Be Irresistible, Click Here THE ODD COUPLE: Rob Parker & Kelvin Washington discuss a recent interview where #lebronjames says he...
THE ODD COUPLE: Rob Parker & Kelvin Washington discuss a recent interview where #lebronjames says he doesn't have a ...
All right. So, a surprise for a lot of people yesterday. Yeah. LeBron James has a what do you call it? Open-ended Yeah. you know, whirlwind interview all exclusive with Pat McAfee um on ESPN and the Pat McAfee show. And one of the things that came out do we have some sound brie? Yeah. Let's let's hear he's like on a Taylor Swift Yeah. tour run right now. Oh yeah. Yeah. We're watching it earlier. We're awesome. If there's one person that couldn't wait to the video to drop so you can address it, it's your ass. Like seriously, I I He completely like missed the whole point. Never would I ever not allow people to talk about the sport, criticize players about what they do on the court. That is your job. But when you take it and you get personal with it, it it's my job to not only protect my damn household, but protect the players. that one he's talking about Stephen A and we could all argue all want that that could be a private conversation that doesn't have to be at Stephen A's seat uh at the ball game but that's another story another thing that came out was Michael Jordan and him do we have that Bri but I could set it up for you guys yeah set it up uh Michael Jordan uh and uh LeBron and M and LeBron says Bri that you know he never really had a real relationship LeBron and Kobe didn't have a real relationship until they were at the Olympics and then so that kind of bonded them together. But as LeBron's been actively playing, he doesn't have an active relationship with Michael Jordan. He said, "Michael, Michael doesn't want to talk to me until I'm done. Hopefully after that, then we'll actually have like a actual relationship, but until then, we don't talk." Yeah. He he was adding to the fact, too, he said, you know, that Jordan is the ultimate competitor and that while I'm playing, he's like, "I ain't trying to talk to you right now while you playing. We we'll, you know, we'll have something when it's done." And he mentioned the same thing with Kobe Tre's point. He was mentioning too that um once Kobe once LeBron became a Laker is when he and Kobe really started to bond because Kobe, you know, Kobe was retired at that point and he said, "Hey man, you're Laker now, your family, anything you need." They they were able to bond a little bit before his passing. So the emphasis I think the was on those two guys being very competitive and ultimately while we're all playing or while one of us is playing we can't bond like that brother not right now. So are you surprised by it or not? I'm I'm not surprised at all. Go ahead. Not at all. Yeah. And and I I understand. I just I think Kobe and Mike had something because Kobe became Michael Jordan, a many me. And the way he talked and the way he chewed gum and the way he wore his uh wristband on his elbow and the way he walked and just I I I think he idolized Michael Jordan and wanted to be like Mike. I mean that you you know that the old TV want to be like Mike. like Mike. Yeah, exactly. I mean, I I think Kobe looked at Michael Jordan and say, "That's me." I told you before, I've listened to uh interviews where it sounds like Kobe sounded like Michael Jordan. And I think in the case of LeBron, I think it was just different. I think Kobe wasn't a phenom, obviously, coming out of high school and everything, but it wasn't like where LeBron was. And I think that might have pushed Michael Jordan aside, you know what I mean, to to not really want to be there and this whole notion. And I'm not surprised to be honest. I I think LeBron is a tougher pill to swallow. Would that be fair to say? Yeah. Yeah. I think a couple of things. So, but I don't look at Michael Jordan as selfish. No, I think like like not trying to make LeBron the best player he can be. And the whole idea is, dude, go ahead. Have your career. Do your thing. I don't want to be in your head. I don't want to talk you out of anything, right? Just go ahead. Keep doing. You're doing great. You're playing all you don't need me. Yeah. I think Kobe being a carbon copy of Mike helped him being like, "Oh man, look at the look at a mini me. Look at a chip off the old block. Look at a, you know, student to the teacher." Kobe Bryant also sought after Michael. Michael said many of times he would come up to him at Allstar game, hey man, when you did the move and how you do this and I'mma do that how you I love when you do and he all right, you know, he would teach the young fell a few things and he would go at him. He said he would text him, hey man, I'm coming for you. I'mma do this. And so I think there was a part of MJ that saw Kobe was like, man, he kind of reminds me of me. Almost literally to the same height, same build, same size, walk alike, talk alike, just kind of like, man, I can't deny this carbon copy of myself. So that was appealing, right? Flattery gets you everywhere, right? you're like, "Oh man, I like this. It reminds me of me." LeBron, I think was different. We all know he said, "I wear 23 because that's my favorite player and I want to be like Mike." But I think the coming right out the gate as the chosen one. He's the one. Can he be the one to surpass Mike? We didn't do that with Kobe for several years. It took years before we were like, "Oh man, you know what? It's Co going to be like Mike." LeBron walked right into that whether it was his fault or not. Meaning the the the media, the everything. He had the chosen one on the back. Chosen one on the back tattooed on his back, right? Chosen one on the back. And then Scott was number king, you know, and all that. And so I think there's an element of Mike that was like, "Oh, this is the guy that you all are going to say could be equal to me or greater than me." So I think there's an element of that and they could never actually play against each other. Mike had a few years getting to play, compete, and know Kobe. He didn't get that with LeBron. Uh, so I think there's an element of that. But yeah, I don't think this is a bad part. I think this is just who it is. And also ideologically, him and Braun aren't the same. Braun is outspoken. Talk about this. Put He will put his hat in everything. Political funny stuff, bad stuff. George Floyd. Mike was criticized. Mike was criticized. You don't speak up. You don't do enough. You don't say anything. You don't stand for the black community. You And I think he sees that where they're just not the same. Whether you like it or not, LeBron has chosen to be in everything. Mike isn't. And he was more and especially as he got further away, quiet, reserved in the back. Not that he hasn't done things for the community. He did a lot. It's just he wasn't public, but he's not right. And and and he never said it. And it's a famous quote about the sneakers about Republicans buy shoes, too. He said he never said it. And and they he never said it. Yeah. But it was that kind of inference into that. And and I think people looked at him and went, "Oh, okay. He's apolitical." And there was a big thing. I can't Somebody was running in North Carolina. was a a black uh was it senator? Y and his mom his mom his mom was back in his candidate and just wanted him to come to the party not even endorse him or whatever and he wouldn't even go to the party like he just wouldn't want to be and that was where that came from. He donated some money, but he didn't want to show up. You know, showing up would be more than Mike cuz a check can be quiet right here. The 50,000,000. Okay, cool. Nobody knows. Mike shows up to the to the party literally to the party and it might swing some people. Absolutely. And if you don't think so, this is important. Wow. You ain't looked at presidencies. Exactly. Where popularity matters. So, so that's where that is. But I I I'm I'm with uh MJ on this. I Or or maybe there are other people who think that there's a responsibility. is uh to to to to uh embrace LeBron or do you feel this is cool or not cool? Where are you? Should Michael Jordan uh have a relationship with uh LeBron James or No, I think it's 5050. I don't think LeBron saw him, right? And that's what I'm saying. I don't think either of them saw that. I think they both knew the competition. I want to be better than you. MJ, I know they trying to make you better than me. Let me just see how this all works out. So, as much as people might go, "Oh, well, MJ," I think LeBron did. I think LeBron embraced I'm chasing you. I don't want to necessarily be buddy buddy with you, but I got I gota say this. I got to say this. There's no doubt in my mind that he's a little hurt. He He LeBron. Yeah. Because when somebody is that revered and they don't have a really a relationship at all, you know what I mean? Like the idea that he can't text with him or you know what I mean? A call like I I think there's a there's a little part. I think so. But I think LeBron is I don't care what you are in the business. If somebody who's who's at that stature doesn't have time for you, you would feel the only reason why I pushed back a bit is because in this same interview he says he and Kobe didn't have that. They were just they were competing said he said I blanked up because I was supposed to meet him in the 2009 finals. So he was like we just knew we had this competitive thing where we're cool, we speak, haha, but I'm trying to bust your head. So I do think there's be friendly with other people. I I I hear that and that's an excuse. I don't know if he was Kobe's cup of tea either, but that's what I'm saying. I think they're okay with not being the cup of tea because we're still trying to be those three are the kind of the guys of the last 20 25 years we say are the greatest of all time. I still think if if Michael called him up when he passed Kareem and was like, "Oh my god." You know what I mean? Come to the crib. Let's have a have a cigar on me. You know what I mean? Or whatever. Don't tell me that that wouldn't have been a moment and he hasn't had that that I know of. I'm just saying it sounds like they don't have a relationship. ...
