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Rory
The volume.
Unknown Speaker 2
No worry about.
Rory
All right, Rory Back for another episode of Rory Mall? Don't know ball. We actually do not know ball. Well, maybe a little bit.
Unknown Speaker 3
We're learning as as this is going.
Rory
But this is, this is why we have this platform now to bring on some of our friends that are ab do know ball. And today we are joined by North Babylon legend UNC Tar Heel alumni. 15 year. 15 year NBA vet. You gotta say put an emphasis on 15 cause that's an incredible accomplishment to last 15 years in the NBA. Three time world champion. We are joined by New York's finest, Danny Green. Can I call you the Green Ranger?
Unknown Speaker 2
Of course.
Rory
Can you go by the Green Ranger?
Unknown Speaker 2
Definitely. Definitely.
Unknown Speaker 3
I feel like you have to pause after you call him that. I don't know why. I can't give you explanation of why. It's a pause. It just feels like a pause.
Rory
Yeah, man. So, Danny, how you feeling, man?
Unknown Speaker 2
I'm feeling good. I'm feeling good. I appreciate y'all having me on the pod, man. It's a true honor. I've never been introduced. Like, nobody ever recognizes North Babylon. They would say Long island or New York, but yeah, to hear North Babylon, it's been a while. I said I went to St. Mary's as well, but yeah, man, I'm from New York and people don't really respect Long island that much either.
Rory
They don't. One of my. One of my guys, man, great trainer, Jerry Powell out there. North Babylon. That's my. That's my guy, JP man, one of the best.
Unknown Speaker 2
That's the guy.
Rory
One of the best. Probably him and Brick are probably the two best trainers that I think are in the game right now. So shout out to my man Jerry.
Unknown Speaker 3
Powell and shout out to Nikosi Blackburn that no one would know my friend that went to North Babylon High School.
Unknown Speaker 2
Okay. Yeah, that's. That's random.
Unknown Speaker 3
You might have been at St. Mary's by the time he was there. He's a year older than me, but, yes, we are. We are both very familiar with North Babylon. We have taken the Long island railroad many of times to see many of Long island women. More mall. But, you know, he's gotten off before.
Unknown Speaker 2
Ice was my. My first trainer probably since I was in like, seventh, eighth grade.
Rory
Oh, yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
That's how far back. Yeah, me and Jerry go.
Rory
Yeah, man, that's legend. Legend, legendary. I mean, if you ever had a chance to be in one of Jerry's workouts, man, like, it's not just the train. It's how he. Like he talks to the. To the.
Unknown Speaker 2
The mental approach, man. The way he talks. Mentality, the way he talks to. You gotta be able to Jerry. Jerry needs a little New York thing, you know, he needs a.
Rory
He needs a show, he needs a. He needs a sitcom, he needs cameras following him in the gyms at all times. But. How you feeling, Danny? How you been, man?
Unknown Speaker 2
I've been great, bro. It's a. It's an adjustment for most people. Retirement for me, wasn't that that big of an Adjustment, because I kind of started to. I had help around me. You guys met Amjad Harrison, transitioned me into the media side of it and, you know, watching the game and I don't want to sound like, because I'm not an old head, but, you know, it's different. And when I was in locker rooms working out, I want to say I didn't feel I belonged, but I definitely felt older in the space. And it was changing. But yeah, I'm adjusting to it fine, man. Everything's going well. Doing some stuff with ESPN, randomly tapping in with FanDuel and Turner. The goal is to be able to network full time, but also do some consulting and scouting for teams, you know, tapping into different avenues and different lanes and seeing. Seeing what I like most. But most importantly, I get a chance to spend more time with my little one at the house as he's growing up. He's only 19 months, so I'm glad that I waited to have kids until the end of my career so I could have more time with him.
Rory
That's one thing I always talked about having friends that play professional sports. I noticed that some of them do struggle with retirement, trying to figure out who they are, because athletes, for the most part, that took over your entire lives from kids, all you know is basketball training, working out, playing, traveling. How tough has it been? Or what was the biggest thing you learned during retirement that nobody told you to look out for?
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, I think the toughest thing for most guys, which said I had some help with it, is adjusting to not having, like I said, For 20 years, 25 years, guys been playing and traveling and to be kind of stagnant or figuring out how to not be stagnant and adjusting to not having a routine because normally you wake up, you know exactly what you're doing and. And obviously there's other situations where guys, you know, checks aren't coming in the same, so they have to adjust and some people don't have to. But either way, you don't want it to be stagnant and spending money without making money, you know? Cause you have to live another 40, 50 years, right? God willing, maybe even more. So you kind of see that bigger picture, like, damn, I don't know if I can stretch this this long or I don't know if I should be doing this for this long. I don't know if it's going to run out financially. But since some guys aren't put in pretty good positions where they don't have to worry about financials, but they still want to Find a purpose. So finding a purpose, finding a routine. I said, for me, it was just like, yo, I need to. I want to know my schedule for them. I don't want to have to, like, figure it out week to week, day to day of what I'm doing. So when I say I want to be with a network, it's like, all right, I want a schedule for the month. Let me know what I'm doing when I'm working, when I have time with a little one. So I think the hardest part is that not having a routine and then also not having a space where you can be around your boys, your teammates, locker room, the plane, all the travel experiences with a group, that camaraderie is what guys miss the most. So that's the biggest adjustment is necessarily not having a group to be a part of or be associated with and then not having a routine that you normally have had in the last 25 years.
Unknown Speaker 3
Does every athlete think they can be a media personality now?
Unknown Speaker 2
No. A lot of them do. Listen, we talked about the POD before we started pod, and not everybody deserves a platform.
Rory
That's a fact.
Unknown Speaker 2
Some guys out there with platforms, you're like, what the hell? Anybody can get a platform now. So nobody deserves a platform. Not everybody can do media. It's challenging on that side of it. It's not easy. And some guys know that. Some guys know that their personality is not built for talking on tv, and they're not outgoing or showing energy. You know, you see Stephen A. He's yelling at the TV all the time, but he's good at what he does because he. He portrays that, and it grabs the viewers attention within the first seven seconds. You know, these little things that, you know, TV people know, you know, you know, people behind the scenes know, and guys that do media know, and a lot of ballplayers know that they're not good in that space. But a lot of them try, which I said, I applaud them. It's great, man, to see guys venture out and try to have their own platforms and also try to do different things after playing. But, yes, not everybody can do it, and not everybody thinks they can do it, but probably more. More so guys. More guys think they can do it. Just like basketball players trying to be rappers or rappers trying to be Hoopers, you know what I'm saying? So it goes hand in hand.
Rory
I was impressed by Jamal Crawford's transition into analyst. I spent a lot of time around Jamal when he was in New York. A good friend of mine, Trevor Ariza, they Was teammates. So we spent some time together. And seeing him transition into analyst work has been impressive. He's always been co, but I didn't realize how well spoken Jamal was until he was on tv. He obviously knows the game. One of my favorite players to watch. How is it watching a lot of these guys that you probably were teammates of and was like, Richard Jefferson, I was surprised at how well he does analyst work. He was, like, in Jersey, spent some time around him. He was a complete goofball. And now to see him on TV doing the analyst work he's doing, he's doing an amazing job. How is it being teammates with some guys that you know on a personal level and then seeing them transition into these great analysts?
Unknown Speaker 2
RJ's still a goofball. Absolutely. Absolutely. Even on set, behind camera is. He makes it fun, though. Yeah. But it's been impressive to see certain guys like, damn, I didn't know he could do that. Like, I didn't know he had that even. Like, guys you may not see on a national level, like, Ryan Hollins is a guy that works for the Houston Rockets. And, you know, he didn't have an extensive career, but he had a good career. But you see him, you know, even Tristan, when he had a break, came out, and it's like, yo, I didn't know he could be so animated on TV. But RJ's been great. You know, Jalen Rose has been great. Jamal Crawford has been great. Like, you guys get better speakers as they get older because they can't do as much physical. So they have to be better communicators right on the court. You know, I've seen Jamal, you know, he be. He's a great offensive scorer. Most communicators are defensive guys like Draymond, right. Because they have to talk on defense. You know, most guys that score the ball, they just go out there and get buckets.
Rory
Yeah, they don't talk at all. They might talk shit, that's it, but.
Unknown Speaker 2
They don't have to communicate as much except for give me a screen or get out the way.
Rory
Right?
Unknown Speaker 2
You know, so to see Lou Will Jamal Crawford, like those guys, cross over and be in the space and be very good at it is impressive, man. And said you tip your hat off to guys because it's not easy. You learn a lot about behind the scenes, of how difficult it is, how challenging it is, and, you know, so to see certain guys be able to adapt and adjust to the space, you're like, man, that's pretty dope. I didn't Think that, you know, most of the guys, a lot of people, the normal fans, look at basketball players as guys that just only know how to play sports. They don't see us as anything else. So to have a personality, be able to portray it. And some guys are really good basketball players, just not good at talking the game either. Right. And you guys see them all the time. Like, some of them just, you know, hilarious. You know, Chuck and Shaq are hilarious on tv. They make great tv. They can talk the game. And there's some guys that said that don't know how to articulate the game and break it down, because you gotta be able to break it down to a viewer that does not understand it. People that don't know ball. Yeah. So not everybody's good at doing that, man. And I said to see some of our. My peers and some of my teammates, OGs and even some guys behind me, they would transition into that. It shows. Like, they said they had some other talents and qualities that I never knew they had before they could play. Like, they obviously had other aspirations or backup plans or things that they had in place if they didn't make it in basketball.
Rory
I mean, I love the fact that, you know, ESPN and these other news outlets are leaning more towards, you know, grabbing players as they're into. Into retirement and having them do analysis work. Because it does make sense to have guys that played at level break down the game and be able to talk to the casual fans like Rory and myself about the game and show us the nuances of it. But it is fun to see guys like Draymond and, you know, guys have their own platforms where they get to say what they want to say and break down the game that, you know, the way they like to do it. So good luck to you on that. I know you've been doing your thing and you're pretty good at it, but you're a Tar Heel, so y'all are pretty educated down there in unc, man.
Unknown Speaker 2
Gotta get better. You know, I'm working to get better, man. We had some good examples that I got a chance to watch. Rest in peace. Stuart Scott was a great one.
Rory
Oh, yeah, absolutely. Used to the legend.
Unknown Speaker 2
We got a chance to watch Rick Fox, you know what I'm saying? We had a couple guys that I got a chance to watch. Kenny Smith has done an amazing job. Yeah. You know, Vince is on there now doing some stuff.
Rory
Shout out to Vince Haywood.
Unknown Speaker 2
We had a couple guys in place now and before me that I got a chance to watch and look up To. Because I wasn't always the most talented guy, bro. So, like, I had to plan for if this shit didn't work out. So you know what I'm saying? I went to school for four years and was like, all right, if I don't play ball, I gotta be able to do something. Do I want to stay around the game? Do I want to coach? And after playing, it's like, you know, coaching is stressful. You see coaches getting fired left and right. Yeah, it's a very unstable career. So I was like, I don't know if I want to deal with that. Stresses. The stresses of coaching when I'm done playing. So for me, it was like, you know what I'm gonna go into, you know, commentating, you know, journalism or that type of space. So I did communications as my major, and, you know, I followed watching those guys most of the time.
Unknown Speaker 3
You. You mentioned there were some ball players that thought they could rap. You had a pretty long career with a couple organizations. So who was the worst rapper that you came across in the NBA?
Unknown Speaker 2
Oh, I can't say the worst rap, because I've actually.
Rory
You can say Bagley. He's from Duke. You could say Bagley. He's from Duke.
Unknown Speaker 2
I never heard him rap, so I could probably put him in that conversation. But I've been. I've been. I've come across some guys that were pretty good that made good music. Like, I started out with Stephen Jackson, so when I was there. And Tony, I don't know. So if I can understand French, might be able to put him in that cat. But Tony, rap. Tony Parker, he was a rapper. He had an album, did a French album. So I never got a chance, but I seen him perform on stage. Yeah, by the time I got there, he stopped rapping. But Stephen Jackson was a good one. I never was teammates with Dane, but I just watched him, and I got to say Andre Drummond, rap. I got a chance to listen to these guys music. Shaq was a rapper once upon a time. He was my.
Rory
She's probably the best rapper, boss.
Unknown Speaker 3
It's Dana.
Rory
Shaq, yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
Are very talented, but when I was in Memphis, man, we had a couple guys doing the mumble rap there. Oh, my gosh. It was. It was interesting, man. I want to say no names, but I wouldn't say they're terrible, but, you know, they wouldn't say the names. They did some good stuff, man. So, like, some of the music, it may not have been terrible. Sounded good, you know what I'm saying?
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
You know, you Know, so they had some, and some of them were young guys. So junior. Kenny Lofton Jr. He's younger. He plays in China now, but he was young coming, and he was like, trying to get in the music. So he's. He's got some time to get better. Yeah, but he was.
Rory
I mean, he's in China. All he got to do is stand on the corner and he'll sell 10 million records rapping out there.
Unknown Speaker 2
He gets no Kenny Lofton.
Rory
I'm surprised he's not in there.
Unknown Speaker 2
Kenny Lofton gets.
Rory
I'm surprised he didn't land.
Unknown Speaker 2
He was a young guy that was like. I'm like, okay, you got the Blueface flow, you know what I'm saying?
Unknown Speaker 3
So no flow, completely offbeat.
Unknown Speaker 2
It was a one off beat flow. And Blueface made it famous, you know what I'm saying? Like, yeah, but Blueface was good at it. Shout out to him. Because we just saw him. I was in the. In the prisons, like a couple weeks ago, about a month ago, he was in there. I do the thing with. Between the lines. So we go hoop with the prisoners.
Unknown Speaker 3
Yes, I saw some of the trailer stuff.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
And he was in there, so. But shout out to him.
Unknown Speaker 3
Did you speak to Blueface?
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, we set what up? You know. You know, they. Everyone in there, they got a story, man, and it's not a great space for them. It's like a miserable day. And so we come in, we give them. Try to give them a day of freedom, poop with them, play some music. So they like, it's all right in here today, you know what I'm saying? We appreciate y'all coming through. They, they, you know, they. They show love and we show love back. So it was a. It was a good day, you know, to kick it with them.
Rory
How's that ball at one point, I mean, he's tall. Blueface is pretty tall.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah. They said he was a Hooper. They said he played football and he was an athlete. But that day he was chilling. He wasn't okay. He was out the way. He was just watching. I don't think he want to be a part of it. You know, he trying to do his time and get out of. He's a short stay guy, so he's only got like a year or so. Some of the guys in there, 50 plus 100 plus years, but they doing better with trying to rehabilitate guys, you know what I'm saying? They had dog, like stray dogs are allowing them to, like, adopt, you know, that type of thing. But yeah, it's a. I learned some new shit every day, every time I'm in there. And you, how is that?
Rory
Yeah, I'm about to say how. How was that experience going into the prison systems? You know, me personally, I know a lot of guys that were great basketball players that, you know, just took a left turn and ended up doing prison time. So I'm sure spending time in these prisons, you come across guys that could really hoop. Like, how is it seeing gu Guys where you like, yo, dog, you could have played in the league.
Unknown Speaker 2
What the you doing? There's a bunch of people, even in a woman's prison, you look at them like you look like a normal civilian. Like, why are you here? Right. It's a random. It's not random, but it's a wild story of, you know, one bad decision on one drunk night. Right? Car accident, you know what I'm saying? And they got 30, 40 years or these guys was hooping. One dude I used to play with, Chauncey, I was a point guard back in the day with so and so. I played a lot of them from the LA area. Some are from different areas, right. But they hooped and they OGs, and you could tell they hooped back in the day and like, yo, you must have played somewhere, right? And they're like, I'm about to get out soon. But they're in great shape, by the way. So you go in there. Yeah. Dicking around, you go get your ass busted. Because they're not playing and they play all day. They can. They have home court advantage. They can shoot on the double rims outdoors. That's always indoors. But it's a. It's an unbelievable experience, man, just hearing the story, but, you know, being surprised by guys that are athletic in there and that said they were playing with some top guys and could have been one of those top guys that just made a bad decision when they were 15, 16 years old.
Unknown Speaker 3
Yeah, didn't know him. The warriors have a documentary or something. They gave a shot, he got a tryout.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, I think they went in for a brief moment. They did some visits because a lot of the prisons are, I wouldn't say in the Bay Area, but I think Folsom is in Sacramento area, which is not far. But we said we do all the California area. Shout out to between the lines. Tory Stapleton, Darren Duncan, they put it together to my homies, so I just volunteer. And Lanny, the dude homie that runs actively black, kind of sponsored them and gave them the gear. But it's a dope all around. Experience. People volunteer their time. DJ comes in, play some music. People come in and hoop. People come in and do their podcasts. They share their stories. So it's a. It's a. It's an experience all around, man.
Unknown Speaker 3
What. What drew you to want to volunteer?
Unknown Speaker 2
I said I couldn't even said, I can't even take credit for the. I've seen the homies doing it for some time, and I always wanted to check it out, you know, because we all have somebody that's been inside, right? Like, we all had somebody that we're related to or that we know that made a decision, and you had to visit them. So we're connected in some, you know, some way shape or form. And I was always hooping, but I was able to go in. I had tore my knees, so I had time. I was rehabbing, and I wasn't doing much. I wasn't practicing like that. So they're like, yo, you should come check out the prison. So the first time I went in was when I was. I had a knee. I didn't play, so I had a knee injury. And I was just there kicking with them. And then from there, I was like, yeah, this is dope, man. And it meant a lot to them, but it also helped put things in. It always kept me put things in perspective for me, you know, like, it was a thing that I feel like every human being with the freedoms we have, needs that. That humbling, you know? Absolutely. Often every couple of months, you need to come back down Earth, just appreciate what you have. So it's one of those things that it's not only beneficial to them, it's beneficial to me. So I'm able to show them love, you know, give them hope and help make their time go by faster or easier, but also for them to teach me a lot of things and also, you know, share their stories. But keep me in a humble space, man, and appreciate the freedoms that I have.
Rory
That would be dope to actually, like, see a lot of, like, these NBA stars going to prison and, like, just for a day and just, like, hooping.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, More guys. More guys should do it.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
It gets physical in there, though. It gets.
Rory
I mean, a lot of these guys claim they could have played in the more physical era, right? They claim I could have played in that era.
Unknown Speaker 2
Like, well, let's see.
Rory
Go in. Come Pelican Bay and see what you can do, right? See what you can do up in there.
Unknown Speaker 3
Let's see if you can handle Florence.
Rory
Yeah, Handle the guy that has 35 years left on his. On his charge.
Unknown Speaker 2
All right, now they play clean. They play. It's good, clean fun. But they get physical, man. And I started when I retired, I was like, you know, I gotta get back in shape. Cause I went out there, I was. Yeah, I was wheezing and shit. I'm like, damn. Nah, we almost lost a couple times. We lost one. Actually lost one game. And I was like, damn, it's not good. Yeah, we can't let that happen now. We can't let that happen. They started talking trash, like, are we coming back? We gonna come back for, you know, to get our look back.
Rory
So as one of the better shooters in your class, when you came in, what do you think about the game now? Like, because when you came in, it was shooting. Was, you know, three point shooting was a part of it. Steph, obviously. Steph obviously changed the entire dynamic of basketball. But do you ever feel like, damn, if I came in, like, in the last three years, I would be one of the top players, because you were an absolute shooter coming out of unc, and that was a big part of your game. But do you ever look at the evolution of basketball now and be like, if I came in maybe six years later, it would be a real problem.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, Excuse me. I think everybody that's retired thinks that they were born too early. You know, you look at even guys from Shaq's era, they're like, yo, I wish I was born, you know, 20 years. Because, mind you, the money is weight.
Rory
The money, that's what it is for most of them. It's the money. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
You know, but Shaq, his era was better built for his type of game. There's a bunch of guys that were tweeners that were probably not built for the time that they came out. It was like, yo, in today's NBA, I could play. Cause it's all perimeter oriented, all guard play. And those guys that were like, you weren't sure if they were a true two men or three men or three or four men, like they were forward or small forward. And that made a difference between them making a team and not being on a roster and had to play overseas. So there's a bunch of guys that are looking like, damn, I was born in the wrong era. For me, it's just like, I appreciated my time because I got a chance to see both parts of it. I got to see, like, old school when I first got in early. And then I see a transition. And obviously people give, you know, a lot of credit to steph and Golden State. But Houston was a big part of the three point transition with James Harden. Yeah, and Dan, Tony. So for me it was more so like, damn, I wish I got opportunity to play for certain coaches or play with certain people. And that's not just in today's era, but even the era before me. During my time, like, damn, I see Dantoni system and they get up shots, you know, Steve Kerr system, you know, they, they. I would imagine what kind of player I would have been if I was featured. You know, Pop respected the three and appreciated it, but it wasn't a big part of his offense. It wasn't like, oh, we're going to shoot a bunch of threes now. Everybody's offense is that way. So it's like, damn, if I was born 10 years later and playing for Boston, what would that look like? You know what I'm saying? Like, right. What would my contract look like? Would I get more? Would I win a lot more rings? Mind you said I've won plenty. I've been very blessed. But they're getting up a good amount of attempts, man, and guys are getting paid. You know, the guys that were in MySpace at the time said it eventually got up to like 70 million, which was big because before that, max was certain guys like Tony Parker getting 40 million, like that was a big contract back in the day. Like 30, 40 million was a big contract. Then like the average between then it bumped up to like the average would be like 70, 75. Now you're seeing guys getting 100, 120 plus for like those guys in that space now 200. So yeah, the money is going up and I think a lot of retired guys are like, damn, I wish I was born like 10 years later, you know what I'm saying?
Rory
Just to get that bag.
Unknown Speaker 3
Tony Parker would not have made that French rap album that I didn't know about.
Rory
Yeah, Tony Parker had to rap to try to make ends meet.
Unknown Speaker 3
We just skipped over that. Maybe I missed that completely. Did you guys know that Tony Parker.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, he rapped on stage, bro, at the final when he won finals MVP a while ago. Yeah, it was a while ago, but it was one of those things. I think somebody talked to me like, you can make good my money. Like, I don't think they had it over there. And so you can make a good amount of, you know, you have a good big following. Yeah, you can make a good. So, you know, I think Tony's pops is like old school black dude from Chicago. So, you know, saying like, even though He's French. Like, his family. Like, his family is half American, half regular black dudes.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 3
So I'm going to revisit it for sure.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 3
I got to go back. I go back and do the knowledge while. While we're staying on. Music coming up in Long island in the 90s, early 2000s. Growing up, what type of music were you listening to?
Unknown Speaker 2
Of course the hip hop, bro. I mean, I grew up on that. You know, my. My pops was big in the moving. You know, I wouldn't say we lived in North Babylon, but we were in every borough, and Queens was a big part of, you know, LL Cool J was from our area or lived in that area. So we listened to a lot of him, you know, growing up. But everybody from a young age, from Method Man, Red man, all that Wu Tang, Big, of course, not so much. Pac, more so big. Nas, JJ was huge. Jay Z was big. And then of course, when I was younger, I think everybody. Eminem was like Dr. Dre. And then of course, G Unit came around. 50 Cent, Dipset. As we got in high school, so that was more of our movement. Then I went to school in the south, which changed a lot for me. So being in Carolina, I was like, man, I didn't really mess with the music like that down there. But then I. Eventually it came around, you know, TI and then Lil Wayne blew up. You know, I was in college, so it was like I had no choice. You know, they was force feeding me. Jeezy. Yeah, yeah, the Southern music. And I'm like, what the is this, y'all? Listen. I'm listening to G Unit, you know, Jim Jones, Dipset, like I'm saying, right? So. But eventually said, I started to open up to be like, okay. And as you get older, you start, you know, your pat. Just like when you taste certain foods, your palate expands. You start like, okay, try different fruit music. And you're like, oh, now it's like, I'm a more R B guy, but, you know, it's the crossover R B rap. Like the R B guys that rap too. But I like hip hop, R B. Then I'll listen to some pop. You know, I don't mind. You know, some songs, I'm say edm, but, you know, you're open to more musical things now. Like, okay, I can. I can vibe to this for a little bit. Just not the whole night. I'm not about to be doing house and EDM the whole night. Yeah, I can. I can understand or appreciate a good country song. It's like okay. You know what I'm saying?
Rory
You had a stint while you were playing, you were known as the guy. When you weren't in the game, you was supporting your teammates. You did a lot of dancing on the sidelines. There's been a lot of tape of you grooving on the sidelines when you wasn't in the game. Did you take that on as like, listen, man, if I'm not on the floor, I still have to kind of give my teammates energy and get them going and have fun. Was that something. Was that a conscious thing or was something that just happened?
Unknown Speaker 2
I think it was something that just happened, you know, and being from New York, you know how. And I'm not the type of guy that, like, needs to be, like, clear out the room. Like, I got the dance floor type of space. I need that tension, you know what I'm saying? But New Yorkers, we dance, we listen to music, we have fun. You know what I'm saying? We get lights on the sidelines. I feel like it just naturally happened because it made it seem like it was an individual thing, but it wasn't. It just became that it started out as a team thing. So Coach Williams, he's kind of superstitious, so he made sure he played the music before every game. And on the sideline my freshman year, not as much. My sophomore, junior year, junior year became more thing. But sophomore year, we had everybody on the sideline dancing so we would have fun. By the time it came to my junior year, all the people that was in the sideline with me either had graduated left or were starting or on the floor. So I was like, I didn't start until my senior year, so I was the only one left. So everybody's looking at me like, yo, nobody else in the sideline could dance. Like, yo, you gotta dance. So it became like an individual thing. Now I'm just the only one. Then we had some other guys get into it. We had, like, another guy, you know, Greg Little, he was a football player, but he played with us, so we had him get into it, too. So we had a few, but it became an individual thing because everybody else had left. But it wasn't really an individual thing. But, yeah, that was just, you know, the New York images on the sideline. We would all dance, you know, from my fresh sophomore year, and everybody have different dances and, you know, my version of it, and it was a random song try to get light to. But, you know, it just became an individual thing. As I got older and everybody kind of left and was starting on the floor and superstitious thing, you know, Coach Williams made sure they played the music and made sure because we won a lot of games with that music and the fans love it. Then it became a thing and the next, you know, I became the, you know, Carolina puppet, everybody, every time they see me, you know, Danny, dance. Would you do a dance for us? I'm saying, like, that's how it became a thing. And it's like, you know. But I enjoyed it, man. It was fun. It was cool. And ultimately, I guess it brought some type of energy to the floor in the group. But it brought, you know, some. Some fun and light to our team and to the bench and to myself as well.
Unknown Speaker 3
What was the music that was always played with the superstition?
Unknown Speaker 2
It was jump around.
Unknown Speaker 3
It was jump around every time.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah. Every game before every game is a jump around song.
Unknown Speaker 3
And did you ever catch him rapping along to it?
Unknown Speaker 2
Nah, nah.
Unknown Speaker 3
I'm trying to picture it.
Unknown Speaker 2
I remember I told the story a couple times. It was one time they didn't play the music. I think it was an overtime and we lost. Pretty sure he was pissed about it. He made sure they played that damn.
Rory
Music every time somebody got fired. Somebody definitely got fired.
Unknown Speaker 2
It's one of those things. He's an old school coach, you know, he don't like the look at me, the BS or the. But, you know, it's okay until tip off goes up. We get serious. But if it's something that's working and we winning, he ain't gonna say nothing. So it was working and winning and it became a ritual. But if we would have been dancing on the sideline, we were losing, he'd have been like, cut that shit out. You know what I'm saying? Cuss this out. But it was a thing. And then once it became a thing and when we didn't have the music one game and we lost, he was like, all right, y'all better make sure to play that damn music and that. You know, we get our guys in the sidelong doing their routine and the crowd into it. So. And the fan section, the crowd loved it. So it was. It was a cool. It was a cool thing. Ch, ch, ch. Chumba looking for excitement. Chumba Casino is here.
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Unknown Speaker 3
Once, you know, once you get to the league, obviously more doors open up and you, you enter into rooms with other famous people that you probably hadn't been in before. What was the first artist that you met that was kind of like a fanned out moment for you once you got to leave.
Unknown Speaker 2
I feel like, you know, being from New York, every moment is a fan out moment. But you never express that as a New Yorker. Yeah, you just have too much pride.
Rory
You gotta keep it cool. Gotta keep it cool.
Unknown Speaker 2
What up? What up? So you know what I'm saying? Like, yeah, and you just keep it moving. But I think my first interactions when I was like, just coming out, Cole, he actually found out to me and I was like, oh, it's Cole. He's like, yo, D. Green, what up? Like, he's from Carolina.
Unknown Speaker 3
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
He's outside a club, said, what's up? Oh, Cole, what's up? You know what I'm saying? Like, he was young. I think he was just fresh out of college. It was a long time ago. And then of course, seeing Wayne, seeing TI Seeing a bunch of guys randomly, and then Drake the Weeknd. I was a big weekend fan, you know, when he, when he came out, so. And every time I see them, I mean, now it's love. It's more normal. I'm older, but when I was a young kid, like my first three or four years, it's just like, even when you're on the court, I think your first two years is more of a starstruck culture shock for you. Like, damn, I can't believe I'm guarding kd. You know, like, it takes a year to get used to that. I can't believe I'm on the floor sharing a locker room with Shaq or LeBron. I'm saying, like, it's not a you everyday thing. I think rookies are more used to it now because they have more access to guys they can like. Back then I didn't have the social media. Wasn't that big of a thing when I first came in. Yeah. So you only. You don't see these guys as much. You don't see what they're routine. And now you have all access to everything they do behind the scenes in the locker room. I didn't know what the hell. So seeing LeBron in person, seeing Shaq in person is like, damn, you never get to see these guys. Right. Playing against kd, playing against, you know, certain people, you're like, damn, mellow. You're like, oh, that's Carmelo. Now you See them, they. It's like a fraternity. They show love, say what's up? Which is. Which is dope. But it takes a year or two to get used to that. Not just rappers, but every, every space. Even actors and actresses, which a lot of them you don't even recognize at first because they're smaller people. You're like, damn, what's that? Yeah, I can't believe. So, yeah, I remember like Batman.
Rory
Batman. Is that short?
Unknown Speaker 2
No.
Unknown Speaker 3
So many gangster rappers I thought was.
Unknown Speaker 2
Like six so small. Bunch of girls that a bunch of actresses you look at. And you probably like had crushes on your high school. Yeah. And you meet them, you're like, damn, it's so small, man. I don't know if you just. I wouldn't say you're disappointed, but you're like, damn. I thought she was like, yeah, this, this big. Mind you, they do carry an aura, but they're just small people. So you're just like, man, I can't believe Hollywood is this small.
Unknown Speaker 3
The celebrities at the games ever change, I guess the energy in the arena, because obviously it's different between playing for the Lakers than playing with San Antonio, about who's going to be there. Toronto, obviously. Drake took over for three years straight. He was at every game. Does that change the energy?
Unknown Speaker 2
100%. And I think when you're the opposing team, that's the fun part. Like when I was starting on San Antonio, I think my favorite arenas was going to New York, going to la, even though I'm from New York, but seeing who's going to be courtside, you know what I'm saying? Like, oh, shit, that's Denzel Washington. Oh, that's Detective Olivia. You know, Benson. I don't know her real name. Yeah, you know, I watched.
Unknown Speaker 3
That's what I fan out.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's like, oh, so and so, you know, Salma Hayek, you know, just random people and you'll see how small they are. But you're like, damn, the courtside watching is Jack Nicholson like, oh, you know, that's. That's Jack, you know.
Unknown Speaker 3
So how many points you had when Salma Hayek was there?
Unknown Speaker 2
I don't remember, but I said, just watching, watching and having them there, it's like, you know what? This is the bright lights. I mean, this is time to. To hoop. So you have fun. You have more fun in those. You don't get to see them in San Antonio or those other small arenas. But also it's a big difference when you become a part of those. Those groups you know, it's a different aspect when you're playing against Lakers and you're playing for the Lakers and saying it's a different type of pressure, you know what I'm saying? Like, yeah, those stars now expect you to play well. They expect you to every night and expect it to win. The lights are a lot brighter. So, yeah, it's a different space. And when you come in the underdogs, I'm coming to beat the shit out of Lakers, you know what I'm saying? Like, it's a different type of approach and mental aspect of it, and probably a lot more fun being opposing team coming in kicking ass than being a part of the home team where you, like, if you do something wrong, everybody in the building look at you like, damn, why do we sign this guy for this much money? You know what I'm saying?
Rory
What's one of the biggest misconceptions about Coach Popovich? Like, I look at Coach Pop and he does seem like this stern, serious guy. But then you also get clips of him with his players, and you see, like, the cooler side of Coach Pop. What is the biggest misconception going in as a rookie where you probably were like, oh, shit, I'm great to play for Coach Pop, like, going into it, what did you think? And then after your first interaction with him, what was that feeling like?
Unknown Speaker 2
That's a great question, man. I mean, I don't think the young kids understand, like, it's a different generation and they have no respect for the older generation now. But when you walk in a building and you see a Greg Popovich or Coach Williams or Pat Riley, they only carry the aura of like, historical coach. Like, oh, shit. Like, damn. It's like the principle, you know what I'm saying? You got to straighten up. If you're on your. On your P's and Q's, make sure you're not around or up. So when it came to seeing them, and not only did you think that they were insult, but Pop looks like somebody that would. He's like a spy, you know what I'm saying? Like somebody that you know is a serial killer on the low, you know what I'm saying? Pat Riley looks like a mob, like, get you knocked off, you know I'm saying? So it's like not only you scared of as a basketball coach, but you're scared of him as a.
Rory
As a man.
Unknown Speaker 3
Coach K looks like the president of Ukraine.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, Might. Might leave a horse. And you bet your bed sheets wake up. You're saying, like, right, might Kill your family. So, so seeing them in that space is like, it takes you back. And the biggest misconception of them. And I said, I don't know Pat and Coach Williams, I know Coach Williams well, but Coach Williams and Pop, they just. People, especially the media with Pop, they just take him so seriously. They think he's a mean guy when really he's like the total opposite. Like, he's a big soft. He's a grandpa, you know what I'm saying? Like, until you get on the court, now get me wrong, and I court, he's very extreme and intense, but off the court, you know, he's teaching about life, you know, lessons around the world, third world countries, enlighten you what's going on, like, trying to educate you. But he cares. He cares about your family. And he's a, he's a. He's a comedian, man. It's like, it's hard not to. Like, he's a part time. Everything he did to me was funny as hell. I would laugh all the time also because, like, he's in his 70s and he's still, you know, he'll get out in the court and start messing with you. Start, yeah. Start playing defense on you, try to focus you, bully you a little bit. You're like, pop, make it the hell out of here. He's funny. He's funny as hell, man. And he, I think he likes to mess with the media and he likes him to. He wants him to think that he's serious. So you like, he plays that role? Yeah, you know, like, of pretty much like he's the coach, coaching version of Jack Nicholson, you know what I'm saying? Like, you know, Jack Nixon in his movies likes to fuck with people. He's kind of like that and makes those, you know, dry jokes or those jokes that make you a little uneasy and uncomfortable. But he was only playing around. But he's great, man. He's great.
Unknown Speaker 3
We had Victor Cruz on last week and we were discussing with him the bottle heard round the world that ended New York City club culture. Tony Parker was also involved in that. This episode's being dedicated to Tony Parker.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 3
Vic, was. Was, I think, was you there tonight?
Unknown Speaker 2
No, I wasn't. I heard about it, though. I wasn't there that night.
Unknown Speaker 3
Okay, so we. The way Vlad has been trying to solve the Tupac case, we have dedicated this podcast to trying to discover what happened in Whip that night.
Unknown Speaker 2
And this is when the bottle broke, right? It caught somebody in the eye. Did it catch Tony?
Unknown Speaker 3
And I. I believe so, yes. I think he ended up suing. It was between Drake and Chris Brown's entourages of some type of altercation, and Tony happened to be there. And again, I'm learning so much about Tony Parker today. I thought he was. I don't mean this disrespectfully. I just thought he was more of a square. Like, I thought him and Tim Duncan wore jean shorts in that backyard barbecue.
Unknown Speaker 2
Don't get me wrong. The organization makes you, like, feel that way or make you put you in that space. They don't want you. They don't encourage you to do anything but basketball. Like, it's your job. But Tony was an outside boy, you know what I'm saying? Like, he. He was one of the very few guys that liked the fashion, you know, Said he was married to Eva Longoria. Like, he was in the Hollywood space. Yeah. And he likes to do, you know, he liked to party. He's French, boys. He like out. And he rapped. So he was a figure. He wasn't just a basketball player. He was a figure.
Unknown Speaker 3
So do you think Tony was a victim that night or maybe an aggressor?
Unknown Speaker 2
I think for sure a victim. I mean, he was not. He's not an aggressive type guy. Yeah. But he. He likes to be in. Like I said, when. Especially younger Tony, he liked to be in the space. So I'm sure he was on the space. Probably had no idea what was going on. Yeah. Yo, Chris, what's up? Your drink over here.
Rory
Yeah. He's trying to show love.
Unknown Speaker 2
You trying to show love. They're like, yo, we don't. With each other, Tony. Yeah, he might accidentally, you know, got some things started, but I doubt he was an aggressive. He likes to stay in his own space, but he's social guy. He had his own club in San Antonio at the time, back in the. It's called Nueva, you know, his number was nine. So he had a club, and it was dope. It was one of the very sweet spots that everybody would go to after and hang out and kick it. But, yeah, Tony is definitely a victim. He wasn't. He was never, like, a starter.
Unknown Speaker 3
Did he ever take you out outside of his club in San Antonio, like when you guys were on the road?
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, Tony was one of those guys that we were going to road. He wanted some. Do something. We. We did team dinners a lot. But if there was something going on in San Antonio, out somewhere, somewhere else, he'd be like, yo, I got this going on. I got a party here. And, you know, he had the infamous Parties at his house that I don't know if you guys seen it lately. I think Kaiser not might be streaming there soon and you know, help promote. He's, you know, he's back and forth. It's France and. But I think he's trying to sell the house, so. But his house is, was unbelievable.
Unknown Speaker 3
It's like if the walls.
Unknown Speaker 2
Water park. He got a water park in the crib and he added more to it. So even then he'd have parties. And the biggest, the best part of it was being able to do the water park stuff at his crib.
Rory
That's crazy.
Unknown Speaker 2
House party outside. And he said he added more to it. But yeah. So his house was unbelievable. And he would have party host parties at his crib and he would host them in different places and like, yo, I'm doing this. Come through. And his brothers, he had younger brothers, they were cool people too. And they would, they would invite people out and you know, they would host. Man, they were really good at hosting.
Rory
People in San Antonio, I don't know how long ago you said this, but you have Kevin Durant over Steph and Yoki.
Unknown Speaker 2
This was, this was like yesterday. It was like two days ago. Yeah.
Rory
Like, do you, do you, do you really have KD over. Two part question, two part question. Do you have KD over Stephan Yic and what is Danny Green's top five all time?
Unknown Speaker 2
Yes. So, so this is. I know it's a controversial and it's an unpopular opinion, but it's just my opinion when it comes to the eye test. Right. Or just the players that I've laced up. So like people have their top 10 of all time. You know, it's like it's Braun, Mike. I should do the other way. Mike Braun, Kobe, Timmy, Shaq, Walt, Bill Russell, Magic, Kareem Bird. You know, I'm saying like those guys, normal people must mix them around and then sometimes they'll sneak in Steph in the top 10, you know what I'm saying? So for me and the top 10, the top players that I ever seen lace up and my 15 year career, the guys that I've laced up, the hardest people to guard and their resume not be as good as Steph and Jokic. It might be better. So KD's resume might be not MVP wise, but he's got two Finals MVPs. He's got MVP, but behind Michael Jeffrey Jordan, the best players that ever I've seen lace him up and score that basketball on offensive, on the floor, Kevin Durant right behind him and Then James Harden, like my 15 year career, those are two hardest guys that I've ever had to guard. And there's a reason why they're really good. Now, I'm not saying I put James Harden above Steph, but KD has two rings, he has some Finals MVPs, so Steph's resume is better for sure. But as a player, to me, I'm putting him above those guys we'll never see. To me, I don't think we'll ever see another Kevin Durant. You can put Wemby in a conversation. They're not Kevin Durant. They're very good. They're big men. They can shoot the three. But 50, 40, 90, 25 plus points for like 16. Like guys been doing it for 12 plus years, like over a decade and still doing it in year 16. To me, I would put him in a top 10 over for the new era, guys. I'll put him in the top 10 before Steph and Jokic. That's just my opinion because. So we'll never see another one of him. And not that we'll ever see another Jokic and Steph like, but I think we'll come across them like another one of those before we'll see another coming.
Rory
Durant, Jokic is, I think he's a special player. I think his pace is probably his biggest asset. No matter what you're doing on your end of the floor, you're not gonna take Jokic out of his pace. I think his IQ again, is probably one of his biggest assets. Physically, he's not gonna, you know, he's not the strongest, fastest, quickest. But I think his iq, his pace and his natural feel for the game is probably what separates him. But, you know, I gotta go back to, you know, I remember what Orlando Shaq looked like, you know what I mean? And I don't know if Jokic wanted to see Orlando Shaq or even LA Shaq.
Unknown Speaker 2
We had these conversations yesterday too. Cause, you know, Shaq had some comments to talk about how he would have bullied Chet and Wemby and made them quit. Yeah, it depends on the era you're playing in. And that might be true on the offensive end. I see. And said Joel Wemby didn't quit against joel. He had 60 against Wemby and he tried to bully him all game. But he's grown into a better defensive player and they probably would have double Shaq. But Shaq would have had problems guarding them too, on the other end, playing on the outside. Yeah, I'm saying Like he don't. He never left the paint in the the 90s, you know what I'm saying? Like he didn't have to. Didn't have bigs that were shooting threes. Yeah, Dirk was the first in the coming up and Chris Bosh, but he played much against. But those guys. Yao had some good touch, but he never shot three. So. So I think Shaq would have had trouble guarding those guys as well. And yeah, Jokic, he's the big man version of Luka. Their pace is unbelievable and I think they're one of a kind guys too. But I think we'll see another one of them before we see another. A seven foot guy that can handle the ball like a guard, shoot three, shoot mid range and last that long. Because most seven footers don't have long careers. But KD is a seven foot guard, like a real natural guard. We got Sengun as a guy that's up and coming. That could possibly be another. I like him. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Like there's other guys that could have. Like Trey Young was, could have been like a Steph Curry. Like there's a couple guys that you'll see as a guard that can shoot the three that couldn't possibly emerge into a Steph Curry. Not saying that it'll happen often, but I just don't think we'll ever see another Kevin Durant. But yes, there's a lot of guys. Like I said, Jokic was high IQ playing against Shaq. He would have just. He would outsmart. I feel like he would outsmarted Shaq. You know what I'm saying now? Not that Shaq was a dumb player, he's a very smart player. But Jokic's IQ and his pace I think would have threw Shaq off. He probably got him in foul trouble, took him out and he shoots 40% from three. He's shooting 42% from three. Right. Good luck guarding that.
Rory
You know, I get that now.
Unknown Speaker 2
Defensively Shaq would have bullied him for sure. But on the other end they would have been trouble. And depending on the pace, if they're playing in today's era, Shaq's got to run up and down more. You can't just. We're not slowing the ball down and throwing it aside every possession, right?
Rory
Yeah, for sure.
Unknown Speaker 2
You got to be able to keep up. And Jokic, as much as he looks unathletic, he's getting up and down the court like he outruns AD sometimes down the floor like he's still running the floor. So don't get it twisted before we.
Rory
Get into some trivia. Last question. So you do have Michael Jordan as your greatest of all time.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yes, because now we're entering.
Rory
We're entering a space where we're starting to get more. People say it's LeBron, and I understand it.
Unknown Speaker 2
It's just I think Bron has the greatest career of all time. But Mike is my goat, okay? Mike is my goat.
Rory
All right, that's fair. I'm not mad at that. You are part of one of the. Probably one of the biggest shots in NBA history in Toronto with Kawhi Leonard sending y'all to the Finals. Were you more impressed by Kawhi during that run or Kawhi in San Antonio?
Unknown Speaker 2
Definitely that 2019 run. I mean, Kawhi and San Antonio was still emerging. And he. After the year we won, it is when he became more of.
Rory
Like, was he Finals mvp? What you did when he was Finals mvp, He did.
Unknown Speaker 2
Okay. So after that Finals mvp, that's when they kind of gave him the keys. Cause he wasn't. Wasn't the. He didn't have the keys before then. Tony was the guy. You know what I'm saying? He took the keys. Tony was the guy. We still have mono and Timmy, we're still very good. Like I said, even though they're older, they still played very. They played great. They were good keys. And then they. The emergence of Kawhi the next, you know, fourth quarters down the stretch, like, Pop made sure he had the ball in his hands, and that happened very quickly. And I was like, damn, what the hell's going on here? But he became the guy. So he was still young. When we got to Toronto, that's when his veteranship started to emerge and he became more of a leader. Not only, you know, by action, but even in the locker room talking a little bit more. But that run, especially with coming off injury, coming back and doing it in one year and having knee issues like he was playing on one leg. Half that time we play in Milwaukee, you can see him limping up and down the court. So him doing what he did, and they just giving the ball every time, making the right plays and leading us to a championship. Yeah, I don't. I don't know if we'll see that again. There's only one other person that I see in today's game that has an opportunity to do that, and that's Anthony Edwards, because he's a two way player. Not many two way players can dominate both sides of the Ball. It just takes a lot of energy. So if Anthony Edwards does it. So Jason Tatum's very good too. Like, his other guys are very good. They just have a lot more help. Yeah. And not saying that Kawhi didn't have help, but he dominated, had unbelievable run against some really good teams. Philly was a really good team that could have. That could have and probably should have beat us. Milwaukee was a really good team that could have been. Probably should have been. They were up two games in Golden State. Even though, you know, KD was out, they were a very good team as well. So for him to lead us to beat those teams. Yeah, man. I don't know if I'll see another run like that.
Unknown Speaker 3
Do you have a top five New York high school basketball list? Top five players? Nah, players, individuals.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, like, top five players that ever come out of Long Island.
Rory
We do.
Unknown Speaker 3
Long Island.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I gotta go. Tobias is on that list. Tobias Harris, Wally world, Wally Zerbiak, Dr. J, myself. And I'm gonna have to throw Sue Bird in there.
Rory
Okay, That's a good list. That's a great pick. Sue Bird. That's a great pick.
Unknown Speaker 2
She's a. Yo, she's a legend, bro.
Rory
Oh, absolutely.
Unknown Speaker 2
She's a legend. Absolutely unbelievable. And had unbelievable career. But there's some other players that came from Long island that very good as well. But I got to give a lot of respect to Wally World. Dr. J said Tobias had an unbelievable career. I throw myself. But there's some. Some other guys in there that deserve some more. Some more credit. But I gotta give. I gotta give Sue Bird a nod.
Rory
I respect that.
Unknown Speaker 3
I know Lance Stevenson is. Is Coney island, but did you guys ever cross paths? Because you guys are only like, what, two years?
Unknown Speaker 2
My youngin man. Yeah. Youngest is my young. And we played on, say au team, so. So when he was in. They said he was in seventh grade, eighth grade. We don't know how old he was at the time.
Unknown Speaker 3
In project years.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah. But I think I was a junior senior. And I said he played. He was the youngin on our team, Long Island Panthers, Gary Charles coach, which became New York Panthers. And then eventually they said, you know, Charlie Vilnoya played with us. Lamar owed him. Back in day run our test. Joe Kim Noah said my. They were a little older than me, but Lance was our young. Like my young guy underneath me coming up. And then he ended up, I think, moving on and playing with Juice, which was, you know, tiny. Them guys with Sebastian played for. That's the Brooklyn way they all do. They. Yeah, Lincoln, but he started off with Long Island Panthers. So. Yeah, you know, Lance was one of my young guys when he was coming up, like seventh, eighth grade.
Rory
All right, so, Danny, they say we don't know ball, so we want to see if the ball is. We want to know how much music you, Danny Green, know. So we're going to ask some questions, and I believe you have some questions for us as well. So we'll ask you.
Unknown Speaker 2
I got some basic ones, man. I can see if you know a little something.
Rory
We'll ask you a question, you'll answer, and then. And you can ask a question. So first question. How many girls were named in Petey Pablo's Freak Leak? Is it A, is it A, 8, B, 10, C, 12 or D15?
Unknown Speaker 3
North Carolina legend.
Rory
North Carolina. That's the North Carolina song. You hear that when you land at the airport?
Unknown Speaker 2
So you had a couple songs with different girls in them. So North Carolina, throw your hands up. So it was that one we just talking about. Freak, freak, freak. He had a lot of name. So I'm gonna go with. I'm gonna go with. It's either 12 or 15. I'm gonna go with 15. I'm gonna go with D. That's correct. Yeah, he had a lot of names, bro. Dmx, when DMX had that, you know what I'm saying? Every name in the.
Rory
The whole.
Unknown Speaker 3
We got to make like a name playlist of.
Rory
Just name. Just name.
Unknown Speaker 3
Just name some of the best songs. Yeah, he went kind of nuts with this.
Rory
This was.
Unknown Speaker 2
I'mma keep it. I'm gonna keep it simple for you guys, man. Cuz you say y'all don't know ball.
Rory
Oh, man.
Unknown Speaker 2
So there's a couple of schools that are the top, you know, unc, Duke, UCLA and Kentucky. That. It's usually the big names, not anymore as it used to be, but back in the day, they were the top teams that everybody went to school with. Yeah. Because they had the most NCAA titles. Who has the most NCAA titles in men's basketball history between the 4, UNC, 1, Duke 2, UCLA, 3. Kentucky, 4.
Unknown Speaker 3
I want to say UNC, but I feel like this is more of a trick.
Rory
I want to say either. I want to say either UCLA or Kentucky. I'll go Kentucky.
Unknown Speaker 2
What you got?
Unknown Speaker 3
I mean, I'm going to stick with my first answer, but now I know it's wrong.
Unknown Speaker 2
You don't know.
Unknown Speaker 3
Just the way Maul looked at me. But I'm still. I'll go unc.
Unknown Speaker 2
Okay, you got unc. And you said Kentucky. Yeah, yeah, both are incorrect. Is UCLA with 11?
Rory
I was about to say, because I know. I know Kareem had, what, four before.
Unknown Speaker 2
We were born, they had. Kareem probably got eight between them. And stretch. Yeah, they had a long stretch.
Rory
All right. I should have stayed back in the day. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
But as of late, I think the other teams have emerged, like, in the last 20 years. They probably have the most. But UCLA had a bunch of them way back in the day.
Unknown Speaker 3
Yeah. All right, we'll stay. North Carolina. Somebody that you ran into early in his career. J. Cole. Where was he. Where was he born? A, Fayetteville. B, Chapel Hill. C, Charlotte or D, Germany?
Unknown Speaker 2
Is it. Where was. Oh, this might. I feel like it's a trick question.
Unknown Speaker 3
Or maybe I want to say.
Unknown Speaker 2
I want to say. I just want to say. It's easy to say Fayetteville because he reps the Fayetteville. So, you know, Dreamville. I'm gonna say Fayetteville. Unless he's like a military baby that's born in Germany, but I'm gonna say Fayetteville.
Unknown Speaker 3
Well, your. Your second part was actually completely correct. He was a military baby born in Germany, and obviously Fayetteville is a big military town, so. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
Question.
Unknown Speaker 3
His dad and mom moved back to Fayetteville, North Carolina, after Germany, which is kind of nice.
Unknown Speaker 2
Hell of a guess.
Unknown Speaker 3
He should have got on that Tony Parker album.
Unknown Speaker 2
No, you know, like, yo, Germany's crazy.
Unknown Speaker 3
France solve some of their problems that way.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah. Yeah. All right, so there's only a few players that have won three titles with three different teams. I'm. I'm going to give you guys a hint. You know me. I was. I was one of them. So you guys. The introduction. So we're going to guess. You guys have to guess how many players have three different titles with three different teams. One is two, two is four, three is six, or four is eight. So either one. Two players have it. Four players. Six or eight. Like, how many players you think has three different tiles with three different teams? I'm gonna go two, four, six, or eight.
Unknown Speaker 3
I'm gonna see six. I'm gonna go six. It may only be two, though.
Rory
No, I mean, him and LeBron are what?
Unknown Speaker 2
That's two. Oh, I forgot.
Unknown Speaker 3
Yeah, because he double ring.
Rory
I want to say. I want to say eight.
Unknown Speaker 2
Is this final answers?
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
And you said six, right?
Unknown Speaker 3
Six. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
That. Both incorrect. Against. It's four. Four players. So two would be the answer.
Rory
Damn.
Unknown Speaker 2
Only four players. Myself, Me. Myself, myself, Braun, John, Sally, and Robert or John Sally from, you know, the Pistons. Yeah. Yeah. And Robert, or most people know John Sally for being in Bad Boys with the glasses. Well, okay.
Rory
Well, I guess it's three different teams. That's the. That's the. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
Three different teams. Not. Not easy to do. So four is the answer. Okay. All right.
Rory
As well.
Unknown Speaker 2
You guys aren't far. At least you know, Brian had one, so.
Rory
Yeah, well, I don't count. I'm one of those that don't. I hate the bubble ring, but that's just me.
Unknown Speaker 2
Somebody got to win, bro. There's all. There's always lockout, rings, people. You gotta count them. Somebody's gotta win.
Rory
I'm not mad at it, but that's just a nasty ring.
Unknown Speaker 2
All right. I mean, we wouldn't prefer that either. We didn't get no parade. We couldn't party. We couldn't celebrate. We didn't have no fans.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
So it was. It was ugly thing all around for not just the fans, but the players as well. We would prefer it different.
Rory
All right, for our last question, this Long island artist or artist reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks only behind say youy, say Me by Lionel Richie. Is it A, Biz Markey, B, Rakim, C, Public Enemy, or D, Eddie Murphy?
Unknown Speaker 2
Wow. Say that question again. It has behind how many? Who? What?
Rory
Now this Long island artist or artists reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks only behind say youy say Me by Lionel Richie.
Unknown Speaker 2
So back in the day, it has to be that. Back to Rakim. Rakim is from my area, too. Wine dance right there.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
Loved Rakim. I forgot Eddie. Eddie from Long Island. Roosevelt guy. Yeah. I'm gonna go Eddie Murphy, man. I'm gonna go Eddie. Because he was a big time star back in the day. I'm gonna go with Eddie.
Unknown Speaker 3
You are correct.
Unknown Speaker 2
Correct.
Unknown Speaker 3
Party all the Time produced by Rick James.
Rory
Produced by Rob.
Unknown Speaker 2
Party all the Time.
Unknown Speaker 3
Boy, we shit on Eddie's music career, but he has joints.
Rory
He got some hits, he could win A versus. Yeah, absolutely. He got some hits, boy.
Unknown Speaker 2
Had hits.
Rory
All right, well, Danny, listen, man. We know you gotta go. We appreciate you taking some time kicking it with us, man.
Unknown Speaker 2
Yo, we gotta do this in person, man. I appreciate y'all.
Rory
Whenever you in New York, man. Whenever you in New York, pull up.
Unknown Speaker 2
I'll be there again. I said I'm there. You know, every couple of months. I'll be at the end of this month, early May. But I'm also summertime. Some little ones is happening. But you Know, we definitely got a link, man.
Rory
Definitely, man. We'd love to have you in the studio, man, so we could kick it.
Unknown Speaker 2
I would love to talk. I said I haven't been in the music space. Like, I would. I would like to said little ones. I don't watch much TV anymore or listen to music and must be with little ones. But, yeah, and the. The music industry has changed so much for when. When we were younger to now.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
But like, a lot of women shout out to them, though. Running this. Running the radio stations right now. So Lotto, Megan Stallion, Cardi B, Gorilla. I mean, they got beat, they got hits.
Rory
Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 2
Nice spaces. Shout out to them. Yeah. But, you know, I want to see the guys make a comeback, you know, Shout out to, you know, Drake, Kendrick, they made some. Some stuff happen this past summer, which was dope. But I want to see more of it, man. But I want to get more in the cultural space, man, and be able to chop it up with y'all more.
Unknown Speaker 3
Have you spoken to Demar since the whole Kendrick and Drake thing?
Unknown Speaker 2
Yeah, actually, he was on the show. We hadn't talked about that in particular, but I did the. The show that run it back where we was talking about Steph, Katie being ahead of Stefan Jokic. Yeah. So resume wise, I got them in front of kd, but Katie, to me, is a special player. But he was on the show and we talked when he was in Sacramento, he came on the show, we interviewed him, asked him some questions. So it was brief, but I didn't get a chance to talk to him about the whole Drake situation. I'm sure he ain't fazed by it. It's whatever. Yeah.
Rory
That shit is drawing.
Unknown Speaker 2
Toronto still loves him. Yeah.
Rory
That's a fact. All right, Danny, well, we hope to see you soon here in New York. Come by the studio, Come kick it with us, man. Good luck with everything you're doing, and we'll see you down the road.
Unknown Speaker 2
Appreciate y'all, man. Love, man. Same good luck to y'all as well.
Unknown Speaker 3
Appreciate it.
Rory
My guy. Thank you.
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Podcast Summary: New Rory & MAL - Episode: Rory & Mal Don't Know Ball | Danny Green
Release Date: April 10, 2025
Rory kicks off the episode with his signature enthusiasm, welcoming listeners to another installment of "Rory & Mal Don't Know Ball." The premise revolves around sharing new stories, laughter, and unexpected takes on basketball and beyond.
[02:18] Rory: Introduces the guest, Danny Green, highlighting his impressive 15-year NBA career and three-time world championship titles. Rory affectionately nicknames him "The Green Ranger," emphasizing Danny's enduring legacy in the league.
Danny Green: Expresses gratitude for being on the podcast, sharing pride in his North Babylon, Long Island roots. He mentions attending St. Mary's and reflects on the lack of recognition for Long Island in the broader New York narrative.
[03:14] Rory: Shouts out to local legends like Jerry Powell and Nikosi Blackburn, commending their impact on the community and on Danny's career. Danny reciprocates the recognition, mentioning his long-standing relationship with Jerry Powell since his early teens.
[04:22] Danny Green: Discusses his smooth transition into retirement, attributing it to the support from friends like Amjad Harrison. Unlike many athletes who struggle with identity post-retirement, Danny found purpose in media roles with ESPN, FanDuel, and Turner. He emphasizes the joy of spending more time with his 19-month-old son, a decision influenced by prioritizing family post-career.
[05:23] Rory: Raises the common challenge athletes face during retirement—losing the structured routine and camaraderie of professional sports.
[05:48] Danny Green: Elaborates on the difficulties of adjusting to a lack of routine and the absence of a supportive team environment. He underscores the importance of finding new purposes and maintaining financial stability to avoid stagnation.
[07:22] Danny Green: Critiques the tendency of retired athletes to assume media roles without the necessary skills or personality fit. He praises successful transitions like Jamal Crawford and Jalen Rose, noting that not all athletes are cut out for media careers despite their sports prowess.
[09:26] Rory: Highlights successful ex-players like Jamal Crawford, R.J. Redick, and Jalen Rose, appreciating their ability to articulate the game's nuances to a broader audience. He draws parallels to other media personalities who have successfully blended sports insights with engaging commentary.
[10:16] Danny Green: Commends players like Shaquille O'Neal for their charismatic media presence, contrasting them with players who struggle to communicate effectively. He emphasizes that not all athletes possess the natural ability to engage as media personalities, likening it to other career transitions where inherent skills matter.
[15:28] Danny Green: Shares his heartfelt experiences volunteering in prisons through Between the Lines and Actively Black. He recounts organizing basketball sessions, music events, and personal interactions with inmates, including notable figures like Blueface.
[16:45] Rory: Reflects on the transformative nature of such volunteer work, noting how it provides perspective and serves as a humbling experience for athletes.
[17:40] Danny Green: Delves into the emotional aspects of interacting with former athletes who ended up in prison due to life's unforeseen challenges. He underscores the resilience of these individuals and the mutual benefits derived from such engagements—both for the inmates and himself.
[21:00] Danny Green: Contemplates the evolution of basketball, particularly the shift towards three-point shooting influenced by stars like Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. He muses whether his skill set would have thrived in today's perimeter-oriented game but ultimately appreciates the opportunities and experiences from his era.
[23:16] Rory: Discusses the financial growth in the NBA, acknowledging that many retired players wish they could have benefited from the lucrative contracts available in recent years.
[25:50] Danny Green: Shares nostalgic anecdotes about his sideline dancing during college games, highlighting how music and energy played a role in team dynamics and fan engagement. He attributes some of the team's success to these rituals, despite occasional clashes with coaches over unplayed music.
[31:42] Danny Green: Recounts his initial encounters with celebrities, noting the culture shock of meeting icons like Denzel Washington, Drake, and The Weeknd in person versus seeing them through media. He comments on the humility and down-to-earth nature of these interactions, despite their larger-than-life personas.
[34:25] Rory: Observes how celebrity presence at games impacts the atmosphere, especially when high-profile figures like Drake attend multiple games, altering the energy within the arena.
In a fun and engaging segment, Rory and Mal test Danny's knowledge with a series of basketball and music-related trivia questions.
Petey Pablo's "Freak Leak" Girls Count:
NCAA Titles in Men's Basketball:
J. Cole's Birthplace:
Players with Three Titles Across Different Teams:
Long Island Artist Reaching #2 on Billboard Hot 100:
Rory and Mal's Comments: Playful banter and recognition of Danny's accurate responses, fostering a light-hearted atmosphere.
[58:38] Danny Green: Expresses a desire to engage more with the cultural space and acknowledges the dynamic changes in the music industry. He praises female artists leading the musical landscape while expressing interest in reconnecting with more aspects of entertainment.
[59:18] Rory: Extends an invitation for Danny to join them in New York, emphasizing the camaraderie and mutual respect developed during the episode.
Closing Remarks: The episode wraps up with heartfelt thanks and well-wishes, cementing the bond between host and guest.
Danny Green [04:22]: "Retirement for me wasn't that big of an adjustment because I had help around me."
Rory [07:35]: "Some guys know that their personality is not built for talking on TV."
Danny Green [15:28]: "It's beneficial to them, it's beneficial to me. I get to show them love and keep me in a humble space."
Rory [21:00]: "If I came in maybe six years later, it would be a real problem."
Danny Green [38:46]: "Tony was definitely a victim. He wasn't an aggressive type guy."
Rory [46:24]: "How is watching a lot of these guys that you probably were teammates with and was like, Richard Jefferson, I was surprised at how well he does analyst work."
In this engaging episode of "New Rory & MAL," hosts Rory and Mal delve deep into the multifaceted life of Danny Green, exploring his illustrious NBA career, the challenges of retirement, and the intricacies of transitioning into media roles. Through candid conversations, personal anecdotes, and a lively trivia segment, listeners gain a comprehensive understanding of Danny's journey both on and off the court. The episode beautifully balances insightful discussions with humor, making it a must-listen for basketball enthusiasts and fans of the podcast alike.