Latest / Black Box Theory Podcast / BBT #14 Snippet | Why Behavior, Money, and Image Matter More Than Talent
Transcript
- Thomas: The point is that you have to understand whose world you're in and you have to understand you, you don't play your card, if you overplay your hand, you play yourself out. We've seen it happen plenty. You see how they try to black ball ⁓ Sanders before he even stepped foot in the NFL. It's... Malcolm: But was that because Sardura didn't protect his brand or because people just didn't want to see a black quarterback succeed? Thomas: It's the black quarterback thing. However, when you are perceived that way, any little thing you do, even if you celebrate, Shadr could have literally just celebrated a game like any normal player would. They're gonna take that and they're gonna call it arrogance. They're gonna call it this. They're gonna call it that. Malcolm: Okay hold up, hold up, hold up. Prime example. feel like I understand what you're saying but I think that at a certain point, even ⁓ the exact level bro, there are dudes, if you produce, that doesn't matter. Prime example, Marshawn Lynch. Marshawn Lynch is is White America's nightmare. From Oakland, dreads, durag, piercings, tattoo, tough guy, from the hood. He's not a nightmare but he's not like, ⁓ Thomas: I wouldn't say he's a nightmare. Nightmare would be the opposite of that. Malcolm: But he's not, I'm gonna say he's a nightmare, but he's like. Thomas: that they dream of people like him. love seeing somebody like him. They lick their lips when they see somebody like Malcolm: Bro, like that's what I'm saying. By no means was Marshawn Lynch like a ⁓ PR perfection, but he was a dog on that field. So whether or not he was like, had the most, you know what saying, most eloquent or most like dignified responses. I don't think that, man, I feel like if you're a, he has a good charisma, he has a good personality, he's a good dude. And it's like people that look past that, like actually know that he's a good dude. But I'm like, Thomas: He had public favor, People love them. Charisma. This ain't a good dude. Malcolm: He's a rookie, have that PR, he had to build that up over years in the league and work him. I do understand what you're saying though, you do need to protect your brand because it's dudes that's just like... Antonio Brown is a prime example, just throwing everything away. You be most talented dude ever. Marshawn Lynch is opposite end of that. He preached from day one about protecting your chicken, protecting your brand, protecting this stuff. So it'll go both ways. just feel like a lot of it is just a matter of this type of stuff that was instilled in you when you were younger, you was upbringing and what's... like what type of stuff you've been exposed to. Because some dudes, it's just football, football, football, no life skills, no soft skills, no communication skills. But feel like that is a good point. That's equally important because I mean, you're going to have to have a life after football. You know what saying? Like NFL is going to pay you great money. But we've seen countless times dudes going broke, pawn in their Super Bowl rings and they MVP for some extra cash because Adrian Peterson, I'm pretty sure is going broke. My man pawned everything. He was MVP. You know what saying? So I get it, but. ⁓ that's okay. It depends. Thomas: It's situational, bro. That's what I'm saying. I'm not trying to say that people should change. I know somebody's not going to understand what I'm saying. That's OK. I'm not the best at exactly my thoughts in a way that other people can understand them. all I'm saying is it's situational. Aaron Hernandez was literally beating dudes up at the bar committing crimes in college and went to the NFL. They gave him a pass on earth. School gave him a pass. Everyone gave him a pass. And he ended up committing murders. It depends on your situation, but you gotta be a superstar like Aaron Hernandez was. And all I'm saying is for dudes out there, I also want to change the narrative. Like these people, they buy your jerseys, they slap them on, they say they love you, they wouldn't give you a handout in the street, they wouldn't help you on the street. When you're not on that field, you're just another one of a number. And want these dudes in the league. to try to educate themselves. educating myself all the time, I try to. I'm not saying I'm perfect, I'm by no means there. And am I to go tell the millionaire what to do? I'm not that at all. I just want people to be more cognizant of the situations. And a lot of them are. And ⁓ understand, upbringings different. I'm not saying that dudes don't have respect. I'm not saying that they don't know how to interact with people. I'm just saying that you to understand the optics of things. and the stereotypes that are placed on you, especially as a football player, just have to understand the views ⁓ it sucks, but it's something you constantly have to be aware of. I ⁓ I know, take that for what you want. ⁓ I all these dudes. I hope these dudes have great careers. It's gonna be a shame to see the first one that gets thrown out for beating a woman or this first one that has like five kids in three months. The first all those things. ⁓ I hate to see him, I hate to see him, but unfortunately, because dudes just can't control themselves sometimes, stuff happens. And things are overlooked, because you're so good at football, they overlook a lot of stuff and don't get you the help that you actually need, till it's too late. So, it goes multiple ways. Malcolm: Hey man.