News — NBA

Just like the entire basketball fraternity, NBA legend Michael Jordan is still struggling to come to terms with the death of his very good friend and brother, Kobe Bryant. The 41-year-old Los Angeles Lakers superstar alongside eight others including his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, passed away in a helicopter crash in Calabasas last year when they were headed to a youth basketball game.

Speaking to ESPN’s Jackie MacMullen, Jordan, 58, admitted he’s still grappling with grief to such an extent that he cannot even muster the strength to delete the final text messages he exchanged with Bryant, TMZ reported. The NBA Hall of Famer revealed their last conversation happened 49 days before the tragic January 26 helicopter crash. And Bryant had messaged him to tell him he loved a tequila bottle he had gifted him. They later spoke about their families and of course, basketball.

“This tequila is awesome,” Jordan recalled Kobe texted about his new tequila. The Chicago Bulls legend said he replied by texting, “Thank you, my brother.”

“Yes, sir. Family good?” Kobe asked.

“All good. Yours?” Jordan said he responded, with Bryant subsequently texting, “All good.”

Jordan added: “Happy holidays, and hope to catch up soon. Coach Kobe??!”

“Ah, back at you, man,” Jordan said Kobe texted. “Hey, coach, I’m sitting on the bench right now, and we’re blowing this team out. 45-8.”

Jordan said the message Kobe sent about his daughter Gianna’s team beating their opponents by a stretch was his favorite text. “I just love that text because it shows Kobe’s competitive nature,” he said, adding: “I don’t know why, but I just can’t delete it.”

Jordan delivered an emotional and teary eulogy during Bryant’s memorial service in February last year. The basketball legend will yet again take the podium on Saturday to present Kobe for his enshrinement into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Jordan, who was personally selected by Vanessa Bryant, said he’s honored to be inducting the deceased basketball legend and the event will be an emotional one, TMZ reported.

“It’s like standing up for a family member,” Jordan said. “He paid me the highest respect by trying to emulate certain things I did.”

“And I can only repay that by showing my support and admiration for a guy who I felt was one of the greatest to ever play the game.”

Shaquille O’Neal is arguably one of the best things to happen in the NBA. The 7′ 1″, 325-pound giant, grew up in a low-income household situated in the ‘Projects’ of Newark, New Jersey.

Often called “Shaq’ or “The Big Aristotle”, the NBA legend was only an infant when his father was jailed on drug charges in Kentucky. When his father was eventually released from prison, he left his son’s life. And so he grew up with his mother and stepfather Phillip Harrison.

In high school, he helped his school to win the state championship. He subsequently went to LSU to study business and play basketball under head coach Dale Brown.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Shaq was a two-time All-American, two-time SEC player of the year, and became the NCAA men’s basketball player of the year in 1991. Also, he was named the college player of the year by the AP and UPI in 1991.

By 1992, Shaq had emerged as the No 1 overall draft pick in the 1992 NBA draft class. He became the first pick by the Orlando Magic and would spend 19 years in the NBA. He was not just an ordinary NBA player, he became one of the best centers in the league.

In the year 1992-93, Shaq won Rookie of the Year and led the Magic to the 1995 NBA Finals. He moved to the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent. At Los Angeles Lakers, he helped the team to win three consecutive NBA championships in 2000, 2001, and 2002. He won his fourth NBA championship with the Miami Heat in 2006 and also played for the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Boston Celtics before retiring in 2011.

Despite being one of the best players in NBA history, at the twilight of his professional career, he had his eyes fixed on his retirement. He often recounts a meeting that changed how he handled money.

“I met a gentleman one time and he had a piece of paper,” O’Neal told the Wall Street Journal. “He said, ‘This is $100.’ He then ripped the paper in half and then said, ‘Smart people invest this $50, and then they have $50 left. But the wealthy people take half of that $50 … [and] put that away.’ So I started doing that.” 

According to him, this was after he blew $1 million within 30 minutes after signing with the Orlando Magic. He also credited his late stepfather, whom he calls “dad,” for using scare tactics to get him disciplined with money. “Even when I was making a lot of money playing basketball, I would come home and see my father,” he told CNBC in 2018.

“And [he’d] be like, ‘Yeah, but what are you doing with your money?’ “Every time an athlete would do something crazy, I would get in trouble for it. So my father did a very great job using scare tactics.”

In his 19-year-old NBA career, he accrued wealth through contracts totaling $300 million. Now Shaq earns more than he did in his playing years. He now makes $20-$25 million per year. He makes his money from endorsement deals with companies such as Icy Hot, Gold Bond, Buick, Zales, and others. Also, he is the joint owner of 155 Five Guys Burgers restaurants, 17 Auntie Annie’s Pretzels restaurants,150 car washes, 40 24-hour fitness centers, a shopping center, a movie theater, and several Las Vegas nightclubs, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

The former NBA star is reportedly worth $400 million.

One added advantage for Shaq through his NBA career and his entrepreneurial journey is his education. Despite all the fame and money he enjoyed, he ensured he pursued education to the highest level. Shaq returned to college to complete his Bachelor’s after retiring from NBA. He subsequently earned an MBA and most recently earned Ed.D.

His business degree, no doubt, helped him navigate the turbulence in the business world.

For those who have insisted that organized sports and politics have no intersection points, the claim has rested on a spurious, almost uneducated conception of politics as the domain of those who make themselves available to be voted for.

Recently, the Swedish soccer star and former LA Galaxy forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic took a dig at athletes who make it a point to voice their opinions on political matters, singling out Los Angeles Lakers’ Lebron James for criticism.

“[LeBron] is phenomenal at what he’s doing, but I don’t like it when people have some kind of status, they go and do politics at the same time. Do what you’re good at. Do the category you do. I play football because I’m the best at playing football,” the 39-year-old soccer star had said.

To this, James responded after a Lakers game. He defended his stances as well as his understanding of politics, which Ibrahimovic seems to understand as an occupation of politicians. James made the point that politics is not an aspect of our lived experience that gets to be detached from anything else. All of our experiences are happening in a political space.

The NBA champion told the press: “I preach about my people and I preach about equality. Social injustice, racism, systematic voter suppression, things that go on in our community. There is no way I will ever just stick to sports because I know with this platform, how powerful my voice is.”

It is not the first time James or any other Black American athlete has had to defend their political stances against those who think that sports happens outside any understanding of politics. Colin Kaepernick in the last few years comes to mind and he will not be the last. But what if those who attack politically-conscious athletes are only attacking out of bad faith and not necessarily ignorance?

And if they attacked out of ignorance and are then served a response that clarifies matters, are they not acting out of bad faith doubling down? Ibrahimovic, who has created a stern and stubborn reputation on and off the soccer pitch, certainly did not see the lessons James and others gave in their responses to him.

Even after James had brought up Ibrahimovic’s own lamentations about how his Swedish identity is constantly under question due to his Muslim Bosnian roots, the soccer player would not be taught. He subsequently resorted to a bizarre bifurcation of racism and politics.

“Racism and politics are two different things. We athletes unite the world, politics divides the world. Everyone is welcome, it has nothing to do with where you are from, we do what we do to unite,” Ibrahimovic doubled down. It seems inconceivable to believe that Ibrahimovic does not comprehend that “where you are from” is a matter of political identity.

Ibrahimovic has enjoyed and endured a 21-year soccer career that and he is a man who has been called upon many times by global organizations as well as his country to act as a goodwill ambassador, among which included ending child hunger. It is baffling that a man who has had many conversations to this extent with diplomats and politicians does not understand social justice’s place in the realm of politics. Only two conclusions can be drawn from this confusion – it’s either Ibrahimovic is acting out of bad faith or he has learned nothing from all of his work over these years with UNICEF and others.

When Laura Ingraham of FOX News came for James a few years ago and told him to “shut and dribble”, at least, it was clear she was only bitter that the most famous active basketball player in the world did not support the politician she adored. She had no qualms when under athletes voiced their support for Trump.

But it is James who has to advice himself and stop responding to these attacks going forward. They will not die down and no amount well-intentioned responses would help. Bad faith and and determined ignorance can be inexhaustible spirits.

Former NBA player and entrepreneur Chris Webber has announced that he is launching a $100 million private equity cannabis fund in partnership with Jason Wild and JW Asset Management L.L.C. (“JW”). This fund will invest in companies that are led by entrepreneurs of color who are pursuing careers in the cannabis sector.

“As our country moves closer to federal legalization, I believe it is more important than ever to empower the next generation of cannabis leaders in a tangible way,” said Webber in a written statement. “I’m thrilled to team up with Jason on this endeavor—he’s a visionary in this industry and understands the urgency of supporting minority business leaders in this space.”

The collaboration between Webber’s Webber Wellness and Wild’s JW Asset Management will work to invest in underrepresented entrepreneurs in the cannabis industry. The partnership will provide them with an ecosystem of resources for the businesses that will facilitate research and development (R&D), cultivation, retail licensing, distribution, branding, and marketing. JW has been actively investing in the cannabis industry since 2014 with more than $2 billion in assets under management. They have also invested in numerous industry leaders spanning multistate operators, technology, and retail companies.

“It’s crucial that we diversify leadership within the cannabis industry and level the playing field for people from our communities,” said Webber. “For far too long, minorities have been excessively punished and incarcerated for cannabis while others profited. Working with JW, we will equip underrepresented entrepreneurs with the financial resources and industry knowledge to build businesses and thrive.”

“The legal cannabis industry can only grow to its full potential when all stakeholders have a seat at the table, and I feel that it is my responsibility to play an active role in eliminating barriers to entry for individuals that have been disproportionately targeted by the War on Drugs,” said Wild, founder and chief investment officer of JW Asset Management. “I look forward to partnering with Chris and his team to elevate talented entrepreneurs and build a more inclusive industry.”