Bones Hyland On Playing for the Clippers, His Time With the Nuggets, and Finding Purpose In Tragedy
00:00:00.000 | (slow hip hop music)
00:00:03.080 | - Man, welcome to another episode of Curious Mike.
00:00:11.760 | I'm here with my guy, Bones.
00:00:13.960 | - My guy, MP STEVE.
00:00:14.800 | - Appreciate you on the podcast, my boy.
00:00:16.920 | - Yo.
00:00:18.400 | - Man, so I remember when you got drafted,
00:00:20.520 | you came in the locker room, said what's up to everybody,
00:00:24.880 | and we clicked, I think.
00:00:26.760 | I really appreciated your authenticity,
00:00:29.000 | and I noticed that just from the jump when we first met.
00:00:32.080 | - Yeah.
00:00:33.600 | - And then you just proved it over and over,
00:00:34.880 | like no matter what's going on,
00:00:36.600 | you're always gonna be Bones.
00:00:38.320 | When you're in the game, it don't matter who's in the game,
00:00:40.380 | you're gonna be Bones.
00:00:41.480 | And I just feel like we clicked,
00:00:43.880 | so I appreciate you hopping on the podcast, my brother.
00:00:46.360 | - Yeah, for sure.
00:00:47.680 | You know, definitely, being drafted by the Nuggets,
00:00:49.720 | it was definitely huge for me, you know.
00:00:51.800 | It was a blessing, you know,
00:00:54.200 | just overcoming what I overcame, you know, in my life.
00:00:57.480 | And then being drafted, 26th pick by the Nuggets,
00:00:59.720 | it was big for me, man, it was everything.
00:01:01.960 | I didn't really know what to expect, you know,
00:01:03.840 | coming to Denver.
00:01:05.040 | I thought it was really cold, but I got on the plane,
00:01:08.400 | and it seemed like the sun was out.
00:01:10.280 | I'm like, damn, this is different.
00:01:11.760 | It seemed like it's hot out.
00:01:13.800 | - Yeah.
00:01:14.640 | - But, you know, the first time I came to the arena,
00:01:16.880 | I think the first person I saw was you
00:01:18.200 | when I walked into the pool room,
00:01:21.000 | and I'm like, what's up, NP?
00:01:22.280 | But we definitely just clicked from there.
00:01:24.080 | You know, Genuine Vibes and Genuine Souls always,
00:01:26.320 | you know, connect with Genuine Souls,
00:01:27.600 | and ever since then, it's just been like a lock, for sure.
00:01:29.440 | - No, for sure.
00:01:30.280 | I remember, bro, like, I realized you were a killer,
00:01:32.800 | and like, it was your rookie season, right?
00:01:35.040 | And I think we were in training camp in San Diego,
00:01:36.920 | and I'll never forget this.
00:01:38.680 | I think I came down and like, hit like a heasy pull-up,
00:01:41.280 | but I think you were on the side,
00:01:42.440 | like, waiting for me to pass it,
00:01:44.120 | and you was like, I hit the shot,
00:01:45.280 | but you were like, Mike, like, I can do that, too.
00:01:47.320 | You can pass the pass, like, okay, like, he's cold.
00:01:50.240 | Like, and this is your rookie season, like,
00:01:53.320 | and you just were so confident, bro.
00:01:55.000 | So, it was like, it was a joy to watch you play,
00:02:00.000 | and like, be your teammate, you know?
00:02:01.720 | And then, so, I think I kind of was hurt
00:02:04.200 | during the time when you,
00:02:06.880 | when they were talking about the trade rumors,
00:02:08.520 | and when you, that's cool, that's his phone?
00:02:12.680 | Yeah, I think I was hurt during the time
00:02:15.120 | the trade rumors came around,
00:02:16.280 | so I really didn't know what happened,
00:02:18.840 | but man, now you're, you end up going to LA,
00:02:22.200 | and I've been tuned in, obviously,
00:02:23.400 | but how has everything been for you over there?
00:02:24.960 | Are you enjoying it?
00:02:25.800 | - Yeah, yeah, it's been lovely, man.
00:02:26.800 | It's been dope, obviously, coming from Denver,
00:02:29.360 | a situation where I thrived in, you know?
00:02:32.520 | I was having fun playing over there, stuff like that,
00:02:34.560 | but I just felt like it just needed a change for me,
00:02:37.520 | needed different scenery, and obviously,
00:02:40.320 | over here in LA, I think it's a beautiful thing for me.
00:02:44.360 | I'm learning under four future Hall of Famers,
00:02:47.040 | just staying ready, staying patient.
00:02:49.840 | Obviously, last year, I came around February time.
00:02:54.200 | You know, it was kind of hard just to learn, you know,
00:02:57.000 | it wasn't hard learning the plays or learning, you know,
00:03:01.320 | I mean, obviously, if you're a Hooper,
00:03:02.760 | you know you're gonna fit in with whatever,
00:03:05.240 | but just having to move from one state to another,
00:03:08.480 | one team to another, you know,
00:03:09.840 | having to learn the new staff, new players,
00:03:14.320 | everybody names, the play calls, it's tough, you know?
00:03:17.400 | And obviously, on top of that,
00:03:18.760 | you're still trying to perform,
00:03:20.040 | and you know, still trying to, you know,
00:03:21.880 | earn that roster spot as well, too,
00:03:23.880 | coming in from another team,
00:03:24.840 | but I feel like I did that,
00:03:27.040 | and obviously, this year, you know,
00:03:28.760 | just playing well off the bat,
00:03:30.240 | and then, you know, a trade happened,
00:03:32.280 | and you know, you just get bumped down
00:03:34.160 | and out of the rotation,
00:03:35.400 | but I feel like it's, you know,
00:03:37.040 | even though it may not look like it's a good thing for me,
00:03:39.840 | I still look at it as a good thing,
00:03:41.080 | 'cause I'm still learning under four future Hall of Famers,
00:03:43.680 | and I know my time will come,
00:03:44.840 | so I'm really not, you know, too down on it.
00:03:47.360 | Obviously, I wanna play, but I ain't too down, though.
00:03:49.200 | - Yeah, no, you always smiling,
00:03:50.680 | you always have had a good attitude about everything,
00:03:52.960 | even, you know, when things,
00:03:55.120 | like in Denver, you know, you know how the NBA is.
00:03:58.240 | Even in Denver, when things weren't going good,
00:03:59.560 | you always maintained a smile,
00:04:01.360 | and so I've been checking up on you, even in L.A.,
00:04:03.000 | just because even times last year,
00:04:05.480 | you weren't playing as much as you were supposed to,
00:04:06.960 | or whatever, and now,
00:04:09.200 | but you have always just maintained, like,
00:04:10.600 | the attitude, the good attitude,
00:04:11.800 | and you're young, bro, you're gonna end up,
00:04:13.560 | you're gonna end up doing your thing,
00:04:14.720 | but that leads me to a question, like,
00:04:17.800 | you played so well, you know,
00:04:19.480 | obviously, in the off-season,
00:04:21.320 | you be killing every run, you know,
00:04:24.280 | and you just go, and, you know,
00:04:26.080 | you're like the highlight of the summer,
00:04:27.480 | everybody be looking at the Bones Highlands,
00:04:29.520 | Pro-Am videos, or whatever.
00:04:31.640 | How do you maintain, like,
00:04:33.240 | is the NBA, for people that don't know the NBA,
00:04:35.880 | is it as fun as the summer,
00:04:38.120 | like, is basketball as fun to you in the NBA,
00:04:41.320 | when you're playing, or not?
00:04:42.160 | Like, is it as fun as when you're doing your thing,
00:04:43.840 | in the summertime? - Yeah, I see what you're saying.
00:04:44.800 | That's a great question.
00:04:46.800 | I would say it's kinda different.
00:04:49.880 | You know, by the same time,
00:04:51.960 | I feel like if I had, you know,
00:04:53.880 | the keys, or if I had to, you know,
00:04:55.920 | just go out there and just be yourself,
00:04:57.400 | and, you know, with no leash on you,
00:04:59.680 | no minute thing going on,
00:05:02.560 | I feel like it'd be the same thing
00:05:03.800 | that's going on in the summertime,
00:05:05.120 | but the summertime, you just playing,
00:05:06.960 | you just playing, I feel like
00:05:08.240 | everybody's so in tune with me,
00:05:09.840 | you know, they love seeing me play,
00:05:11.520 | and just be free, and you know,
00:05:13.000 | they be like, man, if he just had, you know,
00:05:14.880 | the leash off of him, if he just go,
00:05:16.360 | he'd be-- - Everybody knows.
00:05:17.200 | - Yeah, everybody know, you know,
00:05:18.360 | but, you know, at the same time,
00:05:19.800 | I'm just waiting my turn, waiting patiently,
00:05:21.240 | but, man, the summertime, you know,
00:05:23.800 | who's be so fun, 'cause I could just really
00:05:25.280 | just go out there and just be me, you know?
00:05:28.120 | Even though I'd be me in the league, too,
00:05:29.560 | but it's more in spurt, like,
00:05:31.880 | it's like the whole time, the whole game,
00:05:33.720 | I'm just wilding. - Oh, yeah, you born
00:05:34.880 | in somebody's head.
00:05:36.120 | - I'm just wilding.
00:05:37.800 | - Did you always, like, okay, so,
00:05:40.400 | obviously, nowadays, a lot of people
00:05:42.640 | grow up with trainers, and they grow up with,
00:05:44.960 | you know, they go through drills.
00:05:46.440 | Your game is so unique, because the way you grew up,
00:05:50.200 | where you grew up, hooping, you know, on a park.
00:05:52.600 | How did that, because most, like,
00:05:56.000 | hoopers that grow up that way don't make it to the NBA.
00:05:58.000 | They don't know how to defend to structure and all that.
00:06:00.360 | How did you kind of grow up, and how did your game,
00:06:02.360 | like, how is it the way it is?
00:06:04.240 | Because the way you handle the ball is so unique,
00:06:06.160 | the way you, you know, the showtime,
00:06:08.600 | the flashiness. - Facts.
00:06:09.720 | - Like, is that just the way you grew up,
00:06:11.080 | or how did you grow up hooping?
00:06:12.720 | - Yeah, that's definitely the way I grew up.
00:06:15.200 | I grew up on a lot of park basketball,
00:06:17.080 | a lot of recreational basketball.
00:06:20.120 | Recreational basketball, however you say it.
00:06:22.600 | But, you know, I grew up on a lot of that,
00:06:24.560 | honestly, just playing, going to gyms,
00:06:26.360 | you know, playing one-on-one, two-on-two,
00:06:28.320 | three-on-threes, you know, literally all day.
00:06:30.280 | Like, sunup, sundown, you know.
00:06:32.800 | At first, like, it was kind of hard to get on the court,
00:06:35.760 | you know, 'cause they're like, you gotta wait your turn,
00:06:37.360 | you know, you're younger, you know.
00:06:39.240 | And I'm just on the sideline, just practicing my moves,
00:06:41.560 | you know, I'm just shooting the ball in the air,
00:06:43.680 | stuff like that, but just watching, just live basketball.
00:06:46.360 | You know, I've been taking so many notes and stuff,
00:06:48.360 | just young, and I knew, like,
00:06:50.280 | once I be able to get on the court,
00:06:51.360 | I knew I'd be ready.
00:06:52.200 | But, man, just how it just translated to the NBA,
00:06:55.360 | just honestly in the gym and just working.
00:06:57.440 | You know, try to, like, simplify some things, you know.
00:06:59.840 | You know, obviously, sometimes you can be a little flashy,
00:07:02.640 | you can show your flashes of, you know,
00:07:05.000 | being fancy here and there on a fast break.
00:07:06.800 | You can throw a dime, you can turn around,
00:07:08.640 | you know, just get the crowd into it.
00:07:09.640 | That's how I always been, you know.
00:07:10.680 | I never wanted to, like, change that
00:07:12.480 | or, you know, let somebody change that part of me
00:07:14.120 | because I'm a very, you know, entertaining player.
00:07:16.480 | A lot of people like seeing me play.
00:07:17.760 | They love watching me.
00:07:18.600 | So, it's like, I never just changed that
00:07:20.440 | because, oh, this doesn't fit the criteria of, you know,
00:07:24.080 | a coach like this or, you know,
00:07:25.800 | somebody don't like the way I play, dah, dah, dah.
00:07:27.600 | Nah, that's never been me because at the end of the day,
00:07:30.000 | it's like, I'm not gonna change who I am, you know.
00:07:31.960 | This is what got me here.
00:07:32.800 | I'm not just gonna change who I am now, you know,
00:07:34.640 | just because I made it to the league.
00:07:35.880 | No, I'm gonna forever be me.
00:07:36.920 | So, you know, that's definitely how I grew up, though.
00:07:39.040 | You know, a lot of park basketball.
00:07:40.600 | - Yeah, nah.
00:07:41.480 | Like I said, bro, that's one thing I admire.
00:07:43.040 | Like, can't nobody tell you, like, your confidence
00:07:45.880 | and just the swag you play with.
00:07:47.080 | Can't nobody tell you you're not the coldest.
00:07:49.040 | For people that don't know, like,
00:07:50.400 | me and Bones would have shooting contests
00:07:52.320 | after every shoot-around.
00:07:53.440 | - I'm crying.
00:07:55.040 | - Every shoot-around, we would do our little shoot-contest,
00:07:57.080 | me and him.
00:07:57.920 | Sometimes, other people would join,
00:07:59.160 | but they never would win.
00:08:00.520 | But I could say Bones is one of the only people, like,
00:08:03.640 | I've shot against.
00:08:04.960 | It's you, Steph, and, like, maybe one other person.
00:08:07.840 | - Yeah, probably Trey.
00:08:09.160 | - Trey, Trey.
00:08:10.120 | But, like, that can consistently beat me.
00:08:12.560 | Like, he would beat me most days.
00:08:14.240 | I would be so hot.
00:08:15.920 | But, like, as flashy as your game is,
00:08:18.080 | like, it's still very, very polished.
00:08:20.120 | - Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.
00:08:21.200 | - Who did you grow up, like, who did you grow up idolizing?
00:08:23.800 | Who'd you try to model your game after?
00:08:26.480 | - You know, that's such a tough question.
00:08:29.160 | 'Cause I really never try to, like,
00:08:30.240 | modelize my game after nobody.
00:08:31.920 | I love watching hoop, though, you know?
00:08:34.200 | But, like, I love taking, like, flat, like, game,
00:08:37.000 | like, or my moves from different players
00:08:38.760 | and stuff like that.
00:08:39.600 | But I never went, like, oh, yeah,
00:08:40.600 | I just wanna be just like him.
00:08:41.840 | Like, this is my idol, da-da-da, you know?
00:08:44.240 | That's never been me.
00:08:45.080 | But a guy who, like, I always watch was Hot Sauce.
00:08:48.760 | Hot Sauce is the only guy, you know, I just watch.
00:08:51.160 | And that's somebody, like, I come home from school,
00:08:53.880 | you know, I eat a bowl of cereal.
00:08:55.440 | You know, I turn him on, on the phone,
00:08:57.680 | I prop the phone up, and after I finish eating my cereal,
00:09:00.240 | I grab the basketball and go in the mirror,
00:09:01.920 | and I just practice all his moves and stuff.
00:09:04.080 | With his big shirt on, you know,
00:09:05.320 | the big shirts he used to wear.
00:09:06.160 | - He was cold, he was cold, though.
00:09:08.320 | - Fatsy was cold.
00:09:09.480 | - So that makes sense, then, why you hoop the way you hoop.
00:09:11.440 | - I used to always just watch him, bro,
00:09:12.920 | and I'd just go to the gym and try to practice his moves,
00:09:15.320 | and it was working.
00:09:16.480 | But, like, I didn't wanna be too much, like,
00:09:18.520 | you know, doing way too much.
00:09:19.680 | Yeah, you know, but I still, like, try to, like,
00:09:21.960 | try to amplify some of that in my game,
00:09:23.880 | and that gave me, like, my flair, like, my swag,
00:09:26.440 | you know, like, you know, it gave me that,
00:09:28.520 | nah, I can't nobody, like, fuck me on the court type shit.
00:09:30.760 | You know, that gave me that vibe, though.
00:09:33.080 | - Yeah, it's a video that went viral, a YouTube video.
00:09:35.240 | I'd just seen it, like, like, I didn't even know about it
00:09:38.600 | 'til I started playing with you,
00:09:39.560 | but it's a viral video of you playing one-on-one.
00:09:41.920 | They was some bums, but you was going head dudes,
00:09:43.840 | and I think you were younger, and they was getting hot.
00:09:45.600 | - Yeah.
00:09:46.440 | - Yeah, y'all can look it up, Bones Island one-on-one.
00:09:49.600 | - I definitely know it was one you talking about, for sure.
00:09:51.360 | I just was watching it the other day.
00:09:53.120 | - But, like, how old were you during that?
00:09:54.720 | Like, was that, like, a normal thing
00:09:56.200 | for you to just go to the park
00:09:57.320 | and be playing one-on-one with dudes,
00:09:58.640 | and the cameras be out and all that?
00:10:00.000 | - Yeah, so, like, it's a big back story to that.
00:10:02.800 | So, you know, for everybody who don't know,
00:10:05.160 | this was a video that went viral.
00:10:06.960 | I was about 17 years old.
00:10:08.760 | But it's a league called Tech Rock League.
00:10:10.520 | It's a league that I played in growing up.
00:10:12.000 | A lot of, you know, kids went from Wilmington to Delaware,
00:10:14.520 | even, you know, Philadelphia area, you know, Tri-State area.
00:10:17.360 | A lot of people come down and play in the league.
00:10:19.040 | And, you know, it was one game that's going on,
00:10:21.840 | and we were waiting 'til it was done.
00:10:23.160 | And it was, like, me, it was, like, six other people,
00:10:26.880 | and it was the two owners that, you know,
00:10:29.920 | made the Tech Rock League up, you know?
00:10:32.040 | And, you know, we just conversating about basketball,
00:10:34.920 | you know, then they got to the comparison game.
00:10:37.160 | And I'm, like, I'm staying out of it.
00:10:38.440 | I ain't saying nothing.
00:10:39.280 | I ain't saying nothing.
00:10:40.120 | I'm staying out of it, you know?
00:10:41.760 | But then I got brought up, and I'm, like, nah.
00:10:44.160 | That's, like, hey, nah, y'all tripping.
00:10:47.080 | I'm not comparing to nobody.
00:10:48.600 | And they just kept saying, yeah, you know,
00:10:50.880 | I can beat him one-on-one.
00:10:52.000 | You know, I can beat, you know, Bones one-on-one,
00:10:53.680 | and da-da-da.
00:10:54.520 | And I'm, like, you tripping.
00:10:55.360 | It's a court right here.
00:10:56.200 | We can go check out right now.
00:10:57.640 | It's a court literally right here.
00:10:59.200 | We walked on the court, and the first guy, you know,
00:11:02.160 | I just feel like, you know, I don't know.
00:11:04.920 | I think it felt like his pride got in the way.
00:11:06.720 | - It did, it did.
00:11:07.560 | - He got in the way.
00:11:08.400 | - He was playing way, bro.
00:11:10.520 | - His pride got in the way too much.
00:11:12.320 | But the second guy, who was seven, though,
00:11:15.520 | his pride was way higher, though.
00:11:17.240 | Like, he knew, like, he just let the people
00:11:19.720 | where he was from, you know, he's from Philadelphia,
00:11:21.480 | but he let the people, like, get in his ear.
00:11:23.320 | Yeah, go out there and, you know, play and stuff.
00:11:25.480 | - He was trying to play it mad hard.
00:11:26.320 | - Mad hard.
00:11:27.160 | (laughing)
00:11:28.160 | And I'm, like, you know, it's not going to end
00:11:29.960 | how you want it to end.
00:11:30.800 | I'm just, like, nah.
00:11:31.960 | And I didn't even know that, like,
00:11:33.320 | this was going to be a viral video, though, bro.
00:11:35.280 | I was just going out there, just being myself,
00:11:36.920 | all the people around that was watching,
00:11:38.480 | everybody just being there.
00:11:39.320 | So, we didn't know that the guy who recorded the video,
00:11:42.600 | we didn't know he was going to drop it,
00:11:43.640 | or he was actually recording, you know?
00:11:45.720 | But it got so much attention and stuff.
00:11:47.800 | I'm, like, nah, he definitely going to drop this.
00:11:49.840 | And ever since then, that joint just blew up, bro.
00:11:51.840 | - That video is OD.
00:11:52.680 | - But you know what's crazy, though, bro?
00:11:54.120 | A lot of people, like, they, like,
00:11:56.040 | oh, that's the guy from the video that went viral.
00:11:58.520 | Like, they look at me now, like,
00:11:59.760 | wow, that's the guy from the video.
00:12:00.600 | - That's how viral that video is?
00:12:02.080 | - Yes, bro, like, to this day, like,
00:12:03.760 | that's the guy from the video that went viral.
00:12:05.800 | I'm, like, damn, they remember that video?
00:12:07.600 | That's crazy, bro.
00:12:08.440 | - Nah, it's a hilarious video, bro,
00:12:10.200 | 'cause it's just like you now, like,
00:12:12.200 | the way you talking crazy to dudes.
00:12:13.720 | And they were so hot, like, they were so mad, bro.
00:12:17.720 | - They definitely was.
00:12:18.560 | - But nah, nah, back to the league, like,
00:12:21.800 | I was watching a podcast, I think it was Emmanuel Moutier
00:12:26.000 | on someone's podcast, and he was just talking about
00:12:28.800 | he lost his love for the game.
00:12:31.240 | And, like, you've always been, like,
00:12:32.680 | you can see in that video, you can see,
00:12:33.920 | even the way you hoop now, your love for the game.
00:12:36.240 | He was talking about he lost his love for the game
00:12:37.800 | because of how political the league is.
00:12:41.080 | He was like, I would be killing somebody
00:12:43.320 | in practice every day, but the coach tells me
00:12:46.520 | I'm not gonna play right now.
00:12:49.560 | And, like, obviously, we've talked about Tyloo.
00:12:51.000 | Tyloo's from Missouri, like, that's my guy.
00:12:53.840 | That's like, he's from 30 minutes down the street
00:12:57.120 | from where I'm from, and he's the most chillest dude ever.
00:12:59.640 | - Yeah, he is chill, for sure.
00:13:00.480 | - But do you feel like, not just in your situation,
00:13:03.240 | but now that you've been in the NBA,
00:13:05.400 | how political do you feel like it is?
00:13:07.360 | Like, is it dudes to you, like,
00:13:09.480 | every day could be killing in practice
00:13:10.800 | that literally don't play in the game,
00:13:12.040 | or do you think the best players always play?
00:13:14.280 | - Yeah, it's definitely a political game,
00:13:17.920 | but it's something that you just can't control, bro.
00:13:19.760 | Like, you know, I could be killing every day in practice,
00:13:23.200 | you know, but it's just like, it's just gonna go how it go,
00:13:25.600 | because maybe somebody been there, you know, years,
00:13:27.680 | or maybe you're on a contract that's way bigger than yours,
00:13:30.000 | and it's just gonna go the way it goes.
00:13:31.240 | But, I mean, it's something that you really
00:13:33.000 | just can't control.
00:13:33.840 | Maybe he got a couple years over you,
00:13:35.360 | and you just getting in the league,
00:13:36.800 | or you're just your second year, but you killing, though.
00:13:38.800 | But, he on a crazy contract, you know,
00:13:41.440 | but he playing over you, playing, you know, mad minutes.
00:13:44.080 | But it's something that you, excuse me,
00:13:46.440 | it's really something that you just can't control, bro.
00:13:48.080 | - Right.
00:13:48.920 | - It's tough, you know, 'cause it's like,
00:13:49.960 | man, I wish I was playing a little bit more, you know.
00:13:52.360 | You know, I feel like I deserve to play a little bit more.
00:13:54.400 | You know, I'm already killing it
00:13:55.440 | with the minutes that I'm getting.
00:13:56.560 | Why can't I get a little bit, like, 10 more, you know?
00:13:58.760 | - Yeah.
00:13:59.600 | - Like, I feel like I deserve it, you know.
00:14:00.760 | But, man, it's definitely a political game,
00:14:02.440 | but it's just something that you just
00:14:03.280 | can't get caught up in, man.
00:14:04.200 | You just gotta stay, like, level-headed, you know,
00:14:06.040 | just stay out of that, man.
00:14:06.880 | - And you never let that affect, like, your joy?
00:14:08.760 | - Yeah.
00:14:09.600 | - You don't let it affect your joy?
00:14:10.440 | - Nah, not at all.
00:14:11.440 | You know me, bro.
00:14:12.280 | Like, I ain't gonna let nothing shake me, bro.
00:14:14.040 | It's like, but at the same time,
00:14:15.640 | it just be kinda tough, though, it do,
00:14:17.080 | because, like, you know, you just wanna play, bro.
00:14:19.080 | And that's me, like, I just wanna hoot, you know.
00:14:20.760 | So, it's like, ah, this political game
00:14:22.880 | could definitely get tough, but, man,
00:14:24.440 | it's something you just really can't control, bro.
00:14:26.480 | It's really something you can't, facts.
00:14:28.600 | - Nah, 100%, nah.
00:14:30.120 | You, I mean, you know, like, you a star.
00:14:33.320 | Everybody knows, I think I was watching PG's podcast,
00:14:35.400 | and he was talking about the way you play,
00:14:37.280 | how you are as a star.
00:14:38.360 | And you got, like you said,
00:14:39.520 | y'all got four Hall of Famers right now, like.
00:14:41.400 | - Yeah, bro.
00:14:42.240 | - And y'all still figuring it out,
00:14:43.760 | but whether it's there or somewhere else,
00:14:45.760 | like, you gonna blossom.
00:14:46.800 | So, it's never any stress in that area.
00:14:50.560 | I wanna turn to, like, your faith,
00:14:53.560 | because you do have an unshakable joy,
00:14:55.680 | which is something I've always appreciated about you.
00:14:57.560 | Even, like, when you were with us,
00:14:59.320 | I'd be down sometimes, you would keep my spirits lifted
00:15:01.920 | if something was wrong.
00:15:02.760 | - Facts.
00:15:03.600 | - Even if you weren't playing,
00:15:04.440 | you still were cheering me on in the game.
00:15:06.200 | - Facts.
00:15:07.040 | - But you tweet, or you put on Instagram very boldly,
00:15:10.520 | like, about your faith.
00:15:12.280 | - Yeah.
00:15:13.120 | - Like, in God, and just how important that is to you.
00:15:15.840 | Has that always been, like, an important part of your life,
00:15:18.720 | and is that kinda what keeps you kinda, like,
00:15:20.400 | level-headed through everything?
00:15:21.520 | - Man, yeah, man, that's the biggest part of my life,
00:15:23.880 | honestly, man, 'cause I done been through so much,
00:15:25.760 | but, you know, Jesus has never, you know,
00:15:28.240 | forsaken me at all.
00:15:29.400 | Like, he always been there for me,
00:15:30.680 | like, regardless, like, how, you know,
00:15:33.000 | impossible something may seem,
00:15:34.760 | how, like, un-extraordinary something may seem.
00:15:36.720 | It's like, he's just always there for me.
00:15:38.800 | And it's like, I can never, like, turn on him,
00:15:41.120 | no matter if, like, things get, you know, worse for me,
00:15:44.120 | or maybe I don't like how something's going, you know,
00:15:47.520 | or maybe some life problems that I'm going through.
00:15:49.640 | I just know, like, I'm always be, you know, straight,
00:15:51.960 | because I got, you know, God on my side,
00:15:53.560 | and it's never gonna make me, like, turn away from,
00:15:55.920 | you know, him because something not going my way.
00:15:57.640 | You know, I feel like a lot of people nowadays,
00:15:59.320 | like, they quick to, like, you know,
00:16:02.320 | why me, or, you know, why am I going through this,
00:16:04.880 | you know, but not even knowing, like,
00:16:06.680 | maybe this can, you know, help you, you know,
00:16:09.040 | on your path going forward.
00:16:10.400 | - Diversity can, like, shape you.
00:16:11.960 | - Yeah, exactly, you know, and I feel like
00:16:13.240 | that's something I'm going through right now.
00:16:14.640 | Like, this right now, it's shaping me right now.
00:16:16.800 | You know, it's building resilience in me, you know,
00:16:18.800 | it's building patience in me, you know,
00:16:20.120 | and it's building, like, just even more high character,
00:16:22.320 | you know, so it's something that I definitely,
00:16:24.280 | you know, appreciate right now,
00:16:25.400 | even though I wanna play, but at the same time,
00:16:26.840 | I know God is, you know, strengthening me, you know,
00:16:29.040 | getting stronger off the floor, you know,
00:16:30.920 | and stuff like that, so it's,
00:16:31.760 | I feel like it's really, it has helped me,
00:16:33.680 | but I think definitely never shake, though, at all.
00:16:35.920 | - Never, nah.
00:16:37.240 | You, we were talking about this before the podcast started,
00:16:40.040 | just about how, like, the fans, even in Denver,
00:16:44.280 | how people can be so for you.
00:16:46.400 | - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:16:47.240 | - In life, in general, any NBA player deals with this.
00:16:49.520 | - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:16:50.360 | - That people can be so for you,
00:16:51.480 | but as soon as you do one thing they don't like
00:16:54.720 | or they perceive something that's not even how it was,
00:16:57.120 | they turn on you, and I think we've talked about
00:16:58.840 | a little bit, even the Denver fans,
00:17:00.620 | 'cause you were a fan favorite.
00:17:01.560 | Like, every time you hopped on the floor,
00:17:03.920 | you're going crazy, and just the fact
00:17:05.800 | that you received backlash for any negativity,
00:17:09.240 | I asked AG this in my podcast the other day,
00:17:11.920 | how do you deal with the positivity and negativity?
00:17:14.240 | 'Cause there's been so much positivity surrounding you,
00:17:17.260 | but then one thing goes wrong, and now there's negativity,
00:17:20.200 | do you, how do you deal with all that?
00:17:22.880 | - So, honestly, man, I just be taking it like,
00:17:25.520 | all right, they just showing love because I'm killing,
00:17:27.920 | you know, or they, at this moment, they showing me love,
00:17:30.720 | but I don't let it get too head over heels,
00:17:34.120 | like, ah, I'm so in, you know, with the, you know,
00:17:37.480 | how they treating me and stuff like that.
00:17:39.000 | Like, obviously I love it, but it always, like,
00:17:41.720 | you know, something go wrong, they just gonna turn on you.
00:17:43.920 | It's just like, it's just what happens, bro.
00:17:46.040 | It happens to literally, like, you know,
00:17:47.740 | Hall of Famers who played and stuff like that.
00:17:49.240 | - The best players in the world.
00:17:50.080 | - The best players, bro.
00:17:50.900 | So it's like, of course it can happen to me,
00:17:52.400 | so I don't be too, like, locked in on it.
00:17:54.720 | Of course, like, I appreciate, you know,
00:17:56.000 | fan bases that, you know, take me in
00:17:57.720 | and, like, really cheer me on.
00:17:59.320 | They appreciate my game, they appreciate
00:18:00.640 | how fun I have on the floor, you know.
00:18:02.680 | Speaking of Denver fans, you know,
00:18:04.180 | when I was over there, you know, I checked in
00:18:05.640 | and they, they weren't, like, rowdy every time.
00:18:07.720 | Like, they love watching me play,
00:18:09.240 | but obviously the trade went down and it happened.
00:18:11.400 | Now it's, everybody just, like, hate me,
00:18:13.800 | like, you know, but I feel like they don't really,
00:18:16.440 | I feel like they don't really hate me.
00:18:17.480 | They still got love for me, but it's just the fact that
00:18:19.380 | I'm just not there anymore, it's making 'em kinda like,
00:18:21.720 | damn, like, we just gonna go at it,
00:18:23.560 | we just gonna keep, you know, going at it,
00:18:25.640 | even stuff like that, but I still got love for Denver, bro.
00:18:27.880 | Like, it took me in with open arms.
00:18:29.160 | Like, I never just say, like, F Denver.
00:18:30.920 | Like, that's never, you know, me, that,
00:18:33.160 | that won't ever come out my mouth.
00:18:34.160 | It took me in with open arms.
00:18:35.160 | Every time I checked on the floor, I had fun, you know, so.
00:18:37.800 | - Right.
00:18:38.640 | - Yeah, I don't know, it's something that, like,
00:18:40.400 | you just gotta, you just gotta just hoop, bro.
00:18:42.920 | You can't really get into the whole fan thing and all that,
00:18:45.360 | you know, you just can't get into that, bro.
00:18:47.280 | - Facts.
00:18:48.200 | You talked before, you was, like, talking about
00:18:51.000 | what has shaped you into this person
00:18:52.480 | is the things you've gone through.
00:18:54.960 | I remember, yeah, back in San Diego,
00:18:57.280 | when we was just chopping it up on the training table.
00:18:59.760 | I'll never forget this conversation.
00:19:01.680 | Like, I don't know how it came up,
00:19:02.840 | but you talked about what you went through
00:19:04.200 | and you was telling me, like, this is what,
00:19:06.520 | this is why I am, this is how I am,
00:19:08.720 | this is why I smile so much.
00:19:10.600 | - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:19:11.960 | - Can you talk a little bit to people,
00:19:13.640 | because I think, like, more than just a basketball player,
00:19:16.040 | like, you inspire so many people because,
00:19:18.640 | and people don't even know your story like that,
00:19:20.800 | but I do, and I, to see you smile through that,
00:19:22.840 | to see the way you take care of your mom and your nephew,
00:19:26.880 | like, people don't even know where all that comes from.
00:19:30.880 | Can you a little bit talk about
00:19:33.120 | the incident during high school?
00:19:34.280 | - Yeah, facts.
00:19:35.120 | So, back in 2018, you know, I had went through
00:19:38.080 | a house fire tragedy, you know what happened,
00:19:40.160 | and, you know, I was watching March Madness in my room,
00:19:44.760 | and I was on the phone with one of my friends,
00:19:46.720 | and, you know, I'm just literally just chilling,
00:19:48.480 | just laying back, and it's like a,
00:19:49.640 | I forget what day it was.
00:19:51.080 | You know, it was like a Saturday or not,
00:19:53.840 | I forget which one of those days it was,
00:19:55.120 | but, you know, I'm just chilling back,
00:19:56.920 | and it's one of those days where everybody
00:19:58.720 | just be, you know, chilling in the crib,
00:20:00.160 | like, nobody bothering each other,
00:20:01.520 | you know, everybody just resting and stuff like that,
00:20:03.840 | and, you know, I'm watching the game and stuff,
00:20:05.760 | and just chilling, and I just get up out my bed
00:20:10.760 | 'cause I start smelling, like, you know, smoke
00:20:13.120 | just surrounding just, like, my, like, just outside,
00:20:16.680 | like, and I'm like, damn, like, what's that smell?
00:20:19.080 | But, you know, like, that type of smell is normal
00:20:21.400 | for, you know, where I grew up, you know,
00:20:22.840 | and it's normal, people think it's a barbecue,
00:20:24.640 | you know, or it's a cookout going on,
00:20:26.240 | so I'm like, yeah, it's normal,
00:20:27.080 | so I just sat back in my bed,
00:20:28.760 | and it started getting more intense, intense, intense,
00:20:31.120 | I'm like, damn, what's that smell?
00:20:32.400 | Like, that's not like a barbecue,
00:20:34.040 | it smell like something burning, like something on fire.
00:20:36.480 | So, you know, I get out of my bed,
00:20:37.600 | and I had, you know, went to my door,
00:20:39.680 | and I had opened my door,
00:20:40.960 | and I just see all these flames just bursting,
00:20:43.560 | and I'm like, oh, shit, what the hell going on?
00:20:45.960 | So I instantly had to close the door,
00:20:47.560 | and I had went into my room,
00:20:49.040 | and I had to just sit there and just, like,
00:20:50.680 | think, like, damn, what the fuck am I supposed to do?
00:20:52.800 | And mind you, what's already clicking in my head
00:20:54.560 | is my grandma and my two baby cousins is in the other room,
00:20:58.360 | and I'm like, damn, like,
00:20:59.640 | how can I get over there to their room
00:21:01.200 | and see, you know, try to save them,
00:21:02.840 | or, you know, see what I can do, what plan I can do?
00:21:04.720 | But, you know, in movies, you can just think so,
00:21:07.240 | you know, they got all this time to think,
00:21:09.040 | you know, they go from one scene,
00:21:11.640 | you know, of the fire or something,
00:21:13.240 | and them try to, you know, escape that,
00:21:14.560 | and then they go to another scene,
00:21:15.400 | and then they come back to the fire,
00:21:16.520 | and then, it don't work like that, you know?
00:21:18.560 | That was something that, like,
00:21:19.520 | man, I really had to, like, think fast, you know,
00:21:22.720 | with such little time.
00:21:23.880 | And, you know, I'm just sitting down,
00:21:25.560 | I'm trying to really figure out how I'm gonna do this,
00:21:27.720 | but I live in an old house,
00:21:28.880 | so I'm like, the windows ain't gonna open,
00:21:30.680 | like, them windows never open,
00:21:33.200 | so I'm like, yeah, it might be over with for me.
00:21:36.040 | So I went to one of the windows to try to open,
00:21:37.920 | but, like, it didn't open,
00:21:38.760 | and now the smoke and everything
00:21:40.600 | is really getting, like, inside the room.
00:21:42.760 | Flames is starting to come in,
00:21:44.520 | the walls is getting hot.
00:21:46.160 | As I'm touching the windows, it's a little hot,
00:21:47.760 | so I'm like, ah, like,
00:21:49.240 | you know, I touched the first window, it didn't open.
00:21:50.960 | Now I'm really, like, cloudy,
00:21:52.800 | and I can't really see, you know?
00:21:54.640 | And I try to touch the second one, it's hot.
00:21:56.480 | I'm trying to open it, I'm like, nah,
00:21:58.120 | I'm just gonna go, like,
00:21:59.240 | it's really not opening for me.
00:22:01.040 | I dropped to my knees, I'm like,
00:22:02.480 | God, like, I really don't understand
00:22:04.040 | why this is happening to me.
00:22:05.120 | Like, I feel like I did everything I was,
00:22:06.760 | you know, supposed to do.
00:22:07.720 | I feel like I'm a great person to people.
00:22:09.560 | You know, I always, you know, give.
00:22:11.360 | You know, I never really, you know,
00:22:13.000 | I don't ask to receive from anybody.
00:22:14.840 | You know, I always wanna do my deeds,
00:22:16.560 | you know, in your honor.
00:22:18.280 | So I just be like, dang, man,
00:22:19.520 | this is, you know, crazy to happen to me.
00:22:22.080 | And, you know, as I'm just sitting down,
00:22:24.280 | I'm just praying, I'm like, man,
00:22:25.320 | if it's my time to go, I'm just gonna go, you know?
00:22:27.480 | But I just hear that voice in my head, like,
00:22:28.840 | get up, like, I got you, get up.
00:22:31.080 | And it's like, it's not your time to go yet.
00:22:33.400 | And he's like, you know,
00:22:34.760 | that window's gonna open to you, the third one.
00:22:36.200 | So I'm like, it's no way, bro, it's no way.
00:22:38.520 | So I get up, I get up, I go to the window,
00:22:40.840 | and I just try to just open it, and it's open.
00:22:42.840 | I'm like, wow, this is crazy.
00:22:44.160 | So I open up, I see somebody outside.
00:22:45.720 | I'm like, my house is on fire, my house is on fire.
00:22:47.560 | Come save me.
00:22:48.440 | He's like, you gotta jump, you gotta jump.
00:22:49.880 | I'm like, I can't jump, it's too high.
00:22:51.600 | It's a three-story floor house.
00:22:52.920 | I'm like, I cannot jump.
00:22:54.480 | You gotta jump, we need you, you our last hope.
00:22:57.080 | When I heard that, I'm like, damn, bro,
00:22:59.240 | like, I really am the last hope from Wilmington, Delaware.
00:23:01.680 | So small, everybody depending on me to make it,
00:23:04.080 | and stuff like that.
00:23:05.360 | So I'm just like, all right, fuck it.
00:23:07.040 | But after he said that, though, lie to you not,
00:23:09.680 | I went back in the room, got on, you know, my knees.
00:23:14.120 | I'm like, man, I'm just gonna go, I can't jump,
00:23:15.640 | it's too high.
00:23:16.760 | Just hear a voice in my head, God, just get up,
00:23:18.280 | just get up, just get up.
00:23:19.560 | I just said, fuck it, went out the window.
00:23:20.960 | I just jumped head first.
00:23:22.200 | I had to turn my patella tendon,
00:23:23.440 | I hit my knees on the bricks.
00:23:25.040 | I tried to get up and crawl, I couldn't walk.
00:23:27.200 | I tried to call to the car, you know,
00:23:29.120 | to the lady who had a phone.
00:23:31.040 | I'm like, call my mom, call my mom.
00:23:32.360 | My mom was at a place called Main Event.
00:23:34.640 | And, you know, she was there with, like,
00:23:36.800 | a couple of my other family members, cousins and stuff,
00:23:39.440 | just having, like, a fun day.
00:23:41.000 | I forgot my mom's phone number.
00:23:42.280 | So I'm like, I don't know what's going on.
00:23:43.960 | My head's spinning, you know, I can't walk,
00:23:46.120 | I can't do anything, you know.
00:23:47.560 | So I'm like, damn, I forgot my mom's phone number.
00:23:49.680 | Anybody know my mom's number?
00:23:51.160 | It just clicked in my head, I called mom.
00:23:52.920 | You know, number literally just clicked in my head,
00:23:54.360 | it was so crazy.
00:23:55.200 | I called mom, the house on fire.
00:23:56.960 | She drove so fast back to the crib.
00:23:59.640 | I just seen my mom just come, what's going on?
00:24:01.760 | House on fire, da, da, da.
00:24:03.080 | My mom in there with the baby,
00:24:04.280 | with the baby cousin, stuff like that.
00:24:05.680 | You know, her nephews.
00:24:07.240 | And that shit was just so crazy, bro.
00:24:09.360 | And then their mom, she came from McDonald's
00:24:11.240 | 'cause they had got food for them.
00:24:12.880 | And she came from McDonald's, she seen the house on fire.
00:24:14.840 | She dropped the McDonald's to the floor.
00:24:16.400 | I just see her trying to run in there
00:24:17.600 | to try to save her mom or her sons.
00:24:20.840 | It's like, damn, this shit is crazy.
00:24:22.040 | Then once it all, like probably 10 minutes go past,
00:24:24.760 | I had seen my grandmother and my baby brother walk out.
00:24:27.120 | Not walk out, but get carried out in the ambulance thing.
00:24:30.640 | I mean, the little walker thing,
00:24:32.160 | the little stretcher thing.
00:24:34.320 | I just seen, you know, just all of them just covered up
00:24:36.000 | in just charcoal.
00:24:36.840 | I'm like, damn, like, this is like crazy.
00:24:38.680 | But it was such just a, like, a tough thing for me, man.
00:24:42.200 | Even to this day, like, it's really been like hard.
00:24:44.440 | You know, sometimes I can't speak about it,
00:24:45.800 | sometimes I can't.
00:24:46.760 | Every time I speak about it, it's so hard.
00:24:49.560 | Like, it just still be like flashbacks
00:24:51.240 | in the back of my head.
00:24:52.080 | It's so hard to get my words out, you know.
00:24:53.960 | It be tough, man, but, you know, I never like,
00:24:57.040 | like, just to this day, like, that's why I'm so big on,
00:25:00.920 | you know, speaking on, you know, God
00:25:02.720 | and, you know, having that faith in God.
00:25:04.000 | 'Cause that, like, I'm really not supposed to be here.
00:25:05.560 | So, you know, I know, you know, my calling is, you know,
00:25:09.280 | bringing people back home to Jesus
00:25:11.200 | and believing in him and believing that, you know,
00:25:13.440 | whatever you're going through, you know,
00:25:15.160 | it's always a brighter side.
00:25:16.400 | He always can pull you through.
00:25:17.240 | So, that's something that, you know,
00:25:18.600 | I know it's my calling, but I do that through basketball.
00:25:22.240 | - Bro, like, every time I hear that story,
00:25:24.840 | like, it just, it touches my heart.
00:25:28.440 | Not just because of what you've been through,
00:25:30.600 | but how you turn that around, bro.
00:25:33.040 | Like, I don't know too many people that would take that
00:25:36.520 | and turn it around into what you've turned it around to
00:25:38.520 | and become the person through it that you've become.
00:25:40.800 | And, like, just giving people back at the crib,
00:25:43.360 | like, just hope and people just,
00:25:47.000 | how bold you are about your faith, like.
00:25:48.960 | - Yeah.
00:25:49.920 | - I forget what game it was,
00:25:51.400 | and you had the whole hood there, bro.
00:25:53.040 | - Yeah, it was the sixth game.
00:25:54.860 | - Like, it was all behind you, bro.
00:25:55.960 | You, it's like 50, how many people was in the crowd?
00:25:58.760 | - Bro, it was a whole world in there.
00:26:00.840 | - Bro, and I was like, the fact that this dude, like,
00:26:03.400 | overcame what he came.
00:26:05.240 | - Five fighters was there too.
00:26:07.400 | - That story is like, man, people,
00:26:09.280 | that's like a story from a movie, like.
00:26:11.480 | - Yeah.
00:26:12.320 | - Is it, is that, like, part of the reason
00:26:15.560 | you and just your mom and your nephews are so close?
00:26:18.240 | - Yeah, bro, like, we just all best friends, bro.
00:26:21.800 | We, like, closer than close, bro.
00:26:23.560 | Like, I really, my mom is my best friend, bro.
00:26:26.560 | But, like, you know, people see me with my little nephew.
00:26:29.520 | You know, I call him my baby brother.
00:26:30.600 | He's really my cousin, but I call him my nephew,
00:26:32.720 | my baby brother, like, he's just everything in one, bro.
00:26:34.920 | But I really call him my angel on earth
00:26:36.200 | because he survived the house fire.
00:26:37.680 | - He has the burn, right?
00:26:38.520 | - Yeah, on his face, yeah, on his skin too.
00:26:40.600 | He was the one that survived the house fire.
00:26:42.760 | My grandmother was covering him,
00:26:44.120 | but the other one had passed away.
00:26:46.640 | You know, his brother, he passed away,
00:26:47.880 | but, you know, by the grace of God, you know,
00:26:50.000 | Izzy had survived.
00:26:51.200 | He had a big, like, scar on the side of his face,
00:26:53.380 | but yeah, he survived, and he was only three weeks old, bro.
00:26:56.000 | So, like, can't nobody tell me that, you know,
00:26:57.480 | God ain't real at all.
00:26:58.480 | Can't nobody tell me that.
00:26:59.680 | And I'm just like, damn, like, to this day,
00:27:01.560 | he just like me, bro, like, smiling, you know.
00:27:04.320 | He gives so many people joy.
00:27:05.960 | Like, you would never know what he been through.
00:27:07.860 | You would never know what he overcame, you know.
00:27:10.200 | And it's like, damn, he just like me, bro.
00:27:12.000 | But that's another reason why, like, man, like,
00:27:13.920 | we really so close, and when people see it through,
00:27:15.880 | you know, the media, or people see it in person,
00:27:17.680 | like, yeah, he really doesn't play about them.
00:27:19.560 | Like, they all so close.
00:27:21.120 | - So, what's, through all of this, like, now,
00:27:24.720 | like, through basketball, you just use basketball
00:27:27.320 | as, like, a vessel for, to inspire?
00:27:29.880 | Is that what you would say?
00:27:31.080 | - Yeah, yeah, literally.
00:27:32.400 | You know, just to get my story, you know, heard to,
00:27:36.020 | just different people across the, just the nation, bro.
00:27:37.920 | Like, just trying to reel in people to, you know,
00:27:41.000 | Jesus Christ, man, you know, like, it's, we in end times,
00:27:43.880 | bro, so I know, you know, it's almost, you know,
00:27:46.280 | rallying up, so.
00:27:47.100 | - It's almost a wrap.
00:27:47.940 | - Yeah, so I'm just trying to use my, you know,
00:27:50.120 | my story, you know, with my gift, and just try to,
00:27:53.000 | you know, tally in as much people as I can to,
00:27:55.720 | you know, home to Christ.
00:27:56.560 | So, that's something that I'm really just,
00:27:58.120 | you know, taking pride in.
00:27:59.360 | - Well, you inspire me, bro, like, 'cause you right,
00:28:01.520 | I agree with you that this, the time and the age
00:28:04.040 | that we're in, and the fact that nowadays,
00:28:06.960 | good is pretty much looked at as bad,
00:28:08.720 | and bad is looked at as good.
00:28:09.920 | - Good is insane.
00:28:10.960 | - Bro, I could get on social media,
00:28:12.280 | and the things that people are, like, glorifying as good,
00:28:15.720 | are literally evil, and evil is good.
00:28:18.320 | And, like, that's what it talks about in the Bible,
00:28:20.000 | is end times, so, like, even just talking right now,
00:28:23.400 | like, you inspire me to wanna, like, help bring people in,
00:28:26.880 | and that's why, like, this podcast to me is important,
00:28:30.080 | because, like, I could have a bad basketball game
00:28:33.280 | and not feel like doing a podcast,
00:28:34.960 | but if people listen to this podcast,
00:28:37.360 | and they hear our stories, because we're two people
00:28:39.800 | that have been through a lot of adversity,
00:28:41.080 | like, I should not, like, for me, in my story,
00:28:43.720 | I should not even be in the NBA, either.
00:28:45.200 | Like, yeah, I was the number one player in high school,
00:28:47.760 | but after the three back surgeries,
00:28:50.440 | and now, you know, coming back from that,
00:28:53.040 | like, there's guys that are done after one,
00:28:55.240 | and there's guys, you know, the brace that I'm wearing,
00:28:57.760 | like, no one in the history of NBA
00:28:59.320 | has even attempted to play in a brace like that,
00:29:01.280 | and I'm trying to hoop, and it's painful, it's hard,
00:29:03.360 | like, adversity's hard, but the fact that it inspires
00:29:06.960 | someone, like, I feel like our purpose should be
00:29:09.960 | to get, like, our story out there
00:29:11.840 | to get people to keep going, but like you said,
00:29:13.620 | the main thing is bringing people towards Christ,
00:29:17.640 | so, like, I think the fact that you shared your story,
00:29:20.880 | and people get to know you, like,
00:29:22.740 | that's the most important thing.
00:29:25.600 | It's hard to keep that perspective, though, like,
00:29:27.240 | - Yeah.
00:29:28.080 | - It's hard to keep that perspective.
00:29:28.920 | - It really is, but, you know,
00:29:30.240 | it's something that I just take pride in, bro.
00:29:32.560 | Like, I really take pride in just trying to,
00:29:34.920 | you know, reel people in, man, just with my story,
00:29:37.000 | but, you know, I know this is a podcast
00:29:38.720 | where you ask me questions,
00:29:39.560 | but I know you've just been through a lot, too, bro,
00:29:41.000 | like, just everything that you've been through.
00:29:42.640 | You know, even when I was over there in Denver,
00:29:44.240 | I had seen you, you know, recovering and stuff,
00:29:46.120 | you know, before, you know, you had signed your big deal
00:29:49.120 | and stuff like that, I'm like, you know,
00:29:50.520 | Mike is in here trying to, you know,
00:29:51.700 | get himself going and get back, but, you know,
00:29:53.840 | how was that, you know, for you, as far as, like,
00:29:55.620 | just trying to, you know, your back injury,
00:29:57.480 | but on top of that, still, like, you know,
00:29:59.640 | wearing a brace, you know,
00:30:00.560 | right before you're about to go to training camp
00:30:01.920 | and trying to, like, 'cause you didn't play a season,
00:30:03.960 | you know, or you didn't play, like, the whole season,
00:30:06.220 | 'cause the season just started, then it happened,
00:30:07.720 | you know, and then just trying to get back out there.
00:30:09.520 | - Yeah, nobody could tell me that God isn't real, either,
00:30:12.200 | but, like, when people ask me for, like, a story on why,
00:30:15.680 | I say, like, the contract thing,
00:30:19.120 | because, yeah, like, I've hooped in this brace or whatever,
00:30:21.960 | like, I've hooped and I've done, like, well,
00:30:24.880 | like, obviously, I'm still trying to grow,
00:30:26.160 | still trying to get better, still trying to heal my body,
00:30:28.360 | but I signed that contract right before I had another injury,
00:30:33.360 | like, and you know in the NBA, like,
00:30:35.280 | if that injury had come,
00:30:36.600 | 'cause I didn't play that whole season
00:30:37.760 | right after I signed the contract,
00:30:38.840 | and everybody's talking about,
00:30:39.660 | "Oh, it's the worst contract in NBA history,"
00:30:41.920 | you know, people talking crazy,
00:30:43.840 | but if I had gotten hurt maybe three weeks prior,
00:30:47.800 | then, boom, that big contract,
00:30:49.960 | and I think the reason God allowed me to have that contract,
00:30:52.080 | and sometimes it's annoying,
00:30:53.360 | because sometimes I never even cared
00:30:54.800 | to have money like that.
00:30:57.000 | - Exactly, I'm so the same way, bro, I just hooped, bro.
00:30:58.480 | - I always wanted to hoop,
00:30:59.480 | but now, like, once you sign a big contract,
00:31:01.240 | people want you to live up to it,
00:31:03.000 | and they expect you to be, like, consistent every game,
00:31:07.280 | not knowing what you're going through off the court,
00:31:09.040 | and not knowing what you're,
00:31:10.200 | so that has been kind of hard.
00:31:11.840 | People don't know, like, how everything I've gone through,
00:31:14.800 | how much--
00:31:15.640 | - And you're still trying to overcome that, too, as well,
00:31:17.880 | yeah.
00:31:18.720 | - But, like, I think,
00:31:19.540 | no one could tell me that God not real,
00:31:20.600 | because he allowed me to get that contract,
00:31:22.120 | because he knew, for me, you have your gifts,
00:31:25.560 | one of my gifts is, like, being generous, so.
00:31:27.720 | - Yeah, yeah, facts.
00:31:28.560 | - I've been able to use my money,
00:31:29.680 | and I'm still trying to think of more ways
00:31:31.480 | to use it, like, in a way that God would be happy with.
00:31:35.160 | I've been able to help my family,
00:31:36.320 | been able to do this,
00:31:37.160 | and I never was trying to hold it onto myself,
00:31:39.080 | but the hard part is, like, man, people just,
00:31:41.200 | it's the people that don't understand.
00:31:43.440 | We understand it, bro, and it's just, it's annoying,
00:31:47.320 | because they'd be, like, yo, you signed a big contract,
00:31:51.920 | you're supposed to do this, that, this, that,
00:31:53.960 | and it's, but it's, like, bro, you don't even, like,
00:31:55.960 | I didn't even ask for it, but I would've hooped for free.
00:31:58.440 | You could've given me a, you didn't got,
00:32:00.600 | you didn't even have to give me any millions of dollars,
00:32:02.560 | and I still would've hooped.
00:32:03.400 | - Still would've hooped, bro,
00:32:04.240 | but this is something that they just don't see,
00:32:06.760 | and don't understand, bro.
00:32:08.560 | You know, they looking from the outside in,
00:32:10.320 | and not really looking at, you know, the inside,
00:32:12.320 | and really what, you know, we go through on a daily basis,
00:32:14.600 | you know, what we're really dealing with, you know,
00:32:16.380 | and trying to overcome, still to this day, like,
00:32:18.520 | nobody know how painful this, you know,
00:32:20.200 | still to this day, how that's feeling,
00:32:21.520 | you know, your back, and your foot.
00:32:23.160 | They just care about, oh, he need to go out there
00:32:25.360 | and perform, he need to da-da-da,
00:32:26.720 | which they not even understanding.
00:32:27.760 | You going out there, you sacrificing your body, you know,
00:32:30.120 | which, you know, some people don't even like to do.
00:32:32.040 | They sit out the whole season 'til they right.
00:32:34.240 | - 'Til they feeling perfect.
00:32:35.080 | - 'Til they feeling perfect, bro.
00:32:36.320 | So I'm saying, but, like, I salute you for that,
00:32:38.400 | just going out there, and just, you know,
00:32:39.640 | trying to sacrifice your body,
00:32:40.680 | because I know what you're going through,
00:32:41.720 | but, you know, fans that's not paying attention to the game,
00:32:44.400 | or not paying attention to you, you know, as a person,
00:32:46.600 | they just looking through the TV,
00:32:48.040 | oh, he missed all these shots, he da-da-da.
00:32:50.640 | But then, when you're making all these shots,
00:32:52.080 | they ain't nowhere near to be found,
00:32:53.680 | so it's like, what you gonna say now?
00:32:55.760 | - Then you the next best, you, it's crazy.
00:32:59.240 | - Bro, it's pathetic, bro.
00:33:00.640 | That's why, like, I don't get into all that, bro.
00:33:02.640 | I just let people just be, oh, bro.
00:33:05.120 | I don't care, bro, I could care less, bro.
00:33:07.640 | They fans for a reason, bro.
00:33:08.480 | - People are so crazy, bro.
00:33:09.320 | - That's why they called fans, bro.
00:33:10.680 | - And, like, you made the point earlier,
00:33:12.480 | like, you could be the best fan in the world.
00:33:13.800 | You could literally be, well, I don't really see
00:33:16.760 | people talking too crazy about Nicola,
00:33:18.560 | 'cause he just, well, he don't even be on social media,
00:33:20.840 | but, like, I see people talk crazy about every player.
00:33:23.040 | Giannis, Bron, KD, any player can get talked crazy about,
00:33:27.720 | so it really is just about, just taking it in stride
00:33:30.760 | and dealing with the highs and the lows,
00:33:31.960 | like, we, at the end of the day, we're blessed.
00:33:34.920 | Like, who cares what this person is in their crib,
00:33:37.640 | typing on the phone, like, who really is worried
00:33:40.640 | about what they're saying?
00:33:41.480 | - I don't get into all that.
00:33:42.320 | I'm not gonna lie, all that just be for clickbait, bro.
00:33:44.840 | I don't get into all that.
00:33:46.400 | I just stay in my lane, bro.
00:33:48.200 | They got it.
00:33:49.040 | - Right.
00:33:50.080 | - They got it, bro.
00:33:51.280 | - I think this has been, like, super inspiring.
00:33:56.360 | Like, I don't like to keep people on the podcast too long.
00:33:58.880 | I just, when I get people on here,
00:34:00.400 | I have specific questions that I wanna ask.
00:34:02.080 | - Yeah, yeah, for sure.
00:34:03.360 | - But I think, for me and you, we bond over the fact
00:34:05.840 | that we've both been through adversity
00:34:07.120 | and come out the other side.
00:34:07.960 | We're really both not supposed to be here,
00:34:09.280 | like, after things that we've been through.
00:34:11.080 | - Yeah.
00:34:12.640 | - And you inspire me to continue
00:34:15.680 | to put my message out there.
00:34:16.680 | You're very bold with yours, like, on social media.
00:34:19.440 | And I feel like that's something that you rarely see now,
00:34:22.760 | 'cause people are so worried about being canceled
00:34:25.440 | or they come off too strong.
00:34:27.680 | You know, the day and age we live in,
00:34:29.000 | people are so, like, man, people are out there now, bro.
00:34:33.040 | - Oh, it's bad.
00:34:34.480 | - If you are one way, like, you can just get,
00:34:36.880 | and you've never been someone who cared about this,
00:34:39.040 | so I'm the same way.
00:34:40.800 | That's why I do this podcast.
00:34:41.960 | I wanna say what I feel without,
00:34:44.160 | I'm not worried about stepping on anybody's toes,
00:34:46.120 | 'cause we never gonna change, like, our opinions.
00:34:48.560 | So I appreciate you getting on here
00:34:49.960 | and saying what you need to say, bro.
00:34:52.040 | - Yeah, I like this podcast, bro.
00:34:52.880 | I'm glad you're doing this, man.
00:34:53.720 | It's something that, you know,
00:34:54.680 | 'cause a lot of people don't even know,
00:34:56.000 | like, they just think,
00:34:57.880 | oh, we just supposed to just do basketball.
00:34:59.560 | It's basketball, basketball, basketball, basketball.
00:35:01.320 | That's not how it goes.
00:35:02.440 | Because we made it to the league, that's not how it goes.
00:35:04.480 | - Shut up and dribble, nigga.
00:35:05.320 | You know what the comment said?
00:35:08.480 | Like, shut up and dribble.
00:35:11.280 | - I want you to say nothing.
00:35:12.760 | - Me and AG put the parlay clip on there,
00:35:15.640 | put the parlay clip about, like, man.
00:35:17.960 | I asked him, like, bro,
00:35:19.120 | do you ever trip about the comments
00:35:21.240 | of people talking about the parlay
00:35:23.760 | and people talking about,
00:35:24.960 | oh, you messed up their parlay and you lost them money?
00:35:27.640 | And we put that on Instagram,
00:35:30.160 | and I'm expecting people to be like,
00:35:32.400 | man, like, people shouldn't be on that, whatever.
00:35:35.160 | I seen the comment, shut up and dribble, nigga.
00:35:38.560 | I was like, yo, are you kidding me?
00:35:40.760 | - Bro, they ruthless, bro, they don't care, bro.
00:35:43.440 | They really don't care.
00:35:45.320 | - But I just think we both are just,
00:35:47.000 | just literally just play basketball.
00:35:48.280 | Like, we have voices, too.
00:35:49.360 | Like, we have things that, other than basketball,
00:35:51.040 | that we're into, you know.
00:35:52.880 | For you, it's podcasts.
00:35:53.880 | For me, you know, it's making music and stuff like that.
00:35:56.440 | Just trying to just, you know,
00:35:58.400 | let people hear my message through my music.
00:36:00.520 | But, you know, that's something that, you know,
00:36:02.920 | I salute you on, too, man, just starting a podcast
00:36:04.840 | and just getting people on here and, like, you know,
00:36:06.640 | letting them, you know, you're using your platform
00:36:08.960 | to, you know, help me get my story out there.
00:36:10.440 | That's something that I appreciate, too, bro.
00:36:11.880 | Thank you for having me, for sure.
00:36:12.720 | - For real, bro, now, real quick,
00:36:14.240 | 'cause I did want to touch on the music
00:36:15.280 | real quick before you dip.
00:36:16.560 | So, you hoop, but you also do the music on the side.
00:36:19.760 | Is that something, like, therapeutic to you?
00:36:22.240 | Are you trying to get a message out there?
00:36:23.760 | What is the whole music thing about?
00:36:25.160 | 'Cause you're actually nice.
00:36:26.000 | - Yeah. (laughs)
00:36:26.840 | - Remember I was singing a song, though?
00:36:28.040 | - Yeah. (laughs)
00:36:29.360 | - Yeah, bro, so what's the whole music about?
00:36:31.480 | - Oh, man, so, like, you know, back, you know, in 2018,
00:36:34.240 | you know, with the tragedy thing that I was telling you
00:36:35.800 | about, you know, what happened to me, you know, my family.
00:36:38.320 | I was on, like, a house arrest, like, bed rest, basically.
00:36:41.080 | Like, I couldn't, like, leave the house, you know,
00:36:42.960 | I was recovering, you know, with my patella tendon.
00:36:45.040 | I was down for, like, six, seven months, bro.
00:36:47.480 | And I really couldn't do nothing,
00:36:48.600 | but I was in a crib with all my boys and shit,
00:36:50.360 | so I was just chilling.
00:36:51.200 | But I always had, like, a voice where I can, like,
00:36:53.360 | you know, sing and, like, harmonize beats
00:36:55.320 | and stuff like that.
00:36:56.160 | And so, I'm like, man, maybe I can give it a shot.
00:36:58.720 | But, like, my homeboys, they could, like,
00:37:00.400 | they really know how to rap.
00:37:01.760 | So, I'm like, all right, let me try this hook thing.
00:37:03.360 | I'ma just make the hook, and y'all make the verses,
00:37:05.680 | and we gon' see where we go from there.
00:37:07.240 | So, you know, I just start writing hooks down,
00:37:09.640 | and it just went from there, and a lot of people like,
00:37:11.720 | man, like, this John Hart.
00:37:13.800 | Like, we rockin' with this, y'all was flowin', bro.
00:37:16.880 | But this was, like, 2018, 2019.
00:37:19.300 | We started doing shows, bro.
00:37:21.000 | Like, getting paid for shows.
00:37:22.320 | (laughs)
00:37:23.560 | - Like, back at the crib?
00:37:24.520 | - Yes, bro, we was going around the whole Wilmington, bro,
00:37:26.440 | getting paid for shows, bro.
00:37:27.400 | We was turning it up, bro.
00:37:28.800 | Like, yes, bro, we was having a ball.
00:37:30.520 | I'm in there with the brace on,
00:37:31.880 | with the crutches performing.
00:37:33.760 | (laughs)
00:37:35.840 | - Bro, I was going, I ain't gonna lie,
00:37:37.520 | I had a lot of fun.
00:37:38.720 | Even though, like, that was a very low moment of my life,
00:37:41.400 | like, I really had a lot of fun, though.
00:37:42.840 | Like, 2018, 2019.
00:37:44.600 | But that really got me into the music, though, bro.
00:37:46.320 | Then I dropped a single, and it went crazy.
00:37:48.680 | - Which one is that again?
00:37:49.520 | - It's called, "We Gon' Shine."
00:37:51.360 | - What's the one I was singing that one, though?
00:37:53.000 | - It might be, it might be, is it the new one?
00:37:56.000 | - Nah, it's the older one, I think.
00:37:57.960 | I gotta look it up.
00:37:59.040 | But where do you wanna take the music?
00:38:00.400 | You wanna, like, actually, like,
00:38:03.120 | this is, like, a real thing you do?
00:38:04.760 | - Yeah, 'cause, like, the message that I put in my songs,
00:38:07.760 | bro, they're so inspiring to other people,
00:38:09.920 | like, you know, what they're going through.
00:38:11.360 | And they can relate to me through my music.
00:38:13.680 | So it's like, damn, like, I feel what he's saying.
00:38:16.520 | You know, just the background, how I came up and stuff.
00:38:18.520 | You know, what I've been through in my life.
00:38:20.120 | You know, just putting that all in a song.
00:38:22.400 | They like, yeah, like, that's something I can listen to.
00:38:24.600 | You know, 'cause I really don't sound like,
00:38:26.360 | you know, I sound like a real rapper, bro.
00:38:28.680 | And they like, yeah.
00:38:29.520 | (laughs)
00:38:30.640 | Like, damn, this music is really gold, bro.
00:38:32.640 | So I'm like, damn, I'm gonna just keep putting music out.
00:38:35.360 | I haven't dropped an album for, like, a year.
00:38:37.200 | They was on my ass about dropping an album.
00:38:39.200 | - And then you put the thing on the 'Gram,
00:38:40.720 | the little clip, and people was going crazy.
00:38:41.920 | - Yes, bro, the little Discard video that I had dropped.
00:38:44.680 | But, yeah, they were going crazy over the music, bro.
00:38:47.400 | They love it, bro.
00:38:48.240 | So I'm gonna definitely just keep going with it.
00:38:49.400 | I feel like it's gonna be great worldwide.
00:38:51.320 | I can't wait 'til so many more people hear my music, bro.
00:38:53.440 | - Especially when you get back and you're killing
00:38:55.960 | on the court like you're going to very soon.
00:38:57.680 | - Facts.
00:38:58.520 | - And then you're doing the music on top.
00:38:59.360 | Bro, keep sharing your message.
00:39:01.600 | Like, even though your story is so painful,
00:39:03.600 | like, that is an inspiring story, bro.
00:39:07.320 | And it's a testimony to God.
00:39:08.680 | Like, God says, like, your testimony will bring,
00:39:12.260 | people's testimony will bring other people to him.
00:39:15.040 | So that is, you know, you can really do that, bro.
00:39:18.560 | But I appreciate you for being you, dog.
00:39:20.600 | I appreciate you.
00:39:21.420 | I know you was scared to hop on the podcast.
00:39:23.260 | - Yeah, I was scared.
00:39:24.880 | - I hope I didn't ask you too many crazy questions, bro.
00:39:26.960 | - No, it was perfect, bro.
00:39:28.200 | It was perfect, man.
00:39:29.040 | I had a dope time here, bro.
00:39:30.240 | So I thank you for that, bro, for sure.
00:39:32.200 | - Curious Mike out.
00:39:33.720 | ♪ The name's FPJ ♪
00:39:34.560 | - Yes, sir.
00:39:35.400 | (hip hop music)
00:39:37.960 | Yes, sir.
00:39:39.200 | - My God, dog.
00:39:40.040 | It's a great job, dog.
00:39:41.000 | Fact.
00:39:41.840 | - Bro, I appreciate you, bro.
00:39:42.660 | - Yeah, for sure, man.
00:39:43.500 | You my guy.
00:39:44.340 | I ain't gonna lie.
00:39:45.160 | I really don't be doing the podcast.
00:39:46.000 | - I know, 'cause it's--
00:39:47.320 | - But it just always blow up, bro.
00:39:49.240 | - I know, bro.
00:39:50.080 | - And you know, everybody does everything for clickbait, bro.
00:39:52.200 | - Everything.
00:39:53.040 | You know, I'm not finna put,
00:39:53.880 | "Oh, Bones Highlands talks about--"
00:39:55.740 | - Yeah, that's it.
00:39:56.580 | - About, you know, like--
00:39:58.240 | - Oh my God, bro.
00:39:59.080 | - I really wanted to get you on here.
00:40:00.440 | The main thing was, like, your story, bro,
00:40:02.240 | 'cause I know it's not something
00:40:03.080 | you really talk about a lot,
00:40:04.760 | but it is, like, bro.
00:40:07.520 | You can change people's lives with your story, bro.
00:40:10.000 | - I feel like once a lot of people, like,
00:40:11.680 | were over here, they gonna be like,
00:40:12.520 | "Damn."
00:40:13.340 | Like, a lot of people, to this day, like,
00:40:14.180 | "Damn, that shit's fucking crazy."
00:40:15.760 | Like, what really made it, like, viral
00:40:18.320 | when we played in Philly, bro,
00:40:20.160 | and all the people came,
00:40:21.000 | and you know, I had explained my story,
00:40:22.560 | but I had dropped, you know, tears, you know,
00:40:24.520 | in the press conference.
00:40:26.040 | You know, I couldn't hold it in, bro.
00:40:27.360 | I just dropped tears, bro,
00:40:28.480 | and that really, like, blew up, man.
00:40:30.720 | A lot of people had caught up to my story,
00:40:32.200 | and like, "Damn, this kid is, like, inspiring."
00:40:34.480 | Like, it's no way he's still going.
00:40:36.680 | He's still smiling.
00:40:37.500 | He's just this joyful kid and shit like that.
00:40:38.340 | - I can't believe that, bro.
00:40:39.920 | Like, you literally just-- - Yeah.
00:40:41.520 | - You literally just was in your room chilling,
00:40:43.440 | and then you look out the door,
00:40:44.760 | and the flames were just going crazy.
00:40:45.600 | - Watch, man.
00:40:46.440 | I've never seen nothing like it in my life, bro.
00:40:47.960 | Just imagine you open a door, bro,
00:40:49.680 | and it's like, are you seeing this orange, blue,
00:40:52.160 | and, like, red?
00:40:53.000 | - Isn't that the craziest thing?
00:40:55.200 | - That was really, like, some movie shit.
00:40:56.520 | I watch movies, bro.
00:40:57.560 | It's like, they got all the time in the world, bro,
00:41:00.480 | to, like, just do all this fucking thinking,
00:41:02.480 | and it's like, you don't have that time, bro.
00:41:05.000 | I probably was in that room for, like, three minutes, bro.
00:41:07.320 | - And then you just was ready to give up and just--
00:41:09.280 | - Yeah, bro, I was gonna go, bro.
00:41:10.720 | I'm not gonna lie. - I can't believe that, bro.
00:41:11.960 | - I was gonna go.
00:41:12.800 | Like, the whole room was just cloudy
00:41:14.520 | and just full of, like, black smoke just coming in.
00:41:18.320 | I'm like, "Nah."
00:41:19.400 | But, you know, God's voice is so powerful, bro.
00:41:21.560 | - Bro, you heard it.
00:41:22.400 | You heard it. - Yes, bro.
00:41:23.220 | I swear, I was sitting there on my knees, bro,
00:41:25.800 | just ready just to go, bro.
00:41:26.960 | I just was like, "Damn, like, all right.
00:41:28.280 | "If it's my time, it's my time."
00:41:29.600 | Like, you know, I feel like, you know,
00:41:31.560 | when God gives his time to people,
00:41:32.640 | it's like, you know, he's calling them home.
00:41:34.120 | So I'm like, "All right, it is what it is.
00:41:35.640 | "Like, I'm just gonna go."
00:41:36.560 | But, bro, his voice so powerful, bro.
00:41:38.680 | I just heard it in my head, bro.
00:41:40.200 | Just get up.
00:41:41.040 | I got you.
00:41:41.860 | Like, just get up.
00:41:42.700 | - And then the reason your little nephew survived
00:41:44.160 | was because your grandma-- - My grandma was--
00:41:46.040 | - Hovering over him.
00:41:46.880 | - Hovered over him. - Yeah.
00:41:47.700 | - And she's burnt, charcoal, and then he survived.
00:41:49.720 | - Yep, mm-hmm, right over top, bro.
00:41:51.400 | - I can't believe, you said he was three weeks old.
00:41:53.280 | - He was three weeks, yeah.
00:41:54.520 | - I just can't believe, like, the smoke inhalation.
00:41:57.200 | - That's the grace of God.
00:41:58.040 | That was so crazy.
00:41:58.880 | Like, literally went to the hospital that night.
00:42:00.840 | Like, my grandma, she didn't, like, say she passed away yet.
00:42:05.640 | I think it, like, got to her, like, almost the next day,
00:42:08.120 | like, the middle of the night, and said she passed.
00:42:10.200 | But, like, I just kept hearing my, like, my nephew,
00:42:13.320 | he's, like, he has a chance to make it.
00:42:15.520 | Like, he's alive.
00:42:16.360 | Like, I'm like, "Wow, this is fucking crazy, bro."
00:42:19.480 | Like, but they sent up my other baby cousin that passed,
00:42:22.200 | but we literally had one more, just, like, just here.
00:42:25.200 | That's just the grace of God, bro.
00:42:26.600 | Like, it's just crazy.
00:42:27.440 | - Wait, who ran in?
00:42:28.280 | Was it the ambulance that ran in there and got them,
00:42:29.960 | or who was it?
00:42:30.800 | - Yeah, yeah, the ambulance ran in there and got them.
00:42:32.200 | But it, like, I live, like, literally down the street
00:42:36.720 | from the fire station.
00:42:38.720 | They took so long to get there.
00:42:40.640 | I'm like, bro, like, I swear to God, I can walk down there.
00:42:43.480 | Like, I'm like, bro, it's literally two blocks away.
00:42:46.600 | I don't understand what the fuck is taking so long,
00:42:48.520 | but they took forever to get there.
00:42:50.360 | But yeah, when they had walked out and walked them out
00:42:52.360 | and on a little stretcher thing, man,
00:42:54.000 | that shit was, like, really scary to see, dawg.
00:42:56.640 | But I'm just glad, like, I have, like, you know,
00:42:59.720 | you know, Lil Izzy here to, like,
00:43:01.840 | 'cause he don't really know.
00:43:03.400 | But, like, he asked me, like, you know,
00:43:05.360 | "We survived the fire, dah, dah, dah," like,
00:43:07.360 | and he don't really know what he really overcame, though.
00:43:10.080 | It's just, like, kind of-
00:43:10.920 | - He's five now?
00:43:11.760 | - Yeah, he's five now.
00:43:12.580 | Yeah, yeah, he don't really know, though.
00:43:13.520 | I'm just, like, damn, like,
00:43:15.000 | he's starting to catch on a little bit.
00:43:16.320 | So I know eventually, though, he gonna ask me, like,
00:43:18.960 | you know, what happened, and, you know,
00:43:21.480 | 'cause he be like, "Oh, I survived a house fire.
00:43:24.120 | "I, dah, dah, dah," and I'm like,
00:43:25.540 | "Damn, man, how the fuck do you know this?"
00:43:26.880 | Like, he catch on, though.
00:43:29.160 | But I know eventually, though, he gonna, like,
00:43:31.280 | yeah, bro, everybody loves him, bro.
00:43:34.040 | He still, oh my God, he remembers your name, bro.
00:43:36.760 | Yes, bro, he don't forget nobody name, bro.
00:43:39.760 | He dead-ass remembers your name, bro.
00:43:42.000 | He is crazy, dawg.
00:43:43.160 | Like, everybody on the team,
00:43:44.240 | he don't forget nobody name, bro.
00:43:45.960 | - Nah, he cool.
00:43:47.000 | - He like, you know, Sean, your old team,
00:43:48.560 | the Dipper Nuggies, (laughs)
00:43:50.760 | you play with the new team, the Clippers. (laughs)