The Herd with Colin Cowherd - All Ball - Conversations with Kobe

Episode Date: February 1, 2020

This week, Gottlieb remembers Kobe Bryant's impact on the game, and shares some personal stories from his conversations and interactions with the Mamba on hoops, life, fatherhood and his daughter Gianna. Make sure you download, rate and subscribe here to get the latest All Ball Podcasts! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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1-800flowers.com slash tune-in. Hey, welcome in. This is the All-Ball podcast. I'm Doug Gottlieb, and I'm joining you actually from Super Week. And, you know, I thought about how to put together a Kobe podcast. Next week we'll have, I've reached out to a couple other people and

I you know we have some really good guests lined up to talk some more Kobe but I want to share with you guys a couple of things because one I think it's cathartic too I kind of got to know him and and

honestly he was he actually had asked me to come on this podcast and this is a weird thing in our business you know when you make a friend and Kobe and I weren't always friendly or friends or whatever like i don't really know him um it like we're like ships passing in night like los angeles is orange county is my hometown yet he moved into newport beach

when i was you know i was away of college and then playing overseas and you know for the first was it 12 years out of college you know there's 2000 2012 i didn't live in southern California. I barely vacationed in Southern California. Just my inlaws are in Oklahoma. We were, we were East Coast or traveling. We'd come out maybe once a year. But, you know, I didn't, though I'm a native Los Angelesino or native of Orange County, I didn't, you know, he kind of dug roots in Orange County that I had already had and maybe had been uplifted a little bit. So anyway, I just, here's kind of the my Kobe Bryant story. as we all kind of collectively grieve.

And I think the grieving is multi-layered. You're grieving the loss of Kobe Bryant. You're grieving, you know, for many people, a basketball hero. I think what he'd become is an iconic figure in the American sports lexicon in coming back from personal failures, right? Professional failures. And he was the picture of what work ethic is supposed to be. What's amazing about Kobe Bryant is he's known for this mama mentality. There's a bunch of different ways in which people look at the mama mentality.

But he's known for something in terms of his work ethic that goes counter to the stereotype of the son of a professional athlete. Normally the son of a professional athlete is supposed to be somebody who acts entitled. And there was some entitlement there. There was some arrogance there. There was a lot of confidence there, obviously. But I think what's fascinating about it is, like, how many sons of NBA players don't work that hard because they were born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

You know, born on third base and thought they hit a triple. Like, that wasn't Kobe Bryant. He didn't just want to make the NBA. He wanted to, he wanted to rip everybody's heart out. That's what he wanted. want to do. And he wanted to just get better and better and better and didn't want to be an NBA player. He wanted to be the best NBA player. So here's my Kobe Bryant story.

When I was at CBS, I was driving home one night when the Eric Garner story kind of reached a peak. That was the I Can't Breathe movement. And so a lot of, like what happens, I think, with Twitter, with social media is that, that we tweet from like our perspective, our time, our moment, thinking everybody else sees it that way because that's our egocentric way of using social media to like display our own kind of arrogance and egocentric nature, right? Does that make sense? Like, so I'm driving home through Manhattan and I think I either had a dinner or I was avoiding traffic. I can't remember how I got caught on like, I'm going to say 8th Avenue or, is it 8th Avenue, right?

8th Avenue? Yeah. But 8th Avenue became shut down because there was a march marching across 8th Avenue with the I Can't Breathe, you know, I can't breathe movement. And like, look, no one's pro-police brutality that I know. I knew a little bit about the story. I knew that there was a lot to it, right? I just remember feeling super unsafe, super unsteady

just because I was a white dude in a, I think I was in a GMC truck at the time. And I'm like, there's like people surrounding the car and like banging on the windows. I was like, what, I didn't do it? I'm just trying to drive home. Now, I'd also carry, then this is, like a far field but like look my childhood

1991 there was the LA riots and I remember dudes getting hauled out of trucks and the shit kicked out of them right? And I'm like what what happened here? So I mentioned the march and the people pounding on my windows in my car

and kind of feeling super unsafe and like I remember calling my wife like I mean I'm coming home but like I just got to wait till this thing dies down before they open up 8th Avenue and she's like what do you mean to open it up like they're having this massive, massive march. This is going on, you know, three, four, five thousand people walking across 8th Avenue.

I don't know. They're walking to Times Square or where they're walking to. Anyway. So I got home, I think it was that night or maybe the next night. And if you remember, the Lakers were playing, I'm going to say, I don't remember where they were playing the heat and LeBron was still on the heat, I think. And they all had I Can't Breathe shirts on. I distinctly remember Kobe and LeBron with I Can't Breathe shirts. And I can't breathe while the idea behind it is to end police brutality.

Right? The guy was selling cigarettes outside a liquor store, for Christ's sake, and he lost his life. Like, it's crazy. So anyone who's reasonable, like, you know, I don't know what the punishment should have been for a guy who's repeatedly selling bootleg cigarettes, but dying is not even on the list of things, right? On the other hand, like when you hear more about the story, it was the liquor store owner who's, you know,

doing trying to do things the right way and sell his own cigarettes, and Eric Gardner out front had been told to move, who knows how many times he had moved, like, what do you do if you're a cop, right? You're much smaller than a guy. He doesn't want to move. He's a gigantic man. he's like a known personality and he's not obeying your orders.

Like, what do you do? I mean, I guess you probably just could have pepper sprayed him and moved him, right? Is that, right? That's a nonviolent way. I don't believe anybody's ever died from pepper spray, you know? So, you know, it looked like a chokehold to me. And then, you know, the reports are that he, and he had, obviously, he had a weight problem. So he had a heart attack.

And then, I mean, the bigger thing was, if you, again, my memory of this is pretty, pretty thorough. I believe the bigger thing was that when the paramedics came, like he's just laying there, nobody performs CPR for however long, right? There's a layers, there's a layers to any story. But I do think that there was a good portion of people

that put on the I Can't Breathe shirt, and the message was fuck the police. It just was. Now look, I grew up listening to NWA. I've had anybody who's had a run in with, with a cop who's just a jerk who's, you know, who's feeling himself a little bit. He's got the badge. He's got the gun.

He's the tough guy. On the other hand, I'd like to believe we live in a country where the greatest, highest percentage of police officers are really just there, you know, to keep the peace, to do their job, to go home safely and collect good benefits, right? Like, let's be reasonable. So I was, I just, I felt like especially the class of NBA players. Now, they're not all this way, but look, NBA players, many of them, are in fact protected by police.

And Kobe was the perfect example. I had lived when I first moved to California, and I believe that was during the, before the I Can't Breathe movement, right? 2012, 2014. I was living in Orange County. 2012 and 2013, I was living in Irvine right on the border of Newport Coast, which is where Kobe lived. I would go to the same Starbucks. And Cove would just pull up and not even park. You know, right out in front, tinted front window.

Like, in California, I rolled up in my car. I tinted side windows, like passenger side, driver's side. I got pulled over like three, four times. Finally, I had to get the tent peeled off, ticked me off. Like, he had, like, limo-tinted front. Now, I'm not disputing that Kobe Bryant is a completely different realm of anybody else in the world in terms of superstar. But, like, look, dude, you're kind of part of the protected class. You live behind a gate.

Nobody would ever mess with Kobe Bryant. especially, and that's why he lived in Newport, Newport Coast at the time was my belief, was because he was part of protected class. So like a protected glass of people wearing a fuck the police shirt, I felt like was a contradiction. And so I had some tweet, I don't really remember what it is. I'm sure I could Twitter search. You probably get Twitter search you want. And it was like, hey, how ironic Kobe Bryant who lives, you know, does what he wants,

lives behind a gate. He's the one criticizing the police who protect him every day so that nothing. ever happens to Kobe. I tweet it. It doesn't go over well. You know, Twitter already fucking hates me. And so now I become like a racist, which I'm not.

And I'm a racist, I'm this, I'm that, I'm a right winger, I'm pro cop, I'm anti-black people, black lives matters, all that matters. I became Blue Lives Matter. I don't even know. I just kind of figured it was just a, I'm a sports guy. It was a sarcastic kind of caustic,

Sports tweet. It's when I specialize in. So, Jason Whitlock at the time actually text me, like, what are you doing? This is not a place to joke. And I was like, oh, I'll take it down. So I just took it down. And, you know, things go viral and they get crazy. And my bosses at CBS at the time, like, what are you doing? And I was like, it's just a tweet.

Nobody got hurt by it. I didn't choke anybody out. So I called my friend Rick Buecker. Because Buk, going back to our days at ESPN, he had a, He had a line to Kobe. When Kobe was first wanted to be traded, he talked to Buke. Buker had done a great job of establishing a relationship. I used to mess with him.

Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending. Opinions are flying. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise.

Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source. the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life. 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Keer Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we

don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth?

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on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free. iHeartRadio app search learn the hard way and listen now what's up guys this is clivert taylor the fourth and on my podcast the clivert show i'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff like being an internet famous referee we're in the middle of a game this linebacker you know these kids this linebacker walks up to me he goes hey ref my mom wants you to wave at her what time out look quarterback on office blue 42

hey rep my mama want you to wave at her what Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clippers show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down.

Georgia accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues. I like the bougie style of Housewives show. I think it looks like to be interesting. On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise, the drama, the alliances, M&T, everybody's talking about. As an executive producer in reality television, I'm not just watching it, I understand the game. As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this.

At the end of the day, when people are at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. You could barely see Kobe's lips moving when Rick Buecker talked, but he thought it was funny, and I knew that was my best way into Kobe. So I called him and I was like, hey man, can you give me Kobe's number? He's like, why? I was like, I put out a tweet. He's like, oh, I saw it. It was funny.

I go, yeah, I'm not sure Kobe thinks it's funny, so I'm going to apologize. And a text. Yeah, he's like, just text him. He's a text guy. So I text him, we text back and I was like, hey, man, just want to tell you, I have put out a tweet. I didn't, there was a little bit of truth to it because our kids had gone. Our kids had gone to school together for a year at a school called Harbor Day. And Gianna was very little at the time.

Like in, I'm going to say second grade, our girls were all together in second grade. I have twin daughters exact same age and so when we knew each other a little bit anyway I was like hey sorry he was like he texted back no problem at all don't worry about it

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and I actually moved back to Orange County. and the reason we moved back to honestly renting the same house we had rented the time before was we wanted because we're moving so much with our kids we wanted them to be in the same school so my daughters got back into harbor day my son did not and just because they didn't have space and all was good and i kind of reconnected but they have a big opening kick a picnic or whatever and Kobe was there and he had a the year that we were there before was the eerie towards Achilles tendon And he was always at the school, always, always. And so it was interesting that, like, my daughters,

who didn't know anything about Kobe Bryant, just knew Kobe because he was always around, like serving lunches at their school, like one day a week, and, like, field trips occasionally go on. And, you know, he started running Mamba volleyball back then for his older daughter. Anyway, so I said hi to him. and, you know, we explained exchanged pleasantries and Rob Polinka's kids also go to that exact,

go to that school as well. And this is going back, this is, I don't know, was it three years ago? Yeah, almost two and a half years ago. So we started kind of a text relationship and Gianna asked my daughter Harper to play on Mama's basketball team. And I think they played a P.E.

and Harper was super intimidated by Gianna in basketball. She's like, Gianna is the nicest kid ever. And just for the record, so people understand, there are kids that are sons and daughters of rich and important people that are jerks. They're little assholes, right? Gianna Bryant is not among those people. She was a sweetheart. Like, I had two daughters there.

One was definitely getting a little bullied. One was kind of getting bullied, and Gianna was the one who, she's the kid who, like, you see in an after-school special. Like, she would step in, like this is again, per my girls. She would step in and say, like, no, this is, you're not going to treat anybody poorly. Like, she's a, she was a great kid. Great. And apple trees make apples, right? So it speaks to Vanessa.

It speaks to Kobe and how they raised her. Of course, she's, my daughter Harper would say, like, I'm not playing basketball with Gianna because when you play with her during PE, she's like a different person. Like she flips the switch. Kind of like, remember Over the Top? Remember Sylvester Stallone's character and over the top? Like when he turned his hat to the back, you'd become a different guy. That's how Gianna Bryant was when she played basketball. So she didn't play the basketball team.

She kind of kicked herself for it. And then, you know, if you know anything about Mamba, early on when it started, you know, it was just a bunch of girls from Harbor Day and Newport Beach and it was just a little club team and they got smashed by another team. And Kobe was, he wasn't embarrassed that they got smashed. It was that they didn't know how to play basketball. Like he's like they're not playing back. Like anybody who's watched A.U. It's like, you know, if a team is bad, you can't drill, we can't pass, you can't shoot just doesn't look right.

And he was like, okay, we're not playing in any tournaments. We're going to do six months, five days a week of just teaching you how to play. and then we'll play tournaments. And so that's what happened. That's how Mamba, the basketball thing started. And obviously, Gianna, you practice that much, he hired Christina Mouser, who was the PE teacher to be one of her coaches. He hired other coaches as well to come in and work with his girls.

And soon enough, they became the best team in Southern California. The same team to beat them by 40, they smashed by 40 like the next time they played. So our friendship started really because our kids went to the same school and he was like, hey, you know, Harvard Day Dad, we should get together with a bunch of Harvard Day dudes. And all the parents there are really pretty cool. And so first it was like, hey, we got to arrange schedules. And then I actually, we took one of my daughters, Grace, out of the school. She was struggling academically.

And then Harper didn't love like the social scene just because she didn't play basketball at Gianna. So her friend group was like one or two other girls. And she's just like, I want to go to a big public school. Anyway, so I was, part of me was a little embarrassed. Like, does he want to get together with me just because my kid goes to school with this kid? Or do we have a legit relationship? And I actually texted him and asked him and said, hey, dude, just so you know, like, I think we're pulling my girl out of Harbor Day. He's like, yeah, we're still good, though, right?

I was like, yeah. So anyway, spring of, yeah, spring of, yeah, spring of 2000. 2018 or maybe 19, I don't remember. I remember getting a text from him because we had talked a bunch on text, once on the phone, a couple times in person at events, and we're like, we've got to get it together good drinks. Sends me a text. And we had missed each other and other texts in terms of getting together.

There's a place called Javier's. If you listen to Jim Rome show, Jim kind of made the thing popular. It's now become a chain. It's a high-end Mexican place, good drinks, and Kobe has his own drink, the Mamba there. So he's like, hey, Javier's like 7.30. So here's my, I'm not going to tell you everything that happened, but this is like a night with Kobe, just me and him.

So my wife is a little weird out by it because she's like, why does he want to talk to you? I'm like, I don't know. the guys get together and have drinks? She's like, I don't, I did, why would he just want it? Like, he has friends, you're not his friend. I was like, we've actually been kind of friends. She's like, text friends, that's not a real friend.

I was like, all right, fine. So I assumed I'm going to show up. There's be a bunch of some other, like, Harbor Day dads, some other dads. I know a couple other dudes that are, you know, like one of the guys that died, Altebelli. Alto is like, everyone knows him. He has been the junior college baseball coach at OCC, Orange Coast College, forever. Like I just figured I walk into a room and there'd be those kind of guys.

We'd all be bullshit and having a couple drinks. So I walk into Javier's and I was like, hmm, I'm going to go to the bathroom first. Now, you might be asking like, why would you go the bathroom first? Well, I just thought like if I get engaged in a conversation with Kobe Bryant, like, I don't want to have to go pee. And like, then you know how guys are. Like, you lose your train of thought. You move on. Somebody else at the table.

The conversation never starts again. Right. I'm not a clinger. I just the reality of I would have to pee at some point. So I remember go and pee, washing my hands and walking out and expecting to walk into the back part of Javier's and there's going to be a bunch of dudes there. And it's like Kobe Bryant sitting by himself, almost like it was a blind date. And we talked for, we talked for hours. And the conversation started talking about basketball and about how basketball should be taught.

And so I said, you know, he told me a little bit about when he first started playing in Italy. and how he was taught. And he didn't really know. He knew my dad had been a you coached locally, but he didn't know, like, my dad coached in college and all the different ties. And so we just started talking about teaching kids. And this is where, like, he kind of won me that night.

Like, he had already won me over based upon his text. And the fact he was just, he started to become like a, he's still a superstar. And superstars do things just differently. but there was a real human being and a pretty good, and I was like, man, this guy's a good dude. We started talking about how to coach and how to teach kids. And here's kind of my story.

So when we move back to Orange County, I wanted my son to get in some workouts. And there's a guy named Shay Freeze, who Shay works for Bill Duffy. He's a very good workout coach. You could basketball player in his own right. I think D3 up in Washington. And he was running a program called Point Break.

So my longtime friend Dylan Rigden, who played a UC Irvine and at Arizona and then played in Australia. He has two older kids. A kid named his son Joaquin is like two years older than my son. He was like, hey, Wachin goes to this point break. Bring Hayes to a workout. So I go and they were really good. But their teams were shit. Like they literally every tournament they play in, they'd get beat by 30, 40 points.

Because they couldn't pass and they couldn't play together. And, yeah, they could all Eurostep, and they had some advanced moves. But they didn't pivot well. And, you know, after doing this for like two months, three months, and Hayes played up and played in a couple games, and his one was very good at the time. Full disclosure. Shea texted me after a workout, and he's like, what did you think? And I was like, well, Shay, when are you going to do passing?

When are you going to do pivoting? When are you going to do, you know, some of their work on their defensive form and their positioning? It's like, should we do that? Like, yeah, it's actually the first, they just skip steps. It's like they taught kids how to run and forgot that you have to walk first or even crawl before you walk. So I kind of took over and started coaching a team when we started competing and winning. And then fast forward to the next year, Shea struggled to get a gym. And so I got a gym and eventually kind of absorbed the program, turned it into my dad's name sake, which was Branch West.

And now we have workouts. So I was telling Kobe, like, Like, dude, they don't know how to pivot. They don't know how to pass. They don't know on a screen. And here we are, teach him how to fucking Euro step, you know, and how to do all this fancy shit that they see in transition in the NBA. Play downhill.

Like, you can't play downhill if you can't break a press. Can't play downhill if you don't know how to actually set a ball screen. You know, can't play downhill if you can't play without the ball as well as with the ball in terms of spacing and getting your feet ready, your hands ready, your body ready for the ball when you catch and you can shoot. And he's like, exactly. So he started telling me his story. We started, we're talking ball.

Then he like switches to talking about the wizarding series or whatever it's called. And look, you know when you sit with somebody like, oh God, this guy's way smarter than me. And I like to think that I'm pretty smart. I do like being in rooms where I'm the dumb. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending. Opinions are flying.

And nobody's telling you exactly. what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports slice brings you close. to the action with stories told by the people who live them.

Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark.

Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross,

because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. a good person. Join me,

Kear Games, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search Learn the Hardway, and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Cleverterter The 4th. And on my podcast,

The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff, like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me, he goes, A, ref. want you to wave at her. What?

Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Red. My mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

Hey, I'm Jared Adano. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! But there's so much more to me than me. I'm an actor, I'm a comedian, and recently I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope I'm a Hippocrat, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian!

I'm not qualified to give good advice! Join me and my comedian friends as we riff rant and recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice. One ring is too scary. Oh, cream of chicken suit. Hey, cream, cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrat, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrat as part of the Mike Pulturra podcast network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This guy in, I was the dumber guy in the conversation. because in the midst of talking about basketball, talking about kids, talking about life, getting to know each other. And by the way, I just want to fold disclosure, the first thing I said when we first started talking was, hey, I don't know if you remember by, I sent you a text about it, a tweet that I had

and go back in the I Can't Breathe. And he looked at me, do you remember the, do you remember the Kobe Jalen Rose commercial where he ordered 81 olives? He's now, I'm just kidding. Anyway, there was, before that, Jaylen's like, hey, I said I put this thing out on Twitter. He's like, man, I don't pay attention to that shit, right?

It was the exact line. That's exactly what he said to me. He's like, seriously, I don't care. Like, I wouldn't have invited you to drinks if I gave a shit about a tweet three years ago about I can't breathe. Don't care. Like, cool. whew. So he switches to talking about his books, podcasts, movies, his vision for this thing.

And I was like. You had a lot of time to think about this. He's like, I don't know how to, like, I'm a storyteller. This was, when I was in school, like, I wanted to be like an English teacher, write books or whatever. And one of his, I mentioned there's five movies that was, because at some point in the conversation, like, what are your five favorite movies? And there was like, Godfather, there was, um, uh, steel magnolias, which I was like, really? Harry Potter. I'll remember the other two in a second.

But I remember Harry Potter and he's like, I'm telling you this should be bigger than Harry Potter because there's so many, he was telling me about these different worlds and different wizards and different age groups that sells to and how it could eventually be an amusement park. And I was like, dude, you've really thought this thing out. He's like, what do you think I do all day?

I go, I don't know, what do you do? He's like, I get up at 4 in the morning, I go work out at Equinox. And, you know, he takes his older daughter works out with him. And then he comes back and he has breakfast and he helps, you know, get the kids up and ready and go to school. And then he goes to his office and he works. You know, and he's got, he's a venture capitalist as well as he's got the books and the podcast. And then he's also got Mamba and he does this other investments.

I was like, dude, this guy's unbelievable. And like I said, like the more, you know how guys can use big words and they're not really smart and they use them out of context. So Kobe Bryant, we're having all these conversations and people come up and everyone who works at the restaurant is bilingual. Guess who else is bilingual? Kobe Bryant. Right. So, like, it's one thing to order a mamba and say, you know, dos mambas, por favor. But, like, to have a full-on conversation with guys that work on the restaurant in Spanish and then turn around and be right back in the conversation about the wizarding series or whatever, you're like, holy shit, this dude's brain is on fire.

Meanwhile, I got like four drinks in me. and I'm just sitting here going, I can't believe I'm talking to Kobe Bryant. Thunderstruck, adjective. Shocked and amazed by the power of fun on Carnival. Riding Bolt, the world's first roller coaster at sea. Brian got Thunderstruck so hard, his 93-year-old grandmother felt it 3,000 miles away in Nebraska, and immediately booked a cruise.

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So we talked about basketball. We started talking about LeBron. We started talking about Mike. I shared this story on radio. He said this to me several times about how the mom mentality is also kind of a derivation of some of the things he read about. warriors and samurai and Phil Jackson actually taught him. And he's like, you know, the thing that I learned from Phil and through all my studies and reading is like, when you're at war, it's full-scale psychological warfare, right? Like any of these leaders of countries, even our own, in order to get all the soldiers to buy in, it's full-scale psychological warfare.

He's like, I believe that in basketball. I was like, all right. He's like, that's why I could, that's why Mike knows he can't fuck with me. I was like, what do you mean Mike can't fuck with you? Like, he's Michael Jordan, dude. And at this point, one, we'd established a friendship. Two, I had some drinks in me. He had some drinks in him.

And, you know, I was like, look, dude, I love you. I think you're unbelievable, you know, top 10 all-time player. but you tried to talk and walk like Michael Jordan and play like Michael Jordan. Like, let's be honest. Mike's the goat. He's like, yeah, okay. But he can't fuck with me because I would use full-scale psychological warfare. I said, Kobe, what are you going to say to Michael Jordan that hasn't already been said in terms of trash talk?

He's like, you know, his dad loved Larry Moore. I was like, you know, Larry. I was like, yeah, Larry Jordan. His older brother was only six feet tall. Mike was the only guy who sprouted up in his family. He's like, yeah, he's like, it was always a thing that Mike thought his dad loved Larry Moore. And he probably treated him that way because Larry never grew. He didn't have the God-given gifts that Mike had.

I was like, so you would say that? He's like, yeah, full-skill, psychological warfare. I was like, wow. So we started talking about LeBron, and he's like, yeah, LeBron, you know, he wants to have this mentality, It's just not in his makeup. He just isn't, he ain't like us all the time. And he's broke through some of it, but he hasn't always broken through. He's like, and he's like, I've never had the problem taking the big shot or missing the big shot.

That didn't bother me. He's like where LeBron, like he gets the most joy out of making, having somebody else make the shot. He's like, which I'm just, that is just not how I'm, we're wired so differently as people. But he also told me that, like, look, I told LeBron, and this was, LeBron was playing in the NBA finals with the calves at the point, at that point in time, or close to playing. He's like, dude, I told him he needs to get in the post more. You know, he needs to roll down to the post.

He needs to simplify his game, really work on just playing out of the post, passing out of the post, scoring out of the post. He's got to become a bucket, get a fadeaway going, use his body, like play from the elbow as well. And then he started talking about other guys in the NBA that he kind of like, secretly works with. And this is probably the part that you're starting to hear stories about on social media. That Kobe Bryant, who most people, half America thought was an asshole for a long time.

And he probably, maybe was. Like if you were 17 years old and you were a kid and a millionaire and son of a pro and all of a sudden you're playing in L.A. with Shaquille O'Neal, like, you'll probably be a jerk sometimes too, right? You'd probably be entitled by, wouldn't you? Like, the world fell at your feet. We watched him grow up and evolve. But he also did a lot of things for people, and he wanted nothing in return, but he wanted no PR.

Like there's stories coming out about going and seeing sick kids and cancer awards, but he would tell the parents, you know, like, listen, this is not about PR. This is about your kid. There's lots of stories like that. The same is true with the workouts with players and the texts with players and the calls to players. Like, he loved ball. He'd watch it, and then he'd send a guy a text. Here's something I saw.

And like, anybody who sees a text from Kobe Bryant's going to read it. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending. Opinions are flying. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo.

Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never. never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people

who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kier Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine,

Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses.

Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on Earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood,

pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free, I Heart Radio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clifford Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Clifford Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me.

He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker.

Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, I'm Jared Adano. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! Somebody! Please! But there's so much more to me than that. I'm an actor. I'm a comedian.

And recently, I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike! I'm a comedian! I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant,

recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice. One ring is too scary. Oh, cream a chicken suit. Hey, cream, cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite,

the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Cultura Podcast Network available on the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Like, damn, Kobe Bryant's watching my game. I would guess there are 50 guys in the NBA that have text saved on their phone from Kobe Bryant where he's like, dude, you need to do this more, you need to do that. Or now that they have Mamba Academy, they start working together. He just did things like that, which brings me around to why he was never on the podcast. When LeBron signed with the Lakers, Kobe came on. I was guest hosting the Dan Patrick show, me and Jason Smith.

And I text him like, hey, dude, this is not why we're friends. Will you come on? He's like, absolutely. And then I just didn't want to ask him a podcast because that wasn't why we were friends. I didn't want to use a friendship. Not that people on the podcast aren't really friends. They are. But I don't know.

I just felt weird about it. I just felt like I would be that. guy who is only befriending Kobe Bryant and sending, you know, he's sending me videos of different sets they're running out of triangle and new things that he's putting in, you know, because I want him on my podcast to get downloads, to make more money. Like, I just didn't, that's not how I want it to be. So now I sit here, I don't know, five days removed from Kobe Bryant's helicopter crashing and him tragically dying with eight other people, several.

others who somebody, my family knew really, really well. And I'm bummed because I could have had a great audio record of just an interesting conversation. I don't know. I've been really sad with this. And again, I'm not going to lie to you. I was not best friends with Kobe Bryant. I never went over to his house. He never came over to my house.

Although he was, at one point in time, there was a text from him. He was like, when are we getting the invite to watch games at your house? And, you know, we bought a house like a year ago, two years ago, and we've been the process of redoing it. And the last thing we want is like Kobe Bryant coming over during a remodel, right? But he would be cool. We've been fine. So there's other stuff. He was interesting in that he really understood the psychology of players.

He liked Shaq. And I think Shaq understood, I think at the end of the day, I don't know if Shaq actually understands why. the Lakers chose him over Shaq. I think most of the basketball world does. Shaq was great. Jack was dominant. Shaq could have been the best player in the history of the NBA, but Shaq likes to have fun.

Likes to have a good time. You know, would work on basketball and basketball season. Whereas Kobe, like this, he was a professional basketball player. He was a licensed killer, and he spent the off-season thinking about how he's going to kill people in the regular season, where Shaq would use training camp and early season to get in shape. That's why he wasn't the league's MVP often,

even though he was the most dominant player in the league. And he kind of worked together for a long, long time. Obviously, some of the comments that they made about each other started to break, started to make a fissure within the two. So maybe I've rambled on this, but I'll tell you this. Like one, he loved basketball. Kobe Bryant loved, understood basketball. It wasn't the only thing he wanted.

want to do in this next version of himself, but he really loved the art of what basketball is. He was kind of a recluse. He was a bit of a loner. He was a little awkward. He did have a tendency to befriend the bottom guy in the totem pole. Maybe because that guy would never kind of challenge his authority. I don't know. I didn't get a chance to know him well enough or I could ask him why he was, how he was,

earlier in his life. I can also tell you this. When I was young and at ESPN, I had a friend of mine who's an agent at Endeavor say like, you know, God leave, I kind of like, I really like you now. I met you when you were like 28, 29 at ESPN, and I didn't like you.

I'm like, I feel like I've been the same guy. He's like, nah, you're much better now. I think the same can be said for Kobe. Maybe that's what I see in him. Maybe that's what we all see in him, is he was a guy who went from being, sometimes a punk, sometimes entitled, sometimes aloof to a dad, and the dad of girls, which I have twin girls that are 13 years old.

And not only that chill you out, it gives you a different perspective, and you become much more relatable. What grows in the forest? Trees? Sure. Know what else grows in the forest? Our imagination, our sense of wonder, and our family bonds grow too. because when we disconnect from this

and connect with this, we reconnect with each other. The forest is closer than you think. Find a forest near you and start exploring at Discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Ad Council. What grows in the forest?

Trees? Sure. Know what else grows in the forest? Our imagination, our sense of wonder, and our family bonds grow too. Because when we discons connect from this and connect with this. We reconnect with each other. The forest is closer than you think.

Find a forest near you and start exploring at Discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Ad Council. If I could be you. And you could be me for just one hour. If you could find a way to get inside. Each other's mind. Walk a mile in my shoes. Walk a mile in my shoes.

Walk a mile in my shoes. We've all felt left out. And for some, that feeling lasts more than a moment. We can change that. Learn how it belonging begins with us.org. Brought to you by the ad council. You know, I'll share with you more in future podcasts about him. I don't think the logo of the NBA should change for Kobe Bryant.

And this is not to say he wasn't a great player. But, you know, like, It's not going to be Jordan. Jerry West's logo is perfect. Jerry West is the only player in the history of the NBA to be the finals MVP and his team not win. That's how good he was. And he averaged 40 points a game in that.

You know, I think it's knee-jerk. But he was the generation's Jordan. And one of the things that LeBron has fought is how Kobe was, how Jordan was, was how I grew up the best player was supposed to be. And here's what I mean. Kobe would guard the other team's best player

and he wanted the ball and was willing to take and even miss the game winning shot. For the life of me, as long as I've played basketball, once you start playing pickup, you know, you get to a pickup game, and anybody's ever played ball with Mad Johnson. Matt Johnson is the greatest Laker ever. Unbelievable passer.

But Magic Johnson, at the end of a pickup game, the end of an NBA game, you gave the ball to Magic, and he was going to go make a play. The bank shot in Boston, the hook shot in Boston. Obviously, Magic was a great passer, but he was a licensed killer at the end of games. And Magic was a bad defender, but he wasn't afraid to guard whoever the other team's best player was. That's what we were taught, the greatest of great to. That's what Jordan did. That's what Bird did.

That is, frankly, what Kobe Bryant did. And so what LeBron has fought is like, LeBron's like, look, I'll take whatever the best shot is. I love creating shots for other people. You double team E. And that's hard. And there have been times when he hasn't guarded the other team's best player or he has and he got lit up by Kevin Durant.

But I think it's, that's part of the mentality of the true basketball alpha and why he's so admired by NBA players. Because he was fearless at both ends. even to a fault when he would take bad shots like game seven of the NBA finals. I can't attest to how he was every hour of every day or how he treated you, but I live in a community that I shared with Kobe Bryant. And he had some run-ins with parents as anybody who runs an AU program does. But I do believe that he had the best intentions at heart of, hey,

if you're in, you're in. If you're not, you're not. I mean, there's a couple of girls that he cut from the team because whether there's injury or other sports, they weren't making practices. And I actually understand it. Like, I would love to do that with my program for some of these kids. I just, my program is in it.

I don't have his unlimited resources. I don't have, you know, 10 kids that I can go to you two. You can't show up. You're out and you don't play. I would like, you know, a lot of people would like to run their AAU program the way that Kobe did. We just don't have the resources. Need the kids. You know, can't bid a do to kids.

And I'm a pretty hard-line guy. So I can't vouch for him in every aspect of his life. I can tell you this. He impressed me as a guy. He was incredibly bright. He loved basketball. Loved, loved basketball. And the Mamba mentality was more than I want to take and make the big shot.

To me, the Mamba mentality was really this quote, which I saw and I'm just, I continue to kind of marveling. This is from Gobi-Rion. I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I'm like, my back hurts, my feet hurt, my knees hurt. I don't have it. I just want to chill.

We all have self-doubt. We don't deny it. You don't deny it, but you don't capitulate to it. You embrace it. I try and teach my kids about that as well. Same thing with jealousy. Like, jealousy is not a bad, not a terrible thing, and it's, you can't deny that you have it. It's, what does jealousy make you do?

Does it make you do something mean to somebody else? Or does it make you work hard so that you can get what they have? Right. It's okay to be jealous. That's all right. Does that fuel you as motivation? You know, does insecurity fuel you? or does it make you shut down?

That's the true mama mentality. You know? Because Kobe as a player could be selfish. Could be self-aggrandizing. Could be arrogant and aloof. But the good parts of Kobe and the parts that came out more and more were about work ethic. About finding a way to use what other people see as negatives to fuel you to ultimately become a positive. And look, we have lots of athlete post-career success stories like LeBron will eventually be.

And there's champions of business. Shaquille is a champion in business. Drew Brees and Peyton Manning, champions in business. And there are more, plenty more, where they use their money and their wealth to buy into other businesses and they create ridiculous, generational wealth if they didn't already have it. That stuff is amazing. but to me what what made Kobe special is it wasn't even it wasn't about buying burger kings or buying chick fillets or whatever it was about creating a business from nothing making it into something and then probably like that is that shit is hard and he was just like with the AU program just like with the Lakers he was an all in guy he was the word I like to use and I was if you ever describe me as indefatigable, which is not fatigable, that's how you describe Kobe Bryant. That's how I want to be described.

That's how you describe Kobe Bryant. And again, I can't vouch for him in all aspects of life. I can only tell you in my interactions the person that wasn't a Kobe guy. Not a Shaq guy. I understood that he had more value for longer because he got more juice out of the orange than Shaq could ever get. I thought he was a pretty good dude. a really good dude. I consider him a friend.

I'm super sad for everyone who lost somebody. My daughter lost a best friend on that helicopter. And I know Rob Polinka lost a best friend. And I know that my friend Miles Simon, have you heard on this path, he lost an absolute idol in Kobe Bryant, who would become a friend as well. And I know there's lots of people

who grew up watching basketball, who are just crestfallen, that you're not going to chance to see Kobe Bryant, courtside with Gianna, and she was going to be a special. player. The only thing I can do is share the story with it. I'll share with you one more thing and then we'll wrap the pod.

I asked him, I was like, what's the greatest thing you've ever done in basketball? And he goes, you know, people always said that I didn't make anybody better. That was the thing. I don't make guys better. And he's like, how did Derek Fisher do when he left? And he started going through the different guys, you know. And did Lamar Odom ever win? Was Lamar Odom ever focused?

unless he played with us. And then he said, you know, Paugasol, excuse my language, Paugasol, this is from Kobe. Palgisal, people were in the NBA, thought he was a pussy. Comes and plays the Lakers. People said, you can't win a championship with Palisal. He's too soft.

And you know what? We won two championships with Palisal. So he's like, my, the greatest thing is, it's no different than LeBron. You want to see other people succeed. Look at Lamar, look at fish. You know, look at Pau Gasol and the success that they had as part of our championship runs. It's pretty amazing.

It's a really good point. I'll share with you more thoughts of Kobe on our next pod. In the meantime, get in the gym. Get in the gym. Overcome your own insecurity. And love ball the way that Kobe love ball. I'm Doug Gottlie. This is all ball.

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That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo's Slice Life 12. and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smygle and friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hardway with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences,

having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor. It signals to the world that you not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to, Listen to learn the hard way on the AHA radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Clivert Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff.

Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office, Blue, 42. A rep, mom. I'm going to want you to wave at her.

What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.