Two for the Win
Mike is a U.S. Navy Veteran and Bryan has more than a decade of civil service experience. Together, these blue collar guys dissect the latest sports headlines and events.
Two for the Win
Special Guests: Young Athletes Building Their Brand
What happens when two ambitious teenage basketball players decide to launch a clothing brand with purpose? Meet Caden O'Brien James and Christian Wright, the dynamic duo behind Solace Outfitters – a brand that's quickly gaining attention for its meaningful messages and authentic story.
Basketball brought these friends together during COVID when they'd meet at their neighborhood hoop. That connection sparked something bigger than just athletic ambitions. The name "Solace" perfectly captures their philosophy: anything providing peace during difficult times. For them, basketball was that solace – a sanctuary regardless of what life threw their way.
Their journey hasn't been without challenges. Caden plays through Cavalier's foot, a condition causing high arches that limits mobility on court. Rather than letting this define him, he's adapted his game to focus on fundamentals like rebounding and positioning, drawing inspiration from players like Dennis Rodman and Nikola Jokić. Christian took the bold step of leaving home at 16 to attend prep school in North Carolina, facing the emotional and athletic challenges that come with such a major decision, including limited playing time and adjusting to new environments.
What sets Solace Outfitters apart is their mission. "We really started this brand to spread a good message, not just be another clothing brand run by teenagers trying to make money," Caden explains. Their products – shirts, shorts, and sweatshirts featuring phrases like "All We Need Is Love" and "Peace and Love" – have resonated so strongly that their initial drops sold out completely.
Their perspective on success is equally refreshing. While discussing NIL deals in college athletics, both emphasize their focus remains on the love of basketball rather than financial opportunities. "The only way we can lose is if we quit," Christian says – a philosophy that applies equally to their sporting ambitions and entrepreneurship.
Want to follow their journey? Find Solace Outfitters on Instagram and TikTok @solace.outfitters, visit solaceoutfittersshop.com, or check out their YouTube channel (Solace Bros). These young visionaries are proof that with enough drive, passion, and purpose, age is just a number when it comes to making your mark.
all right, everybody. Thank you for joining us. It is the moment we've all been waiting for. We are sitting here with mr caden o'brien james and mr christian wright representing solace outfitters. These two young athletes are doing some great things here to uh here recently. Uh, guys, go ahead, uh, tell us a little bit about your brand and tell us a little about yourselves okay.
Speaker 3:So I'm caden o'brien james. I go to school at christ church school in gloucester. I play basketball there. It's like my main thing, what I do uh, I'm christian, right, I.
Speaker 4:I attend a prep school, kind of like a boarding school, out in, uh, charl Carolina named Bull City Prep. I am the co-owner of Saw's Outfitters Caden here. He's the owner of it. We give him the owner status because he's the reason we are kind of here with the brand. He came up with the name. He came up with the name. He came up with why we were making the clothing that we wanted to make. He came up with why we were making the clothing that we wanted to make and, honestly, we give him most of the credit because he's just brought most of the inspiration behind Sauce Outfitters.
Speaker 2:So what kind of things does your brand make? Speak to that a little. What do you?
Speaker 3:guys do with your brand. So right now we have shirts, shorts and sweatshirts. We are actually currently sold out of the two sweatshirts that we made and we are trying to sell out of our shorts and shirts. But all of our clothes have a meaning on it. So our sweatshirts have a message like our all we need is love. One, the pink one it says love is the answer. On the back, and then our black sweatshirt has another meeting where we're just trying to spread a message in, like all of them. And then same with our shorts, like we have peace and love on it. And then the shirts. We have a whole bunch of different messages too. It's just all. We really started this brand to really try and spread a good message and not just be like another clothing brand out there who is just two teenagers trying to just make money. We are doing it more to spread a message than anything.
Speaker 1:I think that's incredible, honestly and to me that's a big part of how you grow a brand is if you have a meaning and something you stand for, as well as being able to, you know, benefit the community that you're also part of. That's really where businesses draw a lot of support. It's not necessarily always what they do or what they offer. A lot of times it's for the support they gain, for the things they're trying to say and do behind it. I think that's really incredible, you guys, what you all are doing. Tell us a little bit about playing basketball. How did you guys decide that basketball was your sport? I'm sure you like other sports, but how did you decide you want to pursue basketball?
Speaker 4:So I guess, just to start with me, basketball has. Sports when I was younger were never really in the picture for me, if anything. Younger were never really in the picture for me, if anything. They were never really in the picture. I was kind of just going about my life. I was a gamer.
Speaker 4:I played a lot of games when I was younger I still do, to be fair but I mean elementary school hit and it was like fourth or fifth grade and we got to the big playground. We had two separate playgrounds. We had the kiddie playground with the swings and slides and whatever. We had the big playground with the basketball court. All the fifth graders were out there playing basketball and I felt left out. So I eventually hopped in the game and it's been up there ever since that moment. It's been up there, played elementary ball there. Of course we had our COVID years, so I unfortunately missed a few years of playing basketball, as we all did, I'm sure. Yeah, from my middle school at that time. But I played eighth grade basketball. That was like the year that really solidified the fact that I loved basketball.
Speaker 3:I was at every middle school game, everyone Screaming in every video.
Speaker 4:That's what? Oh, that's awesome. Katie and I definitely bond over basketball. Katie and I are most likely friends through the sport of basketball, through COVID. We lived in the same neighborhood. We lived what? Literally 30 seconds away from each other and there was this neighborhood hoop. In our basketball, all the kids in the neighborhood would gather around there every day during quarantine. We'd hoop all day. It was so much fun. That's really what like basketball means to me. It's like it's a. It's a great sport and it can open so many doors for you as well. But it's like being bringing your friends and family together and just seeing the smiles on everybody's faces when you can bond over something as simple as just you know passing a ball around and shooting it into a hoop. That's just that's what makes basketball so amazing to me, if anything.
Speaker 1:We think that's awesome, and you said you were telling us earlier Salas Outfitters, that relates to your sport as well, right? Can you tell us a little more about that, how those two things go together for you guys?
Speaker 3:So our first actual shirt that we ever made. This had to have been back in April of last year. No one knew we were doing this. It was just kind of a test. It's actually how we have the world with Solace Outfitters on it. It's actually a basketball, and so our first really idea for the brand was just all sports related. We really just wanted to involve it around basketball, because when we go and play games, we always have a compression shirt on. Hey, we were thinking of having, like, our own logo on the compression shirts I think that's awesome, that's good marketing too by the way.
Speaker 1:That's a good idea, that was the the main idea.
Speaker 4:So, like you said, we started in april 2024. Um, we were two athletes just trying to get it and we thought the compression shirt idea, having the logo there, people would see that and buy, eat it up. And uh, when we first did it like it didn't work out the way we wanted to. We were dealing with some like some internal conflict, so we didn't get the chance to really take it to the next level then. But it gave us time to really reflect, think back on it and the idea and what we really wanted to do.
Speaker 4:We thought why limit it just to athletics and sports when we could just bring it all together as one? Because solid outfitters it means a person, place, object, action, item, anything that brings you some sort of peace or consolation in a time of distress, sadness or anger or anything like that. And so, as I'm speaking, that basketball was our solace, like we could be in any sort of mood, anger, we could be angry, sad, anything. We just pick up a ball, go to a basketball court and we release all that right there. That's why our original name was Solace Outfitters, because, you know, bringing a sort of. That's why basketball was our original logo, as in. That's our solace in it, who brings us peace I like that a lot.
Speaker 1:That's, that's very deep yeah
Speaker 2:so tell us a little bit about you guys as far as like players, like some of the adversity that you've had to overcome as players, because I mean, obviously you're building this brand up through your athletics and through your, your message, because it's it is a message that is worth being out there. And you know, as athletes you definitely have highs and lows. Could you speak to a little to that?
Speaker 3:so my like basketball story is a lot different than most people would realize. Ever since I was a kid I've always walked on my toes never knew why. And back when I first started playing basketball, I actually started playing because of Christian. When me and him first started to get close, we would always go out and play and that just really made me have the drive to do it. So when he was in eighth grade I was a freshman I tried out for my team. I didn't make it and, as some of you guys know, his dad owns the gym. So every day after that day of tryouts I got cut.
Speaker 3:I went to that gym from nine to 11 and worked out every day until next year. So I gave the coach no other option but to have me on the team. And then during that time I found out that the reason why I walked on my feet was because I have a disability in my feet called Cavalier's foot. It means all the bones in my feet are high arched. So that kind of limits me and some coaches don't see me as like as good of a player as other people just because I have that. But I do all the little things because I know that can hold me back in some type of way. So ever since I made the team that year, I've just always knew I had to work harder than everyone and just kept on working at it no matter what. So then I ended up. That was when I was at York, and I ended up transferring to Christchurch for a new coach, and now I'm just waiting to see what opportunities will come next and like what new doors will open.
Speaker 1:And that's an incredible amount of drive. By the way, it's nice to hear about that because you know you should always be trying to earn your spot, Like even when you're in the spot, you should always be trying to improve, and that means not only are you trying to do the little technical things better, but you also have knowledge of the game more deep than the people you're competing against, and that really pushes you forward. Mike, what do you got?
Speaker 2:for us, bud. You mentioned a gym. What gym was that that you went to?
Speaker 4:Body by D, Body by D baby. You know it had to ask.
Speaker 1:You took the words right out of my mouth. I was trying to figure out where we're going to slide it in.
Speaker 2:So we heard about your adversity. Can you speak to your adversity through sports?
Speaker 4:Yeah. So as an athlete I'm sure, as any athletes tuning in, as fellow athletes right here in front of us uh, we were talking about earlier child tribulations are a common thing in the sport. So throughout it with me, um, I feel like most of my struggles have been like recently, like very recently, as in moving to the prep field. Prep basketball is extremely different than just normal varsity high school basketball. Prep basketball you uh travel, playing all these high-end teams. It's like a business. It's really more business focused than any other than normal varsity sports in any normal public private school. So, uh, this past year of basketball for me has been struggling because I moved from the school I went to for two years, demi Baptist Christian School in Newport News, virginia. That was the school I was at for two years. I was thriving there, I was doing great, but it wasn't the level I needed to be at for the dreams and goals that I had. I knew I had to go to a better and bigger school. So I took the chance, I bought into myself and I decided to move away from my family and friends here.
Speaker 4:I I took the chance, I bought into myself and I decided to move away from my family and friends here and I moved to Greensboro, north Carolina, originally to another prep school out there in North Carolina. That situation kind of blew up. It was a first year being a prep school and a boarding school, so it wasn't ran properly or coached properly as the way we needed it to be and that kind of messed up with me and my confidence mentally. It was like we were getting killed by a bunch of these teams. We were, it was and, as I mean, losing was going to be normal it's a normal thing in the sport, of course but it was like it was bad conflict within the team. Everybody was fighting. It was just a bad, toxic place to be at.
Speaker 4:As far as what I needed to be, I'm I'm young still, I'm conforming to everything around me. I didn't want to be in a situation like that, so I took my talent somewhere else and I went to Bull City Prep and Charlotte, north Carolina. That's where I'm at now. That's where I've been homed at for the past since January after a Christmas break and I walked into a sort of already set up team per se. So I didn't.
Speaker 4:It's been a struggle for me finding my spot and my position on the team and because I know I know what I can do, I know my skill set, I know my talents and I had to figure out and learn that that's not what I'm going to do here. That's not what I'm coming here to do. Like I said, they already had their situation set up. I had very limited minutes, which was new to me. I've always been a starter on every team I've been on.
Speaker 4:So coming to this organization with limited minutes, you know, struggling to find my spot and what I know I can do best, that's really what.
Speaker 4:Like it put me in a really deep dark space for a little bit of time, because it was like I didn't know what I could do, like I was performing at practice too, like I was performing well at practice, and it just felt like I was not being seen at all and I felt like I was just being kicked back and kicked back and it was just a constant uphill battle and I eventually got over it.
Speaker 4:Of course, this AAU season has brought a lot of new light to me and it's brought consolation in knowing that I have to go through this type of this to get to my ultimate goal. Nothing's just going to be given to me. So learning that I have to fight through that and work for my position which another part of it was everything's kind of been given to me as far as basketball wise, so knowing I had to work for my position was new to me. So it was great realizing that. Coming here and having to fight and really grind for that position, that really gave me more grit and more attitude and my, my story, my style of play, which, at the end of the day, I really do appreciate.
Speaker 3:Go ahead, my my story, my style of play, which, at the end of the day, I really do appreciate. Uh, go ahead. That also his story. And both of our stories kind of tie into like how we started the brand, because we actually officially started in january and I'd actually just broken my arm in december, so I wasn't doing it doing anything.
Speaker 3:I was out for basketball and with some of the conflicts that we kind of had beforehand, I kind of just started it alone. So I just texted him. He had the designs on his computer. I was like, look, I just got this money for Christmas. I don't care, I'm just gonna go for it. I'm like send me the designs. I want to go get it made and just see how it goes from there.
Speaker 3:And I decided to do that and it worked out. We actually sold out of our first drop and at the very end of that, right before we sold out, I drove like almost two hours away to go to one of his games. They gave him his question. I was like, look, I know you've been doing all this stuff behind the scenes, but I really want you to be able to join this with me. And so since then there was nothing that, like our parents or anyone, could really say then, because we had already made profit. I'd already made profit like on my own, but that was something that I didn't want to take full credit for, because I knew even if people didn't know it, I knew that he was doing stuff behind the scenes. I wanted him to be a part of it too.
Speaker 1:I think that's awesome, and you know, again, getting back to success sometimes success is having the ability to get past bruises and bumps and struggles, and you guys seem to be doing that very well. And the other thing I want to say real quick, getting back to Christian's story as well you both have an incredible amount of drive. I mean, christian, how old were you when you just left home to go play basketball for a school in North Carolina Just went? I was 16. You know how many people much less you know younger folks. I said what I said younger folks are scared to leave, they're scared to step out of their comfort zone. They're scared to push the envelope of what they truly can unlock for themselves. I love that you guys are doing it with the brand and I love that you're doing it with your basketball careers. So I just wanted to give you kudos, guys, for that. Don't ever lose that drive, because that's going to get you guys places. Okay, yes, sir, what do we got up here? Mike, you got something.
Speaker 2:So I was just wondering you mentioned that you had broken your arm. Was that playing on the court? And if it happened on court, could you kind of explain?
Speaker 3:what happened. So no, it was not playing on the court. I can explain why that happened, anyway. So I'm the type of person I care a lot more for other people than myself, and I was out with some friends. I wasn't supposed to be there honestly, I learned from it but I had been out with them. I was on a side-by-side.
Speaker 3:If you don't know what that is, it's like a golf cart. The person driving had flipped it, but there was like on its side, like I'm sitting on the right, the person driving flipped it on its side, but there was a girl next to me. So before we hit the ground, I tried to like wrap around her to protect her, to make sure that she was okay. Then, with to protect her, to make sure that she was okay, then, with that, like everyone's weight hit, uh, everyone's weight landing on my arm, it like snapped it. So once I got out of the golf cart, like my wrist was flopping back and forth. So that's how I knew I did something wrong. But I had made, uh, a mistake in the past and I lied to my mom about it. This time, like I was like okay, I need to tell my mom she was was the first person. I called and I made sure. I told her that and even that also ties into the brand.
Speaker 4:if you want to explain this stuff, yeah, so I mean, like you said earlier, we're two young kids. I always say it's been my saying recently life's a huge trial and error. So you're going to make wrongs, you're going to do something bad and you're going to have to learn from it. You're going to have to face the consequences and learn from it. Yep, so in April, when we first started our brand, the eternal conflicts, I guess, was Caden had gone into some trouble. I think that was like a year before.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it was a while ago was like two a year before it was.
Speaker 1:It was a while, about a year and, by the way, if you, if you don't want to delve deep into it, that's okay.
Speaker 3:Uh, we're not gonna say anything, crazy I just want to put that out there like if you, you know this is all and I'm, and I learned from it. I more I'm not I'm more mad at myself than anything with this situation because it was my fault, but I used some madness to learn from it.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so that. And the reason we didn't continue in April as we are doing now is, like you said, he got into some trouble a few months before and it kind of altered our friendship per se, because my parents had a different view of Caden and himself because what he did was irresponsible at the end of the day. Yeah, he 100% understands that and he's learned from it. And so we were getting some backlash from starting the brand and how it was not a smart idea, as you know it was. It was like irresponsible ownership and it was like how do you know he's not just gonna like leave you to do it by yourself and whatever and whatnot. It was just a lot at one time and it's just something I didn't have the voice really to deal with at the time. So when I left to go to Charlotte, I was by myself and I was like I mean, I saw my, I had my parents still with me, but I was by myself. I was kind of independent in my own way.
Speaker 4:So when he sent me the text, well, I remember it. I remember the night I'm sitting at my computer I got a text saying send me the stuff from. Send me the old logos and icons we made from Solace that long, that forever, long ago, and that's when it opened up. We got on that call. That night. We started making up designs for our clothing, new logos, new hoodie designs, designs because that's why it was cold during the time. We needed, we needed some and, uh, like he said, I was behind the scenes a little bit at first. Uh, I would, I didn't really show that I was working on it. And then one day we just were like sending it, we just full send and nobody can say. Nobody will be able to say anything once we make it to where we really desire and aspire to be. So that's another part about it.
Speaker 3:That's like a part of our drive too, knowing that we can prove the other people wrong and that they can't say anything then, once we make it to where we want to be, and you know what?
Speaker 1:It doesn't matter how nice and how successful you are or how much you do you there will always be 10 times more haters than there are lovers out there when it comes to that. So you just keep doing what you're doing. And the biggest thing again like you learn, you grow and then you move forward or it's the point of making mistakes. So you make a mistake, you learn from it, so you don't continue to make mistakes.
Speaker 2:And it sounds like you guys are doing that it doesn't sound like you're just continually doing the same mistakes over and over again.
Speaker 1:Well, you learn how to also avoid the same mistakes Not just make them, but you also learn how to avoid those scenarios as well. So that's what's important to take away from it and again, I think you guys are doing a great job with all of it. I had a question in mind, but I'm just recalibrating at the moment.
Speaker 2:I have a question In this world, making NIL a focus, and does it take away from sports at all or does it hinder you from being able to be a multi-sport athlete?
Speaker 4:I would say NIL has. I've single-handedly seen it make some of the best coaches in the game leave the game. So I feel like, as far as NIL goes, it's make or break. For me personally, nil deals are not of most importance to me. I just love the sport. Loving the sport and playing the sport always will be the grounded base of it. Making money for playing the sport, I mean, hey, I'm not opposed to it at all, for sure. But I wouldn't say, if a school doesn't offer me NIL deals, I'm not going to that school. So you want it to just come naturally? Yeah, just naturally. So you want it to just come naturally? Yeah, just naturally.
Speaker 4:And I believe that I have made a name for myself enough and my character kind of speaks for myself. I feel like I hold myself to a pretty high standard. Ken and I both hold ourselves to a pretty high standard, and if NIL deals do come, it's going to be due to the, not only our athletic feats, but because we are also just genuinely good people as well. Um, as far as for other people, and as nil and these big corporations signing people go, uh, I believe it is great. Um, it makes a lot more people want to work a lot harder, but when they get there, they kind of I just think it's morphing our game in a way that, in a direction where it's beneficial to some, depending on how you look at it, but for a lot of people I feel like it's hurting our game and breaking it apart per se and then for me, with NIL deals, it's like, I know, like someone who just got 500,000 in a car to go to the school and I'm like that's crazy.
Speaker 3:But for me I'm not really so I'm very fortunate my mom's a college professor. She teaches sociology and at one of her schools that she teaches that she has like a tuition exchange program. So there's like a hundred something schools on that list where I can go to college with basically only paying room and board. So, like nil, is it something I'm really worried about for, say, for me. But also I think it'd be cool to like be able to try and give someone some sort of like nil deal with our own brand. I would see using nil deal in that way more than anything.
Speaker 2:Okay, so you see it more of a collaborative way to kind of help build the brand a little more and help benefit not just one or other? Oh yeah.
Speaker 1:It's a sudden influx of resources. So I think that's very smart. Investing it some way somehow, especially in yourselves. I think that'd very smart. Investing it some way somehow, especially in yourselves, I think that'd be very smart. There's people out there, I'm sure that just go and blow it all.
Speaker 4:Yeah, exactly, exactly.
Speaker 1:It's smart to set up yourselves and set up your future before anything else.
Speaker 2:So I agree with that. Yes, sir. So do you guys feel this day, because when we grew up, you're playing different sports based on the time of year, like you might play football in the fall, you might play baseball in the spring and basketball in the winter, because I mean it's indoor sport. So, uh, do you guys feel like that doesn't really exist much anymore, because it seems like sports in general are kind of becoming an all-year thing, with with travel leagues, aau, with, uh, just like you were saying, with preps, schools, traveling more and more and being more competitive. Is there, is there a feeling like the multi-sport athlete is kind of going to the wayside to focus on one sport and make a name, or how do you guys feel about that?
Speaker 3:so I actually know a guy who we played against his 8th grade year and my 9th grade year who just committed to Oregon for football and basketball. I find that crazy. You're going to a big D1 playing both sports and for me at my school, christchurch actually requires you to play a sport pretty much each season. So I still see a lot of multi-sport athletes and I feel like, but say, if you have one sport and that's the sport that you, that you're really good at, you'll you'll focus on that sport more, but if you're an athlete, you could still play multiple sports at the same time.
Speaker 4:Uh, as far as would I go. Who's that that tight, that one tight end.
Speaker 3:He's like five star tight end yeah, that's, that's what you're talking about.
Speaker 4:Yeah, five star tight end yeah, five, five star, tight end and like top 10 in his class and at his position for basketball, which I saw him play actually the other day in rock hill, south carolina uh, absolute animal, absolute animal. What's.
Speaker 2:What's his name? Go ahead, give him a plug, it's.
Speaker 3:Kendre Harrison. I think he goes to Reidsville in one of the Carolinas but he just got a video on a slam. His high school record is like 86-1 for both sports. It's like insane. And he still has another year left.
Speaker 4:He plays on CP3's AAU team. That's how I got the chance to watch him play. Uh, yeah, chris ball is a team ab and I said absolute animal in the court. It's crazy. It was great watching him, um for sure.
Speaker 4:But the multi-sport athlete, I mean as far as I've never played. I've only played basketball my whole life. I played tried out baseball one year because my friends were playing it, but I've never personally played multi-sports or really focused on two sports at one time. But, uh, like you were saying, aau being throughout the summer, basically, um, now we have summer leagues and fall leagues now for high schools. It's like every single season there will that one sport is always having a game for it. That's why, june, I've played au the past two, three months.
Speaker 4:We both made a use the last two, three months and now june is our dead period per se, per a, if you play. If you play, you know june is the dead period. You have no tournaments during that that uh season, that era. But even though I see it as a dead period as we have no games, I have summer league starting this Monday, this upcoming Monday, for my school, so games are always in motion. You should always need to be training for it so you can always stay at your best throughout all year. Now, basketball is not just a winter sport. Now, at this time. You play all year round. You need to train for it all year round.
Speaker 2:So, with this year-round basketball, with AAU and tournaments and everything that you guys deal with through the year-round of playing, does it ever become too much? Do you ever feel like you don't get enough downtime to really recover, or does it go? Man, I got a tournament this week and I just really don't want to go to, but you got to do it. Does that ever happen with you guys?
Speaker 3:Can you talk to do it? Does that ever happen with you guys? Can you talk to that? So for me, at the end of the day I want to end up becoming a coach. So it's like I don't ever get really tired and knowing that some coaches don't really believe in me, I take every chance I get to go play to go play and like prove people wrong.
Speaker 3:So it's kind of just something that I feel like I do, no matter what. Whenever I get the chance to, I'll be out playing. And it's kind of just something that I feel like I do, no matter what. Whenever I get the chance to, I'll be out playing. And it's like right after I broke my arm after surgery, like the next day I was at the gym just shooting with my left hand. Like it's something I always do and enjoy doing. So I wouldn't for say like be mad if I have a tournament or anything. I mean all athletes know if you know you're about to run out of practice, you won't look forward to it. So I mean sometimes maybe I won't like that, but other than that I enjoy it.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I mean, like you said, knowing that conditioning is ahead of you, it's definitely a mental hump you've got to get over, for sure.
Speaker 2:Get to the line Suicide. Vegan On the line suicides begin on the line. Oh yeah, oh my god.
Speaker 4:I never liked that phrase either yeah, oh, my gosh down and backs ah suicides down backs.
Speaker 1:yep, yep, I don't miss those. Jeez, stop You're giving me PTSD.
Speaker 2:Man, Stop, Stop please.
Speaker 4:So the drills.
Speaker 1:You guys following I take it you guys following NBA finals? Yeah, sure, a million percent. So we'll talk about them here a little bit. Just let us know, pacers or OKC, you ride in either of those trains.
Speaker 3:So we got robbed. Our team actually got robbed just before we choose that. Seth Curry got robbed and we got like robbed.
Speaker 4:The two Warriors fans over here yeah, it says Burke, it says Burke. Yeah, it says Burke.
Speaker 3:It's a good choice.
Speaker 1:That's our number one.
Speaker 4:Just because I think, shai, he's going to get to the point where the shots that he missed last game they're going to fall and I don't think they have someone who could really guard him for the whole 40 minutes. See, the crazy thing is I've liked OKC. I like the youth of the team. I don't know, I'm a huge Chet fan. I've been watching Chet since high school and all the way through Gonzaga and whatever. So I'm a huge Chet fan and I just like the vibe and the energy that OKC brings Until now. And now I don't like the team. I don't like the team anymore. I don't like OKC anymore. I wouldn't per se say I'm a Pacers fan, but I mean I prefer OKC in the final. But what Holly and Siakam and Myles Turner, what they've been doing as a fourth seed to me is insane, and I'm always an underdog lover and, hey, I believe in Holly Magic because he's been doing some crazy stuff throughout the playoffs.
Speaker 1:You know I like both these teams honestly and I've slowly been becoming an OKC fan myself. They're just having like a historic season to me when it comes to shooting and the Pacers. I've been saying it since before the bracket even started I said, look, if the Pacers get in they have a history of turning it up in the playoffs and look at the run they've had.
Speaker 1:I honestly don't know who to pick between the two. Myself, they're conflicting, yeah. So I think I like both these teams, but I do agree with Caden. I think OKC will pull it out, but it would also I wouldn't be mad if the Pacers pull it out either.
Speaker 2:Well, like I've said all along, I want to see it get a seven-game series regardless.
Speaker 1:That's so much more fun to me than a team just like winning four to one.
Speaker 2:You know, four games to one I could see it happening. I could see it coming to that, for sure, for sure so so who are some of the players you guys like model your games after? Is there certain players you like, or certain players that you watch them and you're like I like how he did that. I want to do that. I want to learn how to do that.
Speaker 4:Me. I don't know if you guys know who Sean Singletary is, big guy from UVA, arguably top two men's basketball players at UVA. He's one of my trainers, one of my main trainers. I've stayed the night at his house, me and him. Him and my dad are really cool. We've had dinner together. But he kind of modeled my game after Russell Westbrook and it's kind of funny how Russell Westbrook is one of my favorite players to watch too, or I guess older Russell Westbrook Now he kind of just sits in a corner and watches the Rays. But I love when he was so athletic, exploding through the paint when he was so athletic exploding through the paint, that little mid-range, that little cross-job or crossover, one-dribble pull-up at the mid-range oh, everything about it is just so clean and smooth. And Russ back in his OKC days was unstoppable. If anything, it sucks. He didn't get a ring during those years, definitely well-deserved.
Speaker 4:They came close, yeah, especially with the roster they had. It's just they all were at their, not their, peaks, I guess. Harden was coming off the bench on that team, so that should tell you something Exactly, exactly. It was a time, but Russell Westbrook, for me personally, for sure.
Speaker 3:So then for me, well, back to the finals thing. I also think, with the Pacers, if it's a close game and Halle Berry gets the ball, they're going to win. Like I said that back when they were playing the Knicks I said watch, if Halliburton gets the ball, they're winning the game. And then he hit the two that should have been a three.
Speaker 4:Yeah, we were together.
Speaker 3:We were together when that happened and he caught it as soon as he got the ball I was like he's going to make the shot they're going to win the game.
Speaker 3:But for me as a basketball player I'd say like I'd kind of compare it to two people Like Dennis Rodman, because I always do the small things, and like I always hustle, because I know I can be like a liability on defense because with my feet I can't move them as fast, so I make sure I always box, I always get the rebounds and always do the little things. And then I would also say kind of like a. I want to kind of play like a yokich, because if you think about it, if he wasn't seven foot he wouldn't be able to dunk. He's not athletic, he just gets to his spots and scores. And like I don't want to do anything flashy, I just want to be able to get to my spots and score.
Speaker 1:Just hit them. So a well-rounded game Just execute, just maximize.
Speaker 4:Get there as small as you can.
Speaker 1:With his footwork and lack of athleticism, but he does so much with how little he has, which is kind of it is, and that's that's important. You wonder if he had that less athleticism to go along. You know well, you know imagine imagine.
Speaker 4:All right, I like, I like that again. Kate and I have played same team. This is like one of our first, or like this year and last year, one of our first years where we haven't been on the same team before or haven't at least played on one team that year together. So I mean, yeah, I definitely Jokic Rodman. It's definitely what I'd say a good pick for him for sure, Awesome, Nice.
Speaker 2:And I like the callback to the older player Rodman.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, I like it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I kind of like that too, bulls fan here, so we haven't been good for years.
Speaker 1:I like when people still bring up the glory days yeah.
Speaker 3:Derek Rose though definitely had a chance, oh yeah, yeah, derek Rose was amazing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it just you know those injuries to his knees just slowed his career down. He still maintained a pretty decent career afterwards. He just wasn't the explosive in the paint kind of guy like he was. It's still kind of funny. He wound up with the Bulls that year. It's kind of like how the Cavs just happened to get LeBron, new York happened to get Ewing, you know. Yeah, it just worked out perfectly.
Speaker 4:Actually, I watched a video the other day it was a little NBA rumors about how it's rigged in some sort of ways, of how certain teams get certain players, like the Pelicans the Pelicans have been one of those teams. Certain teams get certain players, like the Pelicans the Pelicans have been one of those teams, the Spurs as well how they just happen to get all these bigger players. It's like some people think there's a lot, if you really do your research on it.
Speaker 4:The NBA has a lot of weird rumors going around. A lot of weird rumors, for sure.
Speaker 2:Well, yeah, because LeBron leaves the Cavs and then the next year they get the draft pick and they get Kyrie. He comes back. Yeah, a hero, yeah, and then AD moves from the Pelicans over to the Lakers and the next time they get the pick and they get Zion. So I can see where you're going with that.
Speaker 3:I don't think about the Mavs. Now I think they, so I can see where you're going with that.
Speaker 2:I don't think about the Mavs now either. I think they might get Ace.
Speaker 3:Bailey though. Watching full games. Cooper Flagg I think he turns the ball over way too much. I think Ace Bailey would be a better first-round pick. I don't know if it will happen, but whoever they get, still they got rid of Luka and now we're going to get first pick.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:It was wild, they're picking the litter there.
Speaker 4:It better turn out because Lucafor young high schooler, high schooler, is insane, basically.
Speaker 2:All I know is that Nico is the luckiest general manager in the NBA right now because he gets the number one pick. And it's like huh, we got this guy, Cooper Flag, that Number one pick. And it's like huh, we got this guy, Cooper Flagg that was going toe-to-toe with NBA players when he was 17. Exactly, yeah, it's all perspective.
Speaker 4:Just so rough for that guy. You know, lost one of the greatest players in the league right now but unfortunately got one of the best players.
Speaker 2:Here's your consolation prize Exactly Pits on how you view it.
Speaker 3:I suppose Exactly your perspective. Best players, here's your consolation prize.
Speaker 1:Pits on how you view it.
Speaker 2:I suppose your perspective of it he must have had a lucky horseshoe, a lucky rabbit's foot.
Speaker 4:Doing everything.
Speaker 2:Every single thing he could do, had a four-leaf clover, everything Like yeah, that guy gets it.
Speaker 4:Nico Harrison, man, nico Harrison, that's what.
Speaker 2:The funniest thing that came out of that was the fact that the fans showed up, and it was probably like 6,000 fans showed up and they basically they carried a casket up to the stadium having a funeral for losing Luka.
Speaker 4:When that happened. I wouldn't be surprised if something popped in the news of Nico got hurt in some sort of way. I've never seen a fan base get more like. Personally, in my lifetime, I've never seen a fan base get more outraged than what that was.
Speaker 3:People were on the news chanting stuff.
Speaker 4:It was an insane time. People still are. It's just not as much, but when it first happened.
Speaker 2:One of the fans ran laps around the stadium. To commemorate the number of times he ran around was Luca's jersey number 77 times around the stadium, Wow 77 times. Wow, just to add a little jab to it.
Speaker 4:Jeez, that's crazy, that's crazy Wow.
Speaker 1:Well, you guys, do we have anything else? We need to talk about anything else. You want to mention anything you want to throw out there?
Speaker 4:shout outs, uh, you know uh, I guess we want to say thank you to you guys. Um for you yeah, no, actually.
Speaker 1:Yeah, thank you to you for being on the show thank you for coming here today.
Speaker 4:Yeah, thank you, I, we, we do. Really, this is a great opportunity for us. Uh, for us, for our people in our community and, of course, for you guys as well. Can't wait to um promote this. Have you guys on all of our socials? Uh, we, this is, this is very professional. Oh yeah, this is very. I mean, this is a great setup, thank you. I mean, you guys run a great show here. Uh, thank you for everything you've given us, all the amenities and whatever, and um, I guess we also want to promote our socials and our website, uh so on instagram and tiktok we are solace s-o-l-a-c.
Speaker 3:Dot dot is in period Outfitters O-U-T-F-I-T-T-E-R yeah, and then our website is solaceoutfittersshop. And then on YouTube we are Solace Bros. We are up and coming on. Youtube. Yes sir, yes sir, yes sir.
Speaker 1:Yes, sir, absolutely Great job, you guys.
Speaker 3:Thank you. Thank you, and you could see some of our. We actually just did a stream on Christian's Twitch account which was kind of like behind the scenes to work on some new stuff that we have upcoming. So if you ever tune into one of our Twitch channels, you might see something behind the scenes.
Speaker 2:Give them your Twitch handles so they can follow you.
Speaker 3:Mine is twitchtv skfire f-i-r-e-w and then mine is twitchtv slash.
Speaker 4:K-r-o-b-j, just my initials I guess, uh, one more thing I do want to add is, uh, I guess, really just kind of promoting us as ourselves, like who we are, as like just genuine people. Like I said, I'm Christian Wright. Co-owner. This is Caden O'Brien James. We're just two young guys with two young kids, I guess, teenagers with huge aspirations.
Speaker 1:That's how it starts.
Speaker 4:Big goals, yeah, big goals. It starts with a dream For real. There's no other option for us at this point. There's no other option.
Speaker 3:Literally, and the only way we can lose is if we quit and we're not going to.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I was just going to say the difference between complacency and really reaching success, I was going to say, is drive and go after it, man. I just hear that.
Speaker 4:Athletics Yep.
Speaker 1:Go after your athletics, Go after your business, Go after everything you want to go after. You might not hit everything and things may not shake out the way you planned. The important thing is you drive for it, you go for it. Dress for the job you want, not for the job you have right. Yes, sir, that's great. That's great. That's great, you know. I'd like to again thank you guys for being on the show. I think this is great for everybody all the way around. I can't wait to work with you guys more in the future. Let's get a clothing collab.
Speaker 4:That's right, we're all about it, man, let's get it, let's get it, let's get it.
Speaker 1:I thought he was doing it and uh, once again. Uh, you know, go to our page as well. Uh, twoforthewindcom, that's fresh. We just got that. Uh, thank you everybody for joining us, uh listening to us, uh taking part in the conversation with us. Uh, once again, I'm brian with an eye and I'm mike and you are.
Speaker 3:I'm christian wright and I'm kate and o'brien james. Thank you everybody for joining us have a good one, let's get it.
Speaker 1:And I'm Mike and you are, I'm Christian Wright and I'm Caden O'Brien-Jabes. Thank you, everybody for joining us. Have a good one, let's get it.
Speaker 2:Thanks everybody.