Point God is a production of I Heart Radio. I would say, first and foremost, welcome to the Point Guy Show. I am your host, Baron Davis, the man of many styles and the man of many voices, and this show man, We're just gonna take a deep dive into the art, the strategy, the science, the mathematics, um, the freethinking, the creativity around what's it means to be a point guard a k A appoint god, Someone with God given talent, who has acception, know and extraordinary skills. One who has built a brand and an original craft inside of a position right that has a certain type of structure and cadence. And so I look at the point God as a painter. I look at the point God as an orchestra conductor. I look at the point God right as a facilitator right um. And the beauty of this show is I get to finally have real conversations with some of my favorite point gods in basketball, not just n b A, in basketball history. In basketball history, we get to one on our stories and legends and rivalries, and here from some of the most incredible playmakers to ever lay them up in this game we call basketball. I'm your host Baron Davis, and I would consider myself a point god as well. So let me state my case for why I think that I would be considered a point god. Ha ha ha ha ha um. You know, for me, basketball was art, Basketball was an escape. Basketball was therapy, and basketball was like a whole another world that I can live in. And honestly, it was a dream, right, being inside a never ending dream, and your only real break from reality was everything outside of basketball, right, And for me, it was just if I could stay in this dream, if I can stay in this bubble, if I can stay in this way of thinking, and just growing up, it was just basketball. What is what I always wanted to do. I remember just just thinking of ship, you know, uh, going to the store, everybody buying candy with I put my cent in and get one of those little shiny ass bouncing balls. And you know how much those balls bounce, right, You know how crazy those little shiny things bounce. And I would try and dribble them. And I literally dribble around the grocery store and the ship would go all the way to the aisle. I had to slide and catch it. And then I would start to figure out how to dribble it back home from the grocery store. Then one day I got bored and my grandmother used to make me fold up grocery bags plastic bags, and I remember being in the kitchen and I was like, well, Ship, I'm just gonna tie it back around my basketball because at the time, you know, uh, some of my older homeboys when we play kickball and ship, you know, the balls get whopped, right, so the balls be whopped and then like you know, they had disposed the balls. But I remember my cousin telling me like, hey, NIGGI, if you want some handles and nig you can you will be able to dribble a white ball. So I used to always go and find the wap balls, like the wop kickballs. Mostly it was like kickballs and ship because like basketballs was just you know, real kind of hard to come by, you know what I mean, Like it's only like two or three it was that had a basketball, and like you gotta protect that ship like you gotta protect a bike. And so when I got my rock, I remember, uh, I got I got a brand new basketball. This is how it happened. I got a brand new basketball, and I was like, man, I'm about to go to the school. But I had this routine where I had to dribble between my legs, you know, the whole way to the school, which was like, you know, maybe a hundred and fifty dribbles, a hundred and fifty dribbles. But like boom boom boom boom boom boom. I'm talking about you gotta walk the dog all the way to the court, and if you don't, you gotta start and go all the way back home. But it wasn't like it was a long walk. But um, I remember getting this new basketball and I was like, damn dog, Like I don't want to dribble this motherfucking time until I get to the court. Right. So I was just overthinking one day and I just got a plastic bag, put the ball in the bag, tied it up, and I just started dribbling. And I was like, oh, this is dope. So I was like dribbling the plastic bag and the ball wasn't really bouncing. It was like falling dead on like the air pockets. But you know, like I like, for some reason, I liked it because it was a challenge and the creativity alone, I think, is what kind of molding and crafted. You know my handle now my handle go back to the fundamental skills. My first coach, Bobby Watson, laying down the foundation. And he used to tell me when I was a kid, if you dribble the ball hard enough, you should be able to have control because you should hear you could hear it. And I remember playing at the inglewood Y m c A. And Paul Pierce is how I met. Paul Pierce came up to me. It was like, yo, man, that was a good game. Man. What's your name is? Like, damn Dune, why do you drove the ball so fucking hard? Everybody in the gym can hear it? And I was like, damn dude, like you know, like I did it right, you know what I mean. But I used to be like boom boom, Like I used to just pound the ball to commanding the ball. And you know, back in the day, you go to high school, you see the jackmons. You see you know all the young you know, great point guards uh in l a kind of coming up uh. And then the older guys that cast wears the dank subtles. You know, everybody, everybody bounced the ball hard, you know, because that helped them get into their shot. In l A was all shooters, you know, a lot of the guards was just cold scores. And so for me that was kind of like with crafted, like my handle, fundamentals, creativity, and then the plastic bag right over top of the ball, the little uh machine gun ball ball uh, you know, a tennis ball, um, and then the wop kickball and like that was like that those were all of my tools, right and in my and my dribbling, you know, with with my whole dribbling uh routine. And I think for me, it was really about that moment that I wanted to take something that I can own and like I just could keep living in that space, right, So if I like were to state my claim, but being a point guard, it's just like me, you know, my whole job was to paint, right, And because I was always the smallest guy on the team, I always had to have the biggest voice. I always had to be the smartest, always had to see um, you know, four or five minutes ahead of the game, because I was the tiniest dude on the court, you know what I mean. And so as I got bigger and you know, taller and high school. And you know, once I got to a place where people are like yo, that, like you ain't got nothing in your shoes, I was like nada. Really five tens it was over because I have the athletics athleticism right, and I already had to point guard skills. But then my body was filling out. And then I think what what that happened was I got excited about being a big dude, right because I was so little for so long that all I ever wanted to be was like a big dude, you know what I mean, because like that was the only thing stopping me from going in there and going into the hole. And I think when I played in the league, you know, that was that that's kind of like what I played with, like that big guard mentality, right, and people always felt like, oh, man, like this, you know, this dude is bigger than everybody. But I'm you know, I'm only six too, right, But it was just the idea of man, I gotta go develop me a post game, like a game of La Juan, like small massburg Um. I gotta get the Nick van Exel Bob, you know what I mean, I got get the magic passes. So every time I saw something. Every time I saw a point guard, I was, ah, let me get that, let me absorb some of that. Right, I'm taking notes. You know. You know, you grow up privilege with Magic Johnson. You know, you grow up privilege after Magic Johnson comes Nick van Exel. Right, So when you think about showtime and then you think about the bob, right, Nick van Exel was the one who had all the bob and had all the wiggle. And I always say this to to this day, l A appreciate Nick van Exel, But l A, really, if you wasn't in that time and then see Nick van Exel, get down, l A didn't really appreciate Nick van Exel because he he was an amazing He was just an amazing talent, entertaining point guard leader, right, and he was young and like you know, he was young, and you know it was just like he was active, right and I and I took that with me too, you know. And then I met Kenny Anderson and Penny Hardaway and always patted my game after Tim Hardaway, Uh, you know, all the little guys Isaiah, and I think for me, it was just like what can I still to pay homage, you know, to the dudes, we came before me, right, and then when I got in the league, it was just now I'm here, I'm scared of ship right because there they are. But I can't let them know that I was scared of him, So I got in fear. I gotta just go at him NonStop, NonStop, NonStop, NonStop. And I think that's where I earned my stripes. I'm not afraid to guard you, you know what I mean, you can't guard me, uh, but I'm up for the challenge, right, And you know, I think that's where you know, as a point guard, you you you earn your respect right from your peers because they know when you show up, and they show up like you got a battle. And then I just I think I got my style and my flavor from just my creativity, my ability to just I guess like absorb, absorbed, create, innovate, you know what I mean, iterate, remix, right, And you know I used to you know, every summer is just like, yeah, I gotta I gotta gota. I gotta have five moves and two counters, right, and I go work out with everybody around the country. I go playing you know, four four games in a day in the summerly it was just, you know, no stop to like what I needed to do, what I wanted to do, to really like hone in And I think that's you know, for me, what defines me as a point God is, you know, my God given ability is the ability to see things, to be an incredible pastor, an incredibly underrated pastor, I would say, um. And then also to be able to create a style that you know, I feel, uhh is all my own and you know, uh that is original. Yo, yo yo, we gotta tap in real quick. Let's hear a quick word from our sponsors. My Road to pro I was playing at u c l A in the men's gym and I believe, uh it was the day that Magic Johnson came up to me. And it was like maybe the third or fourth time they had let me play. I've been up there for a year and they didn't. But Magic Johnson came up to me and he was like, you know, I've been hearing a lot about you. I was like, for real, He was like, man, I've been hearing a lot about you. You know, uh, you know we up here U c l A the pros. This is a school coach wanted me to you know, just just say what's up to you? But you know you're from here and and and look, I'm expecting a lot out of you. You know what I mean. I'm expecting you. I'm expecting big things. And from that moment, I think it was just like I'm sitting there every day and nobody noticed me. And when magic came, and when Magic said that, it's like, man, that's that's magic, Johnson. Dog, you understand the understand kid? You feel me? Dog? Do you understand kid? Who just spoke to you and told you you got a chance? Oh buddy, I ain't sleep. I ain't sleep. I thought about Live the game, Bride, the game slept the game went up to U C. L A every day, whether I played or not, and you know it was. And then after that was Nick van Exel and between games he was like, yo, you wanna play one on one? So we was just playing like some one on one like face and uh. And he was going waiting to go to the next court. So I was up on him three too. So I always say I beat Nick van Exel, but you know, he wasn't really playing around. He was just playing around. But I remember when I hit the shot and he had to go to the winning court. He looked back like, damn, who was that kid? You know what I mean? And at that point, I was just like, man, I got a shot. I got a hell of a shot. Like I'm up here with the pros, like I'm not doing nothing. But I'm not not doing nothing right, I'm out here. I'm holding my own you know, I'm learning how to play basketball at a high level. Um and and you know, they was running sets, so it wasn't like, you know, I could get loose for a breakaway or anything like that. I was just happy to be on the court. But I knew at that moment that when I went back and playing against the hikes, uh high school dudes, I was just dunking on them and having my wife. I knew I was going to the league when I was in high school, you know, my junior year in high school. Once I kind of hit that gross spur and started dunking, it was like, oh, yeah, I'm going like there's nothing stopping me. Uh. You know, I had an opportunity to go to the league out of high school. You know, I thought about it. I thought it could could be a good opportunity. But I always wanted, you know, to go to college um and then U c l A just because of what it is, who it is, and what it means to me in this city and what I felt it would mean to me in this city. It's why I went to U c l A. And Um, you know, going into U c l A, I was like, oh, yeah, you know, everybody kind of knew I wouldn't be there too long. Uh, I don't even think people. I thought that I would stay after my freshman year, but unfortunately I hurt my knee, so I had to come back my sophomore year. And I remember my sophomore year like a lot of people that wrote me off and said that, uh you know when I injury back then like a a c L was kind of like career threatening because it wasn't like a lot of longevity, right, and an a c L tear for you know, anybody, especially guards. Tim Hardaway had just torn his Danny Manny and O'Bannon and so it was like, man, you lose a lot. And for me, I never forget shout out to coach Specier. He was like, man, you're not gonna be shipped, you know, you're just gonna be a big guss waste of talent, you know. Uh, And you're gonna piss it off if you don't work. And he was like, at least you can do his work and give yourself a shot and don't give up. You know you ain't this far. And that's when I got to work it. I got back to working. I got back to I couldn't even swim, dog, and I was fucking swimming. I was like, couch, I need some fucking floaties. Dog, I can't. I can't do this ship, dog, I need some fucking floaties I need. I had the board. Every time I'll be swimming. Who at the U c l A Olympic pool, you know, they got the lines and ship, and so coach be like, all right, chad water, So we'd be trading water. But I'll be holding on with my hand so I wouldn't drown. And I'll be holding onto the little side this ship where you hold onto the rails like the more your fucking hand, you know, Like, come on, coach man. You know I met James like, you ain't gonna drowned, dog. If you drown, I save you, like like uh, And then we have to do the lapse right at the end of the swim ship and then you know, somebody like a ray yo, he just flying, got damn down there. Uh Olympic pool and ship and like, I ain'ty I'm tired as hell. And I went about half away and comes I was like, man, just go halfway ship. But I think it was that, you know, it was that moment too when I got back on the court in my very first game. You said, like, when I got back on the court, you know, I knew, like, man, this is this is if I can, if I can get just back just to be a shell of myself mata here. That's what it was. I want to win a national championship. But I just didn't think, like, you know, with my injury and all that, I wanted to come back my my junior year and like really make a push. But you know, and then again like you're young, you're in college. You ain't really got you know, the great the best and greatest advisors around you, right Uh. And at the same time, I didn't want to go, you know, go back to school and get hurt and like funking around and be depressed and broke and you know, fighting you know what I mean, fighting to like prove myself. So you know with that game, me leaving it and going to the league. But you know, in high school I pretty much knew like that, I'm on my wife, I'm there, yo. You know what time it is. You know, this show wouldn't be where it is if it wasn't for our sponsors. Let him have it. As far as hoop mentors, I say, Lester Connor, Derek Martin, Geryld Mackins, Uh, David Wesley, Penny ard Away Um magic people like that, those are my basketball like point guard mentors. Dane Subtle, Casper Ware, Uh, who else was there? Cameron Dollar? Um, A lot of dudes that you know just kind of like just took me under their wing, right, Brevin Knight, Uh, you know, just connected with me and just like really believed in me and saw something in me. So you know, I always say, like as far as the basketball mentors from point guards, UH was concerned, you know, But then you look at all the other people Tracy Murray, Chris Mills, Um, you know, people like that who played the influence to role in my life. Right. Um, you know, just just super blessed to be able to have the right mentors, the right guys, you know. And then when I played in the league one year, I gotta I got. I got to work with Nate Archibald, I got to work with Cindy my creef, you know what I mean. Like I got to work with guys who you know I heard about it and seeing highlights and you know, had the basketball cards, you know, and it was just like anything they tell me I'm about to do because they used to get down, you know what I mean, they used to really really get down. So you know, just overall thankful for my mentors and the mentors session, and you know, just shout out to all the basketball mentors that you know got me here. If it wasn't point guard, what other positions you have, Uhla, if it wasn't point guard, what other position would I have loved to play, you know what. To be quite honest, I love to be, uh a power forward like I wish I was sixteen with muscles and all that. You know. I like the way I would jump, Oh man, I would be curiozy. I love to be a powerfuward. All I want to do is post up anyway and play bully bass on with all I'm with all the ships, I would say the point guard that I would have sweats H always say Tony Parker, Steve Nash, Chris Paul. Those are my three. One Chris Paul because basically every time I got traded, they always went and signed the guys and I kind of felt like I needed around me and they put around Chris Paul. So that was one. UM to Steve Nash, He's just always had a web, and I think D'Antoni offense was, you know, really geared and suited towards a player like me and like my style of play. And then, um, the third one was Tony Parker because I just love I would just have loved to play with a big dude like Tim Duncan, right, and then play in a system where you have the freedom to be aggressive, you know what I mean, but you also have a consistency to that freedom, right. And I was just always an admiration of San Antonio and just you know, the crew and the way Tony Parker played in the freedom that he had to play, uh in that space. If I were to, if I were to pick any other position to play, I mean, this ship is gonna probably change every episode but I feel like if I was a four, I would be like Sean Kemp. If I was the three, I would be like Lebron James. If I was a fot, I'd be like a Chemlajua. If I didn't make the league, I remember, I was going to go to school to be a sports agent and a lawyer, so I'd probably be lawyering or debating in court or something like that, or managing or something like that. Uh, but definitely something that entertainment business. If I Yeah, if I were to pick three artists that would describe the way I played, I would say Picasso, you know, uh when it came to painting, passage, dribbling, just like trying to make beautiful art are more so, I would say, more so like a Boskiya because it was you know, people people used to always like would not try to give me credit for being a fucking point guard right and be like, oh, he's a big guard, like fucking him six too. They'd be like, oh, you're just dunks. I'm like, no, I don't like ever's just Jack's three. He's just like man, I have to you know what I mean? Uh, I would say yeah, if I uh, the three artists to pick with for me would probably be, let's say, um boskiyat Jade Kiss because I'm grimy, but I can do a songo Marah carry you feel what I'm saying, so you can you can get finesse, but I'm a finesse. You and and and a thug like you know what I mean, You're gonna get thug. You're gonna get It's gonna be a thug what they're doing it So like I always compare my game to Jada Kiss in the sense that it was just like raspy thuggish, but at the same time like super Fly, you know what I mean, where like the females and Enjoy you know what I mean? Um, and then the third artists, Um, I'm trying to diversify my art I would say. The third artist would be uh m hmm e forty mixed with a little forty because it's original. I'm independent, I got my own swag my mom Bob, I created my own moves, mom lingos, you know what I mean. And you know Timeless and my gang gonna stay Thomas. Uh. Some of my favorite players of Guard was should anybody who you know? If it wasn't a pick. You know, Uh, I hated fighting over pick. So any guards are running ran a lot of picking rolls, Like I just hated that Steve nas did that, Chris Paul a lot of them dudes. But you know, honestly, I like Garden, Kobe, I like Garden Wade, I like Garden Lebron, I like Garden, you know, like the best dudes out there. And usually it was like the twos of the Threes and the Vince Carter Rayalen Like I was always up for that challenge. Uh you know, Uh, Sam Cassell was a hell of a guard. He was a tough card. But I like Garden. The Chauncey used the AI. Oh you know, for me, it didn't matter right. Uh. It was more so step up to the challenge because let's say, if I can't guard you, then I'm coming at you and you can't guard me. It was just always thought that ultimately, if you know, if I can take on this challenge and making a mount of mono thing, that I could ultimately wear them down. You know. Ye make sure you tune in next week. Point God presented by Slick I Heart Radio Peace. Point Guard is a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Point God is a production of I Heart Radio. I would say, first and foremost, welcome to the Point Guy Show. I am your host, Baron Davis, the man of many styles and the man of many voices, and this show man, We're just gonna take a deep dive into the art, the strategy, the science, the mathematics, um, the freethinking, the creativity around what's it means to be a point guard a k A appoint god, Someone with God given talent, who has acception, know and extraordinary skills. One who has built a brand and an original craft inside of a position right that has a certain type of structure and cadence. And so I look at the point God as a painter. I look at the point God as an orchestra conductor. I look at the point God right as a facilitator right um. And the beauty of this show is I get to finally have real conversations with some of my favorite point gods in basketball, not just n b A, in basketball history. In basketball history, we get to one on our stories and legends and rivalries, and here from some of the most incredible playmakers to ever lay them up in this game we call basketball. I'm your host Baron Davis, and I would consider myself a point god as well. So let me state my case for why I think that I would be considered a point god. Ha ha ha ha ha um. You know, for me, basketball was art, Basketball was an escape. Basketball was therapy, and basketball was like a whole another world that I can live in. And honestly, it was a dream, right, being inside a never ending dream, and your only real break from reality was everything outside of basketball, right, And for me, it was just if I could stay in this dream, if I can stay in this bubble, if I can stay in this way of thinking, and just growing up, it was just basketball. What is what I always wanted to do. I remember just just thinking of ship, you know, uh, going to the store, everybody buying candy with I put my cent in and get one of those little shiny ass bouncing balls. And you know how much those balls bounce, right, You know how crazy those little shiny things bounce. And I would try and dribble them. And I literally dribble around the grocery store and the ship would go all the way to the aisle. I had to slide and catch it. And then I would start to figure out how to dribble it back home from the grocery store. Then one day I got bored and my grandmother used to make me fold up grocery bags plastic bags, and I remember being in the kitchen and I was like, well, Ship, I'm just gonna tie it back around my basketball because at the time, you know, uh, some of my older homeboys when we play kickball and ship, you know, the balls get whopped, right, so the balls be whopped and then like you know, they had disposed the balls. But I remember my cousin telling me like, hey, NIGGI, if you want some handles and nig you can you will be able to dribble a white ball. So I used to always go and find the wap balls, like the wop kickballs. Mostly it was like kickballs and ship because like basketballs was just you know, real kind of hard to come by, you know what I mean, Like it's only like two or three it was that had a basketball, and like you gotta protect that ship like you gotta protect a bike. And so when I got my rock, I remember, uh, I got I got a brand new basketball. This is how it happened. I got a brand new basketball, and I was like, man, I'm about to go to the school. But I had this routine where I had to dribble between my legs, you know, the whole way to the school, which was like, you know, maybe a hundred and fifty dribbles, a hundred and fifty dribbles. But like boom boom boom boom boom boom. I'm talking about you gotta walk the dog all the way to the court, and if you don't, you gotta start and go all the way back home. But it wasn't like it was a long walk. But um, I remember getting this new basketball and I was like, damn dog, Like I don't want to dribble this motherfucking time until I get to the court. Right. So I was just overthinking one day and I just got a plastic bag, put the ball in the bag, tied it up, and I just started dribbling. And I was like, oh, this is dope. So I was like dribbling the plastic bag and the ball wasn't really bouncing. It was like falling dead on like the air pockets. But you know, like I like, for some reason, I liked it because it was a challenge and the creativity alone, I think, is what kind of molding and crafted. You know my handle now my handle go back to the fundamental skills. My first coach, Bobby Watson, laying down the foundation. And he used to tell me when I was a kid, if you dribble the ball hard enough, you should be able to have control because you should hear you could hear it. And I remember playing at the inglewood Y m c A. And Paul Pierce is how I met. Paul Pierce came up to me. It was like, yo, man, that was a good game. Man. What's your name is? Like, damn Dune, why do you drove the ball so fucking hard? Everybody in the gym can hear it? And I was like, damn dude, like you know, like I did it right, you know what I mean. But I used to be like boom boom, Like I used to just pound the ball to commanding the ball. And you know, back in the day, you go to high school, you see the jackmons. You see you know all the young you know, great point guards uh in l a kind of coming up uh. And then the older guys that cast wears the dank subtles. You know, everybody, everybody bounced the ball hard, you know, because that helped them get into their shot. In l A was all shooters, you know, a lot of the guards was just cold scores. And so for me that was kind of like with crafted, like my handle, fundamentals, creativity, and then the plastic bag right over top of the ball, the little uh machine gun ball ball uh, you know, a tennis ball, um, and then the wop kickball and like that was like that those were all of my tools, right and in my and my dribbling, you know, with with my whole dribbling uh routine. And I think for me, it was really about that moment that I wanted to take something that I can own and like I just could keep living in that space, right, So if I like were to state my claim, but being a point guard, it's just like me, you know, my whole job was to paint, right, And because I was always the smallest guy on the team, I always had to have the biggest voice. I always had to be the smartest, always had to see um, you know, four or five minutes ahead of the game, because I was the tiniest dude on the court, you know what I mean. And so as I got bigger and you know, taller and high school. And you know, once I got to a place where people are like yo, that, like you ain't got nothing in your shoes, I was like nada. Really five tens it was over because I have the athletics athleticism right, and I already had to point guard skills. But then my body was filling out. And then I think what what that happened was I got excited about being a big dude, right because I was so little for so long that all I ever wanted to be was like a big dude, you know what I mean, because like that was the only thing stopping me from going in there and going into the hole. And I think when I played in the league, you know, that was that that's kind of like what I played with, like that big guard mentality, right, and people always felt like, oh, man, like this, you know, this dude is bigger than everybody. But I'm you know, I'm only six too, right, But it was just the idea of man, I gotta go develop me a post game, like a game of La Juan, like small massburg Um. I gotta get the Nick van Exel Bob, you know what I mean, I got get the magic passes. So every time I saw something. Every time I saw a point guard, I was, ah, let me get that, let me absorb some of that. Right, I'm taking notes. You know. You know, you grow up privilege with Magic Johnson. You know, you grow up privilege after Magic Johnson comes Nick van Exel. Right, So when you think about showtime and then you think about the bob, right, Nick van Exel was the one who had all the bob and had all the wiggle. And I always say this to to this day, l A appreciate Nick van Exel, But l A, really, if you wasn't in that time and then see Nick van Exel, get down, l A didn't really appreciate Nick van Exel because he he was an amazing He was just an amazing talent, entertaining point guard leader, right, and he was young and like you know, he was young, and you know it was just like he was active, right and I and I took that with me too, you know. And then I met Kenny Anderson and Penny Hardaway and always patted my game after Tim Hardaway, Uh, you know, all the little guys Isaiah, and I think for me, it was just like what can I still to pay homage, you know, to the dudes, we came before me, right, and then when I got in the league, it was just now I'm here, I'm scared of ship right because there they are. But I can't let them know that I was scared of him, So I got in fear. I gotta just go at him NonStop, NonStop, NonStop, NonStop. And I think that's where I earned my stripes. I'm not afraid to guard you, you know what I mean, you can't guard me, uh, but I'm up for the challenge, right, And you know, I think that's where you know, as a point guard, you you you earn your respect right from your peers because they know when you show up, and they show up like you got a battle. And then I just I think I got my style and my flavor from just my creativity, my ability to just I guess like absorb, absorbed, create, innovate, you know what I mean, iterate, remix, right, And you know I used to you know, every summer is just like, yeah, I gotta I gotta gota. I gotta have five moves and two counters, right, and I go work out with everybody around the country. I go playing you know, four four games in a day in the summerly it was just, you know, no stop to like what I needed to do, what I wanted to do, to really like hone in And I think that's you know, for me, what defines me as a point God is, you know, my God given ability is the ability to see things, to be an incredible pastor, an incredibly underrated pastor, I would say, um. And then also to be able to create a style that you know, I feel, uhh is all my own and you know, uh that is original. Yo, yo yo, we gotta tap in real quick. Let's hear a quick word from our sponsors. My Road to pro I was playing at u c l A in the men's gym and I believe, uh it was the day that Magic Johnson came up to me. And it was like maybe the third or fourth time they had let me play. I've been up there for a year and they didn't. But Magic Johnson came up to me and he was like, you know, I've been hearing a lot about you. I was like, for real, He was like, man, I've been hearing a lot about you. You know, uh, you know we up here U c l A the pros. This is a school coach wanted me to you know, just just say what's up to you? But you know you're from here and and and look, I'm expecting a lot out of you. You know what I mean. I'm expecting you. I'm expecting big things. And from that moment, I think it was just like I'm sitting there every day and nobody noticed me. And when magic came, and when Magic said that, it's like, man, that's that's magic, Johnson. Dog, you understand the understand kid? You feel me? Dog? Do you understand kid? Who just spoke to you and told you you got a chance? Oh buddy, I ain't sleep. I ain't sleep. I thought about Live the game, Bride, the game slept the game went up to U C. L A every day, whether I played or not, and you know it was. And then after that was Nick van Exel and between games he was like, yo, you wanna play one on one? So we was just playing like some one on one like face and uh. And he was going waiting to go to the next court. So I was up on him three too. So I always say I beat Nick van Exel, but you know, he wasn't really playing around. He was just playing around. But I remember when I hit the shot and he had to go to the winning court. He looked back like, damn, who was that kid? You know what I mean? And at that point, I was just like, man, I got a shot. I got a hell of a shot. Like I'm up here with the pros, like I'm not doing nothing. But I'm not not doing nothing right, I'm out here. I'm holding my own you know, I'm learning how to play basketball at a high level. Um and and you know, they was running sets, so it wasn't like, you know, I could get loose for a breakaway or anything like that. I was just happy to be on the court. But I knew at that moment that when I went back and playing against the hikes, uh high school dudes, I was just dunking on them and having my wife. I knew I was going to the league when I was in high school, you know, my junior year in high school. Once I kind of hit that gross spur and started dunking, it was like, oh, yeah, I'm going like there's nothing stopping me. Uh. You know, I had an opportunity to go to the league out of high school. You know, I thought about it. I thought it could could be a good opportunity. But I always wanted, you know, to go to college um and then U c l A just because of what it is, who it is, and what it means to me in this city and what I felt it would mean to me in this city. It's why I went to U c l A. And Um, you know, going into U c l A, I was like, oh, yeah, you know, everybody kind of knew I wouldn't be there too long. Uh, I don't even think people. I thought that I would stay after my freshman year, but unfortunately I hurt my knee, so I had to come back my sophomore year. And I remember my sophomore year like a lot of people that wrote me off and said that, uh you know when I injury back then like a a c L was kind of like career threatening because it wasn't like a lot of longevity, right, and an a c L tear for you know, anybody, especially guards. Tim Hardaway had just torn his Danny Manny and O'Bannon and so it was like, man, you lose a lot. And for me, I never forget shout out to coach Specier. He was like, man, you're not gonna be shipped, you know, you're just gonna be a big guss waste of talent, you know. Uh, And you're gonna piss it off if you don't work. And he was like, at least you can do his work and give yourself a shot and don't give up. You know you ain't this far. And that's when I got to work it. I got back to working. I got back to I couldn't even swim, dog, and I was fucking swimming. I was like, couch, I need some fucking floaties. Dog, I can't. I can't do this ship, dog, I need some fucking floaties I need. I had the board. Every time I'll be swimming. Who at the U c l A Olympic pool, you know, they got the lines and ship, and so coach be like, all right, chad water, So we'd be trading water. But I'll be holding on with my hand so I wouldn't drown. And I'll be holding onto the little side this ship where you hold onto the rails like the more your fucking hand, you know, Like, come on, coach man. You know I met James like, you ain't gonna drowned, dog. If you drown, I save you, like like uh, And then we have to do the lapse right at the end of the swim ship and then you know, somebody like a ray yo, he just flying, got damn down there. Uh Olympic pool and ship and like, I ain'ty I'm tired as hell. And I went about half away and comes I was like, man, just go halfway ship. But I think it was that, you know, it was that moment too when I got back on the court in my very first game. You said, like, when I got back on the court, you know, I knew, like, man, this is this is if I can, if I can get just back just to be a shell of myself mata here. That's what it was. I want to win a national championship. But I just didn't think, like, you know, with my injury and all that, I wanted to come back my my junior year and like really make a push. But you know, and then again like you're young, you're in college. You ain't really got you know, the great the best and greatest advisors around you, right Uh. And at the same time, I didn't want to go, you know, go back to school and get hurt and like funking around and be depressed and broke and you know, fighting you know what I mean, fighting to like prove myself. So you know with that game, me leaving it and going to the league. But you know, in high school I pretty much knew like that, I'm on my wife, I'm there, yo. You know what time it is. You know, this show wouldn't be where it is if it wasn't for our sponsors. Let him have it. As far as hoop mentors, I say, Lester Connor, Derek Martin, Geryld Mackins, Uh, David Wesley, Penny ard Away Um magic people like that, those are my basketball like point guard mentors. Dane Subtle, Casper Ware, Uh, who else was there? Cameron Dollar? Um, A lot of dudes that you know just kind of like just took me under their wing, right, Brevin Knight, Uh, you know, just connected with me and just like really believed in me and saw something in me. So you know, I always say, like as far as the basketball mentors from point guards, UH was concerned, you know, But then you look at all the other people Tracy Murray, Chris Mills, Um, you know, people like that who played the influence to role in my life. Right. Um, you know, just just super blessed to be able to have the right mentors, the right guys, you know. And then when I played in the league one year, I gotta I got. I got to work with Nate Archibald, I got to work with Cindy my creef, you know what I mean. Like I got to work with guys who you know I heard about it and seeing highlights and you know, had the basketball cards, you know, and it was just like anything they tell me I'm about to do because they used to get down, you know what I mean, they used to really really get down. So you know, just overall thankful for my mentors and the mentors session, and you know, just shout out to all the basketball mentors that you know got me here. If it wasn't point guard, what other positions you have, Uhla, if it wasn't point guard, what other position would I have loved to play, you know what. To be quite honest, I love to be, uh a power forward like I wish I was sixteen with muscles and all that. You know. I like the way I would jump, Oh man, I would be curiozy. I love to be a powerfuward. All I want to do is post up anyway and play bully bass on with all I'm with all the ships, I would say the point guard that I would have sweats H always say Tony Parker, Steve Nash, Chris Paul. Those are my three. One Chris Paul because basically every time I got traded, they always went and signed the guys and I kind of felt like I needed around me and they put around Chris Paul. So that was one. UM to Steve Nash, He's just always had a web, and I think D'Antoni offense was, you know, really geared and suited towards a player like me and like my style of play. And then, um, the third one was Tony Parker because I just love I would just have loved to play with a big dude like Tim Duncan, right, and then play in a system where you have the freedom to be aggressive, you know what I mean, but you also have a consistency to that freedom, right. And I was just always an admiration of San Antonio and just you know, the crew and the way Tony Parker played in the freedom that he had to play, uh in that space. If I were to, if I were to pick any other position to play, I mean, this ship is gonna probably change every episode but I feel like if I was a four, I would be like Sean Kemp. If I was the three, I would be like Lebron James. If I was a fot, I'd be like a Chemlajua. If I didn't make the league, I remember, I was going to go to school to be a sports agent and a lawyer, so I'd probably be lawyering or debating in court or something like that, or managing or something like that. Uh, but definitely something that entertainment business. If I Yeah, if I were to pick three artists that would describe the way I played, I would say Picasso, you know, uh when it came to painting, passage, dribbling, just like trying to make beautiful art are more so, I would say, more so like a Boskiya because it was you know, people people used to always like would not try to give me credit for being a fucking point guard right and be like, oh, he's a big guard, like fucking him six too. They'd be like, oh, you're just dunks. I'm like, no, I don't like ever's just Jack's three. He's just like man, I have to you know what I mean? Uh, I would say yeah, if I uh, the three artists to pick with for me would probably be, let's say, um boskiyat Jade Kiss because I'm grimy, but I can do a songo Marah carry you feel what I'm saying, so you can you can get finesse, but I'm a finesse. You and and and a thug like you know what I mean, You're gonna get thug. You're gonna get It's gonna be a thug what they're doing it So like I always compare my game to Jada Kiss in the sense that it was just like raspy thuggish, but at the same time like super Fly, you know what I mean, where like the females and Enjoy you know what I mean? Um, and then the third artists, Um, I'm trying to diversify my art I would say. The third artist would be uh m hmm e forty mixed with a little forty because it's original. I'm independent, I got my own swag my mom Bob, I created my own moves, mom lingos, you know what I mean. And you know Timeless and my gang gonna stay Thomas. Uh. Some of my favorite players of Guard was should anybody who you know? If it wasn't a pick. You know, Uh, I hated fighting over pick. So any guards are running ran a lot of picking rolls, Like I just hated that Steve nas did that, Chris Paul a lot of them dudes. But you know, honestly, I like Garden, Kobe, I like Garden Wade, I like Garden Lebron, I like Garden, you know, like the best dudes out there. And usually it was like the twos of the Threes and the Vince Carter Rayalen Like I was always up for that challenge. Uh you know, Uh, Sam Cassell was a hell of a guard. He was a tough card. But I like Garden. The Chauncey used the AI. Oh you know, for me, it didn't matter right. Uh. It was more so step up to the challenge because let's say, if I can't guard you, then I'm coming at you and you can't guard me. It was just always thought that ultimately, if you know, if I can take on this challenge and making a mount of mono thing, that I could ultimately wear them down. You know. Ye make sure you tune in next week. Point God presented by Slick I Heart Radio Peace. Point Guard is a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.