Mm-hmm.

So you had the UNCs, you had the Dukes, you had NC State.

Like, you had the big powerhouses in North Carolina.

So every kid in North Carolina dreamed of going to a school in North Carolina, and it was just, I never dreamed of going to Kentucky.

Like, I...

And then as I got older and I started seeing that I had a chance to be good at basketball, and Calipari walks in and was like...

Basically kept it real with me.

Yeah.

Oh, wow.

So that is, [clears throat] that is another reason why it's so special to me, because I never got to meet him.

Like, the one time I thought I was gonna meet him was, uh, it was my first All-Star.

I was like, "If I make All-Star this year, I might get to meet Kobe." Uh, and then obviously, the, the, the tragedy happened, and, uh, I remember where I was.

I remember just sitting there and just started crying because I was like ...

Like, I was like, bro, like, you know, from, from a, from a player standpoint, you know how we all appreciate that man, uh, for what he's done for the game, for, for what he's done for peoples' mentality to him creating a Mamba mentality was, like, keep pushing forward.

Uh, so I was heartbroken, uh, 'cause I was like, I, I really wanted to meet my idol at some point.

How do you respond to that?

Oh, wow.

So that is, [clears throat] that is another reason why it's so special to me because I never got to meet him.

Like, the one time I thought I was gonna meet him was, uh, it was my first All-Star.

I was like, "If I make All-Star this year, I might get to meet Kobe." Uh, and then obviously, the, the, the tragedy happened, and, uh, I remember where I was.

I remember just sitting there and just started crying because I was like ...

Like, I was like, bro, like, you know, from, from a, from a player standpoint, you know how we all appreciate that man, uh, for what he's done for the game, for, for what he's done for people's mentality to him creating a Mamba mentality was, like, keep pushing forward.

Uh, so I was heartbroken, uh, 'cause I was like, I, I really wanted to meet my idol at some point.

How do you respond to that?

Oh, wow.

So that is, [clears throat] that is another reason why it's so special to me, because I never got to meet him.

Like, the one time I thought I was gonna meet him was, uh, it was my first All-Star.

I was like, "If I make All-Star this year, I might get to meet Kobe." Uh, and then obviously, the, the, the tragedy happened, and uh, I remember where I was.

I remember just sitting there and just started crying because I was like ...

Like, I was like, "Bro," like, you know, from, from a, from a player standpoint, you know how we all appreciate that man, uh, for what he's done for the game, for, for what he's done for people's mentality to him creating a Mamba mentality was, like, keep pushing forward.

Uh, so I was heartbroken, uh, 'cause I was like, I, I really wanted to meet my idol at some point.

How do you respond to that?