Hey everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Dave Pash Podcast. I'm your host ESPN and Arizona Cardinals play by play announcer Dave Pash. My guest this week is longtime NBA player and current NBA broadcaster Richard Jefferson. With the NBA season starting this week, thought it was a great chance to catch up with Richard, talk about the season, talk about his former teammate Lebron James going into year
twenty one in the NBA. We'll get Richard's thoughts on the Phoenix Suns, on the Milwaukee Bucks after the Damian Lillard trade. We'll talk broadcasting, and we'll also talk about the Arizona Cardinals and get Richard's advice to a team like the Cardinals in a season of transition with a new GM, new coach, a lot of new players trying to stay positive in order to take that next step to become a Super Bowl contender.
It has to start with you individually and saying it's like it doesn't matter, I need to train like we're twelve and zero. I need to train like we're zero and twelve. The shit be no different. And that's the trick as a professional athlete, train like you're getting ready for the Super Bowl every single week.
We'll also share some Bill Walton stories, Richard's best friend is Bill's son Luke, and talk about whether Richard considers himself a Phoenix guy he grew up here, went to Moon Valley High School, or an LA guy where he was born and currently resides. We are presented by BETMGM, the official sports betting partner of the Arizona Cardinals, and by HeLa River Resorts and Casinos. Sign up today with BETMGM,
the official partner of the Arizona Cardinals. Use code cards one thousand and get back up to one thousand dollars in bonus bets. If you don't win your first bet, visit betanmgm dot com for terms and conditions. Twenty one years of age are older to wager Arizona only. New customer offer. Please gamble responsibly. Gambling problem Call one eight hundred, next step. All right, now our conversation with one of
the best dudes in broadcasting. You're just a great guy, fun guy to be around, great personality and obviously was a terrific player seventeen years in the NBA and now a broadcaster. With ESPN Richard Jefferson. So, Richard, I know
you don't like to be called r J. Richard. First things first, I feel like we are far enough along in our professional and personal relationship that I have an idea when you're being sarcastic and when you're not being sarcastic, how long does it normally take people to kind of figure you out.
Honestly who It varies because it's just I live on that line, similar to our friend JJ Reddick. I live. I live on that line. And then even when I'm I'm being sarcastic, I'm kind of like, ah, no, you know, I'm just kidding. Or sometimes when I'm I'm serious, people have a little bit they wait to see being serious. But no, it varies. It varies on the subject. Sometimes you know when people think, oh, no, no, he's just kidding. You know, I like the pile and I was like,
what do you mean kidding? I I'm being very serious, and then everyone gets confused. So that's what the realm might like to live in, with a lot of uncertainty in any conversation that I'm involved in.
How beneficial do you think that was to the many NBA teams that you played on having somebody on a team that if you needed to lighten the mood you could. But obviously you're a good enough player where if you had to be serious and go out and ball, you would do that too well.
To be honest, Like, it's weird when I'm between those lines, like I don't talk trash the other players. I would only talk trash to my teammates. So it's one of those things that I'm a competitor first and a sarcastic person second. Sometimes those lines can blur a little bit. But when it's time to win, time to compete, Like, that's my fig The only thing I loved more than being sarcastic is competing. So there wasn't that much. When there was the right time when the coaches would leave,
that's when the starcasm would come. But you don't want to undercut a coach with your level of sarcasm, even if it is funny.
And I want to get to winning the championship in sixteen and talking about the NBA season because obviously it starts this week. But you're born in LA. You lived in Phoenix, you went to Moon Valley High School, You live in LA now, Are you an LA guy or a Phoenix guy.
Well, see, that's where I think only true West Coasters understand. You can when they say you're from the West Coast, that means you bounced around the West Coast. And yes, Arizona's not on the coast, but we all know that Arizona is a suburb of California. So no, it's tough, Like I don't I probably claim more Arizona at the end of the day, went to University of Arizona, grew up there, learned how to play basketball there. But I
was born in La. My family is all from my mom, my dad, my grandmother, all of my cousins live in LA. So it's it's tough. I claim I claim Arizona, but I don't deny my La reaths.
So you're a Rams fan though, correct?
Yes, yes, now understand the timing of this as a person that I know studies history. When I showed up in in Arizona in nineteen eighty eight eighty nine, the Cardinals had a streak of about twelve years where they were the worst football team in the world, And I mean including college and so I you know I grew up watching you know, I like John Elway. He was my favorite player. Then you had my dad from Philly, so I grew up with the Keith Byers, Randall Cunningham,
Reggie White, Ricky wa like that crew of Philly. That that was my dad watching every single Sunday. So I like the Eagles. But the minute they got a team to LA. I have two little boys now, one named Phoenix, one named rich. My whole thing was like, the minute we get a team to LA. Now that I'm living here, that's our team. Rams were first jumped full bandwagon in glad that they're back, and you know, now we're Ram supporters,
went to the Super Bowl, all that stuff. So I'm really indoctrinating my kids in Ram culture, if you will.
So what does it take to convert you? Do we have to you know, beat the Rams? Do we have to sweep the Rams? Do we have to make the playoff? Because the Cardinals have made the playoffs, They've been in a Super Bowl, They've done all the things the Rams did except win the championship, which the Rams did a couple years ago.
Well, this is the thing. I don't hate the Cardinals. I'm just not a fan of the Cardinals. All my friends that I grew up with that are Arizona guys. They love the Cardinals. When the Cardinals went to the Super Bowl, Channing Fry big Cardinals fan. So when they went to the Super Bowl, like I was rooting for the Cardinals. I don't dislike the Cardinals. But I also as a loyal person myself, I can't not like a team for ten years and then all of a sudden
like okay, they're okay, I'm a fan now. That's not how fandom works. And so since I never supported them when I showed up in Arizona, I just I don't want to jump on the bandwagon. So I was like, hey, LA will be my team.
I know the Channing Fry played for the Suns, I didn't know he was a Cardinal fan. I mean, I know he lived in Phoenix before that, but I didn't know he was a Cardinal fan. We may have to get him on the pod now, cause do you guys still have your pod together? And how often do you guys do it?
We do it once a week, We do it pretty consistently. We are actually really excited. There's some things that are that are cooking up for this upcoming season that I think podcast fans are going to be excited about. There's some partnerships that we're working on. It will probably be announced here in the next week or two. But ultimately, I don't think that Channing is going to have anything
to say about the Cardinals. He is. He's an era true Arizona Cardinal fan, So that means like, when they're good, he's super super into it. When they are the normal Arizona Cardinals, he's just so. So he's not living a lot, he's not a.
Rider dot And it's road tripping podcast, right, yes.
Sorry, road Tripping podcast, the original athlete podcast.
I was going to say, so, no professional athlete, including JJ Reddick, had a podcast before Richard Jefferson and Channing Fry right, while you guys are currently playing.
Well, well, we were the first ones to do it in season. We were the first ones to do it like on a team, like JJ had a podcast. Other athletes had podcasts, a lot of them were interview based, but we were the first ones that decided like, maybe we should do this in season. So when you see Draymond, when you see Pat Bev, when you see Paul George, when you see all of these athletes that are now doing it in season and discussing what's going on. We
were the first one. We recorded on a plane. In between, I think we had a game and we had a game in Boston and then maybe I don't remember Dallas or something, and we lost the nationally televise game in Boston, and we're like, hey, let's record a game, let's record a podcast on the plane. So we're recording a podcast on a plane flying from from one city to the
next and drop it the next the next morning. And to me, I truly believe the excitement that came from road tripping, and I think the positivity allowed for athletes to feel more comfortable telling their stories.
And what year was this the first year you guys did this?
Well, we did it after we won the championship, and then we did it, and we did it. I think our first one was into January February of the following season. We ended up losing in the finals to We end up losing in the finals for the Golden Save Warriors that year. But yeah, we did it through the whole We stopped. We stopped during the finals. We did it a little bit during the postseason. We stopped during the finals, as to not have any any conversation about distraction.
Yeah, so twenty sixteen, you win the championship. You're part of a great team, the greatest team in probably Cleveland sports history. The Cardinals played the Browns next week, and given what the Warriors had accomplished that year, the greatest regular season team maybe ever, right, at least based on record. How gratifying was that for you? Given also, Richard, I mean, you played seventeen years, You had already been in the league for almost fifteen when you guys won it in
twenty sixteen. To be part of that team with great players like Lebron James, and obviously you had Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving and yourself and a lot of good role players, how gratifying was that title for you?
Well, look, I think both of us are sports historians, and you know, I don't like to make it claim. I just lated to say that I believe that that was I think if you were appointed to two championships, I think you would look at the seventy two win Bulls because they had a perfect season, they broke the record, and then they won a championship. I think for us, I think they had the most perfect season of all time. But I think for us, I think it was the
best championship ever won. You know, we don't have to go all miracle, you know, on ice, we don't have to go do that, but the fact that we were playing against the two time defending champion, or the two time defending MVP, the first unanimous MVP, the regular season champ, I think going through that and then to do it in the manner in which we did, being down three one and being the first team to ever do it, I think when you when you tally all of the
things that that came about from that series, I beg someone to give me a better NBA Finals championship.
And the fact that, you know, the Draymond Green kick, he was suspended for a game, But I don't think that takes away at all from what you guys did. I know there's some people that feel that it does, but you guys won that championship No.
One hundred and make no mistake, like Kevin Love didn't get to play in two of those games, right like we make it seem like. And again I know Kevin Love, that might not have been the best series like matchup wise for him, but the fact that that he missed actually, excuse me, he missed game three. Uh, he missed Game three and then came off the bench in game four. So yeah, we had a potential future Hall of Famer, a starter who you know, he was an All Star that year. So we had an all star miss a
game because of the concussion protocol. So, and this is the thing, you know, you as a football guy, anytime a kicker misses a kick, you go it doesn't come down to that one play. It doesn't come down to that one play. They were turnovers, there was this, Yes, we would have liked to have that, and so I stand by that that doesn't come like the whole championship doesn't come doesn't come down to Draymond missing one game. Right.
You can say momentum, you can say this, but that was a seventy three win team that all the things that those guys had accomplished and defending champions. So to be up three to one, lose Draymond for a game, now you're up three to two. So now you got two more chances to win one. And they hadn't lost three games in a row maybe and I think it was close to two years. So for me, it's like, yes,
was that a part of the storyline. Yes, but don't forget if you go back Draymond, you know, having the incidents that he had in round one, having the incidents that he had in the conference finals. When you get suspended for those things, one, typically there's a conversation with the commissioner before you get to that spot, which there was after the Steven Adams situation. There was a conversation, and then when it happens again at that point in time,
it's a cumulative thing. So you making that mistake, then it really goes back to first round, second round, third round, and then all of a sudden, you're in a spot and for a team that was the defending champion. If you don't have that in your brain. I got to watch my flavorance, I got to watch my technicals because it's April seventeen and I'm trying to play till June twentieth.
So those are the things that I think, you know, people want to discuss Raymond, and I will not sit up here and say Draymond missing that one game didn't give us a little bit of a boost, but to say that that was a deciding factor when he played two more games after that and was probably well, he was the best player probably on the floor if you
go look at that game seven. So like when you look at game seven and Draymond has that first half and knocking down three, there's a high probability he would have been Finals MVP if it wasn't for if they would have won the So I think some people get lost in the off. They focus on that and make it seem like Draymond never recovered or their team never recovered, and that was a deciding factor.
So, your former teammate and close friend, Lebron James is in year twenty one. What he's doing is amazing. There's only a handful of guys that have made it this far, and no one has ever played at his age, with his mileage, all the games, all the playoff games, the Team USA games, no one has played at the level he's playing in the history of basketball at this age. First of all, is there something about Lebron James that the public doesn't know? He is pretty, he's out there
and he's doing a lot of different things. He's very vocal on social media, does a lot of commercials, does movies. But is there something about his personality or just him as a teammate that people should know that they don't know about him.
I think, okay, so I think that there are things that people know. I'll give you my perception of things I think with him. I think he's a lot more vulnerable with his teammates than people probably understand. He's a very emotional person. We've seen that with his reactions on
the court. I'm a very expressive person, and so Lebron, you know, just like a lot of teammates, he could have like I'll never forget he you know, we had a game and maybe we lost, and we were all kind of arguing, and then you know, we all go meet up at dinner that night and he comes, you, guys, my bad. I'm sorry, man, I know I've got frustrated.
I apologize, and it's like the best player in the world, maybe the best player ever, is sitting here apologizing the channing and I because he got a little frustrated, and we're like, bro, we get it. Everything's going to be your fault. Everything is either you like the positive view negative view. So I understand why that is an extreme
amount of pressure. So for you to get frustrated one day, don't ever apologize as long as it's within the place, as long as it's within the framework of like competitiveness, which he never does. He never leaves the respectful competitive side. That is something that we have never seen from Lebron from high school to college. Yeah, he's a competitor, but you never see it, see it leave the respectful side, in my opinion, And that doesn't mean things don't happen,
doesn't mean trash doesn't talk. But I think I don't think people understand how much he truly cares about his teammates. I don't think he truly people understand how much he's invested in them on the court, off the court. Like when me and Channing launched the podcast, he had been he came on it four or five times now without him coming on. He knows his value, he knows what
he does. And so those are the things that you're like, hey, I appreciate you doing this because you don't have to, because a lot of guys in those positions are often just tried to people try and get things from them, Like when was the last time he saw Michael Jordan sit on a podcast? Like these guys typically shy away from some of the requests that come to them, But ultimately, I think he cares about people. He cares about his family, and he cares about his teammates on a level that
I don't think people fully understand. You want to be critical of Michael Jordan versus versus lebron you want to do all of that stuff, fine, at the end of the day, you know, you ask anybody that really deals with him at their core, and you're like, this man just cares the game, the respect, the family, the teammates like, he does care about those things at a level that I don't think people understand.
So rich what should we honestly expect from him in the year twenty one, He's had injuries that he's played through. I think the injury that he had last year, a lot of guys are sitting out and not playing. He played through it. He's already got Kareem's record, He's the all time leading scorer. I know he wants to play in the league when Bronni's in the league. Bronni's at USC We don't know yet whether Bronni's going to play after the unfortunate, scary incident that happened a couple months ago.
It sounds like Bronni's okay, you would know more about that than me. But and I'm gonna have a lot of USC games, and I certainly hope that he's playing because that means that he's healthy and doing well. What should we realistically expect from Lebron and the Lakers here in your twenty one for James.
Well like what we should expect and what I hope happens. I hope this is the year where he becomes the second best player on the team. He'll still always be the most important player in my opinion, and he left the ratings say that, as you know, we work in this in this industry, the ratings say he is the most important player in the NBA. That's what just the
ratings say. I still believe he's the most important. But I think for him to win in that championship, Anthony Davis has to ascend to really what Anthony Davis was looking like over the postseason. Anthony Davis. If he extends to being the best player on the team and Lebron's just the most important, I think that takes pressure off him. He needs to find and I know this might sound crazy. He needs to find his Magic Johnson and allow him
to be Kareem, if that makes sense. Kareem at the end of his career was able to prolong his career because he had a little bit of the pressure taking off in him and Magic wanted that pressure. Magic owned that pressure and said, I got this. Do I know if Anthony Davis is that guy? I hope. I think he has the talent and the ability. But I think in year twenty, I think you could compare it. I
think I'm not sure. I think Kareem won a championship in eighteen nineteen was our eighteen nineteen was his last year winning a championship. I think, to me, that's kind of the formula. If you look at it. Kareem was still great, But to say we need you to be dominant for eighty two and through a postseason run, that's not realistic. Same with Tim Duncan winning championships later in his career. Say what you won. He wasn't the best player on his team, but he was by far the
most important player on that San Antonio team. But he had other guys around him that were raising their levels. Kawhi, Danny Green, Tony Manu. All of those guys were a little bit older, but Kawhi raised his level and took so much pressure off him and allowed him just to be that important cog.
I did Game six of the Phoenix Denvers series last year, that just disastrous loss at home for the Suns in the playoffs, and I had a former coach tell me that there they were a little concerned watching Kevin Durant, that you know, maybe he had lost a step because of all the injuries that they're starting to catch up to him. And you know, he's been in the league since he was eighteen nineteen years old. Obviously, this is a big year with Beale coming over, they make the
eight and trade, they bring in their Kich. Do you see the Suns as a team to beat, the team to beat or are you concerned at all with either the makeup of the team or all the damage that Durant has had to endure physically over the years.
I look, I think I think Durant has shown us like, yeah, guys are going to sprain their ankles. Guys you know, obviously had the Achilles injury, and then the following year or so he was primarily healthy. Now he's had some injuries, and when players like that get old, Instead of hey, you can come back in seven games, We're probably going to keep you out for ten because we want you
to be fully healthy. But I think I think Kevin Durantz is entering into that space of his career where, yes, he can be the best player for eighty two games, which you really want him to be, is the best player for about sixty five sixty games, and then allow him to play that high level basketball going into the postseason. Once you get about thirty four thirty five, you better have some help. And that's including Jordan, right, that's including Jordan.
Even if you look at Larry Byrd and some of the things that he was accomplished the roster that he had around him, but Michael Jordan had, you know, without Michael Jordan, those like the Bulls still went to the conference finals without Michael Jordan that year that he was gone. So it's like when Jordan comes back and he's the best player in the world, one of it, you know,
if not the greatest player of all time. When he enters it's like he's got Scotty Pippen, He's got Tony Kukoach, he's got Dennis, Robin and stee Like he's got a loaded roster that he steps in and leads them to another level. And I think that you have to have a roster around you. And I think Phoenix has done a good job. Devin Booker's young, he should be eating
up a ton of minutes and usage rate. I think Bradley Beal is still in the middle middle of his prime in my opinion, even though he's in his thirties. I think those guys need to do the majority of the weight and then let Kevin Durant pick his spots. If you want to go win a championship, you know that to me. And the last thing I'll say about this, we talked about it on NBA to Day. A lot of these teams win their championship in their second year together.
The Lakers won their championship with Kyle Gassol in their second year together, lost in the finals after the Trade won it. The Miami Heat lost in the conference finals when they got shocked. The next year they won the championship. Obviously, Lebron has won three championships in his new When he arrived in places, he won championship in the second year in Miami Championship, the second year in Cleveland Championship, the second year in Lakers. A lot of times when you
enter into these things, it can take a year. Maybe you got to go get one or two minimum contracts our vets that say hey, I want to go there. So I think the Suns can win it this year. I think they will be very good this year. But if you ask me which version of the sun being one hundred percent healthy will be better this year's team or next year's team. When they've had Frank Bogo for a full year, they're not teaching systems to those guys.
When when Bradley Beal and Devin Booker are now been on a team for a full year and Kevin Durant. So to me, we all look at it, Oh, it's win or you know winner is the bus that we know that that's BS. So when I look at these teams, I look at it from a space of oh, this year, they'll be very good. Next year if healthy have a chance to be great, that's the timetable because history has shown us that.
Good use of BS. I mean, if this was JJ's pod, you guys would be drinking champagne and dropping f bomb. So at least you know that you're on a clean NFL sponsored podcast here.
Yeah, and JJ was supposed to edit that stuff out. Man, I think he's you know, I think he's setting me up.
He must have still been drinking the champagne during the editing process, most likely. I know you've talked about this ad nauseum, and I want to get into your career because I'm just it's been so much fun to watch and and you know, call games with you and just kind of see your growth and maturation to becoming I think you know, one of the best analysts in basketball and I can't wait to see what's next for you.
But I want to you know, Damian Lillard, I'm sure you guys again on NBA today have talked about this over and over and over again. You're probably talking tired of talking about it. But Damian Lillard, who by the way, still has to a fess up on a bet that he had on this podcast. He has not Warren the Kyler Murray Jersey that the Cardinals sent him into into the building. Yet he needs to do that for the bet that he lost against the Cardinals. When the Cardinals
beat the Raiders, last year. But that's besides the point. I'm not holding a grudge or anything, but the trade to Milwaukee, does that put the Bucks as the team to beat in the East or is it Boston with Porzingis and Drew Holliday being added to that mix.
Now, I would say that's one of the caveats that you see with these kind of championship teams brought together. It's like, you remember the Boston Celtics when they all got together that first year they won the championship. But I think one of the unexpected things that year was the emergence of Rondo, who is this caught guard. There's ultimately going to be one of the best guards in
the league for a decade. So when you talk about bringing it all together, when I look at the Milwaukee Bucks, they got a brand new coach and Griff who agent Griffin, who I know very well. I think he's going to do a good job. I think the Terry Stotts situation, to me, that doesn't help because a lot of times when you get first year head coaches, you bring in a former head coach to kind of like just like, hey, this is the best way. Here's some advice, like this
is your team. But I'm just here as like an elderly guidance individual, and so you know that to me is a little curious about how that's going to work out. But I stand by, Can the Bucks win the championship this year? Yes? If they stay healthy and all the things, I think next year they will be the best vers another shell. Now instead of thinking, hey, because you see this a lot of times going oh hey, I was
gonna cut back door. Okay, hey, well look this is what those conversations now start to be more intuitive, where you know what your team is thinking. We'll keep doing football references like when you see Patrick Mahomes and Kelsey, these things are not all drawn up plays. When he go gets all these receptions and he does it, it's not drawn up. These guys have just been in the league together. They understand when his teammate is though he's
looking for one guy. And that's where I think that intuitiveness and you start to know what your teammate is thinking. That doesn't come in six months, that doesn't come in a year, that comes over a long period of time. So can the Bucks win it? Yes, there should be one of those five teams. But when you have all of this roster change, especially on top teams. I'll include the Lakers in that. I think Denver is pretty much silid. That's why they're my early pick to repeat if Denver.
You look at the changes in Boston, No Marcus Smart, but you added Drew and now you've got Brazingis has never made a playoff run. Brazingis has to go all eighty two and then go another twenty to get to the championship. So when I look at this, there's a handful of teams that have a ton of new changeovers and it's just a matter of like who can clean this up and get to their continuity factors.
I teased a moment ago your rapid rise and ascension in this business, and it's been great to watch, whether it's hosting the podcast, hosting NBA Today, which you've done and then also obviously being a regular panelist as a basketball expert on that show, or Get Up or first Take calling games for either ESPN or the Nets. What do you enjoy most?
Oh, that's tough, man. I think one. Let me give a shout out to you, Dave. You have look if you can sit down with Bill Walton as much as you have. You can sit down with any analyst. But I've learned so much from you and for people listening to this, like a lot of analysts don't get their flowers or their play by play don't get their flowers. But all the players that retire and get into this industry, you know this. There's not a lot of teaching that
goes on at let's say the networks. It's a little bit of a sink or swim. It's a little bit of a how hard are you going to work? But as an analyst, we depend on guys like you and you're like, hey, that was a good job, or hey, do more of that. So I've learned so much from sitting next to you. So I am a product of sitting next to guys like you and Iron Eagle, Ryan
Ruco Breen. I'm a product of that because when you guys see my passion and my love for the game, and you guys bring me under your wing and you're like, hey, this is good, Hey when you do this, this is the best way. Hey, good job going to break and reading the all of those things. I think it really takes a community to get guys in this space and We've seen it. We saw Jason Witten try and leave football and go right back to the BO. Not everybody
has that move transition. So to have an individual like you that I can call a friend, an individual like you that you know we'll sit and you're like, hey, I'm about to do my picks, and I'm like, hey, let's sit and talk. Let's sit and talk through your picks for MVP and this like I'd love to. So I just owe so much to you and a lot of your a lot of your colleague for helping guys like me get to where I am.
Well, you're very kind. I appreciate that, but you're a willing participant. I mean a lot of guys just think, you know, they don't take it seriously. I've seen it where guys just jump in. They are doing it because they want to stay in the game, but they don't really care. You care, and you know, JJ is the same way. I just worked with Bob Myers last week, former GM of the Warriors, first time doing a game, although he did some color for UCLA twenty years ago
on radio. But like Bob is asking all these questions about kind of the mechanics and everything and it's it's great. I mean, ESPN's did a good job by Denny to find guys like yourself that that want to be good and care and want to improve and want to be coached. But you've been. You've been coached coached your whole life.
And look, you and I have done a lot of NBA games today together, but I think my favorite game I've done with you was the game that you Bill Walton and I did maybe five years ago, UCLA Arizona. Obviously you played at Arizona, Luke. Walton's one of your best friends. You play and Bill played at UCLA, and you brought up Bill, So let's let's go there. First time you met Bill? What do you recall?
Okay, I'll give you two so again, like, I'm a basketball nerd, so I'm with Bill Walton's son. That's that's what his nickname was. They were like Bill Walton Son Luke. Every article, like our our senior year in high school and moving, you know, probably probably our freshman sophomore year in college. It was Bill Walton Son Luke. That's all how he was always introduced, and so you know, I know who he is, and I'm just like, dude, like
Bill Walton his dad. So the very first time where we have the answering machines back in our dorm, back in ninety eight. Yes, I'm dating myself and I get a phone call. Are there's a message and he pushed the button and it's and it's Bill Walton. So I'm like freaking out. Luke's unpacking doesn't give a damn. And I'm like, oh my god, Bill Walton is on my phone and he's like, Luke, this is Bill Walton calling lude Olsen called me and said that there were some
forms that needed to be sent to our house. Can you send them to blank blank blank you know the address? You know blank blank blank blank blank blank And he says that he goes, I repeat, the address is blank blank blank blank blank blank, and I go and I'm a little kepus. Now I'm like, Luke, like did your family just move or something like does your dad leave the address that like an office? And he's like he looked at me and put his head down and he goes, Richard,
my parents are hippies. I was born in that downstairs bedroom at that house. And anytime he calls, he will leave the address twice and I'm like, Okay, that's weird. So this was my first introduction. Now as forward about three months, right, we're sitting on the We're on a plane. I think we're leaving La to go back to Tucson, and all of a sudden, the stewardess walks up. Stewart walks up, and they're like, hey, your father is outside to Luke, and like the whole team is on the plane,
like and with this one, we didn't fly commercial. We would are we flew We didn't fly privately, flew commercial. So Luke looks at me. He's like, hey, you want to meet Bill? And I'm like, damn right, I do. So me and him both get off the plane. So we're off the plane and we're talking to Bill. I get to meet Bill and got to meet Laurie. Laurie's amazing. So I'm talking to Bill and I keep looking at the gate. I keep looking at the gate like should
we go? But the plane was about to take off, and Bill was like, Richard, calm down, do you see those two individuals? The plane is not leaving until we're done. And I'm sitting here like mind blown. As an eighteen year old kid, I'm like, wait, this dude can hold
up a damn plane. For I was so confused and like for you know that Bill lives and lives in a realm and in a reality that is unlike anything that you can even really express the people, and so from that point on it was just you know, it's Bill's world and we're all just living in it, as you know.
And he got you guys in trouble with the nc DOUBLEA.
Yes, he got me suspended because Bill being like he is, Bill's one of my mentors. He's such a good person, and I was living in Arizona. He's got three other sons outside of Luke, all within the same range and all played college basketball. So you know, he reached out. Was like, hey, Luke calls me. He's like, Bill wants
you to come out and hang out. So I'm like, yeah, I'll leave my Glendale, Arizona hot box that I'm living in and I'll fly out to San Diego and hang out with you guys, and I'll tell you that first trip, just spending time, and he got us a ticket to the to the NBA Finals because he was doing the game. That was my second NBA game i'd ever been to NCBA, finds out about it, and I get suspended, which is a little weird. I didn't understand how that works. But
I'll say this. Bill took me to the airport on that and he gave me this advice. And I remember when all of the boys were like, hey, Bill's taking to the airport. I'm like, what does that mean. I'm still nervous of this dude. So he takes me by Richard, you know, I've been watching you, and I feel like you have a great opportunity to really change you in your family's life. But I want you to remember this.
The worst thing that you can do for people that you love are things that they could and should do for themselves. Now repeat it back to me at eighteen years old, and like, look fast forward. I go into the NBA, and I do all this stuff, and I'm helping my family. I'm doing all this stuff, and then at about thirty when you know, there were some mistakes and all of a sudden you realize it's like, wait a second, now I understand what that man was trying to tell me. And it was because he had been
through everything that I had already been through. So the fact that he would just give this wisdom some sometimes, you know, unannounced and unasked. It meant a lot to me, you know, And I think I I've grown closer to him as I've understood more of his mentality in the space that he was coming from, really just trying to help young kids navigate what was coming. And I didn't realize it at the time, but I still stand by that that that's a message now I give to people constantly,
and it's because I heard it from him. At eighteen, I didn't understand it, but at thirty, I damned sure understood it. So I just try and embark that same message to young players when I talked to him.
A couple more and we'll let you go, Richard, true or false? At Luke's wedding where I think you were the best man, Bill not only didn't wear a tux, but he wore a golf shirt with the NBA logo, very similar to what Rob Low. You know, there's the Rob Low meme with him wearing the NFL hat with the NFL logo. Is that true that Bill wore just a golf shirt with the NBA logo on it to the wedding?
Oh? Okay, So let me really quickly break it down to your listeners. Dave is such a master as you know, it's such a massive brought caster or interviewer. He can do it all.
You know.
Damn well, that's true, Dave.
You know, I know I've seen the picture. I've seen the picture.
You've seen the picture. But you're asking me if that's true, as if I couldn't interview you about ten stories with Bill? Right, it's like Bill ran a hippie commune in San Diego. Fast forward, you know, we're doing that game for people that don't know I'm doing the game. Bill is there and Dave is in between us, and Bill is talking about how Richard used to sleep on my couch. Then fast forward in that game, Sean Miller, Sean Miller, form Arizona coach, gets kicked out of the UCLA Arizona game.
So taking over for Sean Miller after he gets run is Jack Murphy. So Jack Murphy was a manager when me and Luke and Iggy and all of us were at Arizona. So now he's you know, he's the top assistant coach at Arizona under Sean. So in the middle of the game, Seawn gets thrown out, and then Jack Murphy takes over and Bill goes Jack Murphy. I loved him, but he used to sleep on my couch also, And you're like, how many people used to sleep on this
man's couch? I can list a lot. JB. Bickerstaffs, you know, the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. I met JB. When we were twenty one years old, and so we would all hang out together. So it was just he he was such a unique individual. So the fact that you have worked with that man for years and you're asking me questions about how unique he is, I think you need to tell some more stories.
I know, but this is a podcast where we interview superstar celebrities like yourself, and so yes, I could sit here for hours and tell Bill stories. But I actually don't think you told this to me. I know the story, our fans probably listeners don't know the story at all. But okay, So you're in the NBA, you're making ten plus million a year, you're living at Bill's house, sleeping, You're living at Bill Walton's house, and how did you and you got kicked out? Who kicked you out? And why?
Okay? So okay, yes, I was making a good amount of money. I was very, very fortunate. But this is what it was. At seventeen years old. We would like we would go out and stay at Bill's house. Bill has a huge house. You've been there. There's the boy side and there's Bill side. Well, the boy side has the pool, the hot tub, so we could have all the fun that we wanted and Bill would never see it as long as we were up and out of there by five am, six am when he would take his morning naked hot tub.
Wait, hold on, hold on, And that is first of all, the side of the house that has like multiple huts and outdoor showers in the pool where Bill would take the naked bath in the morning. Right, that's the boy's side.
Okay, yeah, that's the boy side over there. So our goal was to be out of the party zone by four or five in the morning. Again, we don't need to get into details of that, but I will say this it was that. So after I got drafted, it was still Luke was still in college, so it was like, hey, we go stay at Bill. There's beds all there, beds in the living room, there's beds in the garden, there's beds spread out. There's the TP life sized TPE with a bed. So it was just like, dude, what am
I going to pay for? I'm just going to sleep here on the bed and we hang out, we work out, we you know, kick it. So for it was like the then we got older and then all of a sudden, we weren't eighteen and nineteen year old kids. Now we're twenty three year old kids. And Luke is in the NBA and I'm in the NBA. But now we have more disposable money. But look, so we're just doing we're doing too much, if you will, and basically using his house as like our fun party pad during the summer.
So Bill, Bill brings me and rich are, me and Luke into his office and are like, Richard, you guys are strewing my home. What is going on? Richard? Why don't you go to your parents' house and ruin it? And like me and Luke like he literally chastises me like I'm his son and I and I respect him and love him for it. So we got kicked out
of his house. And after we got kicked out of his house enough times, because there wasn't one time one time, Bill saw us at like six in the morning about to go to bed, and me and Luke just got in his car and just drove straight to la where like, we don't want to see Bill at noon and him harassing us, yelling at us. So it was more of After we did that, Luke and I bought a home in Rancho Santa Fe, and then that's where we started hanging out with our friends and we would train with
different guys that would come down. But yes, I've been kicked out of that home multiple times.
He blamed it on Laurie, his wife, Bill did. He says, it's Laurie's It was Laurie's call.
See, Laurie is entitled to all of that, and Laurie with one hundred percent right to take it out of our hundred I'm surprised that we lasted as long as we did. That shows you how graceful and loving they both.
Laurie's amazing. Bill always says she's still here, you know, as if like she's going to leave, But what would he do without her? All right, last one and somewhat serious. So I'm just curious that there are some Cardinal players who do actually listen to this podcast. Buddha Baker listens to the pod and multiple Pro Bowls. So you've got some Cardinal players and you know, members of the organization
that listen to this podcast. So I'm curious as somebody who has accomplished a lot in life, who has won an NBA championship, who has been with the Spurs, who were and still are one of the great organizations in pro sports. You've been to the finals with the Nets, You've seen organizations that are run really really well. You play for Loudolson in Arizona, won a lot of games.
What would be your advice as the Cardinals are resetting first year general manager Manti ausen Fort, first year head coach Jonathan Gannon, trying to lay a foundation, build a culture to take the next step to winning a championship, because in the NFL, it's not like the NBA. In the NFL, in a year you can turn it around and be a Super Bowl contender. We've seen it many times.
What would be your advice to the Cardinals organization, to Cardinal players as we're kind of sitting here struggling through year one of this transition one in six, to stay positive and focus on the big picture.
Well I can't speak, like necessarily from an organizational standpoint, because I think that takes a lot of infrastructure and it takes a lot of time and thought. But I can talk about it from a player's standpoint. And this is my message to the players. I think the greatest mistakes that I ever made in my career were allowing my situation to dictate my mentality. And once I heard this, and it always sticks by me again, one of these things that just sticks in my head is not your
situation that dictates your success. It's how you handle your situation that will dictate your success. And so it's like, oh, you know, when I first got drafted, I was in New Jersey and they had never won anything, they had never accomplished anything. So we all show up there and Jason, led by Jason Kidd and Keny Martin and Cary Kittles, we turn it around and it was just like Jason Kidd had a mentality that like, hey, oh no, this
scene can be good. We can be good. So I think some of it has to do with your mentality. And I would tell every player when I made mistakes in my career is because the team was bad or I wasn't playing well, and then I got sad and depressed, and I put too much value in me as an individual athlete, and I put so much self worth in that, and then I you know, whether you're not working out as much as you're supposed to because you're on a bad team, and then all of a sudden you have
an injury and you're not rehabbing. It just becomes this snowball effect. The sooner you can become impervious to the things around you and all you're doing is focusing on success brick by brick. Now you add two people doing that, you add ten people doing that, you add twenty people doing it. Now those bricks start to build and start to add up versus you know, but it has to start with you individually and saying it's like it doesn't matter. I need to train like it's like we're twelve and zero.
I need to train like we're zero and twelve. There should be no difference. And that's the trick as a professional athlete, train like you're getting ready for the super Bowl every single week. Because one thing that they say in San Antonio, and I'll leave you with this, is that they don't raise their level in the postseason, they don't raise their level. I would imagine Belichick is probably
his level doesn't become more intense in the postseason. Their level is that intense in the preseason, in the regular season, in the first round they're in. Their level of intensity is like that all the time. It's the people that want to raise and then okay, this is fine, and then raise. That's why Pop always calls those thirty second timeouts into a game because he wants to fire up
his guys and get them more intense. It's like, I don't care who we're playing, you missed that rotation it's the first play of the game, or you guys gonna wake up. And it was just so when you get to the postseason, Pop is talking to you the same way in the postseason in game seven as he's talking to you in in game three of the preseason. He's talking the exact same way and expects that exact same standard.
So once the standard is the standard and there's no negotiating with that, then it becomes the player and how do I handle that? So I'm big on focusing in on how do I handle my situation versus allowing my situation to dictate my success.
No, that's great stuff, man, And for a lot of young players, that's the kind of thing they need to hear from somebody like yourself that played almost two decades, won a championship, accomplished a ton, and are accomplishing a ton in a different walk of life. You're a star in this business, buddy, and I love you and I appreciate you, man. I look forward to seeing I know we have a game together Warrior Sons in Phoenix here in a few weeks, So look forward to seeing the impel.
All right, can't wait, man. I appreciate you day, all.
Right, Richard, Thanks, Buddy. Love what Richard had to say in terms of his advice for the Cardinals, because the way Richard approached things as an NBA player, whether it was with the Nets, with the Spurs, and certainly with Cleveland and Lebron James, because that's the way Lebron James approaches everything, meaning every practice, every rep, every game is a big deal to be taken seriously and an opportunity to improve, regardless of the record, regardless of the circumstances
surrounding the individual. I think it's terrific advice. That is something I know Manti asin Fort and Jonathan Gannon are trying to instill in this team as well. We are presented by BETTMGM, the official sports betting partner of the Arizona Cardinals, and by Heila River Resorts and Casinos. You can follow us on Twitter at Pash Pod, and we'd also love to hear from you. You can rate us,
review us, tell us what you think. If you have any guests in mind you'd like to hear from, you can tell us that as well by going to your favorite podcast platform. Our thanks to ESPN's Richard Jefferson. Thanks to you for listening to another edition of the Day Pash Podcast