know, I never really saw color or understood color. Um,
5:40
Speaker 2: because like I said, where I first grew up, everyone,
5:42
Speaker 2: you know, was similar to my tone and color never
5:45
Speaker 2: came up. We just all play together. Um, but so
5:48
Speaker 2: I would go home and, You know, be disheartened and
5:51
Speaker 2: probably sometimes crying. Obviously, my mom would do the mom
5:54
Speaker 2: thing and kind of shelter me. But my dad's like, no,
5:57
Speaker 2: you have my permission. If they call you nigger, you
5:59
Speaker 2: can fight them. And I'm like, oh, so now I
6:02
Speaker 2: have permission. So from there on, again, it wasn't something
6:06
Speaker 2: I was proud of, but it was a means to
6:09
Speaker 2: fight ignorance. And I had to face that at a
6:11
Speaker 2: young age. So starting in third grade, I started fighting.
6:15
Speaker 2: Every time someone said that, they would have to pay
6:18
Speaker 2: for it. And that lasted probably third grade, a little
6:21
Speaker 2: bit of fourth grade, and then kids stopped. And, you know,
6:25
Speaker 2: they started accepting me and I excelled in a bunch
6:28
Speaker 2: of different sports. And, you know, to this day, I
6:30
Speaker 2: still have friends from third and fourth grade. And although
6:34
Speaker 2: it didn't start well, I could say 30 plus years later,
6:38
Speaker 2: it's great.
6:39
Speaker 1: Talk to me about what happened at Del Campo High School.
6:42
Speaker 1: There was a mannequin hanging from a noose there. How
6:45
Speaker 1: did that affect you? What happened there?
6:47
Speaker 2: Um, well, my, I was a senior, so I was
6:49
Speaker 2: about three months away from going to UCLA and my
6:53
Speaker 2: sister was a sophomore and there was a kid that
6:56
Speaker 2: just kept harassing her, just kept harassing her. And it
6:58
Speaker 2: kind of started off mild and it continued to get serious.
7:01
Speaker 2: And then it started, he started throwing racial slurs at
7:04
Speaker 2: her and, you know, I would never be able to
7:06
Speaker 2: see the kid because he just did not, never saw him.
7:09
Speaker 2: And then one day he, called her nigger and spit
7:12
Speaker 2: in her hair. And it was right before class got out.
7:14
Speaker 2: So as soon as she got, as soon as class
7:16
Speaker 2: came out, she came and found me because I was
7:18
Speaker 2: done for the day. She still had another class. She go,
7:20
Speaker 2: I was about to go home. So she and two
7:22
Speaker 2: or three of her girlfriends come up to me, tell
7:26
Speaker 2: me what's going on. I still see the spit in
7:27
Speaker 2: her hair. And this kid just, unfortunately for him, happened
7:31
Speaker 2: to walk by. So, you know, as a big brother,
7:33
Speaker 2: I did what I was supposed to do and then
7:35
Speaker 2: protect her and send a message. And I did that.
7:40
Speaker 2: You know, got taken to the principal's office after that
7:42
Speaker 2: and explained what happened. Again, it fits still in my
7:45
Speaker 2: sister's hair. And this man sat in front of me
7:47
Speaker 2: and told me, no, I don't believe you. You know,
7:48
Speaker 2: his dad's a prominent lawyer in the city. He wasn't
7:51
Speaker 2: raised this. And he's obviously this kid over here crying
7:53
Speaker 2: because I just put hands on him. But he's like,
7:55
Speaker 2: I never said that. And I'm not like that. And,
7:57
Speaker 2: you know, again, I'm a five-star athlete in football and basketball.
8:01
Speaker 2: I have scholarships to every school in the country, you know,
8:03
Speaker 2: and I'm about to literally leave for UCLA. And it's
8:05
Speaker 2: just like, I'm not on bully time. Like I'm literally
8:08
Speaker 2: protecting my sister. So they didn't see it that way.
8:10
Speaker 2: I get to spend it for a week, probably three
8:13
Speaker 2: or four days under my suspension. The KKK comes and
8:15
Speaker 2: vandalizes my school, burns down bathrooms, swastikas everywhere, die nigger.
8:20
Speaker 2: I hung a mannequin. We had a big oak tree
8:23
Speaker 2: in front of our school and I hung a mannequin
8:25
Speaker 2: in the oak tree with my football jersey on it
8:27
Speaker 2: that said die nigger. And that changed me. You know, again,
8:32
Speaker 2: I was very proud to be up to that point biracial.
8:36
Speaker 2: I had faced some racism when I first got to
8:38
Speaker 2: Sacramento and then, you know, Nearly nine years later, at
8:42
Speaker 2: 17 or 18, I faced a huge, obviously, obstacle. And
8:48
Speaker 2: that was for the first time in my life where
8:50
Speaker 2: I realized, although I'm very proud to be Italian and Black,
8:53
Speaker 2: that the world saw me as a Black man. So
8:57
Speaker 2: not only did they vandalize my school, we later found
9:02
Speaker 2: out that there was a hit on my life. So
9:04
Speaker 2: I had to move to a different neighborhood.
9:09
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9:39
Speaker 2: We had around-the-clock security for about a month provided by
9:44
Speaker 2: the NAACP. And it was just an unfortunate situation. And again,
9:50
Speaker 2: up to that point, I had such a great time
9:52
Speaker 2: in high school. Still one of the greatest times of
9:54
Speaker 2: my life was being in high school. But it really
9:57
Speaker 2: hurt me that after all... that hard work I'd put
10:01
Speaker 2: in as a student, all the hard work I put
10:04
Speaker 2: in as an athlete, you know, lettering in three different
10:06
Speaker 2: sports and winning league championships and doing all this thing.
10:10
Speaker 2: The one time I really needed the school to understand
10:12
Speaker 2: and hear where I was coming from and have my back.
10:15
Speaker 2: They didn't. So that again, that was a kind of a,
10:19
Speaker 2: a wake-up call and a harsh reality of the world
10:23
Speaker 2: we live in. But again, instead of using that as
10:27
Speaker 2: something to cry about or pout about, it just, you know,
10:30
Speaker 2: just added fuel to the fire. And, you know, I
10:33
Speaker 2: just kept that tucked away and, you know, went on
10:37
Speaker 2: with my college career.
10:38
Speaker 1: Did they ever catch those kids?
10:40
Speaker 2: It was weird. It's crazy you asked that question because
10:43
Speaker 2: obviously the one kid that I got into it went
10:45
Speaker 2: to school with me, but they said he didn't do it.
10:48
Speaker 2: But someone literally just told me, that there was four
10:51
Speaker 2: guys and three out of four of them are dead now, uh,
10:55
Speaker 2: two overdoses and something happened to another one. And then
10:58
Speaker 2: they don't know what happened with the fourth kid, but
11:00
Speaker 2: it was crazy. Cause like someone literally just told me
11:02
Speaker 2: this like a month ago, because I obviously had never
11:04
Speaker 2: forgot it, but you know, I don't let it weigh
11:07
Speaker 2: on my mind, but someone literally just told me about
11:09
Speaker 2: a month ago that three out of the four kids
11:12
Speaker 2: that were responsible are, are, are now passed and they
11:15
Speaker 2: don't know where the fourth guy is. Wow. Crazy.
11:19
Speaker 1: So, all right, moving on. So you ended up going
11:21
Speaker 1: to UCLA after that. Yeah. And what was, what was
11:25
Speaker 1: next for you there?
11:26
Speaker 2: UCLA was amazing. It was really my first time kind
11:29
Speaker 2: of out of a small town. You know, I was
11:31
Speaker 2: in Sacramento from nine to 18 and, you know, there's
11:34
Speaker 2: a small, slower moving town to throw it into Westwood,
11:38
Speaker 2: which Hollywood, you know, Hollywood borders our school. So I
11:42
Speaker 2: went from, you know, they call Sacramento a cow town
11:45
Speaker 2: to basically Hollywood. But it was amazing. just the opportunity
11:50
Speaker 2: to go to UCLA with all the tradition and history.
11:53
Speaker 2: And actually my first year at UCLA was 1998 and
11:56
Speaker 2: there was an NBA lockout. So there was no other
11:59
Speaker 2: basketball being played besides our basketball. So we used to
12:02
Speaker 2: have like Shaq and Kobe and all the LA stars that,
12:06
Speaker 2: you know, movie stars that you would see at a
12:07
Speaker 2: Laker game. They started coming to our game and I'm like,
12:10
Speaker 2: Oh shit, this is what college is like. This is
12:12
Speaker 2: what UCLA is like. So It was an eye-opening experience.
12:16
Speaker 2: It was an amazing experience. And again, four years at
12:19
Speaker 2: UCLA was some of the best times of my life.
12:21
Speaker 2: I have friends still to this day from there that
12:25
Speaker 2: I talked to daily, opened up a lot of doors,
12:28
Speaker 2: and it provided me an opportunity to have a chance
12:31
Speaker 2: to play in the NBA. Right.
12:33
Speaker 1: So you started, let's see, with the Clippers. Was that
12:36
Speaker 1: your first team?
12:37
Speaker 2: Yeah. So I bounced around early on. Second-round pick who
12:40
Speaker 2: got cut, started in the G League. played well there,
12:44
Speaker 2: got an opportunity to play for the Clippers and then
12:46
Speaker 2: kind of got on this carousel where I played well
12:48
Speaker 2: enough to stick. But then, you know, my first four years,
12:51
Speaker 2: I wasn't given very many opportunities to actually show what
12:55
Speaker 2: I can do. And, you know, there's so many guys
12:58
Speaker 2: in the NBA, you know, the average career is three
13:00
Speaker 2: and a half years, three, three and a half years. So,
13:02
Speaker 2: you know, I'm, coming up on year four and not
13:05
Speaker 2: really getting an opportunity to play and just hoping for
13:09
Speaker 2: that opportunity. But at the same time, you know, my
13:12
Speaker 2: brother is an up and coming football star. Football is
13:14
Speaker 2: my first sport. I was the number one football receiver
13:17
Speaker 2: in the country my senior year. So I kind of
13:18
Speaker 2: started thinking, all right, well, this basketball thing doesn't work out.
13:21
Speaker 2: Maybe football does. So the summer going into my fourth season,
13:27
Speaker 2: I'm doing basketball training in the morning and football training
13:31
Speaker 2: in the evening because not really knowing what was going
13:33
Speaker 2: to happen, what opportunities would present themselves. My agent at
13:36
Speaker 2: the time had found about six or seven NFL teams
13:41
Speaker 2: are willing to give me an open tryout. So I
13:43
Speaker 2: told him that I wanted to give basketball one last shot,
13:46
Speaker 2: which I had a training camp opportunity coming up. And
13:49
Speaker 2: I said, you know, if this training camp opportunity doesn't work,
13:52
Speaker 2: let's try to jump to football. Um, thankfully that opportunity
13:56
Speaker 2: was with the golden state warriors in 2006 and it's
14:01
Speaker 2: a 15 man roster. They had 17 guarantees already and
14:04
Speaker 2: 20 guys coming to camp. So literally I was the
14:07
Speaker 2: 21st guy coming to camp and, um, you know, the coach,
14:12
Speaker 2: let me back up a little bit. So I got called,
14:14
Speaker 2: I was living in Sacramento at the time in the
14:15
Speaker 2: off season. And then a former UCLA teammate of mine,
14:18
Speaker 2: Baron Davis said, Hey, you know, we're having an open gym.
14:21
Speaker 2: If you want to come by. So the Bay Area
14:23
Speaker 2: is about hours and change from Sacramento. I drove down there,
14:27
Speaker 2: played really well, not knowing the head coach was watching
14:30
Speaker 2: the whole time. So after after we get done playing,
14:33
Speaker 2: head coach comes down, puts his arm around me. Hey, son,
14:36
Speaker 2: you know, how you doing? Like the way you played today.
14:38
Speaker 2: What are you doing this season? I was just like,
14:40
Speaker 2: you know, I don't know. You know, camp is around
14:42
Speaker 2: the corner. I don't really have any offers. He's like, well, hey, no,
14:46
Speaker 2: I can't promise you. a roster spot, but I promise you,
14:50
Speaker 2: if you come and compete like you did today, I'll
14:52
Speaker 2: give you an opportunity. So again, so again, there's 15
14:54
Speaker 2: roster spots. I already have 17 guaranteed contracts. So I
14:57
Speaker 2: already have to cut two guys and they had three
14:59
Speaker 2: more guys in camp. So I came in camp, played
15:02
Speaker 2: really well and found my way to a guaranteed roster spot.
15:06
Speaker 2: So that was in the 2006 season. And although I
15:10
Speaker 2: came in the NBA in 2002, 2006 is when I
15:13
Speaker 2: really felt like I got my first opportunity to show
15:17
Speaker 2: that I can play this league. And, you know, when
15:20
Speaker 2: that opportunity was given, I didn't give it back and
15:21
Speaker 2: ran with it. And from there is really why I
15:25
Speaker 2: felt like, you know, year four, year five was where
15:27
Speaker 2: I felt like, OK, I'm in here now and now
15:30
Speaker 2: I can make some noise. So, you know, after that season,
15:33
Speaker 2: played well and was able to just maintain contracts for
15:36
Speaker 2: the next, I guess, 10 years after that.
15:38
Speaker 1: So then you went from there to the Suns, then
15:41
Speaker 1: to the Magic, then you were with the Lakers. How
15:43
Speaker 1: was that?
15:44
Speaker 2: The opportunity to play with the franchise. Some people look
15:49
Speaker 2: at it like, for instance, Kobe was able to play
15:53
Speaker 2: 20 years with the Lakers. And that's everybody's goal. But
15:57
Speaker 2: at the same time, I realized early that wasn't going
15:59
Speaker 2: to be my path. in this league. And I was
16:02
Speaker 2: okay with that. So I just took every opportunity as
16:05
Speaker 2: a opportunity, understanding not only is it a basketball opportunity,
16:09
Speaker 2: but at the same time, I'm going to these teams
16:12
Speaker 2: and I'm always playing, I'm always starting, or I'm always
16:14
Speaker 2: the first guy to come out of the bench. So
16:16
Speaker 2: it was also business opportunities to start meeting the people
16:18
Speaker 2: who are sitting in the front rows of these games,
16:20
Speaker 2: because those are normally CEOs, business owners, you know, all
16:24
Speaker 2: kinds of different opportunities. So I started thinking then, let
16:28
Speaker 2: me just meet these guys. Let me shake their hand
16:29
Speaker 2: because I was, you know, like your ex-husband thought, you know,
16:32
Speaker 2: I was labeled the bad guy and I was okay
16:35
Speaker 2: with that. Um, but at the same time, I think
16:38
Speaker 2: when I'm able to show people who I really am,
16:39
Speaker 2: they're pleasantly surprised. Like, Oh shit. Like you are not
16:43
Speaker 2: a thug. You're not this. You're not that. I'm just like, no,
16:45
Speaker 2: I'm just not came from a rough upbringing, but I
16:48
Speaker 2: have a degree, um, educated and I'm just a competitor.
16:53
Speaker 2: And so I was just always kind of surprising people
16:55
Speaker 2: when I would meet them and, well, here, give me,
16:58
Speaker 2: you know, take my number down and, you know, come
17:00
Speaker 2: to the office. So let's, let's go to lunch. And
17:02
Speaker 2: it was this people really started kind of taking a
17:03
Speaker 2: liking to me. And again, use those opportunities from playing
17:07
Speaker 2: for different teams to meet different types of people in,
17:10
Speaker 2: in different types of fields. And, uh, you know, just
17:13
Speaker 2: kind of carry on through that through my career. Um,
17:16
Speaker 2: obviously being the Laker is, it was a dream come true.
17:18
Speaker 2: I was a huge Laker fan growing up and there's
17:22
Speaker 2: an infamous moment where, kind of in basketball aura. And
17:25
Speaker 2: it was just the 13-year anniversary the other day. I
17:27
Speaker 2: think it was March 7th, 2010, where I got into
17:32
Speaker 2: a Wacobe and I faked the ball in his face.
17:35
Speaker 2: And it went viral and it's still viral 13 years later.
17:40
Speaker 2: At the end of that season, so the Lakers go
17:43
Speaker 2: on to the finals. We play the Boston Celtics in
17:45
Speaker 2: the Eastern Finals. I'm in Orlando at that time. And
17:48
Speaker 2: we end up losing. So the offseason, the Lakers beat.
17:50
Speaker 3: Are you learning to drive? From the 1st of November 2026,
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18:09
Speaker 3: learning to drive process again. Remember, you can only drive
18:12
Speaker 3: unaccompanied if you hold a valid full driving licence. Find
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18:20
Speaker 2: Celtics in the finals. So that off season, I'm a
18:22
Speaker 2: free agent and I thought I was going to stay
18:25
Speaker 2: in Orlando, but then they weren't really offering what I
18:29
Speaker 2: thought I was worth. So I started talking to the
18:31
Speaker 2: Miami Heat and out of nowhere, I get a call
18:34
Speaker 2: from a number that I don't recognize. And if you
18:38
Speaker 2: know me, I rarely answer my phone. Even if I
18:40
Speaker 2: see the name on the phone, I'm just not a
18:41
Speaker 2: phone person. I happen to answer this call and it's Kobe.
18:45
Speaker 2: And at first I'm like, yeah, right. Who the fuck
18:47
Speaker 2: is this? He's like, nah, it's really me. So he
18:48
Speaker 2: and I, you know, kind of start talking back and
18:50
Speaker 2: going back and forth. And, you know, I was congratulating
18:52
Speaker 2: him on winning the championship. And he asked me what
18:56
Speaker 2: I was doing next year. And I kind of told him,
18:58
Speaker 2: you know, okay, you know, I'm talking to the heat
18:59
Speaker 2: and the magic right now. And he, you know, he's like,
19:02
Speaker 2: what do you think about being a Laker? And I'm like,
19:05
Speaker 2: what do you mean? What do I think? I mean,
19:06
Speaker 2: Laker is my favorite team. It'd be an honor. It's
19:08
Speaker 2: just like, and he literally, he literally told me, it's
19:10
Speaker 2: like anyone crazy, I want you to be a Laker.
19:15
Speaker 2: And I was like, shit, I want to be a Laker.
19:17
Speaker 2: And literally four days later, uh, I was a Laker. Wow.
19:21
Speaker 2: That's a great story.
19:23
Speaker 1: So, um, all right. So after the Lakers, you went
19:26
Speaker 1: on to play again for the Clippers. And, and, uh,
19:30
Speaker 1: so talk to me about that for a little bit,
19:32
Speaker 1: because most people know about Donald Sterling and that whole saga,
19:36
Speaker 1: but for people that don't know, um, I'm going to
19:39
Speaker 1: let you fill them in a little bit on that
19:42
Speaker 1: because they just know about Vista Viano, I think. But
19:47
Speaker 1: what was it like, first of all, working for Donald Trump?
19:50
Speaker 2: It was interesting. I mean, obviously, Donald had a history
19:53
Speaker 2: of discriminating against minorities. You know, he's a big real
19:57
Speaker 2: estate guy out here in LA and just kind of
19:59
Speaker 2: had a history of discrimination.
20:02
Speaker 1: But was he like that with you personally?
20:04
Speaker 2: No. Not at all. Like I said, I never had
20:07
Speaker 2: any issues. Always respectful. I was always respectful to him
20:10
Speaker 2: when I saw him. I spoke. I was actually more
20:12
Speaker 2: kind of friendly with his wife, Shelly. Shelly was very
20:14
Speaker 2: nice and kind and always stopped me out to come
20:17
Speaker 2: talk to me and ask me how things were going.
20:20
Speaker 2: So when I signed there, I'm not necessarily thinking about
20:24
Speaker 2: Donald Sterling. And I don't think Chris Paul or Blake
20:26
Speaker 2: Griffin or DeAndre or anyone else on our team was
20:28
Speaker 2: actually thinking about Donald Sterling. I think what we're thinking
20:32
Speaker 2: about is the Clippers have been the doormat of the NBA.
20:35
Speaker 2: pretty much for their entire existence. We have a really
20:38
Speaker 2: good team and we feel like we can change the
20:40
Speaker 2: narrative on this team. We felt like we had a
20:42
Speaker 2: championship type of team and we definitely did. And we
20:46
Speaker 2: took a lot of pride in trying to, again, remove
20:50
Speaker 2: the stigma from the team. You know, the Clippers were
20:52
Speaker 2: the doormat of the NBA. And for the first time
20:55
Speaker 2: in their franchise history, we won the Pacific division title,
20:57
Speaker 2: 50 plus wins, one of the best teams in the
21:00
Speaker 2: league for about a two or three year run. And
21:04
Speaker 2: that kind of came boiling to a head. Was it 2015,
21:09
Speaker 2: I think, where Donald Sterling was caught or was recorded
21:15
Speaker 2: by his side chick.
21:18
Speaker 1: So time out. Did you used to see Vista Viano
21:22
Speaker 1: at the games?
21:23
Speaker 2: No one can stand this. I don't even like talking
21:25
Speaker 2: bad about people, but just no one liked her. She
21:27
Speaker 2: thought that she owned the Staples Center. She thought that she,
21:30
Speaker 2: you know, she was a part of the organization. She
21:32
Speaker 2: used to walk around and strut like her shit didn't
21:35
Speaker 2: stink and just no one liked her.
21:39
Speaker 1: And they knew she was the mistress.
21:42
Speaker 2: Everyone... he used to sit her next to, he used
21:44
Speaker 2: to sit her court side of games while he was
21:47
Speaker 2: sitting with his wife. He would just sit her somewhere else.
21:49
Speaker 2: So it wasn't a secret and I'm no one to
21:51
Speaker 2: judge because at the time I wasn't perfect and I
21:53
Speaker 2: haven't been perfect in my relationship, but it was just blatant, wild,
21:58
Speaker 2: outlandish disrespect. And I think she fed on that power too.
22:02
Speaker 2: Like she liked people talking about her and she liked
22:06
Speaker 2: kind of being the center of attention. So I say
22:09
Speaker 2: all that today that kind of came to a boiling
22:11
Speaker 2: head the first round of the playoffs that year where
22:14
Speaker 2: she recorded him saying some, you know, unfriendly and racial
22:18
Speaker 2: things about minorities, particularly Magic Johnson. And she released the
22:24
Speaker 2: tape to TMZ. And we're in the midst of a
22:29
Speaker 2: tough battle against a young Golden State Warriors team. So
22:31
Speaker 2: to put it kind of in context, we end up
22:33
Speaker 2: beating this Warriors team, but that next year is when
22:36
Speaker 2: they went on their dynasty run and they won four
22:38
Speaker 2: championships in the next eight years. So this is a young,
22:41
Speaker 2: we knew at the time, like, Hey, this team is next.
22:43
Speaker 2: This is the young Steph Curry, young Clay Thompson, young
22:46
Speaker 2: Draymond green. They're a young hungry team. So this tape is,
22:50
Speaker 2: you know, launched in the middle of a playoff series.
22:52
Speaker 2: And we're like, fuck, like, what are we supposed to do?
22:54
Speaker 2: So now everyone's telling us, and this is kind of
22:56
Speaker 2: the beginning of social media, kind of not just being
23:00
Speaker 2: showing off, money or what you're doing people are kind
23:03
Speaker 2: of starting to speak out against things particularly athletes so
23:07
Speaker 2: now we have the whole world you know telling us
23:09
Speaker 2: what to do or you guys shouldn't play and your
23:11
Speaker 2: owner is racist and you guys are he's treating you
23:14
Speaker 2: guys like slaves and this this and that so now
23:16
Speaker 2: everyone has an opinion on on on what we should
23:19
Speaker 2: be doing and although we agree you know we felt
23:22
Speaker 2: that you know obviously what he did was wrong and
23:24
Speaker 2: again with my past I knew he was wrong, but
23:27
Speaker 2: it didn't really bother me. I'm just like him saying
23:29
Speaker 2: nigger or him saying this or him saying that, like
23:31
Speaker 2: that doesn't bother, like I almost lost my life. You
23:34
Speaker 2: know what I mean? So this is, you know, this,
23:36
Speaker 2: the way people talk or people think, like, I was
23:38
Speaker 2: just thinking to myself, like, he's not the only owner
23:40
Speaker 2: that thinks this way. He's just the only one dumb
23:42
Speaker 2: enough to get recorded doing it. So again, it just
23:45
Speaker 2: kind of puts a strain on our team. You know,
23:48
Speaker 2: some people want to sit out. Some people want to play.
23:51
Speaker 2: If we do sit out, does it kind of as
23:53
Speaker 2: a loss? How long do we sit out? Is he
23:55
Speaker 2: going to be fired? So there's just so much unknown
23:57
Speaker 2: that we just decided to try to play through it.
24:00
Speaker 2: Fortunately enough, we were able to play through it. We
24:02
Speaker 2: were able to beat the Warriors. But then I just
24:05
Speaker 2: think his dark cloud was looming over our team constantly.
24:09
Speaker 2: So it became less about basketball as we continue to
24:12
Speaker 2: win and just more about what was going to happen
24:14
Speaker 2: to Donald Sterling? Like, how is he still have this
24:16
Speaker 2: team and everyone's outraged. But at the same time, although
24:19
Speaker 2: he was the one that messed up, people are starting
24:21
Speaker 2: to get mad at us because we keep playing, but
24:23
Speaker 2: we're trying to tell people like, yo, we're not playing
24:25
Speaker 2: for this man. Like we're playing for the people in
24:27
Speaker 2: our locker rooms, our family, our friends, our fans who
24:30
Speaker 2: believe in us because we feel like we have a
24:32
Speaker 2: team that can win a championship. So just a lot of,
24:36
Speaker 2: other stuff kind of caught up with us. We ended
24:38
Speaker 2: up losing the next round. And I think the NBA
24:40
Speaker 2: was kind of happy about that because again, the narrative
24:43
Speaker 2: the whole time while we were playing was just a
24:44
Speaker 2: negative narrative of Donald Sterling. And, um, obviously Mr. Silver,
24:48
Speaker 2: the commissioner of the NBA, fresh on his job, ended
24:51
Speaker 2: up banding, uh, him from the NBA. Um, his wife,
24:56
Speaker 2: Shelly pulls some, some strings and ends up getting the
24:59
Speaker 2: team sold to Steve Ballmer. And I know the rest is,
25:03
Speaker 2: is history.
25:05
Speaker 1: Yeah. So how do you think things have changed in
25:07
Speaker 1: the NBA in the last decade?
25:09
Speaker 2: From that standpoint, I just think people are using their
25:13
Speaker 2: voice more. You know, the whole Black Lives Matter movement,
25:17
Speaker 2: the whole, you know, young Black kid, you know, Trayvon
25:21
Speaker 2: Martin movement with the hoodies. And I just think... From
25:24
Speaker 2: that point on, and I think the Sterling situation was
25:27
Speaker 2: kind of the beginning of the floodgates of athletes really
25:31
Speaker 2: stepping into their own and using not only their voice,
25:34
Speaker 2: but their platform as a call for change, a call
25:38
Speaker 2: for attention. And since then, there's been no going back.
25:42
Speaker 2: You know, again, I think the NBA is kind of
25:43
Speaker 2: at the forefront of social movement and they do the
25:48
Speaker 2: best they can. I don't always think they do the
25:50
Speaker 2: right things in some, but I think their heart is
25:52
Speaker 2: in the right place trying to figure out how to,
25:55
Speaker 2: as such a multi-billion dollar, you know, conglomerate, how do
25:59
Speaker 2: we do what's right? Considering that majority of our players
26:02
Speaker 2: are African-American. So I always take my hat off to
26:06
Speaker 2: the NBA because they do try. They are progressive. They're
26:10
Speaker 2: at the front of the line of change. And I
26:13
Speaker 2: have a lot of respect for them for that.
26:15
Speaker 1: Speaking of that, you've gotten, you really use your voice now.
26:19
Speaker 1: You've gotten involved in a lot of political stuff. You
26:22
Speaker 1: talk a lot about Black Lives Matter. I mean, talk
26:24
Speaker 1: to me about the things that mean a lot to
26:26
Speaker 1: you right now.
26:27
Speaker 2: The Black Lives Matter movement, I wasn't necessarily with that movement.
26:32
Speaker 3: Are you learning to drive? From 1 November 2026, new
26:36
Speaker 3: rules will apply for learner permit holders. To get a
26:39
Speaker 3: third or fourth learner permit, you must have taken a
26:42
Speaker 3: driving test within the previous two years. After your fourth permit,
26:47
Speaker 3: or if your permit has been expired for more than
26:49
Speaker 3: two years, you will have to start the learning to
26:51
Speaker 3: drive process again. Remember, you can only drive unaccompanied if
26:55
Speaker 3: you hold a valid full driving licence. Find out more
26:58
Speaker 3: at rsa.ie, a message from the Road Safety Authority.
27:02
Speaker 2: From a standpoint of, yes, I think black lives matter,
27:05
Speaker 2: but I think the business behind the black light ladder
27:08
Speaker 2: mantra got a little messy and funds were misappropriated. And
27:13
Speaker 2: I hated that it kind of gave a black eye
27:17
Speaker 2: to the movement. Uh, no pun intended because again, I think,
27:21
Speaker 2: you know, black lives do matter. Black people's lives do matter.
27:24
Speaker 2: But I think, you know, when the money started pouring
27:26
Speaker 2: in and these people really didn't have no idea what
27:29
Speaker 2: to do with it. They started doing some, some stuff
27:31
Speaker 2: they shouldn't have did with it. So I'm to the
27:34
Speaker 2: mantra of, you know, the movement was great. I think
27:37
Speaker 2: the people we are standing up for were great. Um,
27:40
Speaker 2: but I just think, you know, money got to those
27:43
Speaker 2: people's heads and, you know, I definitely didn't agree to
27:45
Speaker 2: that side. Um, but from a different standpoint from just,
27:48
Speaker 2: you know, I, I try to use my platform to
27:52
Speaker 2: speak up for those who don't have a platform or
27:54
Speaker 2: those who don't, I don't have reports. Um, I think
27:56
Speaker 2: I've been misunderstood my entire life. um, about who I
28:01
Speaker 2: am or who I, what I'm about. And, um, I'm
28:05
Speaker 2: someone who made it out of circumstances that a lot
28:07
Speaker 2: of other people didn't. And I realized that I'm very
28:09
Speaker 2: fortunate for that. So now that I do have the
28:12
Speaker 2: opportunity and the means I try to help, I try
28:16
Speaker 2: to give back. I try to motivate, I try to
28:18
Speaker 2: educate and not to say that I'm perfect because I'm
28:21
Speaker 2: still making mistakes along the way, but I'm continuing to
28:23
Speaker 2: learn and try to better myself every day. Um, you know,
28:26
Speaker 2: I got interested in politics, um, Um, you know, Kevin Johnson,
28:31
Speaker 2: who was a former NBA player, was a mayor of
28:33
Speaker 2: my hometown of Sacramento. And to me at the time,
28:36
Speaker 2: it wasn't so much about the political side of what
28:39
Speaker 2: he was doing, but I just really saw him making
28:40
Speaker 2: a difference in the neighborhood, difference in the neighborhoods, uh,
28:43
Speaker 2: cleaning the neighborhoods up, you know, providing opportunity for the
28:46
Speaker 2: youth in those neighborhoods. And it really kind of motivated
28:49
Speaker 2: me to think like, damn, if he can do it, why,
28:52
Speaker 2: you know, why can't I do it? Um, so started
28:55
Speaker 2: shadowing him. I'm still in contact with the current mayor, Mr.
28:59
Speaker 2: Steinberg of Sacramento. Again, I just turned 43 yesterday, and
29:03
Speaker 2: I gave myself a goal back in my 30s that
29:06
Speaker 2: by the time I turned 50, I wanted to run
29:08
Speaker 2: for some sort of office, whether that be mayor or
29:11
Speaker 2: governor or whatever it may be, just because I think
29:15
Speaker 2: it would be different. It would be refreshing. It's not
29:18
Speaker 2: something that people expect, but I know that I can
29:22
Speaker 2: make a difference. Mm-hmm. I still have a handful of years.
29:26
Speaker 2: I still got seven years before that time is up.
29:30
Speaker 2: But I do more than anything, whether I end up
29:33
Speaker 2: you know, taking on that challenge that I, you know,
29:36
Speaker 2: gave myself 10 years ago or not. I just want
29:39
Speaker 2: to continue to show people hope, give people opportunities and
29:44
Speaker 2: inspire the youth, because I feel like in our communities,
29:47
Speaker 2: you have to see it to believe it. Most of
29:49
Speaker 2: the time, these kids look up to who they see
29:51
Speaker 2: and they see guys on the block doing all the
29:54
Speaker 2: things they shouldn't be doing. So I always want to
29:56
Speaker 2: be a symbol of hope of someone who, made it
30:00
Speaker 2: out of tough circumstances and to motivate other kids to
30:05
Speaker 2: let them, male and female, to let them know they
30:06
Speaker 2: can too.
30:08
Speaker 1: So speaking of kids, you have a number of children yourself.
30:12
Speaker 1: You're an amazing father. We'll get to that in a second,
30:15
Speaker 1: but you were very close with your mother who unfortunately
30:18
Speaker 1: died of cancer. Talk to me about her death and
30:21
Speaker 1: how that affected you.
30:22
Speaker 2: Yeah, my mom was, my mom was super mom. You know,
30:26
Speaker 2: my dad was out doing what he needed to do,
30:29
Speaker 2: provide for our family. So our mom was everything. Would
30:32
Speaker 2: go without eating to feed us, make sure we were
30:34
Speaker 2: always clothed and homework was done and ready for school. Again,
30:38
Speaker 2: I grew up, I was born in 1980. And if
30:41
Speaker 2: you know anything about the 80s, everyone pretty much did
30:43
Speaker 2: drugs back then. And my parents were no different. But
30:46
Speaker 2: I think what I was blessed with was they were
30:48
Speaker 2: able to still function while they were doing that. So
30:51
Speaker 2: we were always fed. We were always clean. We always
30:54
Speaker 2: had clothes on our back. We always ate. Our homework
30:56
Speaker 2: was always done. So although I can go to school
30:59
Speaker 2: and you would never know what was going on at home,
31:02
Speaker 2: it wasn't always sweet at home. So my mom did
31:05
Speaker 2: her best to try to make ends meet and be
31:08
Speaker 2: super mom. And unfortunately, she was diagnosed with four cancers,
31:15
Speaker 2: four cancers, all in stage four, November 1st, 2007. And
31:17
Speaker 2: she died November 27th, 2007. So within 26 days, she
31:19
Speaker 2: was diagnosed with And she was gone. And it was
31:30
Speaker 2: tough because obviously her being my best friend and my
31:33
Speaker 2: rock and my confidant and, you know, my drinking buddies
31:37
Speaker 2: at the game, like she used to come to the
31:39
Speaker 2: games and she'd be in the bars with us after
31:40
Speaker 2: the games, taking shots and hanging out and kind of
31:43
Speaker 2: almost a team mom in the NBA, which is crazy.
31:46
Speaker 2: That doesn't really happen. But she was just always full
31:48
Speaker 2: of great energy and such a vibe that, you know,
31:52
Speaker 2: losing her so fast was difficult. and it really affected
31:57
Speaker 2: obviously my family hard, but I didn't know how to
32:01
Speaker 2: take it. It was, it was, it was, I don't know.
32:05
Speaker 2: I like, I, as much as she meant to me,
32:09
Speaker 2: I never cried from her death. And I don't know why.
32:11
Speaker 2: I don't know if it, if it turned me numb
32:14
Speaker 2: or if it just, it did something to me where
32:21
Speaker 2: I don't know. So it's been, uh, Man, it's been,
32:24
Speaker 2: my mom died and my twins came almost a year
32:29
Speaker 2: after that. So my twins turned 14 in November and
32:31
Speaker 2: it was the 15 year anniversary this past November of
32:35
Speaker 2: my mom being gone. And obviously think about her daily.
32:38
Speaker 2: The pain never goes away. I just tell people, you know,
32:41
Speaker 2: over time you learn how to manage the pain, I guess. And,
32:44
Speaker 2: you know, continue to try to, you know, do right
32:46
Speaker 2: now because now she's always watching. You know what I mean?
32:50
Speaker 2: So anytime I'm doing some shit, I'm thinking like, ah,
32:53
Speaker 2: I know my mom's watching this. So it kind of
32:54
Speaker 2: kind of, you know, it keeps me a little bit
32:57
Speaker 2: on point as well. So, you know, anyone who's ever
32:59
Speaker 2: lost a parent, particularly your mom, there's it's the most
33:02
Speaker 2: devastating thing you can go through. Yeah.
33:04
Speaker 1: I lost my father too when I was 15 and
33:07
Speaker 1: it was devastating. And it's interesting you say that because
33:11
Speaker 1: I did not cry for a very long time. And
33:15
Speaker 1: I think that maybe a year later, I was taking
33:19
Speaker 1: a shower and it hit me because I think I
33:22
Speaker 1: was alone and it was just the most odd place.
33:26
Speaker 1: And out of nowhere, I just started sobbing and then
33:30
Speaker 1: it stopped. And to this day, I just, I kind
33:33
Speaker 1: of don't deal with it. Do you know what I mean?
33:35
Speaker 1: And it's very odd. And once in a while, something
33:37
Speaker 1: will happen that'll trigger it, like a song or something
33:41
Speaker 1: will happen. But, you know, I really keep it inside
33:44
Speaker 1: of me. So it's interesting that you say that.
33:47
Speaker 2: Well, I think it's tough. I mean, there's no rhyme
33:50
Speaker 2: or reason or any method on how you grieve. I
33:52
Speaker 2: think everyone grieves differently. You know, my brother and sister,
33:55
Speaker 2: you know, I saw my mom literally zipped up in
33:57
Speaker 2: a body bag and it was, it gives me chills
33:59
Speaker 2: to this day. And it's just like, there's no way
34:02
Speaker 2: how you, you know, how to deal with that shit.
34:04
Speaker 2: You know, there's no one teaches us how to deal
34:05
Speaker 2: with that. So to me, I just think everyone mourns
34:07
Speaker 2: different and I respect, you know, the way everyone decides
34:10
Speaker 2: to mourn, but yeah, we definitely have similar, you know,
34:13
Speaker 2: takes from our situation because obviously they meant so much
34:15
Speaker 2: to us, but for some reason I couldn't, I still
34:17
Speaker 2: 15 years later, I have never let that big cry out.
34:22
Speaker 2: So if it's coming, I welcome it. If it's not well.
34:27
Speaker 1: And did your team help you kind of get through that?
34:30
Speaker 2: Absolutely. The team was great. The organization was great because
34:34
Speaker 2: at the time, again, I was playing for the Golden
34:35
Speaker 2: State Warriors, so that's an hour and some change from Sacramento. Daily,
34:39
Speaker 2: I was driving to see her in the hospital. They
34:40
Speaker 2: let me miss practice. Let me just come to games. Unfortunately,
34:45
Speaker 2: when she did pass, they were very supportive. They came
34:47
Speaker 2: to the funeral. The entire organization came to the funeral. Really,
34:50
Speaker 2: that's where my co-host and I, now for all the smoke,
34:53
Speaker 2: Stephen Jackson, became brothers. He had just got traded to
34:58
Speaker 2: our team in February. of 2007 and we made a
35:01
Speaker 2: historical NBA run where we were the eighth seed. We
35:04
Speaker 2: beat the number one seed for the first time in
35:05
Speaker 2: NBA history in the seven game series. So the very
35:08
Speaker 2: next season, the season starts in November. My mom's diagnosed
35:12
Speaker 2: November 1st.
35:13
Speaker 3: Are you learning to drive? From the 1st of November, 2026,
35:16
Speaker 3: new rules will apply for learner permit holders. To get
35:20
Speaker 3: a third or fourth learner permit, you must have taken
35:23
Speaker 3: a driving test within the previous two years. After your
35:27
Speaker 3: fourth permit, or if your permit has been expired for
35:29
Speaker 3: more than two years, you will have to start the
35:32
Speaker 3: learning to drive process again. Remember, you can only drive
35:36
Speaker 3: unaccompanied if you hold a valid full driving license. Find
35:39
Speaker 3: out more at rsa.ie, a message from the Road Safety Authority.
35:43
Speaker 2: I'm just kind of out of it, and Stephen Jackson
35:45
Speaker 2: was the one. I mean, obviously everyone was very supportive,
35:47
Speaker 2: but Stephen Jackson was the one constantly calling me, checking
35:49
Speaker 2: on me, bringing me food. coming over to smoke with
35:52
Speaker 2: me and watch TV. So he was really kind of
35:54
Speaker 2: just my rock. So from there, we went from, you know,
35:58
Speaker 2: competing against each other and becoming teammates to becoming brothers
36:03
Speaker 2: and the best of friends to this day. Again, you know,
36:06
Speaker 2: we have an award-winning podcast together now, but that's when
36:09
Speaker 2: he and I had a real connection started was when
36:11
Speaker 2: I lost my mom.
36:13
Speaker 1: So now talk to me about fatherhood.
36:15
Speaker 2: Awesome. you know, I had a rough childhood and I
36:18
Speaker 2: always told myself, and you know, when I would pray
36:20
Speaker 2: that if I ever had the opportunity to be a father,
36:22
Speaker 2: I would be the best dad possible. And, uh, I
36:25
Speaker 2: was blessed with the opportunity to have twins off the rip,
36:29
Speaker 2: which was crazy. It wasn't necessarily ready for that. Don't
36:32
Speaker 2: think I went from having no kids to two kids
36:34
Speaker 2: right away. And the kid part wasn't necessarily hard. It
36:37
Speaker 2: was just obviously having a partner now, you know, a
36:42
Speaker 2: real partner, you know what I mean? Because at that
36:44
Speaker 2: time their mom and I were up and down. You know,
36:47
Speaker 2: we were young. She was 22. I think I was
36:49
Speaker 2: 26 or 27 when we got pregnant. I'm in the
36:51
Speaker 2: midst of kind of just starting to break out as
36:53
Speaker 2: an NBA player. And it was just tough. And then
36:56
Speaker 2: all of a sudden, bam, I got two baby boys.
36:59
Speaker 2: So the fatherhood came natural, came easy. To this day,
37:05
Speaker 2: what I'm most proud of is being a father, but
37:08
Speaker 2: just learning how to parent and then co-parent when her
37:14
Speaker 2: and I divorce. And then maintaining and understanding, although we're
37:19
Speaker 2: going through our BS, that the kids are still the
37:23
Speaker 2: most important thing. And I think that's hard for a
37:25
Speaker 2: lot of people. Now, unfortunately, there's more blended and broken
37:29
Speaker 2: families than mom and dad have been married for 30
37:33
Speaker 2: years type stories. Those are rare. Those are rare these days.
37:37
Speaker 2: So we're like pretty much everyone else where we have
37:40
Speaker 2: a blended family now. So the twins are 14 now
37:43
Speaker 2: and amazing. And I get a chance to coach them.
37:47
Speaker 2: see them all the time and father them and they're
37:50
Speaker 2: just growing up too damn fast. And then I have
37:52
Speaker 2: a four-year-old who thinks he's 14 as well, has a
37:56
Speaker 2: vocabulary of a 14-year-old, which is not a very good
37:58
Speaker 2: thing that I have with my fiance. And then my
38:01
Speaker 2: fiance has three children from a previous marriage. So we
38:05
Speaker 2: have 14-year-old twin boys, 11-year-old daughter, 10-year-old son, eight-year-old son,
38:12
Speaker 2: four-year-old son. So we have we have six kids from
38:15
Speaker 2: the age of four to 14. So we're, so we're
38:19
Speaker 2: the black Brady's over here, but is it always, is
38:22
Speaker 2: it always easy? No. Is it worth it? Absolutely. Does
38:25
Speaker 2: it stress me the fuck out sometimes? Absolutely. But I
38:28
Speaker 2: love it. You know what I mean? And the fact that,
38:31
Speaker 2: you know, I remember growing up with my brother and
38:33
Speaker 2: sister and playing with them and fighting with them. And
38:34
Speaker 2: I just know those are some of the fondest memories
38:37
Speaker 2: I cherish. So now that we have six and they're
38:39
Speaker 2: yelling and fighting and screaming and good times and bad times.
38:43
Speaker 2: I just know it was something, you know, these kids
38:45
Speaker 2: will always remember, you know, as they continue to grow up.
38:48
Speaker 2: So I embrace it. If I need to get away
38:51
Speaker 2: and get into my man cave and lock the door
38:52
Speaker 2: and get some quiet time, you know, my fiance allows
38:54
Speaker 2: me to do that. And yeah, again, fatherhood is the best,
38:59
Speaker 2: if you can even call it job, best job in
39:01
Speaker 2: the world.
39:02
Speaker 1: All right. Talk to me about hybrid TV. You're the
39:05
Speaker 1: CEO of this company. You, you tell me what that is.
39:09
Speaker 2: Yeah, so Hybrid TV is just kind of a platform
39:12
Speaker 2: for cannabis and all walks of cannabis. Obviously, I've come
39:18
Speaker 2: a long way in the cannabis space, but it's not
39:20
Speaker 2: just the old Cheech and Chong narrative of getting high
39:23
Speaker 2: every day. It's, you know, cannabis is used in so
39:26
Speaker 2: many different forms in cooking and health and fitness and fashion.
39:31
Speaker 2: But we just wanted to provide or create an opportunity
39:34
Speaker 2: for people to come and display their content on our
39:38
Speaker 2: platform with no red flags or yellow tape. So we're
39:41
Speaker 2: in the process of fine tuning the final tweaks of it.
39:46
Speaker 2: And hopefully we'll be launching the platform soon. I just
39:50
Speaker 2: got to call it like a Netflix for cannabis people.
39:54
Speaker 2: And again, it won't just be cannabis only. It'll be music.
39:58
Speaker 2: It'll be sports. It'll be culture. It'll be fashion. It'll
40:03
Speaker 2: be cooking. It'll be exercise. It'll be so many different
40:07
Speaker 2: verticals within the cannabis space. So I'm really excited about
40:12
Speaker 2: this project. Okay.
40:13
Speaker 1: And on your podcast, you got, it's all the smoke.
40:16
Speaker 1: You guys are known for smoking pot on your podcast.
40:20
Speaker 2: Yeah. Sometimes, sometimes. So it didn't start that way. So, um,
40:24
Speaker 2: you know, we, uh, my partner and I just real quick,
40:26
Speaker 2: how it kind of started, we were both retired working
40:29
Speaker 2: for ESPN and Fox and, you know, I still work
40:31
Speaker 2: for ESPN to this day. And that's obviously a Disney company.
40:34
Speaker 2: And although I appreciate the opportunity, um, you know, it's not,
40:38
Speaker 2: 100 who i am i can be that person i
40:41
Speaker 2: can be in that lane but i wanted to create
40:43
Speaker 2: something where i felt a little more comfortable a little
40:46
Speaker 2: bit more laid back and a little bit more relatable
40:48
Speaker 2: to our people and i came up with this idea
40:52
Speaker 2: uh partnered with showtime right off the rip but we
40:55
Speaker 2: know showtime at the time was just like you know
40:57
Speaker 2: we can't smoke weed on tv i'm just like our
41:00
Speaker 2: show's called all the smoke fuck you mean like we
41:03
Speaker 2: don't see me so um so the first season we
41:06
Speaker 2: didn't um But the first year of existence, we won
41:10
Speaker 2: sports podcast of the year. So they gave us a
41:12
Speaker 2: little bit of leniency. So we kind of started sneaking
41:15
Speaker 2: it in here and there and with certain guests. And
41:18
Speaker 2: I think the first guest we were able to smoke
41:20
Speaker 2: with was Snoop, which is obviously very fitting. And then
41:23
Speaker 2: from there, we kind of just realized, OK, we can smoke,
41:26
Speaker 2: but we have to smoke with people. It's OK. So
41:29
Speaker 2: obviously we have a Steph Curry or Kevin Durant, their
41:31
Speaker 2: current NBA players. We can't smoke with them. But if
41:34
Speaker 2: we have like, we just had DJ quick, the legendary
41:36
Speaker 2: DJ quick is the episode. We literally just dropped yesterday.
41:39
Speaker 2: He's a music guy, you know, and he wants to smoke.
41:41
Speaker 2: So we smoke with him. So we kind of pick
41:43
Speaker 2: and choose now, um, who we smoke with. But I
41:45
Speaker 2: think the, the, the show, all the smoke, and that
41:48
Speaker 2: doesn't necessarily mean physically smoke. And I just, we wanted
41:51
Speaker 2: to bring you the heat. We wanted to bring you unfiltered, uh, unscripted,
41:58
Speaker 2: real raw conversations with some of your favorite people. And, um,
42:02
Speaker 2: we've been very fortunate enough to be able to create
42:04
Speaker 2: an atmosphere where we get the best of the best
42:07
Speaker 2: and the biggest of the biggest. And, you know, my
42:09
Speaker 2: goal has always been to humanize these people. Like I'm
42:12
Speaker 2: fortunate enough to know, you know, to know these people,
42:14
Speaker 2: but I want to show, you know, people, uh, you know, for,
42:17
Speaker 2: for example, rest in peace to my brother, Kobe, I
42:19
Speaker 2: want to show people the other, I wanted to show him,
42:21
Speaker 2: you know, not the mom, but I want to show
42:23
Speaker 2: him Kobe was the father of the business man. that side,
42:26
Speaker 2: you know, everyone knows Snoop's a great rapper, but what
42:28
Speaker 2: is Snoop like as a grandfather now? What kind of
42:30
Speaker 2: business stuff is he doing? So on and so forth.
42:32
Speaker 2: So I always just wanted to kind of show our
42:33
Speaker 2: fans the other side of some of their favorite people.
42:36
Speaker 2: And I think we've been very successful at doing that
42:40
Speaker 2: and I'm having a good time doing it.
42:41
Speaker 1: Who was the best interview you think you had?
42:44
Speaker 2: Man, that's such a hard question. I mean, I think,
42:48
Speaker 2: I mean, obviously I'm going to say Kobe because first
42:51
Speaker 2: of all, it was a great interview. It was supposed
42:53
Speaker 2: to be a two-part interview. And then unfortunately, you know,
42:56
Speaker 2: he passed, you know, two, two weeks after the, uh,
43:00
Speaker 2: episode dropped. So Snoop, or excuse me, uh, Kobe was
43:04
Speaker 2: a great episode. Snoop was fun. Uh, Kevin Hart was fun.
43:07
Speaker 2: Jamie Foxx was fun. I mean, you name it, we've
43:11
Speaker 2: had them. I just think all of them are so
43:13
Speaker 2: unique in their own way. It's kind of hard to
43:15
Speaker 2: pinpoint like that one. Um, Again, I'm so fortunate to
43:21
Speaker 2: be able to do the things I do in my
43:23
Speaker 2: post-career because I wasn't an NBA all-star. I was a
43:26
Speaker 2: role player. And I think the reason why I succeeded
43:29
Speaker 2: is because I realized that early on, like, yo, you're
43:31
Speaker 2: not a star. All right, well, be the best role player.
43:33
Speaker 2: Be a star in your roles. I was a star
43:36
Speaker 2: role player. And I think that my realness in the
43:40
Speaker 2: game was respected after the game. You know, now in
43:44
Speaker 2: the media space, it's so much about disrespecting and hot
43:48
Speaker 2: takes and trying to go viral. And I've just never
43:51
Speaker 2: been about that. I feel like if you know enough
43:52
Speaker 2: about a sport, you can have a quality conversation. And
43:55
Speaker 2: within that conversation, you'll have some great moments. So I
43:58
Speaker 2: just think my realness from who I've always been has
44:01
Speaker 2: been accepted well in this next phase of my life.
44:05
Speaker 2: And I'm able to have an award-winning podcast. I'm able
44:10
Speaker 2: to work for ESPN. I'm able to work for the
44:11
Speaker 2: Sacramento Kings and the Clippers. I'm able to start a
44:14
Speaker 2: whole network, uh, for cannabis users. And there's a lot
44:17
Speaker 2: of other cool stuff I'm doing. And I'm just so
44:20
Speaker 2: thankful to be giving the opportunities that I've been given
44:22
Speaker 2: because sometimes guys that were stars don't even have the
44:26
Speaker 2: opportunities that I've had. So, uh, uh, I'd never, you know,
44:29
Speaker 2: never take any of that for granted.
44:32
Speaker 1: You guys recently had Will Smith on. I saw the,
44:35
Speaker 1: I saw the episode. I thought it was, I thought
44:37
Speaker 1: it was great. Obviously, I think a lot of people
44:39
Speaker 1: tuned in because they wanted to see what he said
44:41
Speaker 1: about the slap.
44:42
Speaker 2: It was unfortunate because that was my first time meeting Will.
44:47
Speaker 2: And Will was someone, when I first started the show,
44:48
Speaker 2: I was like, damn, we need to get someone like
44:50
Speaker 2: Will Smith. And lo and behold, season three, we were
44:52
Speaker 2: able to get Will Smith. But right from the jump,
44:55
Speaker 2: we shook hands. And he acted like we've known each
44:58
Speaker 2: other forever, which is such a dope energy and environment.
45:03
Speaker 2: And when I tell you Will explained to a P,
45:05
Speaker 2: what he was thinking, what he did after and how
45:08
Speaker 2: he's been healing. It was unbelievable. But of course the
45:14
Speaker 2: team didn't want that. It was too real. It was
45:16
Speaker 2: too real for them. You know, it was too real
45:18
Speaker 2: to be, to, to, to be released. So unfortunately, uh,
45:21
Speaker 2: we only got to show what, what everyone saw. But
45:24
Speaker 2: when I tell you, he gave us an in-depth encounter
45:27
Speaker 2: step-by-step from what he did from the time that happened. the, the, the,
45:32
Speaker 2: what he read, where he traveled, who he talked to, who,
45:35
Speaker 2: who he leaned on. It was unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable. But unfortunately,
45:40
Speaker 2: you know, we were kind of one of his first
45:42
Speaker 2: coming out interviews because it was right before emancipation and
45:46
Speaker 2: his team, his, his village, you know, thought it was
45:50
Speaker 2: a little too real to be released. So we, I
45:54
Speaker 2: have the unedited version and I, and I got a
45:57
Speaker 2: chance to watch that. And it was just like, it,
46:00
Speaker 2: The whole narrative, everything would be if we got to
46:03
Speaker 2: show that. I don't really still think I mean, obviously,
46:06
Speaker 2: Chris Rock just did his special and talked about it
46:09
Speaker 2: and pride that would have kept the energy going. But
46:11
Speaker 2: if we could have released what Will said when we
46:13
Speaker 2: had it on the show, I think it would have
46:14
Speaker 2: changed the narrative about what's going on right now, because
46:17
Speaker 2: even after that episode. his team is just like, yo,
46:20
Speaker 2: Will's never opened up like that to anyone. He's never
46:23
Speaker 2: felt so comfortable. He's never spoke so freely. Thank you guys.
46:26
Speaker 2: It was, they're like, it was almost like therapy for him.
46:29
Speaker 2: And we, we felt so special and honored for him
46:32
Speaker 2: to eat. And that's Will Smith, the A-list. I don't
46:34
Speaker 2: care what, how many people he slaps is the A-list,
46:37
Speaker 2: you know, it's Will Smith. Um, so we just felt
46:39
Speaker 2: fortunate enough to be able to, you know, be there
46:41
Speaker 2: in the moment and experience the moment. And I guess
46:43
Speaker 2: that conversation was for the moment. Um, But I just
46:47
Speaker 2: wish it was for the world because I think it
46:48
Speaker 2: would really change a lot of people's opinion on what happened.
46:52
Speaker 1: Yeah, it was obvious you guys had some great chemistry
46:54
Speaker 1: for sure.
46:55
Speaker 2: Yeah.
46:56
Speaker 1: Do you read the comments section of social media?
46:59
Speaker 2: I do sometimes. And I have been someone known to
47:02
Speaker 2: fire back at times. But I just think, you know,
47:05
Speaker 2: the more and more great opportunities that are coming my way,
47:08
Speaker 2: I realize it's just a test and I have to
47:11
Speaker 2: allow people to have their opinions. Sometimes it's hard. especially
47:15
Speaker 2: when they're way off. But at the end of the day,
47:18
Speaker 2: their opinions aren't changing my blessings. They're not changing my
47:21
Speaker 2: day-to-day life. They're not changing the money I make. So
47:23
Speaker 2: I just have to allow people to have that misconceptions
47:27
Speaker 2: or the ideals about me or the way I move
47:31
Speaker 2: and come to the realization that that's their problem, not mine.
47:36
Speaker 1: How do you feel about the private lives of public figures?
47:40
Speaker 1: Some people think that everything is fair game. Do you
47:42
Speaker 1: agree about that?
47:44
Speaker 2: It just depends on what situation you put yourself in.
47:46
Speaker 2: And I don't ever try to make myself seem like
47:48
Speaker 2: I'm an A-list celebrity because I'm not. I think probably
47:50
Speaker 2: at the best, I'm a C-list. But I also opened
47:54
Speaker 2: up my world in reality TV. And when I did
47:59
Speaker 2: that with my ex-wife back in 2009 or 10, it's
48:04
Speaker 2: never been the same since. And I don't even say
48:07
Speaker 2: it in a bad way, but it's just nothing has
48:09
Speaker 2: been private. Obviously, my divorce was very public. Um, anyone
48:12
Speaker 2: I dated after that was very public. Um, but it
48:16
Speaker 2: also opened me up to a whole new side of
48:19
Speaker 2: viewership and people who don't necessarily know anything about sports,
48:23
Speaker 2: but I could still get people to this day coming
48:25
Speaker 2: up to me, women. Oh, I remember you from the
48:27
Speaker 2: reality show with you and your wife. And I was
48:29
Speaker 2: just like, Oh, okay. That's what's up, man. I hope
48:31
Speaker 2: you enjoyed it. You know what I mean? So it
48:33
Speaker 2: wasn't all bad. Uh, it got me into wanting to
48:36
Speaker 2: create content, uh, obviously not content like that trash, but
48:39
Speaker 2: just quality content. But again, it just opened me up
48:42
Speaker 2: to a whole new eyes of viewers and more fans.
48:46
Speaker 2: So we live in a world today where nothing is
48:49
Speaker 2: really private. You got to try to keep it private
48:51
Speaker 2: and keep it as sacred as you can. And if
48:53
Speaker 2: it is public, you're going to have to work that
48:55
Speaker 2: much harder. So I don't think there's any secret to,
48:58
Speaker 2: you know, there's no secret recipe. You know, we all
49:00
Speaker 2: know relationships are hard, whether they're public or private. But
49:03
Speaker 2: when they're public, it's a little harder. So. You just
49:05
Speaker 2: have to make sure you're on the same page with
49:06
Speaker 2: your partner and prioritize your mental health and your happiness
49:11
Speaker 2: and do the best you can.
49:13
Speaker 1: Okay. And the last thing I wanted to mention was
49:16
Speaker 1: Athletes vs. Cancer, your organization that you created for your mom.
49:20
Speaker 1: Will you just tell us a little bit about that?
49:22
Speaker 2: Yeah, I started that organization the year after she passed.
49:25
Speaker 2: And I just didn't want anyone to go through what
49:27
Speaker 2: we had to go through. So in the past, we've
49:29
Speaker 2: done health clinics. We've provided information. We've paid for funerals, medication, hospice,
49:39
Speaker 2: you name it, just anything kind of related to cancer.
49:44
Speaker 2: It's kind of sat dormant for the last three years
49:46
Speaker 2: because I didn't really have a solid direction, but my
49:49
Speaker 2: team and I have been putting something together. So we
49:51
Speaker 2: want to kind of start a scholarship program for kids
49:53
Speaker 2: with cancer that want to move on to college. So
49:55
Speaker 2: I'm in the midst of developing that platform right now. And,
50:00
Speaker 2: you know, hopefully we'll be able to, you know, Do
50:04
Speaker 2: some good with that.
50:05
Speaker 1: Okay, great. And I think you have an event coming up, right? Wednesday,
50:08
Speaker 1: June 28th, you're going to be hosting a celebrity golf
50:12
Speaker 1: tournament at Pelican Hills Country Club. Is that right?
50:14
Speaker 2: Yeah. So I teamed up with Boxing Wags, Deontay Wilder's wife,
50:20
Speaker 2: the former heavyweight champion, Telly. They do an annual golf tournament.
50:25
Speaker 2: I went to it the first year. I used to
50:27
Speaker 2: go do a golf tournament with my event. So I
50:30
Speaker 2: just asked, you know, do you guys want to team up?
50:33
Speaker 2: And we've been able to team up. So right now
50:34
Speaker 2: we're just kind of getting the dirty work, trying to
50:37
Speaker 2: get sponsors, trying to get people, you know, kind of
50:38
Speaker 2: the grind side of the event. But I'm excited about
50:41
Speaker 2: the event. I have no doubt that it will be
50:43
Speaker 2: a successful event and it will be for a great cause.
50:45
Speaker 2: So people will be looking out if you see this
50:47
Speaker 2: and you're in the California, LA area. I'll be posting
50:50
Speaker 2: information on it shortly and we would love to have you. Great.
50:53
Speaker 1: Awesome. Thank you so much, Matt. I so appreciate everything
50:56
Speaker 1: that you've given me today. So I wish you the
50:59
Speaker 1: best of luck in everything you do.
51:01
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me. And tell your ex not
51:03
Speaker 2: to judge books by their covers until he opens and
51:05
Speaker 2: reads them. All right, guys. Thanks for having me.
51:18
Speaker 4: Thank you for listening to the misunderstood podcast with host Rachel.
51:22
Speaker 4: You could tell executive producer Kelly Brink. If you have
51:27
Speaker 4: an episode suggestion or would like to reach out for
51:30
Speaker 4: collaboration and sponsorship opportunities, email us at infomisunderstoodpodcast at gmail.com.
51:37
Speaker 4: That's infomisunderstoodpodcast, all one word, at gmail.com. Be sure to
51:44
Speaker 4: like and subscribe everywhere you get your podcasts and leave
51:47
Speaker 4: us a five-star rating and review because it helps the
51:50
Speaker 4: show so much. Watch full videos of each and every
51:54
Speaker 4: episode of Misunderstood on YouTube at Misunderstood Podcast. See you
51:59
Speaker 4: next time.
52:06
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52:13
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52:15
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