Rod and Justin discuss listener feedback, Kyrie Irving comments, Eli retiring, Christian McCaffrey’s girlfriend, Big 3 announcements, Jalen Rose school, Charlotte MLS team, Jason Garrett gets a job, MLB has new rules for sign stealing, OBJ butt slap charges dropped, Ariza trade, Anthony Davis snacks, Travis Scott shoes, Aaron Hernandez lawyer, MLB black list ends after death, Chandler Parsons car wreck, Katie Sowers, Russell Westbrook has a triple double against every team, Shareef O’Neal transferring, Gritty hits a kid, McNabb beefing with TO again, Larry Fitzgerald buys stake in Suns, Aaron Rodgers beefing with family again, Draya is single and setting the cakes out and there’s a warrant out for Antonio Brown.
Balls Deep Sports: (Protected Content)
BDS Feedback
As probably everyone has or will say this week, the last few days have been a lot. But I wanted to highlight you all.
Rod, your medium piece was excellent. Athletes being like giants to us mere mortals made a lot of sense to me, and I don’t even watch sports like that (IDGAF about Athletics!) You articulated some of my feelings in a great way.
This week, I just couldn’t take much more sadness after Sunday, so I decided to dive back into the archives of TBGWT, to include all the old episodes that ended with ‘Hey Mamba’. Rod, Karen, and Justin, you all have gotten me through some good and some rough days, and I just wanted to express my gratitude while I have you all in my ear.
I love you all. Be safe, and look forward to hearing the show!
CT
Hello Rod, Hopefully Karen and Jelfrid Payton,
I think I share the in the sadness and heartbreaking news of Kobe’s death. It has been a very sad time and I never felt this way emotional about a celebrity death before. I woke up Sunday morning from a nap to the bad news and I never felt time stop before. I was struck because Kobe felt so larger than life. My heart bleeds for the Bryant family and the rest of the families who lives changed from this accident.
I’m in the group of people who rooted against Kobe but respected his game. He was killing the east during the early 2000s. I was also undercover because I thought Kobe was the coolest dude in the world but he play in the west for the Lakers. That didn’t fit my agenda as a 13-year-old Wizards fans.
I have so many memories of Kobe and his career from drafted 9 6 by the hornets and then traded to the Lakers. I remember his Adidas sneaker line that I believe is underrated. I remember he had the cameos in Destiny’s Child Bug-A-Boo video and Moesha. The Slam Dunk Contest. The Afro and goatee. His rap career. Getting chin checked by Chris Childs. Getting buckets in the playoff run during the Dynasty run. I remember him cutting his hair (flawlessly transitioning to a baldy). I remember the two-year period when he was a sneaker free agent and he was wearing heat on the court. The Colorado case that made him infamous. Wanting to get traded during the slump years. The consecutive years of early playoff exits. The 81 point game. 18 All-Star games. One of the top Nike signature shoe lines. This man allowed people to wear low tops while playing basketball. Only Kobe could. Earning two more during the last playoff runs with Pau, Lamar, Bynum and Metta. Battling the Celtics towards years. He ripped his Achilles a still shot the two free throws. Coming back and making him pay on $48 million for his last two years and he didn’t bat one eye. Even the final game was so Kobe. He played that game and lived his life….fearless
I used to be one of those people who scoffed at the idea of mamba mentality. It was partly because I find Kobe fans to get corny and silly. I understand the deeper underlining meaning of Mamba mentality at its core. I remember listening to Bomani Jones (side note: that’s how I discovered you. You made appearance on the Evening Jones and he use to sit so close to your webcam in 2011. Random lol) one day and he described Kobe as fearless. Kobe had no fear in outcome. There’s no fear in outcome when you work hard and dedicate yourself. That’s why you take the last shots against the Jazz in the playoffs at 18 years old. That’s how you can hit GW shots and win Championship. No fear. Mamba Mentality isn’t even elusive to Kobe. Mamba Mentality is within everyone. You can only tap into Mamba Mentality with hard work, blood, sweat and tears. He left a framework for anyone from a basketball player or a chef or IT professional.
Most of the time in death we are off reminded of the impact the fallen has all our lives and I never realize how much of an imprint that Kobe had on my life. He was sooooooooo fearless didn’t mind taking the last shot, looking like a god damn fool in that in that White-Hot Egyptian cotton sheet photo shoot for LA Times and he rap in Italian. That that’s a man who had no fear in life.
It’s really a great shock because really looking forward to his post NBA life. I wanted to see him being OG to the younger players in the league, coaching the triangle for his daughter’s basketball team and his fatherhood. A legend has been taken from us and his life will live on forever.
I went premium a few months ago and I have been binging balls deep from the first episode. I want to take this opportunity to tell you, Justin and Karen for the fun sports podcast that rarely talk about sports. The Kobe segment at the end of every balls deep episode has made me more aware of Kobe and his impact on the basketball world. I learn more about Kobe, his life and fatherhood
You’re a medium piece was incredible. I share the same sentiments as many of the guys that you described when they heard about the news of Kobe Bryant. I cried tears of sad and joys. Basketball in a unifying force that brings us all together and Kobe embodied that.
Rest in peace Kobe Bryant
Rest in Peace Gianna Bryant
Rest in Peace John Altobelli
Rest in Peace Keri Altobelli
Rest in Peace Alyssa Altobelli
Rest in Peace Christina Mauser
Rest in Peace Ara Zobayan
Rest in Peace Sarah Chester
Rest in Peace Payton Chester
—
Michael Williams
Hello Rod, Justin and possibly Karen,
Well, this was a tough week for sports fans and feeling people as a whole. Knowing that Justin is a Lakers fan, I thought about you and how you must be feeling. As a person who is not really a Laker fan, I felt it on a human level, especially when the news broke about Kobe’s daughter and her teammate. It just drives home how much tomorrow is not promised.
What’s up Rod, Karen and Justin,
I couldn’t think of anyone who messed up this week. Mostly because I’m still in a daze over Kobe. I was never really a fan but respected his game and arguing with stans on who was better him or Lebron (its Lebron). My grandma died a few weeks back and I think I cried more over Kobe and his daughter then her. It just feels almost like a god dying. Rod I also read your medium piece and it was beautiful. It reminded me of my dad and how football was the sport that bonded us. But on a lighter note I’m sure you heard Kobe fans want to change the logo to him. I am against this for it would cause one of the greatest cataclysms in our life time. Jordan fans would go crazy. But love the show as always and sorry if this was long.
– Jeff
Greetings rod and Karen and Justin
1. Sigh! Major love and thoughts and prayers to kobe, Gianna, and the 7 persons who perished on Sunday, first and foremost! That was a shock and I think a part of me still is in disbelief, simply becuase I saw Kobe being bill Russell age! I’ve been loving the hashtag going around #girldad
What I haven’t liked and not surprised, becuase it’s social media is the assholes who went on lebrons page maybe an hour after the news broke and say “ you killed Kobeâ€!! When it came out that lebron was the last person he spoke to late Saturday night, that just made the situation more sad and I really felt for lebron, who probably hasn’t had a chance to really enjoy the milestone! To the lakers, I say win this year for Kobe! You got all the motivation in the world!
2. have you guys heard of or seen serge ibakas cooking show?
3. Last but not least, what about a bds be with out talking about the Cleveland blacks? This week we focus on Kareem hunt who was pulled over for open liquor and drugs! “Watch what happens when we don’t make the playoffs???? There’s nothing else to do Salâ€
Have a great weekend
Niggaz only/only niggaz
Fyahworks
What up, niggas! If I may, I just wanted to take a moment to say a few things about the late great Kobe Bryant. I said this on social media, but I wanted to also say it here as well…
Kobe’s death has the Game of Basketball in mourning. The whole sport. All levels. Men. Women. Boys. Girls. Everyone who loves the game. It’s a tremendous loss. We’ll get through it, but we’ll never get over it. Especially given how it happened. That’s the hardest part to understand and accept about this. That and the fact Gigi was with him, and lost her life as well as the 7 other people who were on that helicopter. The Game Of Basketball, and those of us who love/live it are hurting right now. This is a tragedy on so many levels. Kobe means a lot to all of us, but just like with his real family and friends he was different things to different people in Basketball. His contribution to Basketball and to all the lives the game has touched is something special. We’ll heal eventually, but this scar will remain, and well all have our stories about it.
That’s all I wanted to say. I love y’all, and appreciate what you do to entertain us each week. Thank you for everything.
L Brothers
Hey Rod, Justin and maybe Karen
RIP Kobe and Gianna.
When I was growing up in Jamaica in the 70s and 80s, we didn’t have access to a wide range of TV from the States. We got the big shows, Cosby Cheers etc etc, but unless you had a satellite dish, you weren’t getting basketball or american football. I didn’t start watching basketball until the first Jordan 3-peat, so Kobe was one of the first generation of players that I have followed their careers from start to finish. Admittedly, I used to hate on Kobe back then since I was a bigger fan of Shaq (my judgement isn’t the best since I was also a Knicks fan). It was all jokes though because at the end of the day I still enjoyed watching his Lakers.
Hearing the news left me fucked up. It has only been in recent years that I acknowledged to myself that it is okay to feel something for a celebrity that dies suddenly and tragically, even though you never knew them on a personal level. For me, I have derived years of pleasure watching that dude play basketball so it seems only fitting that his death would mess me up. The thing that struck me about Kobe is that he seemed as if he was actively trying to be a good dude in his life after basketball. Even that Instagram post with his daughter’s team was good natured at heart. That his daughter was one of the victims of the crash is even more tragic to me.
As we would say back home “Kobe, walk good mi bredda”.
Amil