BDL at the World Basketball Festival — Day 2
Wassup ballers and ballerettes!
Did you like that way hip New York City slang all up in your headset? I thiggity thought so, my brosephs. I'm learning so much here, like how to talk in new and exciting ways, that I thought I'd fill you in on Day 2 of my quest to revel in the basketball majesty of New York City (a.k.a. the Really Big Apple).
Yesterday was super cool relaxation fun times, but today was all about business. Official Ball Don't Lie business, which is the most official of all business except probably Big Business. But since I'm not allowed in the Financial District (a.k.a Wall Street 2 starring Shia La Beouf), this is the biggest business I could get myself into. Buy low, sell high and things like that.
But for realsies, today was cool, except for being sweat-through-your-shirt hot. Chill out, New York City. Literally. Like, get cooler temperature-wise. And tell the humidity to relax just a little bit. Sweating is definitely not cool, even though it is used to help cool your body. Science is confusing.
Anyways, on to the days events. First, I woke up early and ate some sausage/egg/cheese sandwich action then I went to talk to Lamar Odom. He was really cool and he told me his clothing line will have new shirts in time for next season. Let's all buy them. After I talked to him, I talked to a guy named Mike Krzyzewski and a guy named Jerry Colangelo. They were super nice and I will tell you what they said later, but first let's talk about other things that were super fun.
For instance, I went to the headquarters of SLAM magazine. Their office has sooooooo much weird basketball stuff about it and it was very blurry, presumably because of an earthquake.
So much cool stuff they should make an issue called "Look At All This Cool Stuff We've Got" and it could feature a bunch of Willis Reed nesting dolls, a Vinnie Johnson poster and a softball trophy won in 2004.
I even got to meet the editor of the magazine, Lang Whitaker. He is a good guy, so that's why I pointed at him.
Just two cool dudes with cool shirts and resourceful sunglass storage spots.
After pointing at Lang, I rode on an underground train then a bus to see some really cool stuff at a place called the Ball Room. It was like an NBA history museum, only very small and very, very hot. But even though I was perspiring at an almost obscene rate, I still was happy because I got to see the first ever Converse All-Star.
Man, that's an old shoe. I'm glad someone pointed at it.
But that wasn't the only cool thing I saw. I also saw Michael Jordan's actual jersey that he wore as a rookie in the NBA. It was very short and wide, almost like an American Eagle t-shirt in the early 2000s.
Totally short and wide. It is the Khalid El-Amin of jerseys.
I also saw the official jersey Greg Oden(notes) wore his rookie year.
Ha ha. Just kidding. That was a joke because that is really just an old jersey worn by New York's first ever professional basketball team, the Renaissance.
After seeing all that old stuff, I got to a place called Stadium, which is part of Nike's Make Something initiative. Local kids got to design uniforms, shoes, gear and mascots, which is really, really cool. Unfortunately, these kids do not yet have formal training so they made a mascot that looks like this:
It is a start. They will get better over time, I bet.
That was about it for the day. Talking to hoopsters, seeing old basketball stuff and seeing stuff that kids made. It was busy, but very much fun.
Oh, wait. I also saw a really cool sign so I pointed at it.
That's not all though. I also saw a very chill sign, which I also pointed at.
Very chill, just like the bro pointing at it. I call that portrait "Three Days of Trey." Think about it.
So that's it. Another good day and some more highlights on the way. Thursday should be ballin' too. Don't worry — I'll check in.
Toodles,
Trey
