Aaron Gordon On Winning The Championship, Living Life To The Fullest, And The Ups/Downs Of NBA Life
00:00:00.000 | (upbeat music)
00:00:02.580 | - Welcome back to another episode of Curious Mike.
00:00:11.640 | I'm here with my guy, A.G.
00:00:13.740 | A.K.A. one time champion, A.K.A. Tarzan.
00:00:17.840 | (laughing)
00:00:19.920 | Man, so I want to start off like in the hoop space
00:00:22.680 | and then we'll kind of transition to off the court stuff.
00:00:24.680 | But you came to Denver, I want to say two, three years ago,
00:00:29.200 | probably three years ago now.
00:00:31.080 | You came from Orlando.
00:00:32.200 | - It's gone quick.
00:00:33.120 | - Yeah, it really has.
00:00:34.760 | What was the difference to you from, you know,
00:00:37.200 | hooping in Orlando?
00:00:38.440 | We've talked about it a little bit,
00:00:39.520 | but like now playing in Denver,
00:00:40.960 | playing for a winning team,
00:00:42.320 | competing for a championship and all that.
00:00:44.280 | - Man, it was felt, it felt like,
00:00:46.400 | well the spacing on the floor was way different.
00:00:50.780 | Like being able to play between you, Jamal and Joker.
00:00:55.780 | - Yeah.
00:00:58.560 | - And like people have forgot about me.
00:01:01.440 | You know what I mean?
00:01:02.360 | Which is cool, yeah.
00:01:03.880 | So like I'm just getting in where I fit in.
00:01:05.560 | I'm getting easy layups.
00:01:07.120 | Everything that I got in Orlando,
00:01:08.600 | it was like, yo, that was tough.
00:01:10.280 | - That's a tough bucket.
00:01:11.120 | - Tough bucket.
00:01:11.940 | Like everyone was like, damn, that's a tough bucket, A.
00:01:13.840 | That's a tough bucket.
00:01:14.880 | And that was tough.
00:01:15.760 | That was tough.
00:01:16.600 | - Yeah.
00:01:17.440 | - When I came to Denver, it was like,
00:01:19.480 | okay, that's an easy, easy two, little back cut.
00:01:22.840 | I felt like playing in between y'all three,
00:01:26.240 | we can't lose, bro.
00:01:27.440 | - Yeah.
00:01:28.280 | - Like.
00:01:29.120 | - You over there, you were like, you were the man.
00:01:31.560 | You know, the go-to scorer.
00:01:32.600 | That's why everything was so tough.
00:01:33.880 | You know, teams, you know, game planning for you
00:01:36.480 | and you're like the man.
00:01:37.940 | And over here, you're obviously a big part
00:01:40.360 | of what we got going on,
00:01:41.520 | but you got so many good players on our team.
00:01:45.000 | So, you know, when they're worried about you,
00:01:46.600 | I'm getting an open three.
00:01:47.540 | When they're worried about me or KCP in the corners,
00:01:49.480 | you're getting a dunk.
00:01:50.580 | Was it hard to transition from being the man over there
00:01:55.600 | to kind of like filling a role over here or no?
00:01:58.560 | - Nah, not at first, not at first.
00:02:02.580 | Just 'cause, I mean, I get to play my role.
00:02:07.240 | - Yeah.
00:02:08.080 | - You know, I get to play the dunker.
00:02:09.400 | I get run outs, cuts, lobs.
00:02:12.720 | I can just, you know, shoot like spot ups.
00:02:15.420 | You know, like I can like fill in the gaps.
00:02:17.620 | - Yeah.
00:02:18.460 | - You know what I mean?
00:02:19.300 | Which is perfect for me.
00:02:20.120 | That's how I like to play.
00:02:20.960 | We move the ball here.
00:02:22.160 | The open man is the right man.
00:02:23.760 | And then, like y'all are so talented.
00:02:27.160 | Y'all are so skilled.
00:02:28.380 | You know what I mean?
00:02:29.220 | Like, I'm not even worried like what shots you guys take.
00:02:33.960 | - Don't say y'all, you got it too.
00:02:36.680 | - But it's true though, bro.
00:02:38.040 | Y'all are like, it's different.
00:02:41.000 | It was just like a different level of talent.
00:02:43.400 | - Yeah.
00:02:44.240 | - Coming from Orlando to Denver.
00:02:45.520 | It just was, the culture was already there.
00:02:48.720 | The skills that you guys had, the talent.
00:02:51.040 | It was just different, bro.
00:02:52.400 | - Yeah, talk a little bit about like the mentality
00:02:55.680 | and the difference between being on a winning team
00:02:58.600 | versus not.
00:02:59.440 | 'Cause you know, we all grew up,
00:03:00.680 | everyone in the league grew up being a man
00:03:02.400 | and they probably won tons and tons of games.
00:03:04.960 | But you get to the NBA and depending on where
00:03:07.320 | you get drafted, you might be on one of those teams
00:03:10.320 | that really doesn't win like a whole lot of games.
00:03:12.260 | And I feel like a lot of players kind of develop
00:03:14.600 | the mentality of like, man, this is just what it is.
00:03:16.940 | I'm chilling.
00:03:17.780 | Like my team's not probably gonna make the playoffs.
00:03:19.320 | We definitely not winning the championship.
00:03:21.120 | I'm gonna just show up to work and kind of leave.
00:03:23.840 | And we've talked about that before,
00:03:24.940 | how, man, y'all weren't even really tripping.
00:03:27.320 | Y'all would just show up to work and then hop in your whips
00:03:29.880 | in the 80 degree weather in Orlando.
00:03:32.560 | - That's real, bro.
00:03:33.560 | - That's crazy.
00:03:34.400 | - That's real.
00:03:35.320 | Charles Barkley, he was talking to my dad.
00:03:39.320 | And he was like, you know, if you're gonna lose,
00:03:42.120 | Orlando's not a bad place to lose it.
00:03:44.160 | - Facts.
00:03:45.240 | - It's 80 degree weather.
00:03:47.240 | So people were coming in, kind of just like
00:03:50.520 | showing up, doing their job,
00:03:52.200 | hopping back in there like drop top or whatever,
00:03:54.320 | you know what I mean?
00:03:55.160 | Going back home and enjoying the city.
00:03:56.880 | Orlando's a great city when it comes down to it.
00:03:58.920 | - You got the crib out there.
00:04:00.600 | - Yeah, it's an underrated city.
00:04:02.520 | But just like the culture, it just,
00:04:06.560 | it wasn't a winning culture.
00:04:07.920 | Like I think they're getting it together now.
00:04:10.640 | You know, they're starting to get it together.
00:04:12.400 | They're a good team now.
00:04:13.800 | But when I was in Orlando,
00:04:16.600 | shoot, it was six different coaches.
00:04:19.800 | - How many years?
00:04:20.640 | Every year?
00:04:21.460 | - Yeah, I had five different coaches in six years.
00:04:23.480 | And four different GMs.
00:04:25.440 | And so there was no stability.
00:04:28.760 | It was like you were a rookie every year.
00:04:30.400 | You were having to like try and prove yourself.
00:04:32.600 | - Different plays, different strategies, that's tough.
00:04:35.360 | - It was tough, bro, it was tough.
00:04:36.960 | And try and like lead the organization
00:04:39.520 | in the right direction.
00:04:40.880 | And it was difficult, bro.
00:04:42.880 | - Yeah, that's crazy to think about.
00:04:45.120 | Yeah, so now you in Denver,
00:04:46.480 | and we, you know, just came off of a chip.
00:04:50.080 | What was your favorite, you know, moments in the playoffs?
00:04:53.440 | Did you always kind of feel like,
00:04:54.360 | man, like we are for sure winning a championship?
00:04:56.680 | Or kind of what was your like mentality in the playoffs?
00:05:00.160 | For me, it felt like,
00:05:02.080 | except for that Suns series when they tied it up 2-2,
00:05:05.200 | I was kind of like, man, like nobody's touching us right now.
00:05:07.800 | Like that's how it felt for the most part.
00:05:09.560 | Minnesota's a good team and they're balling this year.
00:05:12.000 | But that series, you know, they got one game.
00:05:14.240 | I kind of felt like we always were in control a little bit.
00:05:17.280 | But what was your favorite moments
00:05:18.440 | from the playoffs in that championship run?
00:05:20.640 | - Man, my favorite moments?
00:05:22.320 | I always have to say that was a great run, man.
00:05:27.040 | We were real dominant.
00:05:28.320 | - Yeah.
00:05:29.240 | - We lost four games.
00:05:30.480 | - One in Minnesota, two Suns, one Miami, yeah.
00:05:35.000 | And really like could have won all those games.
00:05:38.120 | - We really, yeah, right.
00:05:39.680 | - Book and KD like dominant,
00:05:42.040 | they were dominant in those two games that they won.
00:05:44.640 | Minnesota, that game that they won, it went into overtime.
00:05:48.040 | That was one of my favorite moments of the playoffs.
00:05:52.720 | That Minnesota, the game that we lost in,
00:05:55.600 | we were down like 12 or something like that.
00:05:59.160 | - We were like a minute and a half, two minutes.
00:06:01.560 | - Tied it up.
00:06:02.400 | That was crazy.
00:06:03.240 | I was like, oh, okay, we're serious.
00:06:04.440 | Like we got no quitting us.
00:06:06.680 | Like we could really do this.
00:06:08.280 | That was a, and then like, you know,
00:06:09.760 | obviously just winning it, bro.
00:06:11.000 | Like the champagne showers is so sick.
00:06:13.080 | - We was in the locker room.
00:06:14.040 | Yeah, people don't know.
00:06:14.880 | We were in the locker room for hours on hours.
00:06:17.320 | Like after we won the tip, you know,
00:06:20.600 | the celebration's on the court,
00:06:21.800 | then you move it to the locker room.
00:06:23.040 | And we were in there just going crazy for hours.
00:06:25.520 | Then we went over to the warehouse,
00:06:27.920 | had it popping in there.
00:06:29.680 | But people don't even, it was weird
00:06:31.880 | because I don't know if you thought it was weird.
00:06:33.160 | Like that night we won the championship, it was so lit.
00:06:36.280 | And then the next day we had nothing to do.
00:06:38.200 | And then the day after that, there was nothing.
00:06:39.800 | And then the parade was like, the day after,
00:06:42.280 | it was so, it was kind of weird.
00:06:43.520 | - What was your favorite,
00:06:45.360 | just during the whole celebration,
00:06:47.080 | what was your favorite part about that?
00:06:49.520 | Was it the parade?
00:06:50.360 | Was it right after?
00:06:51.200 | What was it?
00:06:52.600 | - Man, the locker room was cracking.
00:06:54.840 | - Cracking, it was like a club in there.
00:06:57.720 | - It was, bro, it was like a club in the locker room.
00:07:00.440 | It was just drenched, like soaked in champagne.
00:07:02.880 | Like the alcohol, it was like Loki burning my nostrils.
00:07:06.040 | Like it was so-- - Yeah, in the air, bro.
00:07:07.800 | - It was so thick.
00:07:09.040 | Like the cigar smoke was so thick.
00:07:11.560 | And then I was lit.
00:07:13.520 | I was lit on the way back to my place.
00:07:17.360 | So I jumped out of the car.
00:07:19.520 | And I was through the streets. - I forgot about that, bro.
00:07:22.640 | - Yeah.
00:07:23.480 | - And like people were double-taking.
00:07:24.760 | They were like, "Oh shit, that's eight."
00:07:26.920 | I was like, "Gee, really?"
00:07:28.120 | So it went from like 10 people to like 30 people
00:07:32.320 | to like 70 people.
00:07:33.720 | We were in the streets and I'm like bodying people,
00:07:35.760 | like trying to get through.
00:07:36.760 | Like a little kid walked up and I bodied him.
00:07:39.320 | It was all bad, bro.
00:07:41.080 | - You were a dolo, you bodied yourself?
00:07:42.760 | - Yeah, I had like a couple of my homies,
00:07:44.160 | but they're not like built like we are, you know what I mean?
00:07:46.720 | So they're getting kind of like moved around in the crowd.
00:07:49.760 | Like I'm moving.
00:07:50.600 | For real, like I kicked a little kid over.
00:07:52.680 | I know I felt bad.
00:07:54.520 | He looked up at me.
00:07:55.360 | His eyes were like tearing up.
00:07:57.120 | - Yo, 'cause you was really in the streets.
00:07:59.320 | Like you were out there.
00:08:00.640 | - I was like, I picked him up.
00:08:01.880 | I was like, "Where are your parents?"
00:08:03.000 | And then like kept it moving, you know what I mean?
00:08:04.800 | Like it was nuts.
00:08:06.200 | It got hectic.
00:08:07.040 | Like right as it was about to get like overwhelming,
00:08:10.640 | where it got to like 115 people,
00:08:12.840 | like just like mob in the street,
00:08:15.480 | like fireworks going off and stuff,
00:08:17.480 | a media team like picked me up
00:08:18.920 | and I like jumped in the car and like came to the lounge.
00:08:21.200 | - Oh, for real?
00:08:22.040 | - Yeah.
00:08:22.880 | - Man, bro, when I saw those videos, I was weak.
00:08:24.520 | 'Cause like only you would do that.
00:08:26.240 | Only you out of all people would just be in the streets,
00:08:29.400 | celebrating with the fans.
00:08:30.520 | I know obviously they really appreciate it.
00:08:32.000 | AG is a man of the people.
00:08:33.800 | For those of you that don't know,
00:08:34.760 | like that's just your personality.
00:08:36.480 | So that was dope.
00:08:37.320 | But I saw the videos.
00:08:39.360 | Like people doing like pull-ups on the light post.
00:08:42.880 | - That's cracking.
00:08:43.720 | - Man, it was crazy.
00:08:44.760 | Like that definitely was one of those memories.
00:08:47.120 | It's crazy because like the celebration lasted,
00:08:50.000 | you get to the parade and now,
00:08:52.000 | since then it's been, can they repeat?
00:08:53.760 | Like that's the topic so quick.
00:08:56.000 | - Yeah.
00:08:56.840 | - You know, after we just did something so big.
00:08:59.200 | But I feel like even though we lost some key pieces,
00:09:02.360 | Bruce, Jeff, we still got a squad.
00:09:04.600 | You know, these young guys are,
00:09:05.960 | we got a lot of young guys who can hoop.
00:09:09.320 | Kind of what do you think about our culture,
00:09:11.600 | about our team, makes our team special?
00:09:15.400 | - I mean, you guys have been with Mike Malone
00:09:22.400 | pretty much the whole time.
00:09:24.120 | So you know how he is.
00:09:25.760 | So you guys have an understanding of like
00:09:28.120 | what he's looking for, like how he's gonna react,
00:09:31.720 | like what's gonna trigger him,
00:09:32.920 | what's gonna set him off, you know,
00:09:34.120 | what's gonna keep him cool.
00:09:35.600 | And then it gotta come down to a big fella.
00:09:37.960 | - Yeah, for sure.
00:09:38.800 | - Like he's a great leader.
00:09:42.120 | - Yeah.
00:09:42.960 | - You know what I mean?
00:09:43.800 | When it comes down to it, like he's there on time,
00:09:47.920 | every day he's on time, if not early.
00:09:51.520 | He works out in the morning, he gets his reps in,
00:09:54.720 | he goes to the game, does what he does in the game,
00:09:56.800 | and then after the game he lifts weights.
00:09:58.720 | - Yeah.
00:09:59.560 | - You know, so like he works religiously every single day.
00:10:04.000 | And he's humble, he shares the ball.
00:10:05.560 | So when you have a two-time MVP and a one-time finals MVP
00:10:09.640 | that's so selfless, everybody else gotta,
00:10:13.240 | I mean like what else can you ask for?
00:10:15.640 | Everybody else gotta be selfless too.
00:10:17.280 | Like if he can do it, everybody can be selfless.
00:10:20.000 | So I think like big fella, he's a beast, bro.
00:10:24.440 | - Man, unbelievable.
00:10:25.840 | Like I saw something the other day about like the tears
00:10:29.200 | of the best NBA players and they had like Joker
00:10:31.720 | in a tear of his own.
00:10:32.920 | I think that's the first time people have really
00:10:34.400 | put respect on him, like that dude is unique.
00:10:37.400 | You know what I mean?
00:10:38.240 | He may not look the part, but you watch him play
00:10:41.920 | night in, night out, that dude is the best basketball player
00:10:44.680 | I have ever seen in my life.
00:10:45.920 | Like from the passing to the, it's so crazy.
00:10:49.560 | It's crazy what he can do.
00:10:50.880 | And I think like early on in my career with the Nuggets,
00:10:55.880 | he really wasn't that into it.
00:10:57.680 | Like he was good, but he wasn't like,
00:10:59.960 | he didn't care that much.
00:11:01.280 | But he has grown every single year,
00:11:04.720 | like even after his MVP year.
00:11:06.120 | How do you get better after an MVP year?
00:11:07.680 | And he did it.
00:11:08.680 | Then he was back to back MVP.
00:11:09.840 | And now how is he better this year?
00:11:11.840 | After we just won a championship.
00:11:13.920 | - He's better.
00:11:14.760 | - You go back to Serbia and I just talked to him today.
00:11:17.480 | He was like, man, brother, I was drinking six beers a day.
00:11:19.840 | You know, he probably didn't touch a basketball.
00:11:21.600 | Like how do you get better from last year to this?
00:11:24.480 | And it's just, it's crazy.
00:11:26.160 | But talking about Joker, you and him,
00:11:28.600 | y'all mesh like really well.
00:11:29.960 | Like as good a chemistry as me and Joke have,
00:11:31.800 | as good a chemistry as him and Jamal have.
00:11:34.760 | You and his chemistry, you know, around the rim,
00:11:37.080 | you know, the lobs, when he's catching the pocket,
00:11:39.160 | throwing you the lobs.
00:11:40.440 | You compliment each other probably
00:11:42.240 | as good as any two players in the league.
00:11:44.360 | How do you think you guys developed that?
00:11:46.240 | And is it just like your games?
00:11:48.480 | Or did it happen over time?
00:11:50.280 | Are you guys having conversations?
00:11:51.360 | I know y'all sit right next to each other in the locker room.
00:11:54.720 | - I just like to play the right way.
00:11:56.520 | And I think he likes to play the right way too.
00:11:58.800 | So that's like a, like a mutual understanding.
00:12:03.120 | You know what I mean?
00:12:03.960 | Right off the rip, like, okay, if you're open,
00:12:06.360 | I'm gonna hit you.
00:12:07.360 | You know, if you make this cut, I'll find you.
00:12:09.840 | You know, if you don't shoot this, you be patient,
00:12:12.800 | the ball will come back around to you.
00:12:14.920 | Stay open, keep your hands ready.
00:12:16.720 | And I think that, I think that helped.
00:12:20.440 | I used to play point when I was growing up.
00:12:23.120 | He's like basically a point center.
00:12:25.400 | So, you know, you got like your front court,
00:12:28.760 | kind of think like a back court.
00:12:30.280 | - Yeah, that's true.
00:12:31.560 | - So we're kind of like on the same page,
00:12:33.240 | like on the same wave when it comes to that.
00:12:35.200 | - Yeah.
00:12:36.040 | - And that helps out a lot.
00:12:37.480 | - That makes sense.
00:12:38.520 | That makes sense.
00:12:39.920 | One thing about you is you stay off of Instagram
00:12:43.520 | for the most part.
00:12:44.360 | You know, me and you both kind of do that in spurts.
00:12:47.920 | You get on, you get off.
00:12:50.200 | What's your reasoning for that?
00:12:51.240 | And then my follow-up question is,
00:12:53.760 | how do you deal with the criticism versus the praise?
00:12:57.440 | Like there's so much now that we have to deal with
00:13:00.600 | in the NBA now, even more than guys in the past
00:13:03.040 | had to deal with.
00:13:03.880 | Like if I go through my DMs right now,
00:13:06.480 | half of them are people that do the sports better.
00:13:09.240 | - That parlay, huh?
00:13:10.080 | - And it's like, it's either, bro, you just made me
00:13:14.560 | so much money, thank you.
00:13:15.560 | You're my favorite player now, dah, dah, dah, dah, dah.
00:13:17.400 | Or it's, go kill yourself.
00:13:19.480 | I hope you tear an ACL, I hope you never,
00:13:22.080 | like it's the craziest on both sides of the scale.
00:13:27.080 | - That's not an over-exaggeration.
00:13:30.520 | - I hope you tear your ACL.
00:13:31.960 | I hope you never-- - I hope you die.
00:13:33.520 | - It's the craziest, like I'm looking at my DMs,
00:13:35.480 | I'm like, yo.
00:13:36.680 | So for a lot of people, that can make you kind of like,
00:13:39.640 | want to stay out the spotlight,
00:13:41.080 | kind of get off of the 'gram.
00:13:42.420 | Like what's your reasoning for that?
00:13:43.760 | And then how do you deal with people like that?
00:13:46.000 | Because I really think the sports betting stuff
00:13:48.160 | is a bad place our game is going
00:13:52.520 | because these people would really be mad, bro.
00:13:54.440 | Like you, if you, you may have a great game, 25 and 10,
00:13:59.120 | but they had you getting, you know, 25 and 11 or something,
00:14:03.040 | and now they're really hot.
00:14:05.000 | Like they really lost some money 'cause of you,
00:14:06.560 | you know what I'm saying?
00:14:07.400 | So how do you deal with all that?
00:14:09.160 | - Man, that's big, man, that's really big.
00:14:12.320 | It's a part of it now, it's a part of today's game.
00:14:14.320 | Like somebody who's like, yo, I lost my apartment on you.
00:14:18.200 | Today, I was, or after the Knicks game,
00:14:21.640 | I played really bad.
00:14:23.040 | - Yeah.
00:14:23.960 | - I seen that, and I was like,
00:14:25.760 | ain't nobody tell you to bet your apartment on me
00:14:27.720 | in the first place.
00:14:28.560 | - So it don't faze you for real?
00:14:29.380 | - Yeah, me?
00:14:30.220 | - Yeah, for real.
00:14:31.040 | - Why you putting where you live up on a basketball game?
00:14:35.560 | - Yeah.
00:14:36.400 | - Nah, figure out, first off,
00:14:37.840 | figure out a better hustle than that.
00:14:39.440 | - Yeah.
00:14:40.280 | - Well, I think of it like, like the trolls,
00:14:44.120 | like you said, like the criticism and like the praise.
00:14:46.520 | - Yeah, how do you balance it out and how do you,
00:14:48.280 | is that why you stay off of social media a lot?
00:14:50.120 | - I think of it like, I think of it like salt and sugar.
00:14:53.140 | Too much of either will kill you.
00:14:55.840 | - Yeah.
00:14:56.680 | - You know what I mean?
00:14:57.760 | So people will tell you, you're the best, you're the best,
00:14:59.880 | you're the best, you're the best, you're the best,
00:15:01.240 | you're gonna get soft, you know?
00:15:02.880 | If you buy into that, if people say you're the worst,
00:15:05.300 | you're the worst, you're the worst, you're the worst,
00:15:06.620 | you're gonna get like cynical,
00:15:07.920 | or you're gonna get like discouraged.
00:15:11.600 | - Yeah.
00:15:12.580 | - That's kind of why I stay off of Instagram.
00:15:15.360 | - Yeah.
00:15:16.200 | - Because, you know, Instagram allows people
00:15:20.000 | that don't know you, don't care about you,
00:15:22.760 | really idolize you.
00:15:24.240 | - Yeah.
00:15:25.080 | - It gives them access to you to say whatever
00:15:26.960 | they'd like to say to you.
00:15:28.180 | - Right.
00:15:29.020 | - And you know, you go through that and you read it.
00:15:31.120 | You know, I, I don't know, bro.
00:15:34.760 | I'm not really rocking with IG like that.
00:15:36.800 | - Yeah.
00:15:37.640 | - But it's good for like, you know,
00:15:40.520 | it's good for like marketing.
00:15:42.120 | You know, my agency wants me to be on there,
00:15:44.400 | but it's like really distracting.
00:15:46.640 | I see things that aren't for me.
00:15:48.200 | - It's distracting, and it's like,
00:15:50.760 | people think because you're making all this money
00:15:53.000 | and you live a good life and you live in a nice place,
00:15:56.800 | that certain things don't affect you.
00:15:58.920 | But everybody is human, and when people, you know,
00:16:01.920 | it could be a nobody.
00:16:03.600 | When they're praising you, you know, you appreciate that.
00:16:06.320 | If someone on the street, good game, Mike,
00:16:08.360 | like I appreciate that.
00:16:09.300 | But also on the flip side, when people,
00:16:11.160 | even if they have nothing to do with your life,
00:16:12.920 | if you're reading enough of the negative stuff,
00:16:15.360 | it affects you, bro.
00:16:16.200 | We're all human.
00:16:17.020 | So I totally agree with you.
00:16:18.680 | - Plus like the trolls on the same side,
00:16:22.200 | like the same person, like the internet gangster,
00:16:26.360 | like they're just gonna like say something like,
00:16:28.000 | "Man, you suck.
00:16:28.840 | "Like you're the worst basketball player ever."
00:16:31.000 | - Yeah.
00:16:31.840 | - "Over the keyboard."
00:16:32.660 | If they see you in person, they're gonna be like,
00:16:33.500 | "Oh my God, Michael Porter, please.
00:16:35.840 | "Can I get an autograph?"
00:16:37.160 | You know what I mean?
00:16:38.000 | So it's like, it's a little phony, bro.
00:16:41.000 | There's a facade.
00:16:42.320 | There's a facade to social media.
00:16:44.560 | - Big facade.
00:16:45.400 | That's crazy 'cause that's such a big part
00:16:46.920 | of the world we live in now.
00:16:48.000 | But speaking of social media,
00:16:50.560 | one of your last posts was you on your birthday.
00:16:54.760 | You was in the helicopter.
00:16:56.140 | Man, in some place.
00:16:59.540 | But off of the court, people don't know
00:17:01.400 | how dope of a dude you are,
00:17:03.440 | but you're one of a kind.
00:17:06.840 | Out of all the guys on our teams,
00:17:08.000 | you're one of those dudes who really lives life
00:17:09.640 | to the fullest.
00:17:10.600 | - I appreciate that, Mike.
00:17:11.800 | - In the off season, you're traveling.
00:17:14.000 | You're riding your motorcycle around town.
00:17:16.040 | You've got the warehouses.
00:17:17.440 | That is some of the dopest spots I've ever seen.
00:17:19.920 | But who are you as a person off the court
00:17:23.640 | that people probably don't know about?
00:17:24.720 | What's some of your hobbies?
00:17:26.520 | - Man, the motorcycle.
00:17:28.360 | I love riding the bikes.
00:17:29.880 | That's fun.
00:17:30.720 | I don't do it too much during the wintertime.
00:17:35.340 | I'll ride a little bit during the summertime.
00:17:38.920 | I mean, I just, I want to experience what life has to offer.
00:17:42.160 | - Yeah.
00:17:43.000 | - And be grateful doing it,
00:17:46.880 | and just experience.
00:17:51.120 | I guess that's what it comes down to.
00:17:52.400 | I love to travel, like you said.
00:17:53.880 | Go see different cultures, eat different foods.
00:17:57.440 | Go turn up at different spots around the world.
00:18:00.880 | - And you sometimes go solo.
00:18:03.480 | - Yeah, yeah.
00:18:04.400 | I'll go dolo or meet somebody out there.
00:18:07.080 | - Yeah.
00:18:08.760 | - I just spent maybe six weeks in Spain this past summer.
00:18:13.760 | I just got a little house out there and was working out,
00:18:17.880 | and just immersing myself in the culture.
00:18:19.880 | I don't know, man.
00:18:21.680 | I just like to have fun.
00:18:24.160 | - That's dope.
00:18:25.000 | - I like to have fun.
00:18:25.820 | - Where were you in that picture with the helicopter?
00:18:30.200 | How did that even, 'cause some people seen that,
00:18:32.560 | and I'm like, man, how did he even arrange that?
00:18:35.200 | Where were you, and what was that all about?
00:18:37.320 | - I'm gonna give you the play, bro.
00:18:38.980 | I'll give you the whole play.
00:18:40.920 | You go to Geneva, right?
00:18:42.800 | - Yeah.
00:18:43.640 | - Go get you a couple of watches in Geneva.
00:18:47.640 | It's clean.
00:18:49.200 | I picked up a couple of Pateks and a Roli.
00:18:53.180 | - They real or they fake?
00:18:54.480 | - Nah, they real.
00:18:55.320 | - Oh, okay, okay, okay.
00:18:56.560 | - China boys.
00:18:58.480 | - China boys be having a fake one?
00:18:59.600 | - China boys be a little suspect.
00:19:02.920 | But yeah, you go to Geneva,
00:19:04.600 | and then there's a hotel in a place called Val's.
00:19:08.640 | I forget exactly what the hotel's called,
00:19:11.220 | but they'll send you a helicopter to Geneva,
00:19:14.320 | pick you up in Geneva, fly you to basically the Swiss Alps,
00:19:18.320 | and then it's a hotel that's tucked in the Swiss Alps.
00:19:22.000 | Just spent my birthday there, 'cause I had been working,
00:19:26.520 | so I wanted to go to a spa, basically.
00:19:29.960 | - Yeah, relax.
00:19:31.040 | - Yeah, just relax, so we kicked it,
00:19:32.680 | and then we took the helicopter.
00:19:34.880 | When we landed in Val's,
00:19:36.720 | there was a black car waiting for us, it was clean.
00:19:38.680 | Like the helicopter just landed on the pad,
00:19:40.240 | hopped on the black car, and then later that day,
00:19:43.040 | or the next day, actually, we hopped back in the helicopter,
00:19:46.280 | and we went up to the Alps
00:19:47.600 | and had like a little picnic on the Swiss Alps.
00:19:49.560 | - You and who?
00:19:50.800 | (both laughing)
00:19:53.400 | - Me and--
00:19:54.240 | - And your homeboy?
00:19:55.400 | - Me and the Jane of my Tarzan.
00:19:58.480 | - Okay, that's tough.
00:20:00.120 | Is she still the Jane of your Tarzan?
00:20:01.640 | - Yeah. - Okay, that's lit.
00:20:03.800 | Man, so now that you've been around the world
00:20:05.520 | and you've seen so much, experienced so much,
00:20:09.280 | what do you wanna do after Hoop?
00:20:11.000 | I mean, this isn't gonna last forever.
00:20:12.880 | You know, you made a ton of money Hooping,
00:20:15.560 | we won a championship, you know.
00:20:17.400 | You've accomplished a lot in your career,
00:20:18.920 | and we got a lot more to accomplish,
00:20:20.360 | but it's not gonna last forever,
00:20:21.480 | so after this, what you think you wanna do?
00:20:23.800 | I feel like you'd probably just be one of them dudes
00:20:27.520 | that's just gonna be chilling, traveling, enjoying life,
00:20:30.360 | but correct me if I'm wrong,
00:20:31.280 | what do you wanna do?
00:20:32.560 | - Well, I still want to, I mean,
00:20:36.760 | between now and the time I retire,
00:20:38.400 | I wanna continue to acquire skills for off the court,
00:20:43.400 | whether it be learning a different language,
00:20:46.760 | or learn how to code, or finance, or law,
00:20:50.880 | so learn different languages that can open doors
00:20:53.400 | and pathways in different respected careers.
00:20:59.320 | Yeah, I mean, the traveling and the chilling,
00:21:04.040 | I feel like it's gonna get boring.
00:21:05.800 | - You think so?
00:21:06.640 | - After maybe like two years, three years.
00:21:08.360 | - Yeah.
00:21:09.200 | - You know, we're competitive, we like stuff,
00:21:11.920 | we like to go get it, you know what I mean?
00:21:15.520 | We like to hustle, you know?
00:21:17.000 | That's why we've gotten to the place that we're at,
00:21:18.960 | is 'cause we like to hustle,
00:21:19.840 | so I feel like that hustle is gonna trigger.
00:21:22.600 | So, you know, right now, my brother and my sister,
00:21:28.600 | they've created a sports agency and a media agency,
00:21:33.600 | a conglomerate, and it's a startup,
00:21:38.920 | so they're starting to build that out.
00:21:42.760 | Hopefully by the time I retire, you know,
00:21:44.680 | there'll be a place for me in that company,
00:21:47.280 | and I can do like a sports and entertainment,
00:21:50.800 | marketing and media conglomerate.
00:21:52.820 | I think that's a way to stay around the game.
00:21:56.960 | - Yeah.
00:21:57.800 | - You know, help up-and-coming kids
00:21:59.440 | that may not have the right representation,
00:22:02.800 | or might not have the right people around them,
00:22:05.400 | and then put the right people around them
00:22:06.800 | so that they can succeed and that they can, in turn,
00:22:09.120 | make buku bread in the NBA and give back to their family
00:22:12.840 | and pay it forward, so good way to stay around the game
00:22:16.080 | and help kids coming up.
00:22:18.960 | - 100%.
00:22:19.800 | - That's what I'm thinking.
00:22:20.720 | - That's dope, yeah.
00:22:21.560 | I wanna talk to your brother more about that agency.
00:22:24.800 | In five, no, I'ma say in 10 years,
00:22:27.120 | 'cause for people that don't know AG,
00:22:30.200 | he's a young player, you know what I'm saying?
00:22:32.160 | He kinda, he got the juice, he be,
00:22:34.760 | he's the dude, you know, around Denver, but everywhere,
00:22:37.600 | you know, he's the dude, everywhere we go,
00:22:39.120 | this is the dude, you know, the females love him, all that.
00:22:42.520 | In 10 years, do you see yourself settled down with a girl?
00:22:47.140 | Do you, what's your views on marriage?
00:22:49.680 | Do you think you'll ever settle down or not?
00:22:52.200 | - Yeah, for sure.
00:22:53.800 | (laughing)
00:22:54.640 | I don't know, man.
00:22:55.480 | - I'ma settle down, I'll definitely settle down.
00:22:57.760 | - In 10 years, you think you'll be married?
00:23:00.000 | - Yeah, in 10 years.
00:23:01.320 | I think I'll be married in five years.
00:23:03.840 | - You the type, if you meet a girl
00:23:05.440 | and you really clicking with her,
00:23:06.720 | like, it probably wouldn't take you long to be like,
00:23:08.840 | nah, I just wanna marry this girl.
00:23:10.040 | - Yeah, I'll lock in.
00:23:11.600 | I mean, I've been in the NBA since I was 18.
00:23:13.980 | - Yeah.
00:23:14.820 | - You know what I mean?
00:23:15.640 | So I grew up in this, I've seen the ins and outs,
00:23:17.560 | I've done this, that, the third.
00:23:20.120 | - Yeah.
00:23:20.960 | - You know, all of that, it's exhausting.
00:23:23.320 | - Yeah.
00:23:24.160 | - You in a different page.
00:23:24.980 | - Being in the streets, being in the streets is exhausting.
00:23:26.880 | (laughing)
00:23:27.720 | - I'm sure.
00:23:28.540 | - Being outside, it's tiring.
00:23:30.140 | - I'm not saying marriage isn't tiring and exhausting
00:23:34.120 | in its own right, you know, it is work.
00:23:37.160 | But if you find the right woman,
00:23:39.320 | it can be completely empowering.
00:23:41.520 | - Yeah.
00:23:42.840 | - What's a king without a queen?
00:23:44.480 | (laughing)
00:23:46.680 | It's real.
00:23:47.520 | - Dude.
00:23:48.340 | - It's real.
00:23:49.180 | - Dude got some knowledge on him, don't he?
00:23:51.160 | So like, what would it take for you
00:23:53.920 | to settle down with a girl?
00:23:54.880 | Like, what is your ideal type of a woman?
00:23:58.080 | - Very like, caring.
00:24:04.720 | Very nice.
00:24:06.400 | Very intelligent.
00:24:08.480 | Very real, down to earth.
00:24:11.720 | Good head on her shoulder, good family background.
00:24:14.420 | Beautiful, and would make a good mother, you know?
00:24:20.720 | - Good facts.
00:24:21.560 | - I think that's what it comes down to.
00:24:22.960 | - It's crazy 'cause most of the dudes in the league,
00:24:24.760 | like, it get hard because most of the dudes
00:24:27.680 | that are married, kind of in our profession,
00:24:29.920 | they kind of met their girl in high school
00:24:32.680 | and it was their childhood sweetheart
00:24:34.160 | who they got married to.
00:24:36.880 | Guys in our position, it's hard, like,
00:24:40.600 | once you have what you have and you are who you are
00:24:42.960 | to meet a female who you can like, trust and who you--
00:24:47.200 | - Man, check this out.
00:24:48.440 | - But look, he be going overseas
00:24:49.680 | and he told me you gotta go find one overseas.
00:24:52.240 | - Yeah, they know football over there,
00:24:56.360 | you know what I mean?
00:24:57.200 | They know soccer players, they don't really know
00:24:58.360 | basketball players like that.
00:25:00.120 | Check this out, I went on a date with this girl one time.
00:25:02.960 | I forget where we were going.
00:25:06.200 | Where was it at?
00:25:07.040 | Might have been in like, Chicago or something like that.
00:25:11.200 | We went on a date.
00:25:12.800 | I got to the spot, right?
00:25:14.400 | We were just sitting at the bar,
00:25:15.840 | waiting for our table, getting drinks, whatever.
00:25:18.640 | She opened up her phone.
00:25:20.000 | The last thing she had on her phone
00:25:21.400 | was Aaron Gordon's network.
00:25:22.760 | - You know what I'm saying?
00:25:23.720 | See what I'm saying, bro?
00:25:24.800 | - You feel me?
00:25:25.640 | I was like, yo, this is wild, yo.
00:25:28.240 | - And females are smart these days
00:25:30.400 | because they can put off an image
00:25:32.200 | to where like, they don't care about that,
00:25:35.240 | they're not in it for the bread.
00:25:37.200 | They just have your best interest at heart,
00:25:39.720 | but man, deep down somewhere,
00:25:42.880 | like, if you was just a regular dude,
00:25:45.040 | who knows if she'd be messing with you.
00:25:46.560 | So how do you think you can tell them?
00:25:48.320 | - Like, I'm trying to tell you this right now.
00:25:50.880 | Just like you said, like, when you get to this level,
00:25:54.320 | there's certain girls that mess with you just for,
00:25:56.840 | you know, like, the clout, the money,
00:26:00.640 | that thing, the security.
00:26:02.000 | But no, there are real ones.
00:26:04.480 | You know, there's real ones out there.
00:26:05.800 | - I'm going overseas.
00:26:07.680 | I'm traveling with you.
00:26:09.320 | Yourself coming summer.
00:26:10.160 | We going overseas.
00:26:11.000 | - Come on.
00:26:11.960 | - We going to find us some twins.
00:26:15.320 | (laughing)
00:26:17.560 | - Are you getting married?
00:26:20.320 | - I'm going to be married.
00:26:21.400 | If I had to predict it,
00:26:22.920 | I'd probably get married before you.
00:26:25.480 | I'd probably be married, if I had to guess,
00:26:28.880 | in, what am I, 25?
00:26:30.520 | I'll be married by the time I'm 29.
00:26:32.320 | - You think so?
00:26:33.160 | - I'll meet a girl.
00:26:34.000 | - That's good.
00:26:34.840 | - I'll meet a girl in the next couple years.
00:26:36.600 | - That's good.
00:26:37.440 | - And then call it a day.
00:26:39.440 | - Yeah.
00:26:40.280 | - And I think so.
00:26:41.120 | 'Cause my younger brothers, like Jontae,
00:26:44.240 | my younger brother, Jontae,
00:26:45.120 | he's married, he's 22, he's 23.
00:26:48.400 | He just had his birthday today.
00:26:50.320 | And then--
00:26:51.680 | - Happy birthday.
00:26:52.520 | - No, I think he's 24 now, right?
00:26:53.840 | He's 24.
00:26:54.840 | And then my other brother, who's even younger than him,
00:26:56.760 | I think he's 22, he's 22, COVID?
00:27:01.280 | He's about to get married.
00:27:02.560 | So I'm 25, I'm the older brother.
00:27:04.040 | And I'm, you know, I feel like I'm the most immature.
00:27:06.120 | 'Cause they found their lady.
00:27:08.760 | - I know, but they don't got access like you.
00:27:12.320 | - They do though.
00:27:13.280 | They be having Jonts.
00:27:14.600 | - Yeah.
00:27:15.440 | - Yeah.
00:27:16.280 | - They got access like you though, bro.
00:27:17.440 | - Nah, probably not access like me.
00:27:18.600 | But still, I gotta settle down, man.
00:27:21.480 | I'm on the same page as you.
00:27:22.640 | You know, this year, we kinda locked in a little bit more.
00:27:25.760 | We're not going out as much.
00:27:27.400 | We're not staying out as late.
00:27:28.920 | - It's true.
00:27:31.120 | - I asked you before the podcast what you was doing today.
00:27:33.160 | You said you're going back to the crib
00:27:34.600 | and getting in some, what was it called?
00:27:36.480 | Me time?
00:27:37.320 | Me work?
00:27:38.160 | - It's just like, I don't know.
00:27:41.840 | I guess I call it my work.
00:27:43.040 | You know, it's called like man's work.
00:27:44.160 | That's like what the OG used to say back in the day.
00:27:47.000 | Like, I gotta do the man's work today.
00:27:49.120 | But the man's work, it's not man's work.
00:27:50.520 | It's everybody work.
00:27:51.680 | It's like reading, writing, prayer, meditation.
00:27:55.240 | You know what I mean?
00:27:56.160 | Like just making sure that you're doing the work,
00:27:59.120 | the internal work.
00:28:00.560 | - Yeah.
00:28:01.880 | - You gotta do the internal work.
00:28:04.160 | That's how you win on the outside.
00:28:06.200 | Everything else comes to fruition
00:28:08.520 | when you take care of the inside.
00:28:10.680 | - 100%.
00:28:11.520 | Yeah, that's something I'm really realizing too.
00:28:13.680 | I'm paying attention more internally,
00:28:16.440 | emotionally, mentally, more than I ever have in my life.
00:28:20.080 | Everybody needs to do it,
00:28:21.120 | but especially in the day and age we live in,
00:28:22.640 | you know, you gotta find yourself and find your purpose.
00:28:25.840 | So that's my last question for you, bro.
00:28:28.640 | What do you feel like your purpose is on this earth?
00:28:32.240 | You know, besides being a great basketball player,
00:28:35.440 | what do you feel like all-encompassing is your purpose?
00:28:38.000 | Why are you here?
00:28:38.840 | - Man, this is like the pageantry question right here.
00:28:41.720 | (both laughing)
00:28:44.400 | Honestly, it would have to be education, education reform.
00:28:51.200 | Like the curriculum in America.
00:28:54.040 | That's probably what I'll probably conserve my efforts to
00:28:57.280 | when I'm done.
00:28:58.280 | Like I'll take all my money,
00:28:59.720 | try and make like a private school or something like that.
00:29:03.560 | Like how LeBron did, like with the I Promise.
00:29:06.160 | Like he set like a great foundation,
00:29:08.560 | a great blueprint for the rest of us.
00:29:10.200 | I'll probably do something like that and create a curriculum
00:29:12.400 | where you're teaching kids like to know themselves,
00:29:17.200 | you know, to know themselves from a young age,
00:29:20.160 | to be independent thinkers from a young age,
00:29:23.240 | law, finances, all that,
00:29:24.840 | all the things that you need in real life.
00:29:26.320 | So you're not just like drifting through life.
00:29:28.360 | - Yeah, you making life happen
00:29:30.240 | instead of letting life happen to you.
00:29:32.160 | - Facts, exactly.
00:29:33.240 | So just trying to figure out a different way
00:29:35.840 | for kids to be educated.
00:29:39.040 | - That's dope, bro.
00:29:39.880 | I feel that for sure.
00:29:40.720 | And if I can ever invest in what you got going on,
00:29:43.520 | let me know, 'cause that's dope.
00:29:44.800 | I've got some other stuff that I,
00:29:46.560 | but that's a dope vision.
00:29:48.160 | And I feel like out of anyone you make that crack, you know?
00:29:51.760 | - Yeah, my grandpa was like a superintendent of a school
00:29:56.480 | or of a school district after he left the military.
00:30:01.240 | So, you know, it's in the DNA, you know?
00:30:04.040 | It's like as a teacher and as an educator.
00:30:06.160 | So I don't know, maybe bring that back around.
00:30:08.960 | It's dope.
00:30:09.800 | - What about you?
00:30:11.400 | - Man, my purpose?
00:30:12.360 | I don't know, I ask everybody else this question.
00:30:14.520 | And I don't even know for sure what mine is.
00:30:19.520 | That's why I'm doing some of the journaling stuff.
00:30:22.640 | I'm trying to figure it out.
00:30:23.640 | Like, man, every day, regardless of a good game or bad game,
00:30:27.880 | what can I cling on to as like my purpose?
00:30:29.920 | Like what's gonna make me wanna wake up in the morning
00:30:32.120 | and motivate me besides just being a great basketball player?
00:30:35.120 | And you know, I got passions.
00:30:38.360 | I think it's, man, just being like real authentic
00:30:41.560 | and inspiring people to,
00:30:43.920 | I just feel like that's one of my gifts is like,
00:30:46.320 | is just being like authentic and like not being afraid
00:30:50.560 | to speak my mind in certain areas.
00:30:52.320 | And I think, I mean, you know me, I'm a man of faith.
00:30:55.480 | You know, I believe in God.
00:30:56.320 | I feel like through all of our different people's talents,
00:31:00.360 | at the end of the day, like our goal,
00:31:01.840 | like our purpose should be to point people, you know,
00:31:05.280 | to God and inspire people in that way.
00:31:07.280 | So that's my purpose.
00:31:09.320 | I just don't know how to really execute it all the way.
00:31:12.200 | Like we got all this money, you know what I mean?
00:31:14.720 | And it's great.
00:31:15.800 | But what can I do with this money
00:31:17.360 | to actually make a difference?
00:31:18.400 | Like, I don't need 10 cards.
00:31:19.960 | You know what I mean?
00:31:20.800 | I don't need 10, it's fun to,
00:31:22.080 | for me, it's fun to experience things.
00:31:23.640 | It's fun to make sure my family's straight,
00:31:25.880 | but what can I actually do?
00:31:27.200 | That's why, like I always tell you,
00:31:29.080 | like I appreciate how you actually make something happen
00:31:32.240 | with your money.
00:31:33.080 | You know, you went and did the,
00:31:34.840 | sorry, I'm messing up the mic.
00:31:36.720 | You went and did something.
00:31:37.960 | You did the warehouses.
00:31:39.120 | You know, you want to open up the lounge.
00:31:41.360 | You want to do the school.
00:31:42.520 | Like for me, I'm trying to figure out
00:31:44.360 | what can I actually do to like make a difference?
00:31:46.480 | So, you know, you a couple of years older than me,
00:31:48.840 | but that's kind of what I'm working on.
00:31:50.440 | That's why I'm spending time doing the journaling
00:31:52.320 | and all that.
00:31:54.280 | 'Cause that's why I ask people every episode.
00:31:57.160 | I ask people like, what do you feel like your purpose is?
00:31:58.760 | 'Cause I'm trying to,
00:31:59.600 | that's what I'm trying to figure out right now.
00:32:00.760 | You know what I mean?
00:32:01.600 | - That's a deep question, man.
00:32:03.080 | I think if you ask God, God will give you the answer.
00:32:05.600 | - Facts.
00:32:07.160 | Facts.
00:32:08.080 | - He's going to tell you right every time.
00:32:11.240 | Ask for that clarity.
00:32:12.080 | Ask for the answer today.
00:32:12.920 | He's going to tell you right.
00:32:13.880 | - 100%, man.
00:32:14.720 | Well, you know, I appreciate you hopping on.
00:32:16.520 | I know you don't do the podcast too often,
00:32:18.680 | but this has been good.
00:32:20.200 | It's been insightful.
00:32:21.240 | People don't know AG.
00:32:23.200 | Off of the court, but this is the man right here.
00:32:25.000 | Probably my best friend on the team.
00:32:27.520 | My light-skinned brother, so.
00:32:28.920 | - This my twin right here.
00:32:29.920 | - You know what I'm saying?
00:32:30.760 | So, I appreciate you.
00:32:31.600 | Curious Mike out.
00:32:32.440 | (upbeat music)
00:32:35.020 | (upbeat music)