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How Kon Knueppel Reignited Dale Jr’s Love For Basketball
How Kon Knueppel Reignited Dale Jr’s Love For Basketball
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About this episode
Kon Knueppel’s basketball journey becomes the thread tying together the NBA grind, the draft process, and the mental work behind shooting. The conversation covers how seasons leave little downtime, how pre-draft workouts are intense and watched by dozens, and how recovery habits like sleep shape performance. Kon also explains recruiting “blue blood” programs, handling pressure after hot streaks, and using a “golf swing” approach to find consistency. Fans get a Hornets franchise identity refresher too.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. sits down with one of the most promising rising stars in the NBA, Charlotte Hornets small forward Kon Knueppel. Kon lit the professional basketball scene on fire this year as he became the first rookie in NBA history to lead the league in three-point shooting, shattering several records along the way. After growing up in a basketball family in the Milwaukee area, Kon was recruited by Duke, where he helped lead the team to Atlantic Coast dominance. He would declare for the NBA draft and would be picked fourth overall by the Hornets, helping to turn their performance around for the 2025/26 season. Kon would ultimately lose a highly contested Rookie of the Year battle with fellow Blue Devil Cooper Flagg by one of the narrowest margins in league history.
Funnily enough, despite having two basketball legends for parents, Kon didn’t show much interest in the sport until he got his hands on video game classics like NBA2K and NBA Jam. Kon became interested in the legends of the past and learned to love the game through its history. By high school, he was one of the most promising collegiate prospects in the country, and he fielded offers from many major Division One schools. Dale and Kon’s conversation covers the Hornets successful comeback season, the changing culture of the team and his journey from a close-knit, basketball crazy family to being a perimeter shooting phenom.
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Hudson Hornet
"...st off, I've grown up here, grew up a Charlotte's Hornet fan. They moved away. They become the bobcats. We..."
The Hudson Hornet is an older classic car made in the early 1950s. It’s remembered for being a sporty, high-performance model for its time. People bring it up when talking about the “Hornet” name and classic car history.
The Hudson Hornet is a classic American car from the early 1950s, known for its performance and distinctive styling. It’s significant because it became one of the more memorable models of its era, and it’s often referenced by fans of vintage racing and classic cars. A podcast might mention it when discussing “Hornet” history or fan connections.
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Lancia Musa
"...ndon and, and Miles and all in our group and, and Musa, you know, it's fun playing with the guys. Um, an..."
The Lancia Musa is a small family vehicle with extra space inside, meant for carrying people and everyday items. It’s built more for practicality than for sports performance. The podcast likely brought it up as a name in the conversation.
The Lancia Musa is a compact MPV (multi-purpose vehicle) designed to be practical for families and everyday use, with flexible interior space. It’s often discussed by car enthusiasts because it reflects Lancia’s design and packaging choices in the small-to-mid family segment. In a podcast, it may be mentioned as part of a list or group of names rather than a deep technical topic.
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Ford Ranger
"...that like lotter lottery to like late first round ranger going back because they're getting paid and paid ..."
The Ford Ranger is a pickup truck, meaning it has a cargo bed in the back. People use it for hauling things and for general daily driving. It’s a common truck, so it can come up in casual talk.
The Ford Ranger is a midsize pickup truck built for everyday driving and work-oriented tasks like hauling and towing. It often comes up in conversations because it’s a common, practical truck that many people rely on, especially when discussing availability, pricing, or “who’s getting what” in a given context. In a podcast, it may be mentioned as a familiar example of a popular vehicle type.
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full synthetic motor oil
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Synthetic oil is a higher-tech type of engine oil made to last longer and protect your engine better. The “full synthetic” kind is the most fully engineered version.
Full synthetic motor oil is an oil formulated from chemically engineered base stocks, designed to resist breakdown better than conventional oils. In practice, it can help reduce engine wear and maintain cleaner internal engine surfaces over time.
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"Just swing by your local take five for an oil change and ask for Penzoil Platinum full synthetic motor oil."
An oil change means replacing the old engine oil with new oil. It helps keep the engine lubricated and protected.
An oil change is the scheduled replacement of engine oil to remove contaminants and replenish the oil’s protective additives. Fresh oil helps lubricate moving parts and can reduce wear over time.
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Penzoil Platinum
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The following is a production of Dirty Mo Media.
Hey everybody, it's Dale Jr. Back again for another episode of the Dale Jr. Download.
We got a great guest for you today here, but first off, I want to tell you about Arby's
here in the Arby's studio. Don't forget about their new meet and three box. You get more
meal for your money at Arby's. We have the meets and we've got a great guest. Con Canipple
is coming on to talk about NBA, the Hornets basketball. This guy is a shooting guards from
all forward for the Charlotte Hornets. He was fourth overall pick in 2025, had a great season,
shot a ton of three pointers. We're going to talk about that. Almost, you know, kind of,
we did, we got into the play in. I'd say we made the playoffs. We didn't get to the first round,
but we got close. We are close, man. We won a lot of games this year. We're knocking on the door,
but he's a big part of that. I've been wanting to get him on the show and I think some of our,
you know, some of the things we've said in this room at this table have helped.
Yeah, going forward. We made a plea. We're just going to tag every person we want.
We're just going to grow a warfare. Here he is. So I'm excited about it. I've got a lot of cards
here that I'm trying to gain the courage to ask him to sign after the show is over with. And so
I've got some from a little buddy of mine down the street. So anyways,
we're going to have some fun, sign some cards. We're going to talk basketball.
Let's bring con into the room. Get started.
First off, I've grown up here, grew up a Charlotte's Hornet fan. They moved away.
They become the bobcats. We're back to, you know, we're kind of back to square one.
It's been a long journey with a lot of ups and downs. We had Michael as an owner for a long time,
which was badass. I mean, that dude's North Carolina. He's now in the, you know, in NASCAR
doing good things. But you are now a Charlotte Hornet and you had an incredible rookie year.
I've kind of always followed the team and went to a handful of games here and there every season.
But it's kind of, you know, it's been tough and we haven't had a ton of success
this year and insanely, insanely different. And I know, I know you'll say that, you know,
still long ways to go and a lot of things to improve on. But just in general,
as a fan that's lived around here, this was a blast. This season was incredible.
You were a big reason for that. I became, a lot of things kind of happened in the last year that's
brought you to this table outside of what's been going on in your own life. But I, you know,
became a fan of yours over this past year, watching, you know, watching you and the team and
hearing all these great things about your work ethic, your personality and how hard you try to,
you know, you were credited as, as I'm sure you'll tell us, there's a lot of reasons why
the culture improved over the course of this past season, but you were a part of that. You were a
cog in the wheel and the reason for that, that change and you could see it. You
could see it in the locker room after games. You could see it, the camaraderie and happiness and
joy among teammates, all those things that we'll talk about later. But I also got back into collecting
cards. And I used to collect cards in the late nineties or the early nineties, late eighties,
back in the junkwax era and got out of it. And, but, you know, after the pandemic, everybody's
kind of jumped back into this and it's blown up. It's really exploded. I'm sure you've recognized
some of the hype around it. It's been huge. Right. Well, I got back into that, right? And I,
and I would say that you were a big reason for that, like your, you know, the hype around your
cards and excitement around you as a player, being from, you know, a team that I love or a
team that I want to pull for, um, that motivated me to get more back into the, the hobby and that's
been a lot of fun. Yeah. Awesome. So when you, you know, we're running in the running for the
rookie year, dude, everybody around this area was pulling for you massively when, uh, and we reached
out trying to figure out how to get you on the show. And I know now that season's over and you
got some, you know, got a little more free time on your hands. Here we are. So thank you. Um,
I just need to get all that out of the way. Um, your, uh, so the season ends,
what does, what does that look like for you? Um, you've had, you know, you've got your first,
I remember when I went into my first, uh, season in the cup series in NASCAR,
I was really blown away by how grueling it was. I thought I knew what racing for a
season racing during year was like, but I bet that you learned quite a few things about mental
toughness, uh, health and, and just to, you know, how your body needs to be in a certain shape to,
to be able to go through the course of the season. Um, what was the end of the year like
trying to get it, get it to the finish line? I know you guys wanted to go further into the
playoffs, but, uh, you know, where are you at now mentally and physically?
Um, I'm in a pretty good spot. I think, um, like a rookie season is just one of those things.
Like you just got to, you got to get through it. Um, you know, uh, you don't really know,
like you kind of think, you think 82 games is a lot. Like I put, I put 39 at Duke.
Yeah. Um, and you don't realize how many that really is. It's like that first,
the first three games of the season, we had a game day off and then back to back.
And it's like, okay, now we'll rest for like three days. It's like, Nope.
You have like maybe one or two days off and then you're playing again.
And so it just keeps going, uh, coming at you. So I think you really just got to get through that
first year, um, especially with all the draft prep you got to do and you don't really have much of
an off season between college and then draft, combine, um, and then summer league, basically
like you're, you're playing for a whole, you know, two years straight. Um, and so it was important
that after the season was over this year to, uh, we got three weeks where we could go wherever we
wanted. I just went home, didn't touch a ball. Um, just try to get away from it for a little bit.
It's been a really long stretch, but now that I'm back in town, we got, we got a bunch of guys in
from the team, uh, working out and getting ready to go for next season. Yeah. Just like that.
So, um, home Milwaukee, Wisconsin, you grew up, uh, around a family of basketball players,
your brothers, your dad, your mom, uh, everywhere you went. I mean, you had a basketball
court in the house somewhere. Yeah. We have, uh, well, like a mini, yeah, mini hoop, full court
mini hoop in the, in the playroom. Nice. There was a clip of my brother trying to dunk on the mellow,
um, in the playroom. Um, but yeah, that's where we, a lot of battles. Uh, actually the first
day when I got back, uh, we played two on two in there and just like absolute barn ball tackling.
Oh my. Um, my dad was a little bit worried about people getting thrown through a window or something,
but, um, yeah, that was, that was a spot where we played a lot growing up. What was the, um, you
know, imagine I could probably, uh, relate to growing up around a sport like that and wanting
to see and your parents succeed, um, and wanting to, you know, falling in love with it with ease.
Is that really how it went? I mean, you, from the day you remember you wanted to play ball for a
living or? Um, well, my, I, I didn't really like it. Um, at first, um, my parents were kind of worried.
I guess you could say that they told people like, yeah, he just doesn't like basketball.
Yeah. Um, and so I didn't really get into it till like, you know, second or third grade. Um, and it
really started from, uh, like video games, playing NBA, 2k NBA, jam. And then, um, obviously my
parents or my dad was playing all the time. He still plays. So I'd go to the gym and be in the
gym for still, still plays, still kicking it. Um, and then, uh, just reading, I got obsessed with
like the history of the game. Um, just like, you know, you're playing 2k and you're playing with
like David Robinson, Tim Duncan or something like that. And, um, I got obsessed with those players
and that's really how I got into it. Um, and then, you know, from there, my parents were, were
pumped and had me in the gym all the time. How are your brothers? Uh, junior, sophomore, freshman
and eighth grade. Younger. Yeah. All of them. All of them younger. Are they good? Yes. Got to be
good players. Yeah. Uh, the one, the next oldest is, is really, really good. Um, got a bunch of
schools recruiting him. Really? Um, yeah. The three of them are on the high school team together. Um,
so we're, uh, now three time defending state champs in Wisconsin. So, um, yeah, they're really
good players, really smart. I imagine your dad, uh, I know you, uh, your mom's brother was, uh,
big player, uh, for Milwaukee play for the bucks. Yeah. He, he played for like half a season with
the bucks. Um, he was a, you know, all time great player at UW Green Bay, same school my mom went to.
Uh, then he had a long career overseas. So the, when, will you be, uh, influential, I suppose,
and, and guiding your brothers through whatever process they have going forward, trying to get
accepted or, or, you know, trying to get opportunities and scholarships and so forth?
Um, you know, my, my parents talked to me. I've tried to like, kind of stay away from it a little
bit and let them go through it. Um, I think, you know, if they ask me questions and what they think
I've had, one of my cousins is a really good player too. And he, he had some questions, um,
about the process. Um, and so I'm there for that, but I don't want to like,
like Kater's getting recruited by Duke now. I don't want to like,
encourage one way or another. I loved it. I loved it there, but like, I don't want to,
you know, necessarily pressure him into that or make him feel like he should. So,
you know, try to let them go through their process, make their own decision.
Yeah. You, um, you did, uh, play basketball at Duke and, you know, I'm curious as to what that
experience is like to get recruited by programs that are so successful.
Yeah. I think, I think I remember when I, when I was getting recruited and, you know, I didn't
really have like, that's a, we call them a blue blood blue blood program, um, Duke, Kansas, North
Carolina, those type of schools. And so a bunch of the schools recruited me, um, you know, good,
good programs, Alabama, Wisconsin, Marquette, Virginia, like really good high level programs,
but they weren't necessarily that. Um, and so I remember when I got offered by them,
like I had a bunch of texts, like people texted me like, Oh wow, like Duke. Um,
and I didn't really have that for much of many other schools. And that wasn't like a,
um, that didn't mean anything like decision-wise, but it was like, dang, that is, this is a big deal.
Um, and so that was kind of like the first taste of like at Duke or things surrounding Duke are
like a very, um, you're on the main stage in that, in that realm. Yeah. So were you, uh, surprised,
I guess, or were you expecting those opportunities? Um, yeah. I mean, I didn't really,
I don't really think so because they recruited me kind of late. Uh, they offered me in July
before my senior year. And you know, there are schools that have been recruiting me since
my freshman year in the spring and in the summer. Um, really? Yeah. And so, um, you know, they came
on kind of late and I, you know, I, I wanted to visit it and I loved it. I loved how like the
school was small. I know I was a little bit intimidated by some of the bigger,
bigger universities. And so I love that about Duke. And then, you know, obviously all the
basketball stuff is, you know, the best. First class. Yeah. So, um, what about distance from
home? Was there any, I mean, you'd been recruited by Alabama. You mentioned them in a couple of
schools, um, USC. USC was in there. They didn't recruit me that hard. Yeah. But like you, you
know, you're in your mind distance. And yeah, you know, it was something I was a little worried
about, uh, at first. Um, and then, you know, I felt like I really liked Marquette. Um, you know,
there were 10 minutes from home and I was like, well, if Duke was 10 minutes from home, I would,
I would go there a hundred percent, you know, so, um, you know, try to take that out of it a
little bit. And it was, it was tough at first. Um, you know, I was pretty homesick in the summer
when we went down there and you know, we have, you know, close family, close groups. So, you know,
that was tough getting away from that. But, you know, ultimately, I think, you know, it was a
great decision and, um, so many good people down there that helped me through that. And, um,
you know, just a lot of really, really great relationships. Yeah. Who are some of the people
that helped you, um, you know, kind of get acclimated with, with college life at Duke?
Yeah. I mean, I think coaches are really, um, uh, influential in that, um, you know, Shire just
sitting down talking with them. Um, Emmanuel Dildy, who was, uh, um, the assistant that I
worked with, like player development wise, um, you know, those two guys were great. Um,
they, they were confident that, you know, it's going to be a good year for me. Um,
that we're going to have a good team and have a lot of fun. So, um, it was just kind of getting
through those first couple of weeks, um, uh, back after the summer too. Yeah. Um, and, you know,
I got, I got in a good spot. You get into rhythm. You get so busy. You stop worrying about it a
little bit, but, um, and then obviously teammates, you know, teammates are a good resource. Um,
you know, still have, you know, a lot of close, close buddies, you know, some of them are in the
NBA. Um, and so they're, they're, they're great too. Yeah. Um, I mean, Cooper, uh, was on the team
as well. Um, now on the NBA and you guys kind of had a, almost a parallel season this year. I know
he had a different experience through injuries and so forth, but you and him both had incredible
years. Um, you know, when, when you're playing with him at Duke, um, you know,
he's, he's, we all, I remember when the tournament started and everybody was talking about him and
how incredible he was, uh, last year. And, uh, we all, you know, I say we like me and all my
friends, you know, we watched and watched him play all that out. And, um, you know, how, how was
being on, being on the court with him, knowing his potential, right? And knowing,
knowing what kind of player he was going to be. Um, you know, I, I wanted to kind of
fat push that forward to this year where, you know, you, you became a star in your own right.
You know, on, on the team with him, you guys are all sharing roles and none of us casual fans
can see, you know, what your real potential is going to be once you get to the NBA. Cause
there's a lot of great, great players that made him incredible ball in college that didn't translate
to the NBA. But, um, you know, you had an incredible year this year. Contrast, I guess,
sharing the court with him as a teammate versus not being on the court with him the following year
and having to like, you know, work around these new guys. Yeah. I think, um, you know, he's
a really special player. I remember the first time we played pickup, you know,
kind of with our, our team and with our group. Um, and it was before even like summer workout
started and like we were playing, um, on the same team or, um, we're out, we switched teams
like midway through. So the first group, like whoever was on his team, one, and then he switched
teams and we like switched like one guy and then that team won. So I remember telling my dad,
like, you know, you got to be pretty good to be able to do that. Um, and so, you know, he's
a really smart player and what I love about him most is that, you know, he just makes the right
play. Um, it's, he's, he's all about making the right play. You know, some guys are, are really
good talented scores, but they're always looking to score. Like he, he doesn't care if he scores
20 or 10. Um, you know, he's just trying to, to make the right basketball play
that leads to the wind. And so, you know, it was easy to play with him. Um, I think, you know,
when you have a player like that, um, he was super talented and, you know, the weight of
the world's on his shoulders too. And I thought he handled that better than, you know, anybody
that I've seen. Um, and so, um, it was, it was a thrill to play with him. And then, you know,
this year, not playing with him, like there's other talented guys you got to get used to.
Right. Um, you know, it's NBA, everybody's, everybody was the best player in college. Everybody's
good. Um, and so, you know, it was, it was a real, real fun. You know, like, I think, um,
part of my game that, that is good is that I can, you know, I can kind of go out there with anybody
and, you know, elevate and make, make the team better. Um, and I could kind of fit in with
different, different types of players. And so, you know, it was a blast playing with Lamelle this
year and Brandon and, and Miles and all in our group and, and Musa, you know, it's fun playing
with the guys. Um, and coach Lee made it a, you know, a great, a great style of basketball. Um,
that was fun to play and I'm sure it was fun for the fan to watch.
He just, coach just got extended. Yeah, he did. You know, how excited were you guys to,
to know? I mean, the, I think the, um, if, you know, the, the, the one thing that,
uh, fans worry about is a lot, you know, keeping it together, right? We got a lot,
there's great potential. There's good draft capital. There's real opportunity. Um, and I think
extending him as a great sign, uh, not only to the fan base, but to you guys, right? Right. Um,
you know, I was pumped with like how we handled this season. You know, we started poorly,
had some injuries, got everybody back, went on like a little bit of a run. And you know,
like most teams would have just like, all right, we're tanking this year. We're going to try to
get another good pick at another piece. Um, and I was kind of, I was, I was happy that they let
us ride that out. You know, it builds some, um, you know, the players want to go out there and
they want to win and they want to compete. So, you know, that builds some trust within the
organization and the players. Um, and so, I mean, we're, we're super pumped to have C lead back
and extended, um, because we want to keep building. And I think what Jeff talks about a lot is he
doesn't want to skip steps. Um, and maybe, you know, put a lot of stuff together and go,
and go maybe try to get some guy that, you know, maybe that doesn't work out
or maybe it's only for one or two years. Um, and so we want to keep building together. Um,
and you know, I think, I think it'll be, be really good that way. And you just keep adding guys
through, through the draft. You know, we get a couple of, a couple of first round picks this
year and you know, hopefully get two more studs and keep building this thing.
Hey, this is Dale Hart Jr. And for all the latest Dale Jr. download gear,
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Who is the, uh, leader in terms of, so like you see the post game, uh, locker room celebrations,
those are, those are relatively new for fans. You know, it's not stuff that we're privy to
over the, over the years. We haven't seen that kind of energy and excitement and happiness,
joy. Who is responsible for that? Or is that just a, is there a couple of personalities in
the room that sort of lead that? Yeah. I mean, I think it's a, a pretty collective
effort. I think the staff, the coaching staff does a really, really good job.
Just bringing that energy every day. And then obviously, you know, we got some,
we got some big personalities in the locker room. Um, Lamel was just positive energy all the time.
So that's good to have. Um, and then, you know, guys that have been around in the league for a
bit with, with Conaton and, and Grant Williams and Miles, like having those guys was good. Um,
for us young guys. And, you know, I think we'll keep growing in all, in all those areas, uh,
and becoming, everybody becoming, uh, more vocal and, and holding each other more accountable.
And, and, you know, that's just, you know, getting older and being in this league, uh,
a little bit longer. But, you know, I think, I think the staff does a really good job of
bringing the juice every day. Yeah, for sure. Um, you mentioned that you guys had three weeks off
and, and you're back at it. So, um, are you really in the gym every day for the entire year? You're,
you know, between those three weeks, what other time do you have really to yourself?
Yeah, we got, we got some more time in July to go home. So, um, this, this kind of time,
well, there'll be pre draft workouts, guys will be coming in for rookie, potential rookie picks.
But, you know, we're, we're not like going balls to the wall right now. We're getting on the court,
working on fundamentals, um, in the weight room. Um,
When you, uh, you mentioned the pre draft workouts, do you guys get to engage with those guys?
Yeah, I think so, like that'll be pretty cool. Yeah, like potential draft potential guys that
may be on the team may not, but you still get to kind of get to know who they are. Yeah. I mean,
I remember, you know, there's a couple of guys watching my pre draft workout. Well, there was
actually like, I walked in, there was like 60 people from the organization. It was just me in
there. Really? Yeah. Um, but yeah, there was a couple of guys. So I look forward to doing that,
but you know, it's, it's fun right now. Um, like I wasn't on the team for this, this part of the
season last year. So it's, it's good right now. It's, it's fun. Um, keeping it light and, you know,
we'll start to ramp up more in June and that'll be a big month for us. Um, but it's, it's been good.
What was that like to walk in the room and see all those people, uh, that want to see you?
Yeah, that was a little intimidating. It was my first pre draft workout too,
and I hadn't played in a couple of weeks because I sprained my ankle. So I was a little nervous, but
how many of those did you do for other teams? Um, I did it for Charlotte, Utah, Washington,
New Orleans, and, um, Brooklyn. Yeah. So got glad I worked out. Were they all somewhat similar
experiences? Um, there's a couple more. We're a little different. They're all, so I did them all
by myself. You know, sometimes there's a group of three or four guys that are potential guys
that they draft together. Um, and I did all mine individual. Um, so that you just, you're not
sharing any reps. Um, and so it's a little, yeah, a little, a little harder and just like, um,
they, I mean, they make the, the workouts harder than anything you've ever done, um, on the court.
So you're, you're, you're completely wasted and they're really just trying to see what you kind
of push through. It's more of that stuff than they know what you're capable of on the court,
what the skills you have, but it's more about, you know, shape and like, what are you willing to do?
Mental toughness. So do you have a pretty decent idea that you're going to get picked
about Charlotte? I felt good about it. Um, how much do you truly know and understand?
You don't. Yeah. You don't really, unless they tell it, like, you know, sometimes teams will
tell you, we're taking you at this. Um, but at four, I, I didn't, I didn't know. I felt really good
about, um, about C Lee and Jeff and I felt like we had a good relationship and, you know, I knew
that, um, Rick Schnoll and the ownership and some of the guys in the ownership are big, you know,
Duke fans and they go to, they go to a K Academy, uh, which is like coach K's like fantasy camp.
Yeah. Um, and so I, I don't know if that had anything to do with it, but I knew they had seen
me a lot, um, and been around a little bit. So I kind of felt good about it in that way. Um,
but other than that, you never really know. Do you remember the feeling that you had when you got
called? Yeah, I was pumped. Yeah. Is it, um, is it like, is there any, I know there's a relation,
right? And, and, and happiness and excitement around that, but is there also relief that you
put, you got 20, you know, you got 18 years of work, you got all this. Yeah. Yeah. There's a
little bit of relief. I mean, I never really, I didn't really think about planning the NBA
until like my senior year of high school. And even then it's like, you don't really know how
college is going to go. Um, so I didn't think about it much. I thought about just, you know,
getting better each day. And I think that was a good approach for me. Um, but yeah, I was,
it was, it was awesome. I was pumped and it's good to find out where you're going, where you're
moving, you know, I think that's, that's, that's a big piece of it too. It's like, you have no
idea where you could, where you could be living next year. And so I was, was pumped to
stay in state too, where I'd been the year before. So, um,
had a decent idea of what the weather was like, what it looked like to aim wise.
Yep. So that was, uh, that was also a plus. Yeah. Um, your own, your time in Duke though,
I mean, it's literally like what 16 months total. Not even, um, yeah, I'd say you get there in July
and I was out by two graduates and like late April. So I was out by April. So
forgive my ignorance, but is that like, is that your expectation going in?
No, right? You're thinking it could be a three or four years.
Yeah. Uh, yeah, I had no anticipation or expectation to be division one or one and done,
but some guys have that locked in their mind and like, yeah, that's my, that's my goal. That's
what's happening. Yeah. I mean, like Cooper was like the number one player in the country. So he
was like, everybody was already saying he was the number one pick. Um, and so, you know, he probably
he knows, um, it was, it happened like pretty early on where I was like, oh, okay, like,
I think, I think I'll be able to go. Um, but I had no idea. I just kind of wanted to throw
myself into that. And that was kind of a, it's kind of a goal, I'd say.
Is it your choice entirely? Um, I mean, you can stay. You see now that, you know,
in that like lotter lottery to like late first round ranger going back because they're getting
paid and paid a lot. So plus there is, is it realistic to think they got a better shot at
a higher pick the second year? Yeah. I think, yeah. Yeah. I think so. Um, you know, age starts
to become a thing where it's like, oh, you're old, you're a little older. So you don't get picked as
early like what age is getting old? Yeah. I think, you know, like sometimes being like a
like 22, like a scene, like if you went four years and you're 22, like that sometimes that
dings you a little bit. Really? Yeah. Um, but then you see those guys will come in and be awesome.
Yeah. So, um, I don't know if that thought process is changing a little bit, but sometimes it does
kind of ding guys. Yeah. How do you handle, um, talking about dings, how do you handle the
nicks and bruises, right? Cause you talked about the, the intensity of the season and game after
game and not many nights off. Um, you know, you have, you have things you have to play through,
but some things you can't play through. Um, how do you manage? Yeah. I think, um, we,
in the NBA, we have, so we have four athletic trainers and then I had athletic trainer and
so they each have like three or four guys, uh, that they work with. And I think that we did a
really, really good job. Um, me and my players. So you're part of teams parted out to these dudes.
So you've got your own guy and you're sharing it with a couple of other players. They all work
for the team, but they kind of like split up into pods. Um, and so me specifically and my guy
Harrison, Harrison Herman, we did a really good job of, you know, communicating and, um, just
working through everything, uh, every day, if something was bugging me, I would make sure
to let them know. What would be bugging you? Uh, I shoulder my shoulder. Some is just kind of,
kind of been something that's been, been bothering me for a couple of years now. Um,
so we worked through dad and, you know, I didn't really have much, uh, of much trouble with it
during the season. Um, you know, the low back sometimes gets a little tight. That was something
that came on this year. I sprained the ankle, only missed one game. Um, that was mostly because
we started doing treatment for it in the third quarter of the game I sprained. So, um, they're,
they're really on top of it. Um, and, uh, you know, if you really pour into that and like
are open with them and share stuff going, going on, yeah, they'll do the best to, you know,
get you out there and get you feeling good. Yeah. At 20 years old, um, you know, you want to,
I noticed that in conversation here today, you haven't ever really like looked too far ahead.
You just kind of tried to be good that day, get better tomorrow than the day after that.
But like when you, you're in the league, 20 years old, you know, how do you, you know,
how much information do you get from some of the veterans around maintaining your health and taking
care of yourself for, for that, you know, that 10 year run and trying to be as good as you possibly
can during this window of opportunity. Yeah. I mean, I think some of the things, um,
that we talk about and it's with the whole group and like how important sleep is, um,
and diet, like those things can really, um, really help you just feel, feeling fresher.
Um, sleep's the big one. Like I, I wasn't a big nap guy and I'm still not a huge fan of like
taking naps. I wake up sometimes a little groggy, but you know, most players just like every game
day, they're taking that nap, having that, having a, you know, maybe an hour or two of nap.
And so, you know, I try to get, you know, 30 to 45, I just get so antsy before the game on game
days. So, um, you know, I try to get some of that and just that extra sleep, the extra recovery.
And then, you know, diet is something, you know, I'm working on to get, get a little bit better
at, um, I don't know, I'm 20 years old. So I've been, you know, I didn't, I didn't,
we had pretty good at home, but, uh, you know, I like to, I like to eat. So,
you know, trying to, trying to clean that up a little bit. Um, you know, those, those are two
areas that'll help, help guys in the long run for sure. Yeah. What about, um, what about shooting?
So, um, you know, there's, we saw late in the season, I think you were dealing with some injuries
and stuff, some challenges that were making things difficult for you in the final, you know,
a little stretch there, but I, I want to compare it kind of to like a golfer, you know, who, who's
always chasing his swing, right? Golfers are never, um, guaranteed anything, right? Every,
they've got to go out there. They've got to hit this, you know, they got to hit balls all day long.
They're always, no matter how good they are, how good they're perceived, they're at the,
you know, they're at, they're at a tee, practicing their shot and their swing and working on their
swing all the time. And I imagine, um, just casually following over the last decade or two,
um, I hear about shot mechanics and, and guys even trying to change how they shoot the ball
once they get to the NBA, because they've been allowed to sort of do it incorrectly through
college, you know, um, talk about, uh, you know, you're, talk about how you had such a great run
throughout the year. You're shooting the ball really well. We did see you struggle toward the
very end of the season. What are the things that create those challenges? Yeah, I think, um,
yeah, towards the end of the season and just like sometimes a shot just doesn't feel good.
Yeah. Um, and I think, you know, I got, I got into that a little bit. Um, I had, I had some,
I had a really slow start at Duke, um, you know, when I didn't shoot it very good to start the
season at all, I was thinking I was shooting like maybe high 20% from three. Um, and I think
at there for sure, I definitely like let it like affect me like mentally, you know, I was turning
some down that I shouldn't have been, you some of that where this year, like I wasn't shooting it
good. And I had like no real thought about it, like other than like, man, I want it to go in. Um,
but I thought I, I did better with, you know, I'm still taking it. Yeah. I think I did better
with mental side of it. And sometimes it just doesn't go in. Um, but yeah, I would say that,
that, that golf analogy, like just trying to find your swing, um, chasing your swing. I feel like
that's, that's good sometimes because when you feel good, like you can come off a screen and just
throw it up there and it's going, you know, it's going in when you feel really good. And sometimes
there's days where you got to, you got to find it. Yeah. Um, and some days there's, it just doesn't
feel good. Um, doesn't mean you can't, you can't make them like I've had days where
man, my shot just doesn't feel good and they're still going in, which is confusing.
Yeah. Um, or some days it feels really good and they're not going in. Um,
and so I think just finding that comfortability. Um, I always try to remind myself of a couple of
like mechanics, um, things, uh, to just like as good reminders of like making sure I'm focusing
on that when I'm, when I'm shooting. Um, and so that, that tends to help. Yeah. I, um, you know,
we saw you, uh, break a lot of records, especially with three point shooting this year, uh, broke
Kimball Walker's record, um, and had more threes than anybody on the team when it was all said
and done. Um, when you're, as that, as you're going through that, I don't, so this coincides
with this incredible little stretch you all had in them, right before the halfway part of the season.
Um, are you, is it, was it kind of helpful to be almost distracted by the run you all were
trying to maintain and the, and the success and cohesion you had built in the team? Was that
almost a nice distraction away from like, Hey man, guess what? You're breaking these records.
Just, you know, can you keep that up? Because I mean, once you, once you start hitting all
these three pointers, everybody's like, just give him the ball, make him shoot more threes.
Just keep making threes. threes, right? Yeah.
And that's a lot of pressure for you, I imagine. Yeah. I think, um,
you know, I think obviously the focus is the team and what's it, what we can do to win. And,
you know, so that's what I'm always going to be focused on. And I think Charles, um, you know,
talks to me a lot about like, you're a really good player. You're not just a shooter. Yes.
And so like a big thing for me is, you know, I, I try to, to get in, like to find that, that,
that shot, you get, like, you got to see a couple other things go down or, you know,
getting into the game a little bit. So I always feel like, you know, getting a couple
rebounds or, you know, maybe getting into the lane, get fouled, get a free throw line,
you know, get a layup, see the ball go through. And so I think about, think about those things
or, you know, like playing really good defense, getting a stop. And then that kind of goes all
downhill from there. Um, and where you can feel comfortable and like getting that three up and
then it's like less, less pressure on, oh man, like I got a wide open three to start the game.
You know, I got to make it. Yeah. You know, like, so get into the game in a different way.
But yeah, I mean, the goal is always to, is to win and, and, you know, to make the game as easy
as possible for my teammates. Um, and so that's always a good distraction from any personal stuff.
Yeah. So at the end of the season, when you sit down and you look at the accomplishments, uh,
or those are just, what, what kind of pride do you, uh, take from that? I mean, you're 20 years
old. I don't know that you can truly, um, realize the accomplishment that you actually have at this
point, just maybe something that you look back on when you're 30, 35 and go, damn, that was cool,
man. I didn't know what I did. You know, um, is that kind of where you're at? Or
did you, you and Mellie have a friendly banter about, you know, who's
going to end up on top? Cause he closed in the gap a little bit there to the year. Yeah. Yeah.
That's why I laughed before when you said that. Uh, um, but yeah, I think we didn't really have like
friendly banner like during, during it. We, I think we were trying to make the, the right basketball
plays. Um, and so, you know, we talked about it right after, right after that game. Um,
but yeah, I think, you know, definitely like down the line, I'll probably look back at it.
You know, there's some time for reflection, um, you know, in that, in that three weeks on the
season, especially when you're watching like playoffs and like, man, I wish we were playing
right now. Um, and so there's some of that, um, and that definitely carries over to next season.
And that's, goes back to like being glad we have a similar group and getting ready to go for next
year. Um, because you know, you leave with that, you know, pit of the stomach of how that last game
went. And, um, so right now a lot of the focus is on, is on next year. And, um, I'm sure I'll think
about it when I'm a little bit older too. Yeah. The game before, I know you got eliminated, uh,
but, uh, but the game before that you had multiple over times. Um, the play or Mellow basically just
takes the ball and scores. And at the end of the game, he gets interviewed and says, I had to do
it because I was the one that messed us up. Um, when you see a guy do that, like, I'ma tell you,
I'm, you know, I want to celebrate you, but that right there was, uh, this, that was just really,
really impressive. I was, I'm not that I didn't think he had it in him, but I love the fact that
he wanted to put it on his shoulder. He felt this responsibility to fix it, right? Um, and that left
a mark on me, like watching that go down. I couldn't believe it. I was like, hell, wow, we, we don't do
those things that Charlie don't get that stuff. And we got it. You know, um, that was such a great
thing to see. Did you, did you guys all, um, have a similar reaction to him? You're on the floor.
You're, you're so close to it, but that was a really freaking insane series of events. Yeah. Um,
and how much does that help momentum and, and how, what, what, what, what did that change,
I guess, in the way you looked at him as a player? Yeah. Well, I think I mean, sure, you maybe have
seen multiple scenarios of that throughout the season that a lot of us probably didn't even
realize were that big of a deal, but that to me was a, was a remarkable play. Yeah. I think
the, um, it just showed like that game really showed the fragility of winning and losing.
Like we're up five, hero hits a crazy three in the corner. And then we don't, I mean,
we don't really help them help mellow out either on like in the outlet or somebody
found an outlet for him, um, but he throws it away and then files a guy on a three. Yep. And so
like you're up five and like should be easy win no matter, no matter what, what happens. And then
all of a sudden you go from that to down one. And so yeah, I mean, I think it takes a lot of balls
to just get the ball and go score. I mean, it's, it's hard to do that in a league. Um, and you
got to get a good matchup with Hawkeyes and, you know, when it took him and, you know, I love
that you cleaned up his language a little bit on what he said, what he said in the post game, but
you know, I think it, um, that's who he is. I mean, he doesn't really live in the results,
you know, he just, he just tries to use, he's a, he's a process oriented guy. Um,
he's not worried about the result. Um, and he has no fear. Um, and I think that's a really good,
those are really good attributes to have. Yeah. I love that the team, I mean, he's all, he's been
with us for a while and it's always kind of been, like you can see the glimpses of, of potential in
him. If he's, if he's in the right scenario and I feel like, you know, he's finally complimented
and you, you know, he compliments you and you compliment him and all the other players on the
team. It's all really been fun to watch. Um, explain to me, um, the dynamics of the NBA where you
can have a game where you, you know, you'll have a game where you can easily handle an opponent
and then they can come back like later in the year or even a week later and have
a completely opposite result to that. So like, you know, you guys did go through
such an emotional rollercoaster in that game and then move on to, to get knocked out in the next game.
Uh, explain that whole process of how you feel like you guys
allowed that to happen. What would you, what, what was missing? What?
Yeah. I mean, my high school coach has asked me that, like, how do you guys lose by 30 in an
elimination game? And, um, you'll see that a lot in the playoffs. Like you'll see, um, there's a
lot of close games and then there's a lot of blowouts. There's not like many games that are like,
oh, they won by 10 unless they made like some free throws at the end. Yeah. Um,
or they won by 15. Like it's like either, it's like a two point game or it's like 25. Right. Um,
and so, you know, obviously we weren't, I mean, we just, we didn't, we didn't have it.
Did you feel like that the game before had the, how that all played out, did you guys kind of like,
you know, was that, was that a mental taxing result? Yeah. I mean, I think, um,
there's a lot of, like that game is, there's a lot of mood, mood swings in that game. Um,
I don't know if that really affected, it didn't affect our preparation for the next game. I felt
like we were prepared. Um, we knew what we wanted to do and we just didn't execute. Um, and that's
tough, you know, Orlando came out and also they're on fire right away, hit like five threes and,
you know, that's not the team they had been, um, for most of the season or all of the season. Um,
and so, you know, sometimes that happens and then, you know, you try to over-correct a little bit
and it becomes, you know, well, I'm going to, I'm going to try to do something
or you're trying to get it, start trying to get it all back at once and then it just kind of snowballs.
Um, and that's tough and especially, you know, you know, 18, 20 point games in the regular season
can be gone like that, you know, because there's not as much pressure, but in the playoffs, the
game kind of slows down and the, the possessions, um, uh, slow down and they aren't as numerous as
they are in the regular season. And so, you know, sometimes that can kind of play into that too,
where it's, it's a little bit harder to come back when, when those leads are kind of big.
Yeah, I find that kind of fascinating because, um, you know, I don't know, it happens in all sports,
you know, teams that look like they're unbeatable or invincible will find challenges in some of
the strangest areas against some of the, um, some, some opponents that you would think
that they can manhandle. But, um, yeah, I, I, with all that said, man, I was, I, I'm telling you,
I think I speak for all fans of the team, how thankful we were to have so much to enjoy.
Regardless of that final result, there was so much in the middle of that whole season
that we got to enjoy. That was so unique to us.
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credit card. What is the difference between winning that game and moving forward into the
playoffs and really bringing a good challenge to somebody in the first round? What is the difference
between the team you are today and the team that can go do that? What are the missing pieces?
Yeah, I mean, I think, you know, we're two games, two regular season games away from being like the
fifth seed, two wins. And so, you know, you beat Brooklyn at the Barclays Center and you beat New
Orleans, but we had a bad loss to them. But then there's also, you know, we beat OKC by a bunch
in their home court. And so you can kind of pick and choose. But I feel like
the East is going to be a lot better next year with the Pacers getting healthy and whatever the
Wizards, you know, are going to have with Trey Young and Anthony Davis and whatever,
whoever they pick at one. And so there's going to be a step up in the East. And so I think,
you know, our physicality and toughness, you know, has to come to the next level.
You know, hopefully the guys we pick, you know, can contribute early. That'd be awesome.
And embracing those guys. But I think the weight room right now is like really important for us.
You know, I think we had some issues with teams that were more physical and stronger.
And so, you know, hopefully, you know, add a little bit more mass collectively as a team.
I think that'll be really beneficial. And then, you know, being in the next year
with some, we can do some more complex stuff offensively with C. Lee,
which I'm really looking forward to, you know, taking the next step in that regard as well.
When you're talking about putting on muscle, you know, you see a lot of guys,
this happens in a lot of different sports where you see guys, you know,
put on a lot of body mass. And once they get to the pro level,
how do you do that without changing your shot? How do you do that?
No, it changes the shot. Yeah.
Because I mean, if you try and put on muscle, right, I mean, it's going to,
it affects the way Tiger Woods swings a golf club, right?
Yeah. And so...
Yeah. I mean, I don't know if I'm like really a guy that needs to put on like more mass,
like we definitely have guys that could use a little bit more weight. I think it's just,
for me, it's probably more of like a mentality. And like, yeah, there is an area to be stronger,
but physically, but more of a mentality of like being with more physical. I think that's a...
Playing tougher.
Playing tougher. I mean, that's like a, that's a big thing.
One-on-one.
In hoops. So I think, well, I'll give you to go, you're adding mass thing. Like I was two,
I think I was two 19 at the draft con bond. And I was like training at like two,
yeah, that was like about where I was at. And they came in and like, I want you to like
closer to 225. And so I was like, you know, like for most of the season, I was like 228.
And so, you know, that's like nine pounds right there. And because I was, I was a little bit
worried because I was, uh, we're lifting so much in the off season. And I was like,
and I'm eating, I'm, you know, you got to, you got to eat to, to, to refuel and stuff.
I'm like, I'm gaining weight and I wasn't like eating bad stuff or anything. I'm like,
I'm gaining a lot of weight and like, yeah, yeah, that's good. We want you to. I'm like, okay.
Why were you worried?
Yeah. Well, I don't know. I was like, I thought that was like, you know, a good weight for me.
And then I get out there and I was like, oh, I feel the same. I'm, I'm, you know, nine pounds
heavier. So, um, I think you worry about speed and mobility. Yeah. Yeah. You worry about speed.
You want to be quick. You want to be fast out there. And, you know, I didn't really notice much
of a drop off. Um, and so I was like, Oh yeah, this is good.
Can you speak about the, um, you know, talking about trying to get more physical
with your game? Is that a confidence? Is that like, so you get out there and you're playing
with Duke, you know, not everybody on the other team is the best player, right? And so
there's some, there's some avenues and opportunities and you go into games as Duke
confident, right? You're going to take these guys. No big deal. But when you're playing an NBA,
you're playing on the Charlotte Hornets who've been, you know, struggling to win a lot of games.
People are coming into our building thinking that they're going to have an easy night, right?
How do you, how did, how did that process go for you this year to sort of build the
confidence that you could go one-on-one with everybody you played against?
Yeah. I think, you know, we had, we had, you know, Malo and Brandon injured like early in the
season and it's like kind of trial by fire. You're just going to get thrown in there like,
well, we need you. So they're putting me 40 minutes right away. I'm like, well,
we need you to go out and score. We need you, you know, we need you to defend. We need you to,
you know, play make for us. And I think, you know, that was good for me right away. Even,
you know, it wasn't good for our team and it sucked because we were losing.
But it was good to give me some confidence going forward that I belonged.
Yeah. And then, you know, once the other guys came back, it was, it was great.
Did you have an NBA moment? I've talked to a lot of guys, athletes in different sports
that have a moment, a tackle or a play or something where they were like the, you know,
posing players like, Hey, buddy, welcome to the NBA.
Yeah, I've been saying Andre Drummond, the big, the big from the Sixers. He hit me with a nice
screen in the second, second game of the season. Yeah, that was, that's a tough one. He's a big
dude. Yeah. Did he say anything? No, just drilled me. Yeah. How much conversation is there out on
the court? Um, you know, as a rookie, kind of keep your head like, down,
keep your head down. Don't try to like, I mean, at least this is what I personally like. Yeah,
there's times to show emotion and like, what do you hear from other players? What are the veterans
doing? I didn't hear, I didn't hear a whole lot from like opposing guys directed at me.
Yeah. But amongst your teammates. Yeah. I mean, Lamela likes to say talk a lot of crap and
um, Brandon likes to talk a little bit of crap. Um, so you hear a lot of stuff. I don't, I don't
know if I really heard anything that interesting. I'm also not very good at like paying attention to
like, yeah, like dude, I would have a hard time not getting, uh, not getting entertained. I think.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I would be, my ear would be, yeah. You're listening for that? Yeah. Yeah.
Cause it's NBA. Yeah. I know it's, I try not to get,
try not to get sucked into some of that stuff. I think, I don't know. It is, it is entertaining
sometimes. You talked about the draft and, and we've got a couple of picks in the first round.
So not having been in this experience ever before as a team, um, you know, how, um,
how will you guys watch the draft? I'm sure, I mean, you probably won't gather, but I'm just
thinking like that's a very important moment, right? And you guys are a team that ride on the cusp
of, of that progress and moving forward and you want every, every decision the organization makes
is so critical and important, um, at this stage. So how, uh, how, how will draft night be for you
now that you're on the team and looking for seeing, looking to see what they're going to add.
Yeah. It'll be interesting. You know, um, teams with multiple first round picks, 10,
you know, there's some flexibility there with like, you know, trades and moving up, moving back.
How deep is, how deep is the draft? Like I've always watched the draft and wondered like,
you know, comparable to like the NFL. Yeah. Like the NFL, you know, you can get great guys in
round two, round three. And I don't know, there's a great guys in the draft in the NBA. I'm not
downplaying this guy. I don't know about it. I'm not, I'm a novice, but I would say like,
you know, everybody's so fixated on like the top seven, the top eight players, maybe the top 12,
but like where there's real value even back in, in, in 15th, 17th. Yeah. Um, I would say like the
NFL definitely like there's, there's so much more value in like a first round pick than there is
probably in the NBA, you know, the top of the first round is probably comparable to the entire
first round for the NFL. Um, the lottery, it was like, those are, those are valuable picks. Um,
but it is valuable to have multiple first round picks, uh, regardless of where they are. Um,
and so ours are in, you know, right in the middle. Um, what do you feel like, uh, you're,
if you had to guess on what the, the move is for the team, what do you think they do? Um,
it's like they package them up and move up. Yeah. I don't know. Um,
you were, were given this opportunity to be a part of, uh, the lottery.
Right. Yeah. What was that like? What was that? It was awesome. What did they do? They come up
to you and say, Hey man, you want to do this? Yeah. Yeah. You're like, no problem. Yeah. Where do
you think it was? And Milwaukee said like, it's, it was there in Chicago. I was like, easy. I'll
just drive down there and fly back to Charlotte. Uh, uh, that night. What was that like? It was
awesome because, you know, all the other representatives for all the other teams. Um,
you know, our legends, Alonzo morning, who was a Charlotte horn. Yeah. Uh, legend was there.
And so he introduced himself and it was cool to talk to him. Um, you know, there's Vince Carter.
There's some other legends that I got to talk to. Um, and so that, I mean, that's always cool.
I'm like a, cause you love the history. Yeah. I'm like a little kid, uh, around, around that.
Like, man, this is awesome. Like I saw Tayshon Prince play all the time when I was little. Yeah.
Or, um, you know, even Rolando Blackman, it's like, no, I had his jersey growing up. Like some of
that stuff was, was cool to me. So it's all, it's always, it's always good to, you know, get to
talk to some of the legends from the game. You got to appreciate that history. I think a little bit
to, to play in this league. Yeah. So haven't been connected to that moment. Um, you know,
I think maybe you'll watch it. You'll be a little more intense. Well, um, you know, is there a,
uh, text thread with the, with, with your teammates that you'll all be going,
oh man, I like that guy. That's awesome. Yeah. Yeah. Definitely. I mean, I think
I remember, I mean, Lamello really liked me. That's what, that's what they, that's what they say.
Yeah. Um, or that's what has been reported, I guess, in the, in the pre-draft, uh, process,
uh, which is cool to hear. And so, you know, I'm sure we'll, we'll, we'll talk about all the guys
that come through and work outs. Yeah. You know, I've talked to, um, one of our guys that works
in the front office about some guys, um, that he likes, that they like, that they go and, they go
and see. So, um, wait now, you get your, no, I mean, I just, they, they bounce stuff off you.
Like, like what? Uh, they just ask you about certain players.
Do you watch enough, you know, do you get enough time to really see enough?
Yeah. I love, I love watching college hoops. Yeah. Um, I didn't watch as much this year.
Who are some players that you think are opportunities for us? If say we sit still.
Yeah. Who are some guys that you're like, damn, that'd be badass.
Yeah. Like I haven't really looked at, at mocks. Um, as far as like, I don't know if this guy's
way out of like not projected to be 14, but I like, I like Mara from Michigan a lot. Like
you just, I just saw his measurements come in the other day. He's huge, 73 barefoot
with a 76 wingspan. Like it's a big, big. Yeah. Um, I think, you know, I like watching him
play. Um, I liked his teammate, Linda Borg. Um, who's a, who's the older guy from Michigan.
Uh, he was, he was really good player. Um, so like that was one of the teams I watched a lot.
Michigan. Yeah. So, because they were, they won the national championship, obviously.
Yeah. Um, so I liked those guys. Yeah. Um, I like, I mean, like some of the
Cambuzer. We won't get him because well, I don't know if we'd have to give a whole lot to move
up, but I like, I like his game. Obviously he's, he's a really smart player. Um, but there's a
lot of guys, um, that I enjoy watching. There's a kid from Alabama, Mari Allen. Um, that's,
he's from Green Bay. So I got to see him grew up playing a little AU ball with him. Um, so I don't,
I don't know where he's mocked at or projected to be picked at, but I thought he had a really
good year at Alabama. Um, so we'll see. I mean, I have no idea what, what, what, what they want to do
or what, what the, what the GM stuff, but those are, those are some guys that, you know, I liked
watching. I've watched a lot of players, um, that we've drafted and it's interesting. I don't know
the rhyme or reason, but it's interesting to me what guys come in and can play, can play meaningful
minutes, can have an impact on the team. And then there's other players where it just seems to take
a couple of years for them to find this, their, their, their ability to just be productive. Um,
we see that too in racing. I know it's not, not comparable to, to basketball, but we have guys
that'll come in and can win right away. And then we'll have other guys that will be champions.
They will be winners, but it, they have like three or four years of just like really struggling to
produce and, uh, but if you're patient, it finally clicks. Um, and I know you might not be able to
speak to that because you were kind of thrust into a role where you had to get, get out there and do
it. But, um, you know, what is the, um, some, you know, some guys can come in and play right away
and, and make a difference on, on an NBA team. Whereas, whereas others, is it, is it a physical
adjustment that they need to make from college? Is it, um, is it the speed of the game being just
that much different? Yeah. I mean, I think there's, there's different levels of like prospects that
you select the, you take in the draft. And so there's some guys that you take that, you know,
might need a little more work, um, or they're, they're, they're raw or they could develop into
something great and their, their potential is really high. And so you take a chance on those guys.
And then there's some guys that, you know, um, are older, um, are more experienced college players
are used to playing with that level of physicality that it takes to play in the NBA. And they're
just a little more, uh, a little better suited, um, you know, to come into the league and play
a role right away and, and, and be able to be prepared on the court. Um, and so, you know,
I think it just depends. I feel like some of those guys are really obvious and like, ah,
he might need, he might need some time. Um, and then there's some guys are like,
maybe, I don't know, like he might, might play, might nod. And then all of a sudden you're like,
oh, this guy, this guy can, this guy can hang. How does the summer league make a difference?
What's, I mean, you played in the summer league. So what's, what, what is the end goal there for
a player other than just, you know, to show his team that they got what they, they hope they,
yeah, I mean, I think the summer league is, is good. Like to get, to get professional experience.
You know, it's, it's a tough environment for like, we were there for two and a half weeks
in Vegas. It's like, it's not, not great. Like you're in a hotel in the middle of July
and you're in there a lot and you're walking through the casino.
So one thing to do in Vegas, that you're there to work.
Yeah. And so, um, and it was awesome to win. Like that was the goal is go out there and win.
And so I think it's just like any other opportunity, like who you wanted to go out there and do your
best. And, um, and so I think that you go out there and I'm going to play the right way.
You know, I'm going to, I'm going to give it my all. Like that's,
that's the way to go out there and the approach to go out there.
The G league, the swarm, they won the title. Um, what, what of that do you guys pay attention to?
And, and, and how realistic, so we had, we had a really great team.
Um, how realistic is it for those guys to see their, you know, see an opportunity on an NBA lineup?
Um, well, I mean, there's the two way guys. Um, and then there's the guys we had, uh,
Liam was down there and Tijon was down there. Um, my question, I guess my question is like,
I'm seeing those guys play ball really well and they're, they're statistically doing a lot of
great things for somebody that is a casual fan. Why are you guys not putting them?
Why are they not on our, our NBA squad?
Yeah. I mean, I think you come up with, so it's a different level.
Yeah. Um, and so yeah, it's a huge difference. Like the G league, there's not a lot of
big, bigs, um, from watching, you know, watching some games. Um, and I mean,
there's a lot of really good players that play in the G league. Um,
and we have a lot of guys that, that played in the G league this year. Um, that are really good
players. Um, you know, PJ Hall came up and had to play a couple of games with us and he was,
he was great. Um, you know, obviously Liam and Tijon were down there a bit and, you know, they're
still young players in this league and they got a lot of room to grow and, um, you know, they're,
they're, they're, they're getting better. Yeah. More reps like it's pushed down there there. I
don't have to get no, it's better than, better than being up and, you know, not, not really playing,
not playing meaningful minutes. So, you know, it's, it's good for them to get down there and get that
opportunity. Um, and then when they come up, every time they came up, see a difference. Yeah,
they look more comfortable. And so it's, it's such a, it's such a useful tool and I think it's,
it's good. You know, a lot of, we've seen that become more of a thing, a lot of organizations
using that more and more for development. Well, um, I wanted to talk about the rookie of the year.
I don't want to make you uncomfortable because you're a humble guy, but
there was a big debate nationwide over who was the rightful rookie of the year this year.
And, you know, I, I kind of want to hear how you, I don't know that you probably care too much
about how that netted out. At least you're not, you know, it is what it is.
Um, and I'm not asking you to tell me whether you feel like you deserve it or not, but you,
you, like all of us have to wait for the results and those are the results and you move forward.
Your good friend wins the award. You both are very supportive of each other, which is great.
And I'm sure you've heard a ton of great feedback from fans who believed that you deserve to win it.
Um, what has that experience been like? I mean, I was sitting there thinking,
I was devastated for you, um, because, um, you know, having paid really close attention to the
season, I felt like that the body of work was, was deserving of the award. Um, but I was wondering
maybe that you were just thankful to be in the conversation and that you're like, man, this is
what a hell of an opportunity to, so I'm just curious, you know, where, what was your man frame?
You know, obviously I wanted to win it. Um, I felt like I, I felt that if you had told me that
that's how I played at the beginning of the season, this is how your season would go. Um,
I would have taken it a hundred percent. Um, I went into the day of them announcing it, um,
in the morning. I was like, and I can't do anything about it now. I did all I could. Um,
and so, you know, I never really, I would have, you know, felt a little bit bad about it. If I
was like, ah, man, I, you know, I left some stuff out there, but I felt like I, you know, I did all
I could, you know, maybe I wish I could have shot it better at the end of the season, but you know,
you do, you do all, I did all I could. And so, um, I was willing to live with the result. Um,
I felt like I had a really, really good season. I felt like I was deserving. I would have won it
in a lot of different years. Um, and I thought Cooper was also very deserving. He had a great
year. Um, and so have you and had him had an opportunity to chat? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I texted
him right after, um, you know, try to get together with him this summer sometime for a weekend or
something. Um, but yeah, we, we talked about it. Um, congratulated him. Um, you know, he had a heck
of a season and, um, you know, yeah, I was definitely honored to be, even be considered. Um,
you know, obviously wish, wish I would have won for sure. Man. I, uh, I was wanting that for you
as well, but, and, um, I know it doesn't, it's a very small consolation prize, but there are so
many people that are so, uh, that believe you deserved it. There's a lot of Hornets fans that
still, uh, have it their mind, uh, about the player you are and the person you are, hasn't been
altered at all by the overall decision. But, um, I, um, yeah, man, I've enjoyed talking to you. I,
I'm glad you come over here. I know that you got a lot going on and I see the 2311 shirt.
Yeah. I appreciate the, the represent, yeah, supporting NASCAR. Have you been over to their
shop? I have not. You got to drive right past it, head to Charlotte. Beautiful place. Um, but I mean,
are you familiar, followed the sport at all NASCAR? No, I don't. Not really. Yeah. It's
something I got. It probably got to get into a little bit. Well, you know, being in Charlotte,
you'll, you won't have much of a choice. It'll, it'll, you'll learn regardless. You won't have to
try too hard. Yeah. It'll be everywhere. Dude, good luck. Have fun. Uh, you know, you got a
long summer. Um, and hopefully you get to enjoy some time off and, and, uh, get your mind wrapped
around your second NBA season. Yeah. One of many. Um, it's been a joy, man. I appreciate you.
Yeah. Thanks for having me. All right, buddy. Thank you. Come back again. Um,
Con Connipple on the Dale Jr. Download.
If you're like me, you have a lot of things on your mind. Work things, family things,
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Penzoil. Long may we drive.
All right. Let's finish this up. Con Connipple on the Dale Jr. Download.
Um, I got it. I got a, uh, I recognize, I have some self-awareness. I recognize that I come
out of the gate in this interview a little hot. I was excited and I, I basically sit there and
talk to him for like five minutes without asking him a question, but I just needed to, uh, it helps
me forgive me if you will, uh, for having some anxiety or, or I just needed to shape for him.
I could tell he wasn't quite sure where he was at, who he was sitting with, and what he was doing
here. And so I kind of wanted to spell out for him, you know, what led to this opportunity for
us to sit down and talk. And, um, and I wanted, I want, this was for me. This is, this is, I mean,
can I be selfish for a minute? This is, this is what I love doing the show for is to be able
to talk to people I want to talk to and tell them what I want to tell them. And, um, and so I really
got to do that. So I'm sorry if the intro was a little cheesy. Um, and if I was dorking out there,
um, geeking out a little bit, but I was, I think that's fine. I'll admit it. No, I, I had to share
with him kind of like what led to this moment. And again, I'll also apologize for not being an
expert in the NBA or basketball. I ain't, I'm not, I'm not. I like the Hornets. I want them to do well.
Anybody, you know, any sports team in and around Charlotte, I want them to win because it's great
for our community. Um, a successful sports team here, Panthers, uh, the Hornets, it don't matter.
If they can win, it's great for everybody around. It just really changes, um, how we feel about
ourselves, even surrounding communities way up here, 30 minutes north of Charlotte are affected
by that. You see more jerseys, you see more people smiling. Um, and so it's great to have
you know, good positivity around the Hornets, um, after this year. Um, so,
you know, it was nice to be able to ask him some, some questions that he probably easily
answered that were just, uh, you know, things that I was thinking of. Um, I, you know, I,
I love doing this every now and then we get to have somebody, we do a lot of racing, we talk a
lot of racing, and it's nice to have now and then to get out of that box and, and do something
different. And I'm just really, really thankful that we got to do this. Um, uh, I'm thankful
that he was gracious, uh, was time and we took him around and showed him the shop. I tried to
give him a very speedy brief tour because I know he's trying to get on to the, to the next thing.
But, um, just a well-spoken, calm, easy to talk to kind of do.
I think it's fun when we get non-mask our people in here, especially if they're around here because
now he might go back and talk to his friends about the sport and it just kind of helps grow it.
And well, you know, he's got an experience now that he can go back and if we get mellow or somebody
else, uh, to come on, you know. Yeah. I think, you know, I think he probably understood a little
bit, but he's probably, I get the sense he's a little introvert. So kind of at the beginning,
it's a little, you know, like what's going on, but then once he got going, it was fun.
I've seen some interviews with him. You forget he's 20 years old.
Yeah. I mean, I, I don't forget he's 20 years old because it says so here on his first sheet.
Um, I was sitting there thinking, man, this guy, I'm sitting, I'm sitting here asking him
all these questions and he's probably going, dude, I'm 20. I don't really know yet, you know,
because I'm trying to, I'm trying to dig in there and, and, but he's just 20 years. I didn't,
dude, when I was 20, I wasn't, uh, you know, I didn't have, I didn't have a whole lot of, uh,
opinions or thoughts or no, no deep, you know, purpose, uh, behind a lot of the things that
were going on in my life. And he's, uh, his attitude of, I'm going to do my best job today,
and then I'm going to try to do better tomorrow, you know, and I'm just going to go that route.
That was, that was, um, that was nice to hear. And that's, that's a great approach.
You could tell though, uh, I was, I was real hesitant to talk to him about the,
the rookie of the year deal because man, I was so disappointed how that worked out.
And I wasn't sure whether it was a big disappointment for him or if it was not,
not a big deal. You know, you don't, the rookie of the year, I am, it's imprinted on my mind,
uh, as a big deal because it is a big deal in NASCAR. And, uh, maybe, maybe it is not such a
big deal in other sports. Maybe it is, right? Maybe, maybe it, I don't know where it falls
on the, on the, um, the, the guys in the NBA truly give a s***, right? That you won the
rookie of the year. I don't, you know, I don't know, but, um, it seemed like he truly did want
to win it. And it did seem like that he was disappointed that what he did and how the season
he had didn't, didn't make it happen. Uh, he, I knew he would be complimentary to flag and that,
and, and look, nothing against Cooper. He's, he's awesome and amazing. Um, this is our guy.
This is my guy. This is who I'm pulled for. Yeah. And he said, you know, one of the things I
thought he said is like that was, that was telling about his emotion around it is a lot of the years
I would have won it. And so it lets you know that he was kind of thinking it, you know, man,
I really, he woke up in the morning. Well, done all I could do. It's in, it's out of my hands.
So, um, that was, that was frustrating, you know, because you felt like that, damn, there was,
there was an opportunity there. I mean, he had, at one point weeks before he had it locked down.
Oh, he was the betting favorite. Oh yeah. It was crazy. 70, 30 or something. And then
his last 10 games, maybe longer, his last 12, 13 games, they weren't good and he struggled.
And I was hoping that we would get to the bottom of what he felt like his
trouble were, troubles were. I was wondering if he might say, you know, I tweaked my back and,
and I was just a little, just a little tight. Um, but he never really, because they were,
you were hearing rumors and stuff on the internet, people trying to, all of us trying to like go,
hey, wonder what it is. But, uh, he's like, Hey, sometimes it's just not there. And I thought the,
analogy of the golf swing would, would be something he could relate to.
And, um, that's kind of what he, what he connected it to is like, you're chasing
your shot, you're kind of chasing your swing all the time. He's like, sometimes
him saying sometimes it goes in, even when it don't feel good and he don't know why.
Um, it's so, so interesting. Like, man, you know, you show up some nights,
you'll, I was going to ask this, you know, you'll show up some nights in the mellow,
we'll shoot it from half court and, you know, two or three times in a night and make it go in,
like effortlessly. And then there's games where he never attempts one of those.
Not once. And you're thinking, man, he just must stop.
That's something you must not have the confidence or the, it doesn't feel like
it's going to, he's just gotten in his head. Like, no, I don't want to do it tonight
because I don't know if it'll, it doesn't feel right.
Yeah. It's something just in you. Something in you. Yeah.
Like I found interesting talking about like, how does a team get blown out? I found that
fascinating. I know. I did too.
Because as a fan, you're like, what?
We're all asking that question because in real time they, dude, they, they had this insane game.
They had that game against the heat where they went through multiple over times and
in our eyes or in my mind, I'd sit in there, watch, I'd watch them play this season.
And I'm thinking, you know what? We ought to be able to go in here and win by 15.
You know, we're a better team. We're not, you know, we're climbing through the rankings and we
almost had a shot at being a fifth or six seed and we should, we are, we're a fifth or six seed.
We're just not, we ran out of time. So this should be no problem.
Yeah. And then they go and almost lose, almost win, win and finally pull it
out all in the same game. Like he said, it was up and down, up, down. And you're thinking,
damn, they, you know, it's like everybody gets up for the playoffs. We beat the
Celtics probably two months before the end of the regular season by 20.
They would come back and beat us by three or four and you're sitting there thinking, damn,
we handled the Celtics in Boston. How good are we? But it's like in NASCAR,
everybody gets all their good **** off the shelf when the playoffs start and you're going to see
these teams again and they ain't going to be the same. They ain't going to play the same. They,
you know, they're going to bring it. Every possession is going to matter, like he said.
And that's just seemed to be kind of what they ran into.
You know, they were, they ended up getting knocked out by Orlando. But hey,
it's exciting to be happy and looking forward to the draft, looking forward to who they're
going to add, looking forward to what they may retain. Finally a positive off season. Yes.
And I think he brings a lot to the team just like his mental attitude.
I will probably watch more intently next year than I did this year.
Oh yeah. Of course. You know what I mean? Now I'm going to be like,
and once you meet someone on the team, you're like, oh, I want to, you know,
I want to watch them works now. I feel like I know them a little bit.
Yeah. Yeah. Like we got to, yeah. This was a lot of fun. I'm just thankful for it and
appreciate everybody sitting in and listening to Khan and the conversation.
Young kid, 20 years old. He's got the, you know, like a lot of players in the NBA.
Got the future ahead of him and a real opportunity to have a fantastic, entertaining, fun career.
And hopefully he spends the majority of that in Charlotte because I like the dude.
I hope you all enjoyed it. So yeah, that was, that was the show. Make sure
that you guys are going to Arby's, you know, because Arby's has this new
meet and three box. You get more meal for your money when you go to Arby's.
And I've been enjoying, I've been enjoying this new relationship.
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and they've been involved in NASCAR for a couple of years now. And they just,
they're just so excited to be involved in the sport. And you see a lot of their engagement
and stuff going on on Saturday and Sunday. And just kind of cool to see Arby's and what they're doing.
I like it because it's an easy sponsor to support. It is.
Just go get some curly fries and a milkshake. You're good to go.
That's right. They, they're the presenting partner sponsor for this episode today.
And also one thing I want to let y'all know before we wrap up,
Fan Day. So Fan Day is coming May 21st here at Junior Motorsports. And we are going to be live
on SiriusXM, Dirty Mo Media will be live on SiriusXM from nine till two PM. Larry Mack and
Danielle Trotter are going to start off things with, um, with their show at nine AM on the Arby
stage at 11. Dirty Mo Live will kick off, um, a show with Mike Davis hosted, uh, as well with
Kenny Wallace. They'll have some surprising guests come up on stage as well. Um, at noon,
bless your heart with Amy and me, followed by Door Brumper Clear at one PM. And they're going to
have Jordan Bianchi on board. Uh, that'll be fun Thursday, May 21st at Fan Day. There'll be so much
to do out here. Not only can you check out all these live shows, you can try out some tricky boys
and, uh, there'll be ton of, you know, sponsor tents and services and free stuff and giveaways
and whatever's going to be fun autograph sessions. We're having a lot of good, we're having a lot,
a lot of good fun on May 21st, Thursday at Junior Motorsports. Again, this episode presented to
you by Arby's new meat and three box, get more meal for your money at Arby's. We have the meat,
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