The JV Team

In this episode, D Burke starts with his feelings on the finals match up between his NY Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs and gives his take on their chances to win their first finals since the 70s. Keeping it in entertainment, he dives into Jay-z's recent fresstyle at the Roots Picnic and discusses how he feels about the shots taken within it. After he opens up with his feelings after seeing post of an ex-player saying he "hates' basketball +more!

Transcript

0:58

I've been too amped up with the Knicks going crazy. Energy has been a little bit on the aggressive side. So we're gonna smooth it out today. One time for the ladies, the lady hustlers, fellow hustlers alike. Couple air horns, lick a shot, and then we get to it. Talk to them. Lady hustlers, stay with me. One time for the Queen Ri-Ri. Barbado's own to the world. Legendary in the music game. Let's talk to him. You look so dumb right now. Some of y'all ladies might be saying this to your man right about now. Standing outside now. It's about that time of year. You know what it's getting hot? You been in the gym working out. Getting that body right, getting that mind, getting that spirit right. Cut that nigga off. And hit the streets. Don't tell me a sorry question now. He not, ladies. Sometimes he is, but sometimes it's also too late. But you put on quite a bit. It is. That was quite a show. Very entertaining. Cut them off, ladies, move them to the side. It's bigger fish to fry. There's more to get to in this world. Fellas, you might be sick in this to her too. She did you dirty in the winter. Let's get back out here. Grab your clothes and get on. You better hurry up. Hurry up. Expeditiously pack them bags. Shouts to Neo and the pen on this one too. Y'all might have not known that, but y'all know the millennial music wire got y'all. Neo wrote this record for re-reads. Don't even do it. We gon' let it rock today. Turn this shit up to icky levels and vibe with me. Summertime, one time. Let's go. Really hitting me go. One more time for the chorus, ladies, sing aloud. Very entertaining. But it's so funny. We're gonna get out of here before the bridge. We got more to get to. Chill, Riri, chill. Don't heat them up like that. Got another one coming for one of my favorite of the millennial era RB artists. Shouts to her, Melie Fiona. If you remember this one, go ahead and sing it, ladies. Another one about them niggas to be acting crazy, you know, out there in the streets. If you remember this one, come along with us. We're gonna smooth this thing out. Sitting here feeling kind of crazy. Hit a pain in our voice. This nigga's out here again. Only thing open at this time is legs. 4 a.m. The restaurants ain't even open. It's just his legs. It's only legs. And I can't sit still. Talk to him. Get a melody. Ladies, if you know this one, wanna window down, let's sing it. I'm calling his phone. He not picking up. Shit going to voicemail. Oh, his battery died. Right. Yeah, you know what it is. Got me in this house. Waiting. We be wallin' sometimes, fellas. Looking back, we be wallin' sometimes. Get up a verse two. And when she sings like that, you feel bad when you walk in the house. Another night with our Send her back to the streets. Low-key, sometimes the fellas be wildin' cause they went out themselves. Right after Memorial Day, if he start acting funny, you know the vibes, ladies. Keep it smooth. They say I'm too hard, I gotta smooth it out. Come along with me. Wherever you watching from, wherever you listening from. Fella hustlers, lady hustlers alike. Whatever state, whatever region, whatever country. Three P spicy, we keep this going. We're gonna turn the energy up a little bit before we stay out of here, though, you know. I know we're talking to the ladies. I know the fellas might be able to enjoy it a little bit too, especially if you're more on the you know, emotionally intelligent side, etc. etc. etc. But you know, we turn this thing up a little bit more. Coming from one of the ladies in the millennial area, talk to them, Carrie. Not again. Let's get it. Keep rocking and keep knocking. Whether you be turning up or rebocking, you see the hate. Different time, different place, different era. So what we tour right here. Talk to that man, Gary. The unexpected love. Might just be a little flak for the summertime, but still, enjoy it. Cause they fall hard when they fall. Big stone. If we know the chorus, rock with us, let's go. We in that vibe, we in that bag. As we said, Memorial Day is out the way. While the weather heats up, let's have a safe summer. Don't forget the gold. Don't let that work slip up now that the weather got hot. Let's go. Y'all go ahead. I think I'm gonna pick it with my girl today. I used to pick a man to the cheese from my pills to fly in high. Bob wouldn't watch the feature. As we keep this thing rolling, we keep this thing rapping. We might just go to the Kanye verse. We maybe, maybe not, we'll see. It's the old Kanye at least. Get your ass up. Get back out there and keep moving. Ghost for love, ghost for life. Ghost for whatever. Aye Yeezy, we're gonna give you some time. Let it rock, y'all. One hand in the air, pick top and easy. Let's go. Tell me now, can you make it past your cast first? So we can finally fly off. Into NASA. You was always the cheerleader of my dreams. The seem to only take the head of football too. You was a nerd back then. We were never meant to be, baby. We just happened to be so pleased. Don't mess up the trick. Hey, young world, I'm the new slick. They say I move too quick, but we can't let this moment pass. Let the hourglass pass right into as let the wind blow the bats right before my glasses over the flow battle right before my craft. I'm on its own average for it fight to OMG. You listen to that bitch. Oh, it's me. I was flying. Now crash it. This is bad, real bad. Michael Jackson. Now mad, real mad, don't jack it. You still leave your boyfriend now. Chill, chill, chill, chill. As we leave the three piece smoker. The three-piece spicy. Hope you enjoyed. Coming to check us out. Wherever you're watching, for wherever you listener from, as we mentioned, you know, pre-pod. I'm a specialist at this thing, you know. I'm not a DJ. I'm just a real guy with real tunes from a real era. And with that said, as we pivot this thing towards the pod, we open this thing up as always with uh what up, y'all? Back for another audio occasion. It is the podcast for self-starters and those willing to make the most out of any situation. The EFS podcast is back. Episode number 76 is in the house. Got some audio for y'all on the way in for those, for the naysayers, the doubters, the haters, the people that, you know, got a bunch of shit to say about the run. Since the finals is coming up, we're talking to y'all today. Listen up. Listen good. Talk to them. Junior varsity to no team ever. They are, in fact, on the kind of heater that historically only the very greatest teams and very greatest players have ever matched. Talk to them. And they absolutely could win the title in the next couple of weeks. Let me lay this out for you. The Knicks are the fifth team ever to win 11 straight playoff games in a single year. The others featured in chronological order Magic and Kareem, Duncan and Robinson, Jack and Kobe, and Stephen KD. Just digest that for a moment. That's the entire list. And among those, the 2017 Warriors had the best point differential. Okay, they entered the finals outscoring their opponents by 196 points. These Knicks are a plus 271 in the playoffs. That is 75 points long. It was so good that people said it was ruining the sport. But here's the thing, you know all of that already. What you want to talk about is an easy path to the finals. So let's talk about easy paths. Did you know that none of the last three NBA champions ever faced a team seeded higher than fourth? I don't think you did. This part is crazy. Last year, OKC, they played the eight, the four, the six, and the four seeds. The year before that, Boston, they played the eight, the four, the six, and the five. Before that, Denver. They played the eight, the four, the seven, and the eight. The point is, this is nothing new, so let's stop talking about it. And then finally there's this the enormous advantage of rest. By the time the finals start, the Knicks will have played four games in 23 days. There are only three prior teams to have that profile since the playoffs expanded. They were the 2017 Warriors, the 2001 Lakers, and the 99 Spurs. All three of them won the finals in five games. So whether you love or loathe New York and its teams, just be aware of this. The Knicks are not lucky. They're not a fluke. They're not the JV. They are right now playing about as well as any team ever. And in about two weeks' time, they absolutely might win this whole damn thing. And if you feel different, eat a dick. Like we're just gonna leave it at that. If you feel different, eat a dick for the time being. Shouts to everybody. We love y'all, etc. etc. But eat a dick if you think differently, because we might have the trophy very, very soon. And we're gonna see what the talk looks like then. Um but either way, man. Listen, we here, we're having a good time. Weather's warm, bucket hats is out, shades is on, air horns in abundance. Let my P music run. Now let's get to it. As always, we are here to talk our shit and enjoy it while we do it. This is the EFS Podcast. Again, I am the man, the myth, the legend, your host, Mr. 1%. Two times, Mr. EFS from the biggest brand that you don't know about yet. The EFS brand is here. The podcast is rolling. So as always, if you come to watch, you come to listen, don't forget to hit the likes, hit the bells, hit all the other shit. Follow, subscribe, etc. etc. etc. We love the love over here at the EFS Podcast. So, man, it's a real good time to be alive still. And as we fade out our theme music, we'll get to conversations about things that are hot off the presses, things that are near and dear to the heart, and things that'll just get this episode to you, the listeners, the viewers, as best as possible, you know. Uh, but with that said, man, I'm here, you know. As I said, Mr. D Burke back in the house. Um, episode number 76. So, with that said, we'll open up with another round of applause. You know, we gotta show the come the the ops a little bit of love on this one, just because it did something a little bit unexpected. So, yes, we're going sports out the gate. Shouts to the San Antonio Spurs. I would say my second favorite organization in the NBA, um, historically. And, you know, we'll we'll talk a little bit about uh why that is in a moment. But uh San Antonio Spurs got it done last night against the Oklahoma City Thunder in a big way uh to make it to the NBA Finals and then to meet, you know, us, the Knicks, in the finals, which begins on Wednesday. Um and looking forward to this matchup. I did tell a few people, you know, before the series was, you know, well, after we won our series and before the series was this was decided between the Oklahoma City and the Spurs that I thought the Spurs was gonna pull away with it. Uh I was kind of pulling for the Spurs to pull away with it, and we'll talk about that a little bit more in a second. Uh, but yeah, man, shouts to him. Gwemby got it done. Young player rising up the ranks in the NBA to hopefully maybe be in an all-time great. Um, but got his first finals appearance before a lot of other people did on the list of the all-time greats that we speak about. Um, and hey man, it's set. The finals are set between us and the Spurs. How do we feel about it? You know, I guess leave it in the likes, leave it in the uh sorry, leave it in the comments as far as what y'all feel. Um, but in general, I think it's gonna be a really, really good series. Uh, I am excited that we're still a part of this thing and in the hump for the championship. And I don't think that, you know, we as I so let's just put it out there. The Knicks aren't favored to be either OKC or the Spurs, no matter who would have made it to the finals. But all this talk about the NBA Finals is decided in the Western Conference Championship. Uh I think they're they're kind of throwing a little bit of dirt on us and acting like, you know, this is just gonna be some kind of a uh a formality, I guess, to to the Western Conference again, having a championship. Um we know the Western Western Conference teams are, I would say historically, it's been like that for a while now, but historically a little bit stronger than the East, and you know, the the whole balance of power in the NBA shifts a little bit towards the east, a little bit towards the west sometimes. But for most of my uh adult life at least, I would say the Western Conference has been known as a little bit of a stronger conference than the East. Um, and then coming to the finals, people we have had Eastern Conference teams. Most recently, the Boston Celtics win the championship. Uh, but you know, anytime it comes to the Eastern Conference, coming to the finals, uh, on certain years they would make it seem like the East doesn't really have a chance. And in certain years, it's been proven like that. Uh, think back to when the Denver Nuggets won their championship recently and they beat the Miami Heat. It wasn't a very quote-unquote competitive series. Um, so yeah, the East be getting shit on it, and it's it's a little bit more to that now that the Knicks are in the championships against now the San Antonio Spurs. Me personally, I think y'all is bugging the fuck out. And we can refer back to the audio that we just played at the beginning of the episode to kind of, you know, piggyback off that. But the Knicks have been playing very, very, very good basketball. And for anyone to kind of, you know, act like it's just something that is one a fluke or just again, they're beating up on the quote unquote the JV teams, to me, yeah, y'all don't really know the game like that. Like this series is gonna be a little bit more closely contested than y'all think, and I honestly feel strong about our chances to get the job done, even more so now. Um, and I know Wemby's a tall task, you know, the David and Goliath. I've seen a little bit of like, you know, the meme with Jalen Brunson versus Wemby being a David and Goliath kind of uh scenario, but I think it's gonna be a chance for us to really bring this thing home, man. And the roster we have in place can get it done. I think we got enough shooting. I think that we don't get enough credit for what we do defensively, especially in the playoffs now. And I don't think much of that changes against the San Antonio Spurs outside of the one-star Wemby, who can just go off on any given night for maybe a 30 or 40 piece. We know that. But the Knicks defensive abilities and defensive capabilities that we've been putting out there in these playoffs have been top-notch. And I think we still rank one of the best defenses in the NBA since the playoffs started. And defense travels, whether you're on the road or whether you're at home, defense should be something that is a staple in your game. And with when you play defense for sure, you're gonna have an opportunity to win the game. Um, and I know that San Antonio Spurs are definitely a a very great defensive team. Uh they got Castle, one of the best wing defenders in the league that I see out there right now, and then you got Wemby. So those two alone can put their stamp on a series defensively. Um, but in that case, it's gonna be about who can score the most points. And I think that the Knicks still have a great shot to put points on the board while still playing great collective defense to contain some of what Wemby can do and then take some other people out of the game, you know. And I I think that what we do right now defensively matches up with what San Antonio does outside of the again Wemby just being no match for him. Um but yeah, the X's and O's and all the breakdowns and stuff, we we can get into that. But I just want to say that I don't think that anybody is giving the Knicks enough credit for what this series is about to be. And I hope the boys go out there and don't make me a fucking liar and put on a good show on when it comes to Wednesday. Watching, I will be watching. I'm very much excited about what's coming up in front in front of me in the next few couple weeks. Uh with my work schedule is gonna be a little less sleep than I than I probably would like, but hey man, we here. I gotta see what's gonna happen with the boys getting done. We're watching every dribble of every game from start to finish, and hopefully, again, we're flipping the city upside down when we get this championship done. Um still in basketball and still kind of around the same, you know, the same things we were just speaking about. Oklahoma City Thunder, man. How y'all feeling? Check in on y'all. Oklahoma City um Thunder fans, I would say. Check in. Where y'all at, man? How y'all doing? Y'all alright? Seeing a lot of shit on the timelines leading up to their demise for the year about how how they get so much hate and this and that, and people just don't like the brand of basketball they play, etc, etcetera. Y'all ain't repeating. Y'all had a good run last year, you know. I'll say y'all had a good run. But at this point, y'all out. And at this point, what we gotta start doing is really starting to pick apart what's going on with that roster. You know, um, and credit to them, good season. Only two teams make the NBA finals, and we know that. But leading up to it, everybody had y'all running away with this thing until the Spurs got really, really hot during the season and it gave you a little bit of competition, and now they end up putting y'all out. I don't think those two teams like each other, and I think that those two teams are gonna be very, you know, testy with each other for the next few years. Um, the whole Wemby and Chet Holgram thing, that that's gonna be a thing as long as Wemby's in the league. I think he's gonna have it on his his vision board for the next few years at least. Destroy this motherfucker every time I see him. And Chet, man, like literally, what like I need to know what's going on with you. A lot of people is asking, and I'm just you know, piling on with the rest of the people, but at the end of the day, like two attempts in a game seven at the third team, all NBA. Like, what's up with that? Like, what's up with that? Scared is what it looks like. And I don't like to put that word on people, but the way you was playing basketball with the announcers, Reggie Miller and Jamal Crawford talking about you all night last night. It looked like you were scared, bro. And I think you you take a dip on the stock side after this series, you know. You got your money, so shouts to you. Happy with that, but you gotta re-you reconsider some things this summer when you get back in the lab, bro. Like you got to. Like, you got to. Shea was begging for help the whole series. Whole series just begging for help. Gave you a little bit here and there, but bro, Wemmy snatched your soul, and we see that now. And and you gotta salute the wemm man. I call him the slender man, but you know, what he did to you is just makes you look very bad right now. And I and I hope you can recover, you know. I hope you take a second, go on vacation, breathe, relax, retool, come back next year a little bit better. But this should be a motivating series for you to maybe turn the tides of what your career can be on the for the next few years. Because Wemby ain't going nowhere, bro. We know that. Wemby's not going anywhere. You're gonna have to face that man every season for the next how many years you want to play in this league. And he got a target on your back. So whatever's going on with you in that regard, we gotta see. But, you know, hopefully this next year looks better for you. Get in the lab, get in with some good trainers, get your body right, put some meat on, you know, pause, come see me if you need. We strengthen you up, get you ready for the next season. But bro, that was bad. That was embarrassing. That was embarrassing for you. Um, so outside of that, man, we we know the NBA Finals is coming up, and we'll just see what happens when we get there. Shouts to all the participants that are still in. Spurs, Knicks, love to see it. Let's check it out when it happens. Wednesday. Moving forward from there, we'll keep this thing in the entertainment world, I guess. Um, but one of the illest ever, the guy, the the president of the rap, the potister rap, to me, came out there last night at the Roost picnic. Jay-Z delivered an amazing performance from what I've seen. I would have liked to go, but I also wasn't really feeling the crowds right now. I don't know. It's the thing about me sometimes when I feel like it's too many people in the place that I want to be, then I don't really I shy away from it. The whole festival thing, I never really had great experiences at festivals. Not saying I couldn't have, but you know, I kind of backed out on the whole Jay-Z thing just because of my own personal feelings. But looked lit, looked amazing, looked great. Um, with that said, Jay-Z came out there and dropped a freestyle last night, um, some exclusive freestyle uh within his performance and took shots at everybody. Took shots at Nikki, took shots at Tori, took shots at Dame, took shots at Drake, took shots at him, took shots at her, like and uh it lit the internet ablaze. We'll just call it that. Um and sparks an interesting conversation just because recently, um, if you were able to see the GQ interview that Jay-Z did where he was speaking about the whole rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake, um, and how he his perspective on beef was that he doesn't really like it or he doesn't really, you know, want to take part in it anymore from what he echoed. I'm not saying a verbatim, but it is out there. Um, but either way, after that, people were now, I guess, saying he switched sides or like changed up his opinion now that he came out there and took shots at everybody in his freestyle last night. Are you rap beefing? Uh you're a hypocrite, etc. etc. And this is all this happened just yesterday, and a lot of opinions floating out there already, as well as lyrical breakdowns, everything he did, and the freestyle itself was top-notch. A lot of double entangres, uh, a lot of split meaning, a lot of like a lot of technical rap ability was displayed in the freestyle. And again, a lot of shots fired, as I mentioned prior, be within it. And so I think that the conversation now goes to you know, how can he do something like that when he has the feelings of he doesn't want to beef anymore? So my thought process is if you're looking at Jay, you've seen him or barely seen him, because you might see him pop on on TMZ or when he's walking into a building out of like, but Jay don't really talk much um until he wants to be heard, you know. So for the past few years, you've seen this man sit around and have people make claims against him, talk shit about him, say this, say that, and just be able to get it off freely because Jay don't really talk to people. So when the man finally wants to pop out, we know this is gonna be the summer of Jay. This is gonna be the first event. He has the big show coming up at Yankee Stadium later this summer, maybe an album from what people are speculating, maybe not. We'll see. But we know this is the summer of Jay. So when he wants to pop out, and he does so in a way, and his first big performance in a long time addresses all of the rumors. You can't really look at it as a rap beef, just because it is a response to everything that's been said about him by other people, and maybe not even everything, because I'm sure there's some shit he missed in there that he ain't get enough, you know, his clip, his clip ran out, you know. He only had so many shots within the within the time he had for a set. But either way, this man has had Tory Lane talk about how he's the reason he's in jail. We've had Nicki Minaj talk about him in the not so greatest light just because of whatever the hell she's doing. We've had numerous people saying things. Dame, Dame is on a tour right now, still kicking hoes back, and it has been for years. Like, so how can you be mad at someone who may not feel like he wants to engage in rap beef, but also has a right and a responsibility to then clear his name, I guess per se, or maybe not even clear his name, but you know, respond to it in a way that's witty, in a way that, you know, lets people know that, yeah, I heard you, and now you're just part of my show. So the way I look at it, I don't see it as rap beef. I see it as a response and a basically a clearing of the air to some of the things that have been said about me, Jay, the past couple years and months. It just keeps coming and keeps coming. And people get a lot of clicks and a lot of like clout off of Jay-Z's name. But when he responds, it's negative thing just because he's supposed to not be in the beef. Like to me, you can only be poked so many times until the person who you are poking has a right to respond. And I think that he does. So love the freestyle. I'm a fan of it. Looking forward to seeing whatever he does with the rest of the summer. You know, a lot of surprises maybe at the show that he has at a Yankee Stadium. Still wishing I could go, still not paying for tickets. Uh, but at the end of the day, man, Jay is Jay is that nigga, man. And we just gotta salute that. The way he moves is just boss-like, the way he presents himself when it's time to present yourself. It's just everything is calculated and everything is, you know, on brand and on mission for whatever he's trying to accomplish. And you got to respect that about him at this point. Feel whatever you want to feel about his catalog, or feel whatever you want to feel about, you know, his dealings and business and all that stuff. That's not neither here nor there for me in this scenario. I salute Jay as a Brooklyn, you know, born and native, and someone who's seen, you know, what he has done for the impact of that city and that, you know, that culture. For me, Jay is that nigga forever. And you're barely hearing me say a bad thing about Jay unless there's something bad to say about Jay, which then, you know, I hold him to the fire when that's necessary. But shouts to the freestyle, shouts to everyone who was at the roots picnic. Uh still getting a couple people, you know, who have asked how it went, because I'm nosy, you know, telling me it was a great vibe, a lot better than last year. So, you know, maybe I'll pop out at the next one. Because after last year, when everyone was complaining about it, the whole crowd and all that situation to me didn't feel like something that I wanted to do this time around. So that's that on that. Moving forward, gotta get to a conversation that was sparked by a viral video that I saw recently. Um, and it kind of hits home for me as a ex-basketball player, as someone who devoted my life to a game and you know the things that I can get from it. And the audio for it kind of put me in a I guess introspective space, but at the same time, I uh I kind of wonder where others' mentality is at in that regard. So I wanted to kind of speak on it. Um long audio, so bear with me on this. Uh, and we'll we'll dive into it after. This comes from a young man who is speaking about his life and career. But I hate it. Oops, gotta back that up from the topic. I love basketball. But I hate it. I hate basketball. I love it though. I love that I can cry and play. I love that I can cry to me. But I hate basketball. I can I I love what it did for me. But it took over my life. It's like I don't watch basketball. Playoff record is on right now. I probably watch this in a video too. I I might watch the pistons because I really like the pistons. My love for the game never lost. It never wavered, it never went nowhere. I love this game so much, I could still play in anything. You know. Um but I hate it because it's it stopped me from doing a lot of things. Like I pay attention to basketball so much, so much I forgot to keep myself reading or keep myself uh becoming a better person. Like because I always wanted to just play basketball. I thought that was the only way that could help me elevate, um, take care of my family, buy my mama a car in a house, just by playing basketball, but nobody talked to me about the business side. Nobody told me that you needed an agent or you need to uh uh market yourself in a way where nobody the like market your way in itself in a way where when you go play a visit a team, they don't hate you. I love basketball. And that's that on the post. Um, so again, long audio, stay with me on that. He said a lot of things within that, and it has a lot of views. I forgot to check the count just now, but a lot of views, a lot of engagement, and a lot of people that I know personally were making comments in that basketball, you know, um monologue, whatever you want to call it. Um so refer back to whatever episode it was that I think was named the trap earlier in my catalog of being a podcaster. And I was pretty much speaking about that exact same thing. So now to hear it come kind of full circle in this way and be another topic of conversation, which it hasn't, you know, this is not the first time, it probably won't be the last time that it is. Um, but players who feel like they got cheated by the game of basketball. Um, and I've shared a lot of stories about my own personal career uh on this podcast and with people in my own personal life. Uh, and some of it kind of, you know, hits home because I feel the same way with what he was saying, you know, and being someone who goes through a life and a career of basketball and a feeling like you didn't get everything that you got out of it, and then having to either pivot or transition your life to a different lane and then remake your whole identity, uh, I think that is where he's speaking from currently. Uh, so to say he loves basketball, but he also hates basketball comes from a place that it's like a it's like the yin and the yang of it or the the angel and the devil of it, like a beautiful game that you play and can get so much of, like and out of, I would say. And me personally, basketball took me from the hood and around the world, just to keep it short. Around the world, got to meet a lot of people. I just said it earlier, I'm a worldly individual, got to see a lot of things and a lot of things and experiences that I'm grateful for for what the game has was able to give me. And I still take that to the heart, and I still live that in you know my everyday life now, and just my my thankfulness for what the game was able to do for me, and the thankfulness that the game you know gave me as how as far as I look at life uh in my current you know stage and everything. Um, but for me as players, and this is why I'm so big on athletes and mental health, especially in their post-athletic, you know, transition, just because basketball for a lot of people doesn't always pan out the way that you want it to. Um and that's for the person that started basketball when he was five or six years old and then fizzled out by the time he was halfway through high school and thought he was gonna have a bigger career than he did. That goes for people like me who were the late bloomers who kind of figured their way out to get to a certain level, showed a lot of potential, showed a lot of um just greatness in certain ways, but you know, wasn't able to crack through and make it to the top of the top of the top. Um, that goes for people who made it to the top of the top of the top, but they also thought they were gonna be an all-NBA type player or someone who's gonna have a long NBA career, and then the career gets maybe cut short by injuries or cut short by some missteps that they may have had that puts them in the position to where they're not playing in the league anymore, you know? And that person can feel quote unquote cheated by the game. So feeling cheated by the game can come in so many different ways for so many different players and a lot of different stories throughout, you know. So I think as someone who can relate to the feelings of being somewhat cheated by the game, cheated by the fact that I didn't have good representation, cheated by the fact that I did what I thought I could to put myself in a great light, to earn more, be on higher levels and all that stuff, like to feel like that is not uncommon as a player. I think how you deal with that as a player, or maybe not a player anymore, is where your life can go one way or another, you know. Because for me, I would never utter the words, I hate the game of basketball, you know. And if that's how you feel, that's how you feel. All feelings are valid. I don't tell anyone how to feel. But for me in my life, I would say that I understand in post what I was going through at the time to where I can have a huge appreciation for everything that the game brought me, but also be able to speak to it in a way that lets people know that it's not as all sunshine and rainbows or you know what people think it is from the outside, because you're always gonna have a next generation of players coming after you. And how you can impact those people is by sharing your stories, sharing your experiences, and help people who might have a like mindset who may have not even gotten to the levels that you have, get there, maybe even get further. But that comes with sharing information, that comes with sharing knowledge, and it also comes with understanding how you can affect it, how you could have or can affect your career in one way or another. And as much as I might have felt cheated in certain situations, I also look at it as oh, this taught me something. Like the first time I got burned overseas, and and I just tell a story. My first contract, which I basically got kind of on my own to go overseas after I felt like my representation didn't step up for me, and I fired my agent headed into my what would be my rookie year. Not the best decision. Looking back at it, I can look at it and say, hey, I probably shouldn't have done that, and I probably just should have wrote it out and made a better choice to you know see what was gonna happen with the representation I had and then pivot later. But headed into my basketball career, into my first rookie season, I didn't have an agent. So it set me up for having to scramble and figure things out in a way that I wouldn't have had to had I had the proper representation, you know? So that can kind of, you know, tilt your career one way or another. And what it was for me was it tilted me to a point where I bounced around and had multiple agents over the span of my 10-year career. That is not to say that people don't do that anyway, but the way I did it, I know I felt like set me back further than what I could have been or what my potential should have warranted me being in my career. And those are the conversations that you also have to have within yourself and treat it as a lesson rather than just something you look at and then, you know, you're bitter about it, or that, you know, you you you're angry, you know, because those feelings are not something you want to carry with you through the rest of your life because that can affect how you, you know, have relationships with people, which it did for me. It can impact how you, you know, are with your children just because of that bottled up energy and that bottle, like, you know, people who don't put themselves at peace with what they were able to do in their athletic life, it's a very delicate situation. And you know, and I've seen people have to change their life completely and go into it in another way that's like, all right, cool, I'm here, I'm rocking, I got what I got out of the game, and now I'm, you know, headed towards other levels of success. Or there's the people who can take what they didn't get from the game and it send them into a very different path, you know, substance abuse, depression, etc. etc. And both of those things are possible. So you want to make sure that you're not setting yourself up for the worst side of that. And for me, you know, it's the end of mental health is mental health awareness a month. Uh, it won't be by the time this is out. Uh, but check in, you know, if you're someone who has any kind of feelings of like unsettled, like either anger or resentment or anything about what you did in your athletic life, then definitely see someone about it, you know. And I would say I'm blessed just because I I feel like my transition in post-athletics has gone well for me, um, even though it was difficult, even though something that really tested me in a lot of different ways as a person, as a person spiritually, as a person mentally, as a person in connection to other people when different things in my career ended up affecting the relationships I had around me, you know. So I would say at this point I'm blessed to have been able to work through all those things and then still enjoy the fact that I got to do something really fucking cool for a long time and I got what I got out of it, you know. And not everybody's meant to make it to the mountaintop, but that doesn't mean that, you know, you didn't do what you could or you control the things you control to try to, you know, make that outcome happen for yourself. And sometimes the decisions you make within can pivot you one way or the other, as I just mentioned, but you're not gonna learn those things until you actually have to go through them. So when you do go through them, take it for what it is and again appreciate what you can get out of it, but also take the the lessons in it and apply it to your next chapter of your basketball career, apply it to the next chapter of your life in a way that gives you peace and understanding of what you went through and then keeps you looking forward to the future with you know whatever brightness you can. Um, so that's just my message, man. Hoopers, you know, I have a big heart for y'all always, no matter how many years I'm away from the game in my now transition. Uh, I still tell people I'm a hooper to the core. So anytime things come out where I can, you know, get my get my shit off to let people understand the mentality side of the basketball career thing, then I definitely will, someone who's been through it, you know, like to call myself the living example. So it is what it is with that. Um, but that said, man, that's really it for episode 76. Go Knicks, Nixon 6. I'm calling Nixon six my official prediction. I'm stamping it. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong. I'll walk it back later. But at this point, we're charging forward with utmost confidence in our ball club. And finals is here, man. But outside of that, enjoy yourself, as we say all the time. Stay safe mentally, spirit, uh, spiritually, and physically. Messing my own stuff up, mentally, physically, and spiritually. Um, and until the next go round, we'll catch you. Peace later.