Josiah Johnson On The Eras Of Twitter The New Generation Of Nba Stars And Co Hosting The No Chill Po

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UCLA's 95 championship game against Arkansas. I actually had a piece of the net.

I had it in my wallet, like, while it ended up getting stolen, and I'll never forgive the person who stole it.

Oh, no! Wait a second.

I spent the rest of my life trying to hunt them down.

If you have that piece of net, I hope you're taking care of it.

And if I find you, it's going to be some Liam Neeson and Taken type of interaction.

What's up, you guys? I'm Rachel Demita, and welcome to the Courtside Club.

Today, I'm joined by producer, host of No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, and the king of NBA Twitter, Josiah Johnson.

Josiah, welcome to the Courtside Club.

I appreciate you for giving me access.

Of course. We appreciate you for taking the time today.

I know that you are a busy man. You have your hand in a lot of different pots.

But I feel like our Courtside Club audience might be most familiar with you from your Twitter presence.

So, I gotta ask, how are we liking Elon's Twitter?

Okay.

I'm going to keep my mouth shut because I want to, you know, he's been doing a lot of packing up lately.

It seems like, you know, he's a big fan of freedom of speech, unless that speech is freely directed at him.

And, you know, next thing you know, people turn up missing or fired or, you know, get that email from Twitter that their account's been booted.

So, I'm just going to go ahead and say I love it. Elon's doing a great job.

Yay. No, I'm just kidding.

It's interesting. It's crazy to see in just the past couple of weeks all the changes that have been made.

Obviously, I have a great relationship with all the people that work at Twitter.

I have a lot of friends who have lost.

They've lost their jobs in the last couple of weeks.

So, just praying for them and hoping they can figure it out and, you know, keep being just the talented, amazing people that they are and go on to new and improved ventures.

But I'm not going to lie.

I'm definitely concerned, I think, with the direction that it's going.

Obviously, the influx of a lot of negativity, toxic accounts, a lot of use.

You know, I think like the N-word jumped like 500% within like the first couple of days of him taking over.

So, and I'm seeing a lot of that as well.

You know, I've been on Twitter for the last six, seven years.

And this is probably the weirdest, you know, point.

And that's including the pandemic and all the other things that have gone on.

Elon's not what made Twitter great, obviously.

You know, I think the people in the community and all the great and talented voices and all the opportunity that it's created is what made Twitter great.

So, hopefully, those people will continue to shine and continue to build.

And, you know, a lot of people are saying, I'm going here.

I'm going there.

I'm going to be real with you.

I try to look at some of those other apps.

I'm an old man now.

They were a little too much for me.

I'm just used to Twitter.

I'm not, you know, you can't teach an old dog new tricks.

So, I'm sticking around on Twitter.

Really, just for the jokes and to see how this thing plays out.

That's interesting to hear you say that the negativity has gone up because I feel like social media in general, like, we've seen that peak of what it could become.

And it's funny.

When Twitter started, I kind of liked the weird kind of train of thought tweets that we would just throw out there.

Like, hey, I'm drinking a coffee right now.

Or here's the song that I like.

What era of Twitter did you enjoy the most?

I definitely think, for me, probably pandemic time, just from the standpoint of, obviously, it was a downturn in life.

Everybody was going through a lot of negativity, a lot of just crazy things going on in the world.

Everybody was locked up at home.

But I think we all found a way to come together as a community, entertain ourselves, you know, let the jokes fly.

So, really, even for me and my account, no matter what was going on in the world at that time, everybody rallied together and, you know, had each other's backs for the most part.

And it was just coming together as a community to get the jokes out.

Be funny and entertain each other through a really difficult, dark time in our country's history.

Yeah.

You touched on how there was a time in Twitter where your favorite celebrity or athlete would see your tweet or respond, and you kind of had that interaction.

Do you remember what that first interaction was like for you, where you were like, oh, like, they saw my tweet or they replied?

Honestly, funnily enough, I had a show on Comedy Central called Legends of Chamberlain Heights.

I think we had made, like, a show.

Like, a Pimp C, not a joke, but showed Pimp C some love in the episode.

Paul Wall, who was, you know, a favorite of mine from his old school days, was still tipping with Mike Jones at Slim Thug, who was already a legend in my mind, but ended up seeing it.

We connected with each other, you know, had a couple phone calls.

So, to be able to connect with Paul Wall was probably the biggest moment.

Obviously, he's an Astros fan.

I'm a Dodgers fan.

So, it's a little tough now, a little difficult, you know, with all things considered.

But, you know, super happy for him that the Astros won, so he could get some more bangers out there and keep making bangers.

We've had a lot of storylines in sports over this past year.

There's been a lot of drama, you know, for good or bad.

Some people enjoy it because it adds a level of entertainment.

For me, it's tough because, like, I want to root for the players and the teams, and I don't love all the drama surrounding it.

But has there been one storyline this year in the NFL, in the NBA, MLB, that you've been most interested in?

And have really followed?

I mean, two things.

Probably NFL, just Tom Brady.

Obviously, all situations on and off the field.

Him being, what, like, 45 now.

Is he cooked?

Are the Buccaneers cooked?

And then definitely NBA.

I'm a LeBron guy, so this situation going on with the Lakers.

And, you know, after last year, I think there was some hope and optimism that the franchise would steer back in the right direction.

Been a little bit tough this year with LeBron missing games with, I don't even know what it was, the quad or the abductor or whatever.

Whatever he's got going on right now.

But, you know, LeBron in year 20, I think all the major things he's done, four-time NBA champ, four-time Finals MVP, four-time regular season MVP.

And you want him to go out, you know, in the right direction and go out on a good note.

Or is it going to be a lot like last year, but even worse than last year, which is extremely concerning?

Is there something that they can do?

We've heard a lot of people speaking out about, you've got to move somebody.

You know, Stephen A. says, get rid of LeBron.

We already have Westbrook coming off the bench, which I heard in one of your guys' episodes.

You're going off.

You're going on and on about.

What do you think could be done to keep this optimism with this Lakers team?

First thing, make shots.

I mean, I think they're playing at a super high level defensively.

Darvin Hamm has brought a new attitude, new look to this team.

I'm a big Westbrook guy.

I'm a UCLA guy.

Not necessarily the biggest fan of him coming off the bench, but also you have to acknowledge that LeBron and Russ on the court together is a little difficult.

They're both ball-dominant guards that need to run the offense through them.

So I think Russ kind of being that spark now, the sixth man.

There's been some flashes, some good things that have happened.

But really, I think the most important thing is just the squad to stay healthy.

Had the situations last year with LeBron and A.D. being hurt.

LeBron being hurt now.

A.D. said he wanted to play all 82 games.

I think very early on in the season, he missed a game with the back issue.

And you could just see at times that his back didn't look right.

But I think since LeBron's been out, A.D.'s really stepped up to the plate, stepped up to the challenge, been having some great games.

But I think the whole NBA landscape just across the board, when you look at teams like the Warriors and the struggles that they've had,

with that whole crew, Steph playing at a level better than his unanimous MVP level,

and them still not having a winning record.

Looking at the Nets and the situations going on with, obviously, KD, Kyrie, his whole deal.

But it's just been fascinating to see a lot of teams that you expected to be performing at a higher level.

You've got teams like the Jazz, who've been bright spots and have been over-delivering.

In the beginning of the season, they were going to be in the Wimby Sweet Stakes.

Now, it looks very likely that they're going to win.

They're going to win.

They're going to win.

They're going to win.

They're going to wind up in the playoffs and kind of trick off that Wimby bag.

But I think at the end of the day, Warriors get to the playoffs, they're going to be a problem for whoever they face.

Kind of remind me, at this point, that Lakers squad in 21, when they were playing, I think, the 7th seed, playing the Suns,

and were getting ready to go up 3-1, then A.D. got hurt.

But just from the standpoint of, once they got to the playoff-level basketball,

barring any injuries or unforeseen unfortunate events, that they could still make some noise and do some things.

I want to ask, though, are we entering?

Are we entering a new era of the NBA?

Because you've been watching this for a while.

Obviously, we have a lot of superstars that we've been talking about for a long time.

I actually host a show with the NBA called the Rising Stars Report.

So we're following the rookies and sophomores in the league and then the up-and-coming 2023 draft class.

And some of these guys, even coming in, they're having their NBA debut with a 27-point game.

We have some superstars coming up.

And like you said,

the Warriors, Steph can go off for 30 and they can still lose.

A.D. can go for 37 when LeBron is not playing, but they still don't look like a complete team.

So are we coming into this new era?

And for you, what players or teams do you kind of have your eye on?

It's tough because, again, being as old and washed as I am now, I've seen so many different eras.

And it's always crazy.

You know, I think about Jordan's era, you know, the early 2000s when he was with the Wizards.

But kind of putting that finality on it.

His career and now paving the way for guys like LeBron, CP3, Durant, to pave the way for guys like Steph and just this new future.

But I think when you look around the league, you know, guys like Luka Doncic, guys like John Morant, Joker, obviously still doing what he's doing.

Giannis, of course, it's fascinating to see, but it's great to see that the league's going to be in good hands.

And me, I'm an L.A. guy.

I'm a big LaMelo Ball fan.

You know, I've been rocking with LaMelo since he was like 12, 13 years old.

And just you could see even then, you know, his dad, LaVar, I don't think gets it.

I don't think he gets enough credit for just the stuff that he was doing.

I think LaMelo skipped the eighth grade to join, you know, his brothers at Chino Hills and that squad being number one in the country going undefeated.

But what he was doing as a 13-year-old, 14-year-old, you know, puffy face with the gap tooth and just, you know, little kid out there balling with varsity players.

I don't think people really had a lot of respect for that.

Then the whole, you know, the untraditional route to the NBA with Lithuania, then going to play in the NBL and all that stuff.

And I remember having conversations with my guys.

You know, we have the UCLA group chat with all the former guys in there.

And it was kind of 50-50.

A lot of guys were like, yo, you know, LaVar deprived him of that high school experience, getting to play in the McDonald's All-American game, getting to do all that stuff that, you know, as a traditional high schooler you get to do.

And then the other half was like, yo, this is such a modern, different game now that him sending him overseas and putting him in those situations where he's playing with 30-year-old men, I think just helped prepare him for what life in the NBA was going to be like.

And you look at players like Luka, who followed a similar trajectory, playing pro since he was 16 years old.

And just to be real, I mean, as American hoopers, we feel like.

We've had this stronghold, you know, ever since the Dream Team in 92.

But that stuff has started to dwindle.

I just watched the Redeem Team doc on Netflix.

And it's hard to even remember or imagine a time when, you know, America wasn't this top dog in the scope of international basketball.

And you look around the league now at who the top players in the league are, and it's a heavy, heavy international influence.

So I think the rest of the world has put us all on notice that we got to get our stuff right, get back in the gym, put the work that needs to be put in.

Because, you know, we've got a ton of homegrown American talent that's performing well.

And the American team, you know, we've got a ton of homegrown American talent that's performing well.

But nowadays, you look at the Embiids, the Jokers, the Lucas, the Giannis, all these names.

Like, it's definitely, you know, I think Giannis did an interview the other day, assembled kind of his international team versus the American team.

And, you know, there's a good chance that American team gets cooked.

All right.

I'm not sure if you are familiar with the courtside club.

We do like to take a halftime break if you're down.

I'm down.

As long as you guys have some, like, Gatorade and some fruit slices and all that good stuff so I can replenish, I'm down.

I'm going to do it.

Okay.

Well, I will Postmates you some Gatorade and some snacks.

But in the meantime, I have some superlatives that I would like you to award to different NBA players.

Okay.

You've been in the mix for a long time.

You've seen the highlights.

You've seen the games.

You know these guys' personalities, their social media presence.

So I feel like you'll be really good at this.

I hope so.

First up, we have the best dressed.

Ooh, best dressed.

I'm going to go a little off-kilter.

I'm going to go Kyle Kuzma just because he's willing to take the risk.

I mean, I think about the pink sweater.

Definitely some options and some choices I don't necessarily agree with.

But Kuz's fashion sense is elite.

I mean, his time in L.A., he really stepped up to the challenge.

I think some guys come to the Lakers and they don't understand the magnitude of what it means to be in Los Angeles and just how your swag needs to be.

But I think Kuz built that in L.A. and now he's taking it on to D.C. with the Wizards.

But, you know, not to say every fit is, you know, 10 for 10.

But I think he does a great job.

Unique fashion.

And really testing the limits and going out there and really kind of showing what this next wave of NBA fashion should be.

He knows how to get us to talk about him.

That's for sure.

Okay, so who's the life of the party?

Ooh, life of the party.

I'm going to go Giannis just because I think he's such as a, you know, my dad works with Milwaukee Bucks and he's been a big Giannis fan for a long time.

But Giannis, he just looks so happy to be playing basketball.

And obviously, if you read his book by Miriam Thader and just all the stuff he dealt with in his life.

And watch the Rise movie on Disney.

All the things and just the trials and tribulations that he dealt with.

You can just see somebody who's genuinely happy to be in the NBA, to be playing basketball.

You know, he was in Milwaukee.

And I'm going to be honest, Milwaukee is a cold city.

You're from the Midwest, you know.

When you get the opportunity to go to nicer, warmer places, you generally take that.

But I think he was just, you know, so in love with the Bucks and the city and what they meant to him and how much they embraced him.

That ended up staying.

So I think a guy like that, he'd be the life of the party.

It'd be fun to hang out with.

You know, you know he gets turnt up.

You know, you saw it after they won the championship.

How hard he was going.

And, you know, his brothers would be a good time, too.

And I'm sure just the inside jokes they have and, you know, how funny they are.

And, you know, if you're hanging out with them, they'll start speaking Greek.

And, you know, you won't know what's going on.

But, you know, they'll still make you crack up.

He's also sneakily good at social media or at least saying the right things to get those clips.

Like some of those clips are hilarious.

It's like, I didn't realize you were this funny.

Okay, next up we have Biggest Flirt.

Ooh, Biggest Flirt.

I don't know.

I'll probably go Devin Booker.

But just because, you know, his hit ratio is very, very high.

And just the level and quality that he's able to ascertain with his mouthpiece.

I think he'd be good at the flirt game.

Or LaMelo, too, probably.

I'm sure if LaMelo, you know, LaMelo starts flirting.

I think there's different levels, right?

Devin Booker seems to be like the quiet type.

And LaMelo is just one that will say whatever it takes.

All right, so who's the class clown?

Embiid.

Embiid.

Embiid.

Embiid.

I think, you know, Embiid, Troel Embiid.

I think about after the Ben Simmons move happened.

And just, you know, him posting one of my favorite memes.

The photo of the kid at the funeral.

At his biggest hater's funeral.

You know, Embiid just has great timing.

He's hilarious.

He's got the comedy down pat.

And, you know, he just, he's merciless.

So in this troll game, in this comedy game, you have to, you know, be out of pocket at times.

And I think he definitely lives up to that challenge.

Now we have cutest couple.

But think about, like, a pair on the court.

Cutest couple, probably, I'll say Ja and Desmond Bain.

I think just that crew in Memphis and what they've been able to do.

How they don't fear anybody.

You know, them going at the Warriors last year, even though they took the L.

But, you know, those are the guys, you know, that I feel like they just ride for each other so much.

I think we saw with Ja's interview recently after the game where everybody's hitting the Antonio Brown after the win.

But you like to see.

That whole team, you know, rocks with each other.

And I think that's something, too, that was, you know, in those Warriors years.

Now those guys are a little bit older.

But you got a squad where everybody really wants to ride and roll with each other.

So I think those two are really a reflection of Memphis Grizzlies and the hustle and the grind and everything they got going on.

But that seems like a team that I would really love to play for.

Yeah, super fun team.

Most changed.

Ooh, probably Ben Simmons, honestly.

Most changed.

I think when Ben came in the league, he's dealing with a lot of issues and stuff going on.

Right now.

But when he came to the league, he was an offensive threat and obviously defensive specialist.

But just seeing over the past couple of years, the game has changed.

So I think I hope he can get it changed back to the level that it could be at and it should be at.

And I'm optimistic with him.

I think a lot of people have kind of written him off, but he's still young.

He's still growing and developing as an NBA player.

You know, the situation in Philly, but now getting a new opportunity in Brooklyn.

So I hope this will be his ability.

He changed going from Philly to Brooklyn.

But hopefully now Brooklyn, he can change back and be the player.

That we know he all can be.

It's interesting with social media, how quickly people can love you one day, hate you the next.

Have so many good things to say about you.

And then it's just the tides completely turn.

And I think with him, we don't know the whole story.

And that's kind of the approach I take to a lot of these NBA players with how they're playing.

Like, we don't know everything, you know.

But to see so many people be like, oh, he sucks.

He's done.

He'll whatever.

And he also had back surgery, supposedly.

You know, we don't know.

But are you one of those people that is kind of optimistic about his future?

Well, I'm optimistic about anybody that's in the NBA.

And to your point, I see a lot of people out there that'll be like, oh, this guy sucks.

This guy sucks.

It's always the people that suck that are trying to tell you that somebody else sucks.

And I think this is what social media has created.

It's a world where a lot of people puff their chest out despite never playing basketball at a competitive level.

You know, we're great at being on the couch and knowing everything that's going on.

Everybody's great at calling.

Playing from the couch.

But when you really got to live that life, it's a completely different thing.

Yeah, I agree.

Okay, last but not least, our superlatives.

We have most likely to succeed.

I'm going to go Luka because I think from a very, you know, people used to get mad at me when I pointed this out.

But it's like Luka's been playing pro since he's 16.

He's been playing at a high level since he was 18.

So him coming to the NBA, you know, it's a different situation than guys who go to college or, you know,

try the G.

League or overtime leader and these type of things.

He was playing against grown-ass men at a very, you know, early age in his life.

So he had to get toughened and hardened.

And just to see him on the court.

I love Luka because I feel like our bodies are comparable.

Like he doesn't have that just, you know, like athletic physique.

But the stuff he does on the court is so amazing and incredible that, you know, I got to give it to Luka.

I think he's, you know, I'm a big Trae Young fan.

I'm a big fan of Ja and a lot of these other guys in the league.

But I feel like at this current Juncture, he's the guy that's going to carry the league.

On to the next generation and really, you know, carry that torch into the new era.

Really just needs to get that that squad around them that can, you know, perform at a high level.

I just got to say I love the direction that the NBA is heading and just the game of basketball is heading

because it's it's getting to this place where it's almost positionless and everybody can do everything

and we're seeing guys like you said, like Luka or even like Steph as an example,

where maybe you look at their body type and their physique and you don't expect them to be

able to do the things that they're doing and they're proving that no matter how tall you are,

you can still put up 30 to 50 points a game or you know,

there's guys on the other end like this Victor kid that's coming up who is I don't even know how tall he is,

but he's dribbling the ball shooting threes taking it to the rack defending,

you know, it's it's insane.

I love the way that that the NBA is trending right now.

It's cool for me.

It's like I think KD is kind of the perfect example of that.

You take a guy.

I like KD and if he came up like 25 30 years ago,

he'd be in the post, you know, you'd have some some idiot coach.

It's like I don't care if you can handle the ball, whatever get in the post back to the basket.

That's all we need from you Kevin.

Like I don't want you bringing the ball up the court.

I don't want you with all these Hezzy Jimbo's and all that stuff.

No go post up.

So I think to your point just the way that the league is shifting now

and so many guys can do so much stuff and I think it's just a testament to skill development.

So many guys now do all that skill development skill training.

They work on being

complete players.

So it's really cool to see.

All right, it's time for the second half.

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You brought it up a little bit your your dad Marcus Johnson obviously played at UCLA

and then played professionally you yourself played at UCLA,

but can you fill us in a little bit what that was like growing up with a dad who was a professional in the sport

and if you felt pressure to kind of reach that level.

So it was it was tough and we always joke about this as a family.

So it's my dad's my older brother Chris mother brother Chris played at UCLA

and won a national championship, you know was a all-conference level player than myself.

So I was basically coming after both of them and a ton of pressure.

But when we were we were coming up.

So my dad suffered a neck injury in the mid 80s when he was with the Clippers.

So I was probably like three or four years old when it happened.

So I really didn't get to see him,

you know in his early days when he was playing with the Bucks

and he was an all-star and all NBA level player.

So it really wasn't until I got older that I started to watch a lot of his games

and just really understand the type of stuff that he was doing especially,

you know, you know winning college player of the year coming in his rookie year.

I think finishing second or third and Ricky the year of voting being all NBA in the second year.

I want to say average.

I'm like 27 and 11 or 12 points per game 27 like 12 rebounds per game.

But for me personally, I'm gonna be real.

It was a hard situation to go walk into UCLA

Polly Pavilion see his Jersey hanging up in the rafters and just all the pressure,

you know for a long time a lot of my life, you know, it's funny.

I was known as as Marcus's son or little Chris who's my older brother like people even know my name.

That's just how they refer to me or a little Johnson or whatever.

But now, you know, it's kind of for the social media stuff and just all the success.

I've been able to have on this side.

Like everybody's like, oh, you're just size dead.

Like so it's crazy to see that thing flip.

It kind of makes us all crack up just to see it happen.

But you know ton of pressure but but to his credit he never really I mean he allowed us to be our own people never really,

you know, he if we were going to play basketball, of course,

he wanted us to excel and work at the highest level.

So he was a ton of coaching very hands-on in that regard but wanted us all to be our own men and women.

So he never you know, he never said you need to reach the level that I reach.

He really just wanted us to all be good people.

Have a bunch of diverse interests and things that we like to do.

So basketball was kind of the unifying thing,

but he was also like he knows I was big in entertainment and writing and producing and just fascinated by Hollywood and that side.

So he put me in a lot of positions gave me a lot of opportunity to learn that side as well.

So I think I'm really a credit to him and my mother as well for just making me focus on education focus on basketball,

but have the other interests outside of basketball and know that you know,

this game will get you to a lot of places but it's not gonna last forever.

So what are you going to do after the game is over

and you got to figure out your life and now go out in the world and make some of yourself.

Yeah. No, I love that. You definitely paved your own way

and I feel like we are seeing a lot right now of kids of greats,

right? We see Sharif we see brawny.

Of course. I actually grew up watching Michael Jordan sons.

So LeBron had the LeBron James tournament

and I would run the scoreboard for these teams that would come through

because they'd be there'd be some teams playing at my high school as well

because it was across Akron and you know,

Michael Jordan sons would come in with an entourage and the all the stands would be packed

and then you know, they they did not make it to the league.

I don't know if there was pressure behind that or that was their their end goal was to be in that position,

but you see it kind of go both ways and then we had a Jalen Rose on the show as well.

His biological father was not in his life,

but he made such a,

career at a basketball career for himself

and was able to watch his biological father's tapes from afar.

But that was like the the intrinsic motivation that that he used to get himself to where he was at for brawny,

for Sharif for some of these kids.

What have you seen out of them?

What do you expect out of them?

I think when you look at you know,

and I've got the chance to meet Sharif a bunch of times he played at UCLA.

I'm a big fan of Shaq. It's so tough.

To have to deal with that pressure.

And I'm sure a lot of people were critical of his decision to leave college to go to the pros,

but that was his dream.

That was his vision for himself.

Got a chance to check him out of Summer League.

You know, I think he did a good job.

I think about somebody like brawny though,

and brawny is probably had more pressure on him than even LeBron did just because it was a different time,

right? It wasn't social media and everything wasn't so visible.

I think about just the way brawny needs to move nowadays.

You walk into a gym and it's a thousand cameras on your every move.

You trip or stumble or get caught picking your nose

or whatever the type of things that we were doing as kids that weren't a big deal.

Nobody was gonna ever know about it.

You know, I think about nowadays a kid gets dunked on the whole game stops all the kids run on the court

and they're all you know, doing this over the head and stuff.

So just the pressure and stress that these kids have to play with from that standpoint,

you know, if I got dunked on back in the day,

there was a 98% chance that nobody was going to film it like we might all talk about that story.

But as time went on everybody's gonna forget about it.

We're now, you know, especially in social media cycles.

This stuff comes up all the time.

So just the pressure and the stress and the strain that these kids have to play under.

So for brawny being the son of LeBron James who in my opinion is the greatest basketball player to ever live

and knowing when you walk into gyms, you walk into venues.

There's a lot of people that support you obviously love you have your back,

but there's a lot of people that want to you know, burn you or make money off you

or or find some controversial that you do so you can be,

you know, the next big talking point on all these sports shows and things we see like that.

So for brawny to step up to the challenge

and deliver and again, it's so hard,

you know, it's even like Michael Jordan's kids.

They were both, you know, solid basketball players,

but it's so hard when your dad is literally considered one of the greatest players in the world of all time.

You're never really going to hit that mark.

He's literally one in a trillion.

That's just not a you know, it's not a realistic number to have.

I think brawny is not at the level of his dad yet time will tell if he gets to that level,

but I think he's a good basketball player in his own right who have a good career playing basketball.

He'll make money playing basketball.

It's amazing for me to see the way

that the game of basketball is grown and also this next generation of players,

including guys like brawny or now leaving the forefront.

I don't feel like I feel like they're so prepared now for the mental aspect of the league that nothing will really faze them

because they've literally seen it all.

That's that's what I was going to say to it.

It's more pressure for these kids because like you said social media is just everywhere.

You your every move is being filmed who you hang out with what you post

like if you cross somebody if you're the person that gets dropped or dumped on

but then at the same time it is preparing them for this big stage

and I feel like these younger kids that are coming into the NBA.

They have so much confidence and there's this weird like they still respect the greats

like LeBron and Giannis and Katie,

but they don't fear them.

I feel like like they used to and they're not scared of being in an arena with however many thousands of people.

So it's cool to see I will I want to see how the dust settles with these these kids who grew up in the social media wave.

And I feel like LaMelo is kind of.

That first glance into it had a had a reality show with his family and and we all know so much about his life,

but it's definitely interesting.

I root for the kids.

I want to see them succeed whether it is in basketball or in something else like you

and I both parlayed our careers from playing the sport to being adjacent to the sport and are able to impact in that way.

I want to get to what you're doing now.

You started off kind of in traditional.

Media correct me if I'm wrong with Fox Sports NFL Network.

You were on the producing side.

Now you're your host your content creator.

How did no chill come about with Gilbert?

So they were looking for a new co-host for Gil and it's funny.

I've known Gil a long time.

So, you know, we both we both played in the valley.

He was a year older than me.

He was at Grand High School is out of school called Montclair prep.

So even before I got on the show like during the pandemic,

I was doing a lot of exercise.

So I would go run around the neighborhood.

I would see Gil driving in his Mercedes.

We kind of give each other the nod like, you know,

definitely respected each other but didn't really have like a close relationship.

Had a lot of close mutual friends that we knew just from the valley and stuff like that.

So then opportunity presented itself.

They were looking for a new co-host me and him just hit it off.

I think there was just a ton of chemistry.

I'm a big fan of Gil with his show represents and what he means to the sport of basketball,

but being able to work with Gil and actually just understand the basketball genius in the basketball.

Savani is and just the mind he has for the game.

And it's funny.

I tell Gil all the time.

Like I'll be walking around places now random places like at Coachella or in the airport

or just like in the lobby of a hotel and people be staring at me

and I'm always just like damn this do want to fight me.

Like does he know me do I own money and they'll just be like me.

I love no chill man, you know, tell Gil this or tell go that so just to see the impact that he has on the basketball community.

How much people love Gil and just love his game and you know,

Gil's kind of like the counterculture to the stuff you see.

Be on traditional networks, right?

And he doesn't care and that's the best part about it.

So he's going to say whatever is on his mind.

It may be a controversial opinion at times,

but he's the type of human being he doesn't care about trolls like he gets excited by trolls.

So he's got a ton of respect and love for these guys in the league.

So if he's talking trash or having a good time,

we're just bantering but ultimately like I remember one time during the finals Draymond wasn't playing that.

Well Gila kind of made some comments and Gil felt like you know,

he kind of insulted Draymond.

So he sent Draymond a DM,

you know, kind of just explaining himself.

Then we're all shooting a live show literally like two minutes after the game ends Gil gets a response back from Draymond.

But I think that just shows the level of respect that guys have for Gil in his contribution to the game.

So for me to get that opportunity to work on the show,

like I wake up every day pinching myself like just to be able to sit with Gil and Nick Young

and some of the guys we get come through there and Gil's unfiltered is always going to keep it real.

So I think it's just been a blessing for me to be able to,

to have the opportunity to work with Gil on No Chill.

I think that that's one thing that makes your show successful though is because there is this transparency

and this authenticity that comes from all of you,

right? So you know that you didn't play pro,

but you did play at a high level at UCLA,

but you're not going to act like you know everything and I think that that's where this new media

and this old media differ in a way,

right? There's a lot of people in old media who are just talking at you. You are having

a conversation with the people that you're sitting with

and you guys are authentically being yourselves.

If you don't know something, you're not acting like you do,

you know, and that's something that I think is great about your show.

You brought up Drayvon and he also has his podcast,

but we're seeing a lot of these other athletes kind of get into the space.

We have JJ Redick, obviously, Patrick Beverly, his new show,

which was highly anticipated. Which athletes are your favorites to listen to?

Or are you most excited?

About that? They are kind of entering into this space.

I mean, I think all the usual suspects. I love Drayvon just again for the unique perspective

and I feel like a lot of times, you know,

this is no knock to old media, traditional media,

whatever you want to call it,

but a lot of times people don't necessarily know what they're watching

or they begin to assume things and they're not in those huddles.

They're not in the locker rooms. They don't understand what players responsibilities are,

what they're supposed to be doing on the court.

So they ask questions from a perspective

that isn't really in the know.

And I feel like having guys like Drayvon give the ability to be candid,

be honest, be upfront. Hey, I've been playing terrible.

This is what I need to do to fix it.

Or I was shook during this game or whatever.

It may be a lot of time you paint these guys up like they're you build them up like they're larger than life

and they're superhuman. Like no, everybody deals with things, right?

Everybody has mental health struggles. Everybody has issues.

Everybody has stuff off the court that they need to address or deal with while they're playing a season.

So it's not like they're just playing in this vacuum where they just go out.

Get to go out and play basketball. They have to deal with life as well.

So I mean Drayvon has done a phenomenal job. I love his pod.

I love his perspective. JJ Redick again, another guy. JJ straight shooter.

I think JJ really, you know, is a is a is a whiz at this space

and has a very very bright future. Matt and Stack,

you know, me and Matt were teammates at UCLA.

So to just see Matt's growth, development, evolution from a college player to who he is now

and all the amazing stuff he's doing. I think that him and Stack's perspective on

life and also just two guys that kind of had these reputations for being bad boys,

but so knowledgeable about the game and have the ability,

which you've seen is reflected on the level of guests they can get on the show.

How much respect that other guys around the league, current or former players,

have for these guys to be able to come and talk and be open.

But ultimately, to your point, like you have to be yourself.

Like you try to be somebody else,

you're never going to be successful because nobody can be you as good as you can be you.

Exactly. Josiah, we are reaching the end of the game.

So I have some buzzer beaters for you.

Oh, look at these segments. I love it.

All right. What is the best game that you've ever been courtside for?

It could also be field side.

It could be any sport, but you are right there in the action.

So this, so best game, and this is not going to be a game that anybody's going to care about,

but I want to say it was like 92 CIF playoffs.

My older brother Chris was at Crenshaw.

They were playing modern-day who had Miles Simon at that point.

Crenshaw basically fouls modern-day

with like two seconds to go. Miles Simon misses a free throw, Crenshaw races down the court.

My brother hits a game-winning finger roll at the buzzer,

you know, in the sports arena, which is no longer with us,

but just with that game represented Crenshaw,

which was this school on the hood versus modern-day private schools,

recruiting players, had all the best talent in Orange County.

It was like the showdown, you know, the showdown for the championship.

My brother hit the finger roll. So definitely think that game, other game,

and it wasn't necessarily a good game,

but UCLA's 95.

Championship game against Arkansas, got to be in attendance at that,

got to go hang in the locker room with them after the game,

actually had a piece of the net,

but I was like 14 at the time or 13 at the time,

and ended up losing, had it in my wallet, like wallet ended up getting stolen,

and I'll never forgive the person who stole it.

Spent the rest of my life trying to hunt them down.

So if I find you, if you have that piece of net,

hope you're taking care of it.

And if I find you, it's going to be some Liam Neeson and Taken type of interactions going on.

I was like, wait a second, you have a Twitter platform now.

You know how Twitter can be detective.

You need to let the people know.

But they'll pack me up.

Like somebody stole my net, they'll be like,

oh, you got your net stolen, buster?

Like, you know, you know, Twitter's response.

Okay, so who is one person dead or alive that you would love to sit courtside with?

Ooh, this is a great question.

I don't know. I'd say probably like Tupac just because I feel like,

depending on the game, he'd be talking a lot of trash, having a good time,

and I think we'd have a good fun time at the game.

Yeah. What is one event in history that you would have loved to have been courtside for?

It could be a sporting event,

or something.

2016 Game 7 in the Bay to watch LeBron defeat the greatest regular season team in NBA history,

fulfill the prophecy, you know, come back from down 3-1.

But I'm glad I wasn't at that game because if I was at that game,

I don't know if I'd be alive right now because,

you know, the Oakland contingent, you know,

I would have been talking so much trash and going so crazy.

I don't think I would have made it back to LA.

So crazy. So big LeBron fan.

Most definitely. Josiah,

thank you so much for coming on the courtside club.

Let everybody know where they can find you on your social platforms

and also what they should be on the lookout for.

Honestly, I don't want y'all to find me because a lot of you people are mean out there nowadays,

and you need some house training and manners.

But if you want to, KingJosiah54 on Twitter and Instagram,

working on a bunch of stuff, did a show with Ava DuVernay called Chairs Today.

So that was a great, great project opportunity. Doing out of pocket with the good folks at Wave,

doing No Chill with Gilbert Arenas,

doing some stuff with Showtime Basketball as well.

So catch me on some of their shows and platforms to do some social stuff for them.

And then I got a couple other things in the work waiting for these bags to really touch down.

Me and Gil got a pretty solid announcement coming soon.

We got some great stuff in the works.

So just be on the lookout for all that.

Obviously, I'll be, you know, flooding your timeline with all that information.

So I appreciate you. And if you guys have any information about the piece of net in the wallet,

let us know. I missed that net.

Okay, so my one piece of advice for you,

would be to use your Twitter followers and activate them to help you find these things.

That might be. Power of social media.

Anyway, Josiah, thank you so much. Thank you for having me.