Layup Line

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Kyle and Julian break down the Markelle Fultz injury update and Minnesota's success of late before being joined by 1994 Slam Dunk Contest winner J.R. Rider.

You can subscribe to The Layup Line on iTunes and Spotify.

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Layup Line Podcast | J.R. Rider

This is a transcription from the latest Layup Line Podcast with Kyle Ratke, Julian Andrews and former Timberwolves forward Cherokee Parks. It has been edited and condensed for clarity. 

Andrews: I read a piece from SLAM Magazine on your mental health both during your career and after it. I’m curious to hear about your thoughts on that movement in the league. The league has done a lot of focusing on destigmatization and mental health awareness. Setting up programs for players and bringing it to the forefront. I’m curious how different that is now than it was when you were in the league and where it still has to go. 

Parks: The resources are tremendous. Guys are coming in at such a young age and so much is being thrust in front of them. While they are still maturing, they are expected to lead not only your team, but the organization as well. There’s a lot of programs that are in place to really aid the players and maximize their potential. We see what they can do on the floor, it’s brilliant. We think they have the same potential off the court. The resources have really become available. The main message we try to get across is that you’ve got to communicate, like anything in life. If you’re working with your teacher, your superior, with any relationship. That’s the first thing, you’ve got to get out and communicate where you’re at and understand that’s the first and the people that are listening to you are very happy that you’re communicating and talking with them, because that’s what they’re there for. The whole idea is for you to be a better person. 

It’s great on the court, but it’s resources that are available because of what you’ve done on the floor. You have this support system that people just don’t have. 

You can put all the resources out there you want, but if the players aren’t going to step up and talk about it, it’s not going to be helpful. A couple of guys have come out and talked about it. Kevin Love. DeMar DeRozan. They’ve been vocal about it and I think that’s been really instrumental about getting the programs in place.  

Ratke: The NBA is at the forefront of most of those issues. But even in the NFL, we saw Everson Griffen with the Vikings. He had to leave the team for a little bit and Mike Zimmer, the team’s head coach, said that the situation wasn’t as unusual as people were making it out to be. I thought that was huge that a football coach of all people was addressing mental health.  

I think about how young some of these players are. I didn’t know who I was at 19 or 20. I’m 28 and I’m still not entirely sure. How difficult is it as a young player and a young person to be thrown into a high-pressure role? You might not even know who you are, but the expectations are high. It seems like nobody talks about that.

Parks: Yeah, I think about being a freshman in college. I remember how much I had to learn just about how to be in college. And adjusting to being on a team where guys were 22. That was the age gap. (In the NBA), now is the money incredible, you’re playing with guys that are 31,32 and have been in the league for 13 years. There’s a lot on that and there’s a lot of expectation to perform. And now with the social media aspect of it. You are on display all the time. One of the great things about the NBA is the accessibility of the NBA players, but with that, there’s the  accessibility of the players. Everything you want to put out there is always out there. There’s a lot going on. There’s a push to really develop your brand and image. It feels like it’s a 24/7 job. There’s a lot of expectation and a lot of pressure. And that goes back to some of the programs that are in place through the NBA and the teams to help players.

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Cherokee Parks On The Importance Of Mental Health

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Cherokee Parks chats about his career and how important mental health is. Kyle and Julian discuss what a unique experience Prince Night was at Target Center.

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The Layup Line | Cherokee Parks & Reactions From Prince Night

This transcript has been edited and condensed for clarity. This conversation is from an episode of the Layup Line podcast between Kyle Ratke, Julian Andrews and former Timberwolves guard Pooh Richardson.

KR: The first two years of your career, Tom Thibodeau was the assistant coach with the Timberwolves.

KR: He’s the head coach of the Wolves now obviously. What was young Thibs like in his first two years?

PR: Not at all. Hard worker. He is who he is. Hard worker. Aggressive. Strong. Opinionated. He was good for me, I know that. He wasn’t even good for me, he was great for me. He was the guy and this is the first time, I’m glad I’m able to come back. This is the first time I’ve had an opportunity to thank him for being there for me as a rookie. When you’re somewhere and there’s a protocol to a lot of the things you do, especially when you’re a rookie at something. You almost come in feeling like an outsider kind of because you talk about, you have coach Musselman. He surrounded himself with a lot of guys he that he coached in the CBA. I was the fresh face, knowing that I was going to have to have some significant role at some point, just trying to figure him out and him figuring me out. Back then, it wasn’t as much as the coach figuring the player out , it was more the player better conform and figure out what the coach wants until he becomes a good player, then they don’t have to worry about it anymore.

It was that kind of thing. Thibs was the one who kept me going, kept me sharp. I was looking at the fact, see, I’m real logical. I’m a really logical person. I think with logic all the time. I’m thinking if it’s about basketball, and it’s clear that I’m better, why am I not playing? Well, there are different things you have to go through because they want to make sure you have mental toughness. All rookies go through it. You understand the dynamic of what you’re dealing with. I always thought we had an advantage because going to UCLA in the summer, the pros up there playing ball. I played with Magic. I played with Isiah Thomas. I played with Dominique Wilkins. I played with Spud Webb. I played with and against all those guys for four years in the summer. Getting out there in the real game, of course it’s going to be a little more intense. They’re going to be a little more intense, but so am I. You know? The shock part is not even going to be a part of my problem. It’s just going to be about me creating ways to get to the spots on the floor to make me effective. I thought that’s where I wanted to be out there. 

Thibs told me it was going to be a process. And I thought I was ready then. Thibs said, ‘Come on. We gotta work.’ Thibs would work me hard. During shootarounds we would work a little bit. But before the games, me and him would work for an hour and a half. Just hardcore work. Back then, I wasn’t playing a lot. I was getting some minutes, I was playing every game. I was getting some minutes, but I was playing sharp so I would look the part. I wasn’t a guy who wasn’t playing and wasn’t working out. Thibs would make my pre-workout before the game, like a game for me. I was pretty sharp. When I got the opportunity and I moved into the starting lineup about a month in, he kind of laid off it, not as hard. But we still got some work down. If I didn’t play well in a game or something, we would go back to our little regimen.  

I was doing that when people weren’t doing that stuff. He was ahead of the curve on that. 

KR: Because now, that’s very common. You go out and you see the rookies putting in time before the games.

PR: He had it, man. He had me right. I have to say half the making the First Team All Rookie, I was watching some footage here, David Stern was giving me the plaque. Half of that plaque goes to Thibs because he had the vision to guide me, to show me what I need to do. He was out there pushing me to do. I gotta thank him for that. . . If there was anyone on that staff that I trusted, it was him. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or Spotify.

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Pooh Richardson Thanks Tom Thibodeau For Early-Career Success

In the first episode, Kyle Ratke and Julian Andrews discuss Summer League and Timberwolves free agency. Later, two guests help break down the Kawhi Leonard trade.

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The Layup Line | Wolves Free-Agency Talk And Breaking Down The Kawhi Trade

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