Club 520 Podcast - Club 520 x Hennessy -Shawn Marion tells Jeff Teague stories of LeBron James, winning title with Dirk Nowitzki

Episode Date: March 23, 2024

Shawn Marion joins Jeff Teague and the Club 520 guys on the third stop of the Hennessy Arena Tour in Dallas. Shawn Marion tells stories about winning an NBA championship with Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, and the Dallas Mavericks, playing alongside LeBron James and Kyrie Irving for the Cleveland Cavaliers, being one of the best defenders in NBA history, and much more. #VolumeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Volume. This is an iHeart Podcast. The Made for This Mountain podcast exists to empower listeners to rise above their inner struggles and face the mountain in front of them. So during Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast, focus on your emotional well-being, and then climb that mountain. You will never be able to change or grow through the thing that you refuse to identify, the thing that you refuse to say, hey, this is my mountain, this is the struggle. Listen to Made for This Mountain

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. For Jeff Teague, DJ Wells, clap it up for DJ Wells, Bishop Behan, and NBA champion, Dallas Mavericks legend, The Matrix, Sean Marion, clap it up for him. Let's go. Hey. Man, boy, you ain't trying like that. You need to come on this podcast. Going crazy. He starts sweating after that one. Turn up. But hey,

you know what it is, Club 520. We in Dallas with it this weekend. How y'all what, man? We from Indianapolis, Indiana. It's 317 day around our way.

We grabbed, you know what I'm saying, happy to be out here with y'all celebrating. Doing it in with Hennessy Arena. One more game, but like I said,

it's Club 520 podcast. I'm the host. My name is dj wells we got a legend to my left special guest you're gonna introduce my man's last but to my far left my dog bishop b hen out the burleys green leaf how you what nasty cool and nasty what's up dallas we here baby let's go yeah now look matrix i know i'm saying i know your foot game crazy but have you ever seen the black forces with the white laces? That's how we were in Indianapolis.

That's how he was in Indianapolis. No, I ain't never seen those, but they clean, though. I like them. Out the gate. You said them is clean? Yeah. Well, hey. You know the black F1s weren't nasty, but, you know, everybody.

That's penitentiary chances right there. Hey, you want that criminal vibe, huh? He might not rob you, but he might scam you with the white lace, you know what I'm saying? My bad, my bad. But to my right, my dog, young Nacho, young Teague, how you doing, man? Man, I'm cooling, bro. We in Dallas. It's been a good time.

The vibes was right. Hennessy got me right. Y'all know how I get when I get on that Hennessy. I get to sweating a little bit. It's about to act a fool in here. Don't do too much You're trying to renew this contract Oh my fault, my fault

But to my left We got a legend, legend, legend, legend Y'all don't even notice He from the Midwest though Yeah, he from the Midwest But he made big noise Down here in the city of Dallas Put a banner up

We got the Matrix Sean Marion in the building Appreciate you pulling up, big dog Appreciate y'all having me Yeah I'm excited Because I know y'all having me. Yeah. I'm excited because I know y'all got some shit for me. Oh, yeah. We definitely got a lot to talk about.

But first, you know what I'm saying? We always talk about the footwear game. People who don't know this asleep, but you a legend, especially with the footwear game and the Jordan PEs. How did that come about? So, look, you know, it's an interesting story. So, everybody been calling me about them damn shoes too though sad joe was like i need a pair of those and everybody i'm like yo i didn't even have a pair

when everybody was asking me for a pair because during my uh i think it's my third year and i almost basically became a free agent shoot so like i was a shoe haul so everybody was sending me kicks and uh i was gonna go with jordan a lot of people don't know this i was gonna sign with jordan initially but uh jordan's like tricks i can give you no money i was like what he wouldn't just give me the brand you know i've seen the shoes and stuff and everything under the jordan umbrella but i was like shit if i'm in the nike i'm getting it anyway right he's like yeah so i was, and they going to pay me. So I was like, MJ, I love you to death,

but I'm going to, I'm going to Team Nike. Now I get that check by all means. Yeah, yeah. But he made me, he was making me, he was sending me Jordans throughout the year

when I was deciding on what team, what brand I want to go with. So he ended up sending me a shipment of PE5s and it got lumped in with everything else. And what happened was, during

that process, I was getting so many shoes, and I was wearing 12s a lot of the time. So the customs came in, but I never received them because I was wearing a new pair of shoes every game. So it was so many that came in. They got lumped in, and then I was moving around and doing so much and went to nike and they uh they had made me a custom pair of pe's but pj tucker got them because he went into the vault so a lot of teams don't people don't know this a lot of teams have a locker room full of just shoes and all the guys play through now typically if you if you uh with whoever brand you are they send you some shoes home with you during the summertime, you know, but they always keep a stock for you,

you know what I'm saying, if you're a long 10-year-old guy. So they got lumped in. He went through their rummaging and found two pair. Of course he did. So it was even better than that, though. It was fucked up because he got them, so I never got them.

So now, hold on, I never received them, but I do have a locker here at my house that I haven't really been through all the sneakers. So I could have some at the house, but, dude, I ain't trying to go in that mess right now. So, but I don't have none. But then Nike had a few pair at the facility this summer. Booker was there working out, went to the campus, you know, finishing up his final stuff for his shoe. And he found a pair in the locker room, you know, finishing up his final stuff for his shoe, and he found a pair in the locker room, you know, in the Nike

locker, and, you know, we were the same size shoes, so he grabbed them, and then he worked out with them and posted, sent me a video of him working out with them in L.A., and then I was like, yo, how you got a pair, and I still ain't got a pair yet, so then he was like, okay, whatever, so then he was like, yo, of course, he wanted me to be in his Nike commercial

that came out, and then he ended up wearing them the night of the majority of retirement where he wore them. He only wore them twice. And then he gave them to me because I don't have a pair as I know of right now. So that's the only pair I have that he gave to me because he got them from Nike this summer. Oh, that's hard. That's crazy. I want to ask you, how in the hell did you end up at Vincennes University, bro? We from Indiana. Trailblazers, baby, all day. So when I was coming out of high school, right, you know, me and my boys were talking about this yesterday.

And like, I didn't pass the ACT score back then. You know, remember, it was ACT and SAT. So I was one point short. I had a GPA. I had like a B. I was always been a smart. So I just, from one part, part missed one big part on that test. I was one point short and I didn't want to wait another another another half a year to take the test again. So I decided I was like, fuck, I want to I need to get out of here. I need to go play ball. So then I visited Vincennes and I visited Northwest Mississippi Junior Colleges.

And I was like, yeah, I'm go to VU once I went to VU the campus it was it was a no brainer and the coach was like yo whatever you need

and whatever you want you got it here so locked in and that was that was two of my best years I've ever had

playing though we did everything and they laid the red carpet out for me it was dope for sure we used to go down there

and party and I used to see your name on the banner. I'm like, ain't no fucking way. Yeah, I thought they was mine. Listen. Listen, those parties. That's Sean Murray from 38th Street. You gotta be from the ghetto back in then.

No way. Man, you know, Vince has got so much history, though. Y'all know that? Yeah. All the legends went through there. Bob McAdoo, Eric Williams, and Tyrone Nesby. Some guys, a lot of guys that played the pro had great careers there. You know,

I think I was the best one, but, you know. Talk your shit. By far. Yeah, that's what it is. You know, I'm a factual guy. I don't lie.

Me too. Yeah. Come on, you was all-conference two years in a row, baby. Oh, yeah, yeah. Male student after the year as well, too, though.

A lot of studying the Vincennes, huh? Yeah. He didn't know about the Vincennes, huh? Yeah. He didn't know about the Vincennes parties. Legendary. Oh, they were. I ain't gonna lie to you.

They did some shit there that a lot of Division I schools don't do. It was some dope walkie-talkie type shit. That's all right. They got lookouts. I ain't never been in those.

The walkie-talkies. They got the walkie-talkie here, so they got lookout guys. Man, it was late. Tell them about when you went to Diddy House. Oh. Sean, don't entertain.

That's for another podcast. My bad. Be glad we ain't at the crib. I was going to say some shit on this. Oh, man. I'm going to chill. All right, all right. Love it, love it.

Oh, my God. Now you got some different walkie-talkies at that party. Don't do that. This is about... I don't want to talk about any of this after this. Back to regular schedule. But obviously you transferred to UNLV. How was that process like?

Because I know everybody in the world wanted you coming out as a Juco All-American. Obviously the way you played, you went to the school that really fit the way you play basketball so look so my dream school was north carolina dude i was gonna be a tar hill i was like i messed all i fucked with and mj man you know one more thing i say so i was actually they had one scholarship available and bob mcadoo's only guy from that came from north carolina they recruited from junior college so dean smith that's one guy ever so i was gonna be the second guy dean smith North Carolina that he recruited from junior college. So Dean Smith, that's one guy ever. So I was going to be the second guy. Dean Smith told me he's going to have a scholarship available.

It's a crazy story, too. He had one scholarship come available, and it's yours if you want it. My coach came to me, he was like, yo, it's yours if you want it. I was like, for real? Oh, shit. Don't say no more.

Say less. So get through the year. Some shit happened or whatever. And I guess he ended up getting sick or whatever he had to retire so that kind of put that on hold because i wanted to go play for dean smith you know what i'm saying that's the the legend the myth the all the history everything there so i want to go play with him and then it just didn't happen so i was like okay now i'm not going north carolina so now I need to go somewhere warm. I'm tired of this damn cold. That snowy Indiana was a motherfucker.

Being from Crib, yeah, it was a different beast down there. So, shit, I put all my energy towards the West Coast. So I was like, you know, USC was hounding me, UNLV. So I went and visited both of those places. And I was like, I felt more comfortable and more at home with the Rebels, man. And, you know, my guy, Coach Glenn Ciprian,

my guy, man, that's my guy to this day, man. You know, he was like, yo, come down here, I'm going to take care of you. So, hey, I went out there and... What do you mean by that?

Huh? Oh, I got it back. Oh, okay. Just making sure. The real NIL. Okay, okay. Come on, stop playing that game. It wasn't legal then.

You know what I'm saying? Oh, it wasn't Vegas. It was legal. Oh It wasn't legal then. You know what I'm saying? Oh, it was in Vegas. It was legal. Oh, everything goes out there. You know, the stories you hear about the Rebels back in the day with the, yo, that shit was true. All that shit with Stacey Augman had his own business. Them guys used to walk in the mall.

They used to give them bags and anything they want. Man, that shit was real. That's fine. Man, Vegas is a one-stop shop, kid. Everything goes out there, man. And I loved it out there. It was just one step in phase on to the next one. You should have never went to White.

You should have went to UNLV. Boy, I'm going to chill. What you trying to say, bro? You got a legendary Vegas story. We going to relax. We're here for the company, y'all. I went to the 99 NBA draft. We're here with the night pick from the 99 draft.

How was it, man, going to the league? How was that process? I mean, it was a dream come true. I think, you know, when you set out to do certain things and being exposed to being around guys in the league and stuff like Young Games, man, you create that appetite. And a lot of people don appetite and a lot of people don't have a lot of drive you know it take it take a lot of sacrifice and a lot of a lot of

discipline to be successful at this game you know i don't think people really to understand that like a lot of people take a lot of things for granted you know i've been truly blessed to play this game a long time and give it i think with the identity i was a big part of what the identity of the league is right now if you know anything about basketball basketball, that's just what it is. First guy to go small to make a team transition to playing guys out of normal positions. So my mindset is totally, man, I'm a dog. You know, one of the things I pride myself on, when I step on that floor, you're going to get every ounce of energy and every effort you could possibly get from me.

And if you know anything about the game, you know I did that. I'm retired. I can do what the hell I want to do. They put the plant in front of their... I'm grown. I'm retired. Shit. They resourceful. Man, I enjoy life. Black people are real creative. Do I enjoy retirement? You're enjoying retirement right now. Yeah, I get to clown

with these dudes every day, man. It's fun. Man. And I get to go on Hennessy tours and enjoy new people and experience new things. It's all good, man. It's fun. Man. And I get to go on Hennessy tours and enjoy new people and experience new things. It's all good, man. No, I'm serious. Like, when I ask that question, I mean, like, you're saying that, but, like, a lot of people don't enjoy it.

Like, the transition for most guys is harder than you think. Nah, it was. The first week was hard. And then after week two, we did a podcast. I was straight. Oh, okay, okay. Got something to fill that void already. Yup. No, but like, I'm the vice president of the Retired Players Association.

So I'm going to shout out to all my OGs that paid the weight for us because I think they don't get enough attention and enough flowers because we don't talk about them. I know everybody's more caught up and more current in what's going on right now with the current guys and shit. But the guys that lay that foundation for us, they don't get their flowers and they deserve it. Hands down.

Like every time I see you at OG, I'm all like, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. It's real. And like, man, you don't realize the sacrifice they did for us to make it how easy. And ours was kind of easy. They really got it easy now.

Like, can you imagine playing right now? Dude, the shit that they got right now? Dude, I'm playing 25 years. Easy. Thanks. easy now like can you imagine playing right now dude the shit that they got right now dude i'm playing 25 years easy that's i enjoy talking to the retired players the older players because we get to play homage to them you know let them know that we appreciate and that's why we happy as hell to have you on the podcast like when we see you in the comments we all like damn you see sean mary matrix on there so we all excited bro uh because we really want to show y'all love so we try to get more retired players or older players.

I appreciate that. We wouldn't mind doing it with the current players, but it was a lot more fun. I respect that, man. I appreciate it, man. For sure. It's just little things, man. And especially like you said, like, y'all Phoenix team, you especially, like, changed the way basketball was played in that time period. Because I was the first really team to kind of go small ball, which I really wasn't small.

Like, obviously, you play in a big position. You could rebound. You could do everything. But it made everybody else adjust to that. And especially when y'all had it, when y'all had Q Rich, when y'all had young Joe Johnson. Come on, man. So a lot of people forget that. You know, when they talk about seven seconders or less and they talk about the team, they

don't even, that first year, it was fucking, it was crazy. And, but like when everybody's referencing, I ask, that first year, it was fucking, it was crazy. Yeah. And, but like when everybody's referencing, I ask them, what year are you talking about though? Because you have to define it because that year, we only played together one year. Mm-hmm.

That started in five. So, there's so much that go into that and there's so many conversations and I know the media great at creating these narratives and everybody soak it up and eat it up like,

man, but it was, there's so much other shit going on behind the scenes. Yeah. And so many feelings you have in the locker room that came to me to really truly express or understand it. You know, especially when you've got that mindset of what you're trying to accomplish and you see it there.

You know, I think, you know, mental toughness is one of the things that I think a lot of guys in this league right now don't have right now. Like, no, listen, we've got some talented guys in the NBA right now,'t have right now like no listen we got some talented guys in the nba right now and i love the diversity i love the magnitude of some of these guys the things that they've been able to do on the floor but man this right here like that mental toughness to fight through certain certain things from that court at that time man you can see when multiple fatigue is a big part of the game that people just automatically give in and that's the one thing

i love about all the older guys. Man, you know, whether they were scoring or not, you just want to get their 100% effort. They knew when they stepped on that court, when people played me, they knew damn well they had to lace their motherfucking shoes up or they was going to get ran at the fucking gym.

I was going to embarrass your ass out here. Whether it be just stopping you or I'm going to give you 30 points at the end. So that's the thing that, that's the mentality I have because, you know, I just feel like, like, why are you not competing, though? And I see it. That's the reason I can't coach. I know when motherfuckers ain't playing hard.

Yeah. Like, I'm coming straight at your heart, though, and it sucks. It eats at me. I'm like, yo, dude, you can play harder than that. We got so many versatile and dynamic players in this league, in the game, and it's steady getting there. It's getting younger and younger, of course. But, like, man, what happens to this, like, yo, I'm locking your ass up there.

We can be boys and drink afterwards. But we get on this court, you ain't my enemy right now. Ain't going to be no laughing joke. I'm going to bust your motherfucking ass. Do you feel like social media and, like, players being so involved with their brands off the court plays a big deal into that? So, personally, listen, sometimes I feel like some of the guys, I'm not saying all the guys, there are some definitely some great players in the NBA that love and pride themselves in this game and dedicate themselves. But there's a lot of guys who think about social media first, then the game, and everything else comes later.

That's real. Like, their approach is for social media versus the game. What happened to your love and your passion for the game first and then everything else comes later? That's when you see it, and you see it in certain guys. I ain't, listen, I'm not telling you something that is not obvious. It's right in your face. It's up to everybody else to choose what they want to see or not.

That's real. Is that a Phoenix Suns team, though, that you played one year with, the most talented team you think you ever played on? Shit. Because y'all had a motherfucking win. We was tough. But, man, you remember I played in 2014, 2015 with Braun in Cleveland. I know you did.

So it was Kyrie, Braun, J.R. Smith, Amon Shepard, Kevin Love. I mean, Mike Miller, Brendan Haywood. We had a whip. I ain't going to lie, Matrix. I'm taking that Phoenix team over that squad. No, so I'm telling you the depth, though. I'm on both teams, so I understand that. So I ain't complaining.

I'm going to take that Cavs team. You already going to take the Cavs? Kyrie and Bron, bro. What are we talking about? So you know what, though? If I'm on that team, though, and it depends on if I'm starting or not. If I'm in my role transitioning out,

okay, yeah, but if I'm playing... Young Matrix. So you low-key saying you would have locked up Bron. That's how you kind of. That's what I was trying to do. I'm playing. I'm on the team, though. No, no, no.

So I'm on that roster, though. I know. So if I'm starting, I started the season off that year starting at two guard, which is crazy, but I love it. I respect it. I can do it all. No, but if I'm starting on that team, that Cleveland team is going to be better. But if I'm not starting, I'm on my way out, oh, Phoenix, we rocking, we kicking.

Oh, we coming hard. We coming hard. I want to get off that. I want to ask you one question, bro. Growing up, when I was little, I used to shoot from down here. How the hell did your shit stay there when you became grown? First of all, my shot ain't that low.

You should get out of pocket. Get on his ass. Get on his ass. I used to be on the game. I could never time your shot. It's cool, bro. You made it, bro. So let me ask you a question, though.

All right. Name me two people in the league that shoot the same. I don't know two people. No, you don't. I don't. So it's funny because I used to, like, when I played, though, you know what was really, really, really fucked up when I played? This is really messed up.

They used to pay more attention to my shot than when I was doing the floor. Yeah. So you don't hear them talking about no, no no no no no buys no job moran's or anybody even so even look at the Splash Brothers The best shooters in NBA history right now don't they don't shoot nowhere like do they nah not even close So so with that being said though When I was like when I was playing this is why a lot of times a lot of guys They feel like they get because everybody was labeling me underrated my whole career i was underrated talent all this other stuff and it got to the point where it was kind of eating up i'm like why am i underrated i'm doing

shit out here at six seven that most uh seven footers is not doing the league no you ain't getting 20 and 10 and two blocks and and two steals he's not doing it no you was goaded now so so so so when i sit here and you ask me that question, I was like, are you trying to defer that to get some of my ulcer credit or not give me my flowers? No, no, no.

We give you your flowers. I'm trying to figure out. No, no. So that's what they did, though. How you get it down here? I'm talking about the form. This is what it is. That's what I'm saying.

I just told you that. No, I'm saying, is it like when you was younger, you just always shot? No, dude, I just have a lower arch than everybody else. I shoot two i mean i shoot one just like everybody else that's all good but we knew you was a killer i know you a killer i obviously played against you been a fan for years but i was just thinking like damn because you know you mimic people yeah you're younger dude you mimic people and i just wonder like damn what was that like would you mimic somebody. When you're a younger dude, you mimic people. And I just wonder, like, damn, what was that? Like, would you mimic somebody when you was younger?

How did it come about? No, man. I broke my wrist and fingers and everything. But, like, no, it's just natural, dude. And I just kept busting everybody's ass with it. For sure. Yeah. Now, you were part of some crazy NBA moments on those two people preview.

First, we're going to start with that 0-3 All-Star game, man. One of the most iconic All-Star games of all time. Obviously, the West got that win, but how was it to just be in that environment? Because that was a historic moment for the NBA, especially with Jordan's last All-Star game, just to be in that moment and to actually get to play in that moment. So I used to work, when I was at Vincennes, I used to work Jordan camp. So I was in there and we got, it was some footage that went viral the last couple years during COVID of that pickup run. He had some amazing pickup runs during his camp and a lot of people don't know that. You know what I'm saying?

When I tell you, you wish he was there, you wish he was there. Everybody who went there, who went to his camp came from either University of Arizona at the time, North Carolina, the Dukes, the big-time guys who, you know what I'm saying, they were looking forward to trying to be, you know what I'm saying, Jordan or Team Nike and stuff. So it was truly special. But, man, you know, MJ, man, come on, man. You ever get the best of him at the runs?

We call him Black Jesus, baby. You get the best of Jordan at the runs? No, no. A couple times I was on his team, but, you know, we all, like, it's a couple holidays in there, everybody, but, you know, Jordan take that shit serious. We know. We talk to him on our tests.

I loved it. I loved it. When he played pickup, dude, he came, we worked out, man. It wasn't like we come in the ball. We come in the work. We're not coming here just to create some content, you know, to make everybody look good. Man, them shits.

Man, you can go in these gyms right now. You go back in the closed gyms and see the runs that we had. Dude, you'd be like, what the hell? What we doing? This ain't even nowhere near the magnitude of the competition that these guys are playing in now. Dude, it was fucking war out there. Like, regular season or not, dude, when we working out, we working out.

Yeah. I can tell by y'all All-Star game speaking like that. The All-Star game, y'all playing so serious. Oh, dude. When we working out, we working out. Yeah. I can tell by y'all all-star game, speaking like that, the all-star game, y'all playing so serious. Come on, man. We was watching the highlights the other day before we prepared for this

and like see how hard y'all was playing compared to this year. It's crazy. I was all over MJ on that last shot. And like, listen, there's such thing

as great defense, but such thing as better offense. And that was one of them situations, though. Like, he literally barely got that off of my fingers.

I was really trying to D his ass up. And, you know, we still won, though. Kobe got fouled barely got that off of my fingers. I was really trying to D his ass up. And, you know, we still won, though. Kobe got fouled by Jermaine O'Neal. Next play, we still win. Kobe was hate. Kobe wasn't trying to lose. Nah, I respect that, man.

No, we do. This is for real. Like, Papa's like, yo, Matrix, go get him. Damn. Yeah, like you. So you ain't had no sympathy, bro. He going out. Let MJ go out on top, man. No, no, no, no. bro. He going out. Let MJ go out on top, man.

No, no, no, no. Because he wouldn't let y'all go out on top. No, definitely. He probably wouldn't want to know otherwise. That ain't even the best part of that weekend, though. You know the best part of that weekend? The Memorial High Carry singing the national anthem in that Jordan dress. Oh, my God.

Talk about it. Lord have mercy. I wish she sang Hero to me. That boy out of pocket. I'll take it right now. Shouts of Nick Cannon. Voice a little shaky and everything, I don't care. Made for This Mountain is a podcast

that exists to empower listeners to rise above their struggles, break free from the chains of trauma, and silence the negative voices that have kept them small. Through raw conversations, real stories, and actionable guidance, you can learn to face the mountain that is in front of you. You will never be able to change or grow through the thing that you refuse to identify. The thing that you refuse to say, hey, this is my mountain. This is the struggle. This is the thing that's in front of me. You can't make that mountain move without actually diving into that. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, a time to conquer the things

that once felt impossible and step boldly into the best version of yourself to awaken the unstoppable strength that's inside of us all. So tune into the podcast, focus on your emotional well-being and climb your personal mountain. Because it's impossible for you to be the most authentic you. It's impossible for you to love you fully. If all you're doing is living to please people, your mountain is that. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

You crazy, but next moment, man. 0-4 Olympics, man. That team, y'all had a lot of talent. Obviously, we know the outcome with that. But how was that entire experience, you know, to represent the country and get to play with people in the league that you play and represent the country with? So, you know, that was a crazy year.

There was a lot of shit that went on. A whole lot. Before we even left the country here, man, it was a shit show. Oh, man, it's a lot of stuff and a lot of stories that came out about certain things.

Some of that shit was cap. Like, that's one thing I don't believe. I ain't going to sit here and lie to you about no bullshit. Ain't no need to. So, we, what happened?

That first night, we get there, we get to Florida because we all started in Jacksonville, Florida that year. And we was hanging out and I was with Bubba Chuck, of course.

Shout out to Ivo. So, you know how Bubba Chuck go. Give him that 12-pack of Heineken because he's good to go. So, if y'all don't know who Bubba Chuck is, it's AI. Yeah, yeah. So, we all partying and getting it in, and it was the first call, first practice. It was a couple guys.

I'm not even from the Papika one, but it was a couple guys. I was like, shit, this is the first call, first practice. It was a couple guys. I'm not even from the Papika one, but it was a couple guys. I was like, shit, this is the first day. We already fucked up already. So it was me. Of course, Stephon was on that team, and Bubba Chuck, that was our two backcourt. And then Richard Jefferson was on that team,

LeBron, Carmelo, the young guys, D-Wade, all those guys. But man, when we left here, we honestly felt good about the trip. It started off pretty good. But then, man, Andre Miller and Paul got into it, man. Damn, so you think that's what went downhill? Man, it was kind of going downhill already. It was just a – it was an interesting mix of guys.

I think it was, it was a great talent-wise team, but international play is totally different. A lot of people don't understand that. And, you know, I think the mindset

you got to have when you're playing for your country is not the same as you're playing for your team. It's a big difference. You actually need to elevate.

And we were so all over the board, though, man. And, you know, I felt bad for Larry Brown Pop and all of them though, man. And, you know, I felt bad for Larry Brown Pop and all of them because everybody was young. And, man, he had a mixture of guys.

And some guys going this way, some guys going that way. Man, it just, I was just like, how are we going to make this work? You know? And it wasn't like people didn't really dislike each other. It was just more just like, it's just an imbalance that makes sense and it sucked that we we fell short we i mean we finished with the bronze mellow you know what i'm saying you know that last game i had to do be he man out there do some out there i had a hell of a game for us to pull some out but yes on the podium yeah i was like we got to get out

here with something yeah for sure but i mean listen everything ain't as easy as you think it is it's not easy for guys to go play on the national team and you don't play every year that's why they changed the dynamic after that after that year they start getting the guys together for two years yeah at least two three years together and have the same cohesiveness because you're playing against teams now where all these guys have been playing together for 10 years they've been they've been groomed They've been groomed to beat us. That's their mindset. And they play a game and play a style that we don't play.

Our NBA game is more of an individual sport. When you play overseas, it's fundamentally in simple basketball. They're not doing all the extra stuff. They're just keeping it simple, but they know each other. We know each other from a competitive standpoint, but playing with each other, it's a time you've got to acclimate know each other. We know each other from as a competitive standpoint. But playing with each other, it's a time you've got to acclimate to each other and adjust and know what he likes, what he doesn't like.

And there's so many levels to it. Absolutely. And like you said with that, the way that they play basketball, and you've played with some of the best international players ever. You know what I'm saying? Playing with Steve Nash and obviously playing with the one that did numbers down in this city, Dirk. Their approach to the game and how they play like a man. I've been the flashiest, but it was always productive and it was always buckets.

Was a lot easier playing with a solid player like that. See, the team was different. My role was different. So so one of the things I've been able to adjust to, I just the team I have. I mean, if you follow me, you know that. So like when I got here, they need me to adjust to, I adjust to the team I have. I mean, if you follow me, you know that. So, like, when I got here, they needed me to do everything that everybody else wasn't going to do. Yeah.

So we had a great shooting team, you know what I'm saying? But they didn't have nobody slashing, they didn't have nobody just locking motherfuckers on the defense and doing the smaller things. And that's how we complement each other. When they needed me to score, I scored. When they needed me to lock somebody up, I locked them up. And it's just, or when they needed me to facilitate,

I was able to do that as well, too. So it just depended on what we were needing and who we was playing. And I think that's the one thing about the game that you don't see a lot. You don't see a lot. Everything is the same thing now. When you see the real good teams, they adjust to different variations on the court and doing that game. You know, that was the reason why we was able to win that championship.

We knew how to hold people accountable, and we knew how to adjust. And we played to the level of our opponents. That's how fucking good we were. Like, we're nobody beating us that year. I don't give a fuck who we played. Tyson Challen don't get enough credit either. T.Y. was amazing. T.Y. and Brendan, the tandem between T.Y. and Brendan Haywood.

We had two seven-footers that was meeting you at the rim. Oh, shit. Damn, bro. I mean, like, Tyson was a lot more verbal and aggressive than Brendan, but Brendan was out there. He was sitting there waiting for you to get to the rim. Yeah. And, like, that's the thing.

But you got guys locked up on the perimeter. We locked in. Me, Deshaun Stevenson, J-Kid, all of us, even Dirk. Even Dirk got his big ass down and was defending. You know what I'm saying? So,

like, when you buy into that team concept, that's when you, and you challenging everybody, you elevating each other. That's what it's about. And like you said,

I mean, the Miami Heat came in, big three, super talented team, but you could tell the difference between the teams of y'all was the mindset, the mental focus. Obviously, y'all being veterans, y' But you could tell the difference between the teams of y'all was the mindset,

the mental focus. Obviously, y'all being veterans, y'all was locked in. Wasn't nothing going to sway y'all. And you could tell when they got rattled, y'all was going to take it. Like, Jason Terry getting attacked. Like, come on. Like, y'all was a different level of locked in. Man, listen, man.

You go back and you don't get a lot of time to reflect on your career while you're playing because you're living in it. When you get time to really reflect on what you did in your career and the things that you did in this game, and just look back and be like, holy shit. Like, it was a hell of a run. And that run right there, oh, my God. D-Wade told this to me after we won a championship.

He's like, enjoy this moment, but you don't really know what you did until about a month later. And he wasn't lying. When all the dust and everything kind of calm down that summer You know, I was doing all kind of parties out here that year but uh But when that does sell down I got a chance to really reflect on that run We did do and I was a hell of a fucking run We beat some great teams great teams shit the most deep the deepest team in the league that year behind behind us and

Miami was Portland Yeah, we had a lick people be like listen. Don't let me grow on Lakers with defending champions Yeah, but they wouldn't as deep as Portland Portland had ten guys do that They that literally could be starting so all the teams, you know saying and uh, Brendan Royals Kurt's Kurt kind of hurt at the time But he used to come back but he still had one good game That was like, you know, he gave you the flashes of what he could possibly do. But we just kept rising to the challenge, man. And it's like, you know, once we got there, we was locked in like that, man.

There was nobody stopping that shit. What was that party like? Like winning in Miami, then going to Live and spending the big bag Cuban did. What was that like? So, dude, it was lit. You know, I think Liv was really kind of coming back alive at that time. That's when we were first really back opening it up, and they was doing Sundays there.

I mean, shit, dude. We got in that bitch. We turned it out. Cuban bought that big-ass over-extra Magnum or whatever, that $100,000 bottle or whatever. Like, he had two people pouring the bottle, pouring it, man. Listen, you could just drip that whole thing on me and that bitch.

We was all just drinking. I felt like it was just dollars that took over Miami that night. Everybody was locked in and it was like, pause. I know. My boy said, you can drip that big thing over here. I'm like, yo. I fuck what you make. But that was insane. Pause.

I was waiting though. Pause. So look. We've been scared since the middle of a beat up episode. Yeah, yeah. Hey, I didn't want to fuck up your story, but I'm like, cut the fucking lines. I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like,

I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm like, I'm didn't want to fuck up your story, but I'm like, cut the fucking part. Pause. Nah, for sure.

You know what? I need a drink. Hey, but that's got to be fire, though. To win a championship and celebrate in somebody else's city is fire. Yeah, especially in Miami. I snuck an NBA championship outright. It was literally this many people at our party. Nah, for real.

He ain't bullshit. He was mad as hell when he came home. I said, I got to throw my own championship party. Damn, DeNosso say throw a party?

Nah, I couldn't find him. He went back to the crib. Brooke Lopez walked in with his jersey on. I said, damn, it's just me and Brooke?

Hey, this is... Yeah. With no vibes in there for Brooke. With no vibes for nobody. It was like everybody from the front office, I was like, nah, I've seen the Dallas Mavericks win. And I seen Sean Marion getting the drink poured on him. False.

Did you know, though, at the beginning of the year that y'all had a chance, though? I mean, I know you always want to play to win. So, look, every team has aspirations to win a championship every year. When training camp comes, every team has that goal. That's their coming to training camp. That's the focus. But guess what? There's only about a handful of those teams actually going to speak that into existence.

You know what I'm saying? Reality and perception are two different things. Reality, most of these teams know they ain't going to do shit. Now, the parody in the league now, today, is totally different. But back then, though, listen, this is how strong our team was.

My cousin was not here. We were sitting in my living room when I was living in Preston Hollow at the time, and he was like, he looked at our roster. He literally looked at our roster. He was like,

huh, huh, huh, huh. He was like, cuz y'all going to win the championship this year. Y'all going to do what y'all need to do. Y'all going to win the roster. He was like, huh, huh, huh, huh. He was like, because y'all are going to win a championship this year. Y'all are going to do what y'all need to do. Y'all are going to win a championship. I was like, you know what? Shit, because you kind of, I believe, you're right. I'm looking at this motherfucker like, yeah, I'm looking at our roster

because we ain't had training camp yet. So we got some new guys that, you know, some older guys who came in. But like, I'm like, you know what? You're damn right. We go out and do what we need to do. We're going to win this motherfucker. So fast forward, training camp starts. We are in

Orlando playing them for preseason. So D. Steve hosts half the team at the house and have a barbecue at the crib. Yeah, he got an ATM in the living room and shit. So we there. We got a guy, tattoo guy came over and we grilling and everybody's just

chopping up, chopping shit. And Jet was like, yo, let me get this. I'm going to go and get this motherfucking championship tattoo on my arm. I'm like, what? He's like, yeah, we winning this bitch this year. I was like, oh shit. Okay. Okay.

No. So he literally got a tattoo on his arm right then and there. Man. It's preseason. We ain't started the season. Oh, shit, I remember that. I didn't know it was preseason. I didn't know that happened. I didn't know it was that early.

It was preseason. We ain't played one game this season yet. So I was like, oh, shit, we locked in. Let's do this, Jet. I got you. Let's do this. So we come out the gates rolling. You know, Caron go down with within I think or 15 games

Tough one tougher, but like man we we study rolling and everybody just locked in with each other man Like of course, you know, the season is so long I think we finished with third or fourth that year something like that in the Western Conference and But any matter who we've messed up where we knew we had 18 game winning streaks that season. We was doing it. So the West has always been strong like that, though, for the most part, for the longest of my career. Everybody who made postseason was winning 50-plus games.

But anyway, we get through the year, and we play Portland that first round. I mean, I tell you, we was locked in, and we looked at each other in the eyes, and there was a feeling in the locker room. The whole dynamic and whole culture in our environment. When you walked into that locker room,

you knew that we was on a mission. For sure. You would have felt that energy and got that energy. And regardless of all the naysayers and the media and shit, they kept talking. They picked Portland to win that series. Yeah, I was going to say, y'all weren't the favorites to pick that series. They picked the Lakers to win. They picked OKC to win. They picked Miami to win that series. Yeah, I was going to say, y'all weren't the favorites to pick that series. They picked the Lakers to win.

They picked OKC to win. They picked Miami to win. I was like, I tell you them motherfuckers don't know shit about basketball because we beat the dog shit out of everybody. Yeah, I did. Yeah, I did. Now, facts.

Now, I got a question for you. We got a fan question. They want to know if this is true or not. You know what I'm saying? Obviously, we know what happened. You know what I'm saying? Got about a Phoenix. Is it true there was a possibility that you could have went to boston yes oh okay yes so

doing that process right before kg went i was getting calls so so you know this so being the nba there's a lot of people calling about asking about people that don't mean they up a trade it's part of the business part of the game. So, like, people can call and cry about anything. Like, and they ask. So, they was calling, Boston was calling like crazy. And I was like, there's a bonus. It was like, Boston is calling about you, Sean, and we ain't entertaining. Don't worry about it. You're not going anywhere. I was like, okay, that's enough said. I'm not even thinking about it. And, of course, that stuff ended up making the trip

going down to you here and there. But, like, listen, it's part of the business. Get it. Eat it. And then they traded for KG afterwards. They figured out that KG, I guess he agreed to it, and that's where he went and left. But I didn't.

I wouldn't entertain it. I had to agree to it. Before the show, we was talking about, obviously, I don't, I love basketball, but I like to talk about the other stuff. So we were talking about the cities you played in. And I was like, bro, you a lucky man, bro. You played in some fire cities. You got Phoenix, Miami, Toronto, Dallas, just to name a few.

what was your, we in Dallas, so nevermind. But what, what was your favorite city? So, so honestly, man, all of them was different phases

in my career. Yeah. Like I was, my mindset was totally different from every team I went to. So, but, you know what,

man? It sucked being that the team was losing. Yeah. But T-Dot. Hey, I tell them all the time. Yo. Yo. Toronto.

T, you should have been a rapper, my boy. Come on, man. I was trying to get to Toronto with all my heart. Yo. Listen, but you ain't want to pay them taxes, though. Nah, I wouldn't pay. No taxes is mad. No taxes is crazy there. I was hoping I was on the minimum.

Pay that fee. Yo. Man, T-Dot is a motherfucking boy. Woo. Lord have mercy. He reminiscing right now. The real Matrix. Oh, shit.

Yeah, how did you get that nickname, though, the Matrix? Kenny Smith, didn't you? Yeah, Kenny Smith. Yeah, first game ever. Preseason, we playing. So you didn't get a chance to play in the forum. No. I didn't play regular season.

But my first year was the last preseason tournament they had before they closed it. Staple Center opened beginning of the season. So we in there, and they had a tournament, preseason tournament. It was me, it was Phoenix, Lakers, of course, I think Sacramento, a couple of other teams in there. So every year they did it. So first game ever, preseason. Dude, I get a steal, block, and one, all in like a sequence. And Kenny Smith was like, oh, my God, you see that?

He's the Matrix. And that was it. Everywhere I was going, everybody was calling me the Matrix. And, you know, Kenny Smith's always been the guy who give everybody nicknames. And that's it. It became a household name. For sure. That's fire. Getting a nickname, your first NBA game, that's it. I became a household name. I'm sure.

That's fire. Getting a nickname your first NBA game is fire. I got to ask. You got a drink? Oh yeah, we- I ain't drunk this one, bro. It's on you. It's on us.

It's water now though. Oh damn. Tread lightly over there. You see the shoes he got on you? He went to be careful. Tread lightly. Tread lightly. I think Sean was in that motherfucker too

No I wasn't And I will not be taking no drinks from your ass That's how I'm smiling I'm a real bartender I don't even like how you're passing over there Hey move the napkin though You the real bartender Oh no that's the sick bartender

That's crazy I'm crazy Hey, he moved the napkin up. You're the real bartender. Oh, no, that's the sick part. Balls. Balls. That's crazy. Double balls. Obviously, you still watch ball. What young players you say you can see, like, remind you of yourself? So, you know, doing a draft every year, they try to play young young company guys to guys that played before them.

You know, I mean, listen, I don't see nobody out there that doesn't see, I used to say Kawhi a little bit because I feel like he never got tired on the court. Yeah. And he plays both ends of the floor. You know,

but, you know, I just think I was a lot more athletic than jumping and rebounding than Kawhi is. But, you know, for his energy and effort,

you know, he's a versatile small forward that, you know, it's like a little bit of this, a little bit of that, you know what I'm saying? but, you know, for his energy and effort, you know, he's a versatile small forward that, you know, it's like a little bit of this, a little bit of that, you know what I'm saying, but, you know, I just feel like I was one of a kind, man. This is what it is. Yeah, like to me, like defensively, you were like Draymond, but offensively, you were like your own type of person because you can run pick and rolls with the ball or you can set them, slip out, dunk, you can hit the corner three, you can shoot, you can run pick and rolls with the ball or you can set them slip out dunk you can hit the corner three you can shoot you can attack off the dribble so you weren't nobody

really play like you on offense now no defensively you were like Draymond because you can go at one through five I remember when even when you was in Cleveland you were switching all the ball screens so so you know it's funny we talk about that we talk about the versatility defenders and stuff and I was like you know Dray, I think I love his tenacity, I love his energy, I love his heart. But I still think I was a way better defender than he was. And the reason I say that is because when I had to guard, point guard, when I actually guarded you, I guarded you for the whole game.

Nah, yeah, yeah. It wasn't no few minutes here and there or trying to spare somebody. I guarded, I locked in with you guys for the whole game. And, like, most guys ain't doing that. True. So it's easy for, and it's way simpler for guys to do with every possession and switch. Everybody's switching out.

But I mean, I can guard somebody for a quarter. It's easy to do that. Guard that guy for the whole game, though. Most guys is not doing it. I'm the only person ever in NBA history to do that. Only person. Nobody guarding on one through five, not the whole game. That's a probably a fact.

Yeah. Obviously, you know what I'm saying? You guarded some of the best in the league. Who are some of the people who gave you, like, the most trouble? So early in my career, one of my favorite players was Jamal Mashburn. He was a big body, small forward that could handle the ball. And just, he wasn't very athletic, but he was shifty. And very creative at getting his shot off, man.

He had a, you know what I'm saying, a game team that was so smooth, man. You know, give a shout out to Jamal, man. He was one of my guys that helped me elevate it. You know what I'm saying? But at that time, you know, shoot, all the small fours was pretty talented at the time. How was it like Carmelo? Carmelo was...

Carmelo. No, we're going to say Melo. Melo ain't there yet. It's a real Melo still. So Carmelo is... Carmelo was tough. I was already three years in the league, I think. I think I was three or four years in the league already

when he came in. But, man, he was tough because, you know, he was, man, he was trying to score every time he got the ball, man. Like, he ain't believing passing the rock. So, you know, once you got him, you're like, man, yo, we can go at it. For sure. Well, I think we should be talking About Hall of Fame right Shit

You know what I'm saying What you talking about Yeah go ahead I think you should be A Hall of Famer Like with all the accolades You got All the things you did

Playing basketball Like from college on I think you got A Hall of Fame career Me personally And shout out to the Finney Sons For tiring the number

You know what I'm saying That's a start That's what's up That's a start That's a start You know man You know I've been having? That's a start. That's what's up. That's what's up. That's a start. You know, man, you know, I've been having this conversation, people have been asking me that a lot. And I thank you because, you know, at the end of the day, but you're not the ones voting.

Yeah. You're not the ones just picking. So, like, a lot of things are not in your control. But one of the things that y'all are, and we all can agree that though, when you earn something, you feel like you should get that reward, right? Yeah, versus is like nobody going to like come in here. Y'all doing a job and I'm going to pay you when I feel like it. That's the mentality was sometimes with things go on. And, you know, one of the things I've been truly blessed, man, I take none of this for granted.

I'm able to do things that a lot of people will never get the chance to do. You know, I'm seeing the world and and I don't take none of this for granted. And, like, I'm okay. I know what I did to this game. You know what I'm saying? I know exactly what imprint I left on this game and who I am. And I'm comfortable, man, and that's it.

A lot of things, I can't control what nobody else do. I only can control myself. Well, your peers know that you was one of them guys, man. So I wouldn't be surprised if down the road it happened for you, but your peers definitely know you was one of them. And most importantly, we know, too. No doubt. For sure, for sure. And on that note, we're gonna get up out of here.

Matrix, appreciate you sliding on this big dog. Love, bro. Thank you, thank you. Love, love, love. Thank you. Make some noise one time for NC Arena. Yeah, yeah. All right, before we get up out of here, we're gonna have a couple questions from the crowd. Yeah, thank you. Make some noise one time for NC Arena. Yeah, yeah. All right, before we get up out of here, we're going to have a couple questions from the crowd.

Your mic ain't working. Mic check. Questions from the crowd. Questions, questions. Hey, Sean Merritt. Who was the hardest person you had to guard in the NBA? The hardest person I ever had to guard in the NBA was probably Shaq. No, no, no.

Seriously. No, but anybody who was going to be that, who was the main guy, actually was a tough guard. I mean, it's just about me preparing and trying to make it hard for him Hey Sean When it comes to free agency is there when you talk to your agent? Is there like a minimum you would take or is it's pretty much up to you what you want to do? So it's like so so look I was never officially a free agent So when I came in my came to Dallas, I was I was signed

I was a son son and still deal so I was on the contract currently it was a sign and trade so i couldn't i didn't actually go out and test the market that's the one thing i never did so everywhere i went i typically was on the contract the last year that i went and played in cleveland dude it was between cleveland indiana and um that's the year paul george broke his leg and they needed they had a they had a player exemption they was gonna Indiana, and that's the year Paul George broke his leg. And they had a player exemption. They was going to give me whatever that was. I think it was $5 or $6 million or whatever. But at that point in my career, I wanted to play for a championship.

And I wasn't going to nobody unless I saw myself being in a position to win another championship before I retired. And that's the reason I went to Cleveland. But free agency, man, listen, it's a different, different thing. You know, I didn't get a chance to really experience it like a lot of guys did. But listen, I knew I was coming here. J-Kid, Jet, Dirk Cuban, all of them called me like, yo, you that final piece, we need to win a championship. And it was like, yo, we're going to make this happen. I was like, was like hey cuz at the time Cuban in my man my agent Dan fake were really good friends. So it was all a

Great a great scenario and they I got a phone call like the symbols I became a free agent like no you can trade it sign trade because Brian Colangelo was a GM at the Raptors at the time so that was my guy from Phoenix. So it was just this is all worked out and Sign trade five-year deal from the Dallas. Favorite shoes or hoop band? Oh man. Oh, so it was probably my P shocks. Yeah. They, uh. Yeah, they pretty dope. Yeah, yeah. My PE Sharks. I had variations of Sharks, and I had definitely some player exclusives that was pretty dope.

Hey, to piggyback off of what Jeff said, you know, you're a dog. You can drop a dog off in any fight, and you're going to battle. Two-part question. Who is somebody you didn't play with, but you could take a, you know, you would take the war with anybody. You know, you'd take them to war, any war, and somebody you didn't play with. Who is two people that you would take the war with? So, who I, the people I took, oh, okay, the first one is the people I want to go to war with right now. Oh, shit.

I mean, I would run it back with the team we won in 2011. Oh, I mean, listen. You know, it's funny. I came in with J. Kidd and Penny Hardaway backcourt 2000 Phoenix. So listen, those two are special guys, man. Listen,

it wasn't... It was meant for me and J. Kidd to reunite like seriously though playing with J.K. he elevated me early and told me to do things on the floor without and just gave me the green light when I came

in my rookie season he was like you got it go and we only played two years together in Phoenix early then we came back here and won that championship. And it was dope. Only other person I probably would love to play with that I didn't get to play with too, man.

I actually had a chance to do it, but they didn't have no money. It was Lakers, Kobe. So, of course, MJ was already going out of the league when I came in. You know, he was on his way out. But Kobe, though, so it was a situation there that it could have blossomed into something, but it just didn't happen.

What's good, big dog? And who gave you that welcome to the NBA moment? Oh, Mookie Blaylock. Atlanta Hogg legend. Mookie Blaylock. If y'all don't know who he was, he was a hell of a point guard, man.

And I ain't gonna lie to you. This shit was so crazy. So I got the ball. I'm dribbling down the court, right? And everybody was talking about how quick his hands were. Pause. So no, so like I'm literally dribbling. I'm thinking i'm about to lay it up right he

already stole that bitch from me and laid that bitch on the top of the head i was like yo did he really just do that but like yeah his hands was unbelievable clap it up y'all for the club 520 podcast the matrix sean, Sean Marion, Dallas Mavericks, Levenson champion. Also, big shout out to Jeff Teague, DJ Wells, Bishop B. Hinn. You don't got to leave. Plenty of drinks, plenty of food.

Mix and mingle. Clap it up one more time. Hennessy Arena, the Triple D. Appreciate y'all for coming out, for real. Thank you. Love, love, love. Thank you. The Made for This Mountain podcast out for real. Thank you refuse to identify.

The thing that you refuse to say, hey, this is my mountain. This is the struggle. Listen to Made for This Mountain on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an iHeart Podcast.