GameTight Sports

Sadiki Fuller was raised in Houston, Texas. He was known equally as the former mascot and stunt team leader for the Golden State Warriors and as a working comedian based out of Los Angeles. I met Sadiki about 16 years ago on the set of an independent film, So Fresh, So Clean, written by a mutual friend, Al Attles, Jr.  From the outside looking in, he was comfortable but he knew he could wield more tools in his entertainment belt. wanted to add some accomplishments so he surprised more than a few when he decided to leave his Warriors job and move to LA to pursue comedy. We recorded this podcast on February 11, 2018. After a brunch with Al Attles, Jr. and Sadiki's best friend Brandi Miller, he swung by the studio, we blazed one and hit record. As he was leaving I told him repeatedly he gave me my best interview and I meant it. Then exactly three months later to the day I got word he passed. Initially, I was going to release this so it would dovetail with a few other projects he was working on to maximize promotion but that never happened. I wish I could’ve gotten this out earlier but I’m thankful the substance, inspiration, and tone from his words will paint a clear picture of who he was and provide an important piece of the blueprint for anyone pursuing an artistic passion. Rest in power Sadiki Fuller.

Oakland California native Jules Masalunga slid through to talk to us about how he got into marathon running.  Four years ago he was running 5 miles a week, now he'll do 19 to keep his legs fresh. His path is pure and simple: get active, eat the donuts and burgers, then get active again. Repeat. That sounds easy as hell and that's the purpose of the episode.  Slaps: Git up, git out - Outkast Everyday Struggle - PRhyme 100 Miles and Runnin - N.W.A. Feeling Good Nina Simone New Day - Nina Simone/Kanye West & Jay-Z

A hero aint nothing but a sandwich--Scot Peterson (Florida high school security guard) If Zaza and David West fought for your team, you'd love 'em too.  Michael Jordan is OJ [minus the killings] Good morning Mr. Trump! Quincy Jones smashed Ivanka Slaps X - Schoolboy Q, 2 Chainz & Saudi More Love - Rexx Life Raj Paramedic - SOBxRBE feat Kendrick Why You Always Hatin' - YG & Kamaiyah      

You’re on one side of the room listening to this guy talk—it’s a staff meeting. He’s new to the job, but this is a veteran crew-- everybody else has dealt with ups and downs, including this guy. You have a supportive management team, I mean there are a few warts but nothing a little tweak can't fix because you've seen what this team can do. But wait why is this guy pointing at me. Is he blaming me? He's talking about defense now. What is going on here?   Slap: Level up - Rex Life Raj Seasons - feat. Mozzy, Sjava and Reason Jungle Love - Jay Dee / Dilla feat Guilty Simpson & MED

Last time we checked in with Damany he was returning from training in China. Back in the states my man packed up his hoop shoes and coaching resume and is now an assistant coach with the Raptors 905, G league affiliate for the Toronto Raptors. We talked: 3:05 - Damany's coaching background 4:00 - a gang of near hires but eventual rejections 7:25 - High school coach and then the depression hits The Let Down - Dame D.O.L.LA feat. BJ The Chicago Kid, Nick Grant 14:20 - After 10 years of hustling to get a college coaching job, scrambles to Vegas for the NBA summer league, meets Jerry Stackhouse, hoops with Stackhouse and scoops his current job. Make it happen with connects and preparation: Lou Richie, Jason Jones, Dell Demps & Drew Gordon on the help out. 22:00 - interview preparation with paperwork, hoop shoes and having a mentor (Lou Richie) give you game. 25:00 - training history with current NBA and Euro league players: Aaron Gordon (Magic), Stanley Johnson (Pistons), Kyle Wiltjer (Olympiacos of Greece Euro League), Jabari Bird (G League), Nick Johnson (G League) and others. Check 1, 2 - Diamond D and Psychotic Neurotics 31:00 - coaching styles for G League 905 head coach Jerry Stackhouse and Raptors coach, Dwayne Casey.  36:00 - improvement of DeMar DeRozan and Casey adopts the 3 ball. 38:00 - these next level individual training techniques. 40:00 - physical and mental challenges of transitioning from amateur to pro hoop.  Icon Jayden Smith 45:00--Lavar Ball: the interview spin move and criticizing coaches. 51:00--handling criticism from parents. Solidify the locker room first. 56:00 - Toronto snowstorms will make you watch the Ball Brother play in Lithuania. GameTight celebrates the 75th birthday Muhammad Ali. Happy Birthday, Champ!                            

I couldn't edit the audio but we couldn't release this episode without acknowledging the passing of Reggie Ossie aka Combat Jack of the Loud Speakers Network. He was a former entertainment attorney and magazine editor but he hit my radar as a storyteller and a real leader in the business of podcasts, thus a major inspiration for GameTight Sports. Our condolences go out to his family and close friends.  ------  Can you imagine Black Thought as a solo artist with different producers? Being pushed in different directions Kobe's jersey retirement. Jerseees!  NBA players can suck. NBA coaches can suck. But apparently Scott Brooks doesn’t suck. In the last segment we disagree on everything. A sermon on Lavar Ball. Can a college coach be expected to inform a recruit they might leave for another job at another school, or play everything close to the vest?  soul.profess’ tracks of 2017. Part 1 of who knows) Subenstein (My Sub IV) // Big Krit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzILf_5MswI Crew // Goldlink feat. Brent Faiyaz, Shy Glizzy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhNqbe6QENY Family Feud // Clark Sisters--Southern University--Jay-Z https://listen.tidal.com/album/75413011 Lemon // N.E.R.D. feat. Rihanna https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_u97PqWX6g

David Fizdale is a damn good coach often described primarily as a motivator. But can just anybody get a group of players to buy in? Young Vino talks strategist versus the motivator. The concept of playing more than six or seven players per game wasn’t always the norm in the NBA. Enter Alvin Attles, strategists. When negotiating, don’t accept empty compliments. Do you have a good side for the camera?

Mike Glennon Austin Davis Josh McCown Mark Sanchez Geno Smith, EJ Manual, Kellen Moore, Aaron Murray, and Blain Gabbert. These guys have jobs and Kaepernick doesn't, and that's all you need to know about football. I'm all in for a Lebron/Kyrie conspiracy to leave Dan Gilbert out to dry. Issa Rae is in charge of things.  When Cersie and Jamie opened the door to their relationship: Life lessons   Heat: Turn me up--T3 ( Slum Village)Kulfi--Samsa feat Kulfi--Samsa feat ThiagoYou Know Who--Matt Monday You Know Who--Matt Monday Sophisticated Lady--Natalie Cole Glowed Up--Anderson.Paak    

Back in this. My man Damany Hendrix, college and pro basketball trainer spends a few months in China and didn't love it. Profess loves flopping. We love Russell Westbrook, Lonzo Ball, De'Aaron Fox, and Prodigy from Mobb Deep. Rest in Peace!   Rockabye Baby - Joey Baddass feat.ScHoolboy Q Mobb Deep: Survival of the Fittest | Give Up The Goods | Quiet Storm | Shook Ones Pt. 2

Outside of life and death, soulprofess offers a possible exception to the rule, never kick a dude in the sack.  Damany rethinking: if a player on your squad checked out like J.R. Smith when he dapped up Jason Terry during a game what would you do?  Gymnasts and synchronized swimmers: dreams of f****** an R&B b****  Boogieman - Childish Gambino Endangered Species - Ice Cube Gettin Some - Shawnna Weight Off - Kaytranada (feat. BADBADNOTGOOD)                        

Harrison Barnes Skills trainers: what's up with all them damn cones? NBA individual award predictions Mike Evans was made to stand for the national anthem. Or else.  Holla: @CoachDamany The book, The Pain and the Game  - available at Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Pain-Game-Memoir-Damany-Hendrix/dp/1530072832 @GameTightSport   Blaps: Big Sean  Bounce Back Wasatch Front - DAME Dolla Blocka - Pusha T feat. Popcaan and Travis Scott We the People  - A Tribe Called Quest The DOC and The Doctor - The DOC  

Yo have you heard Pedro Gomez from ESPN conduct an interview with a Spanish speaking player? It's phenomenal.   Carmelo Anthony's issue with motivation.   The bay is weak when it comes to weather and that's fine with us.   Warriors have more than enough fuel for motivation and intensity. So let's get it.   The Raiders want to move from Oakland? You a grown ass man dog.   The maturation of Kevin Durant.   Cam Newton: Hey guys, concussions are real.    Much respect: DJ Willie Mayze in North Dakota defending Standing Rock DJ Toure - Hiero Day Tajai - Hiero Day    Kaytranada / Arthur Baker / Mistah F.A.B. / Brand Nubian / Big Daddy Kane / Staple Singers    

Episode 40, recorded in June after the Golden State Warriors blew a 3-1 lead to lose the NBA chip to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Before the series started I was talking smack with a dope MC and educator out of Cleveland, RepLife, then real life happened.  A lead was blown and history was made. This is my way of getting ready for the upcoming NBA season. Gotta face facts! 

This is the most recent episode of GTS recorded on February 25. I know I know, I’m late.   We kicked off the discussion on Steph Curry right after he put 42 on the Heat and 51 on Orlando. I’m calling Steph Curry the most powerful offensive weapon in modern times. I’m not trying to define ‘modern times’ or the players of that mystical era but yup, even MJ gets pushed back in line. Maybe a scootch over the top but I can’t front on the kid now. When I peeped Curry up close for the first time in 2011 my doubts were concrete. Most know Dr. James Andrews but Dr. Richard Ferkel, bad ankle whisperer, is that dude. Flip to 2014. Doubts? Naw man. Steph Curry is killing off naysayers like Galahad in the church from the movie Kingsman.   If you’re Colin Kaepernick, what do you do? Do you stay or do you go? Do you trust in the leak machine that is the 49ers’ front office? Do you trust in a coach that should be humbled and QB friendly but also dragging a reputation of struggling with NFL players that possess a strong sense of self? Or, considering your downward spiral do you push your chips to the middle and angle for a trade to play under Gary Kubiak or Hue Jackson?   March Madness is right around the corner so Al and Frank answer the questions regarding the UC Berkeley Men’s Basketball squad coached by Cuonzo Martin and led by the best freshmen class in over 20 years.

This is a dope episode of GameTight Sports. Actually an especially fresh episode because it’s the first single subject interview episode. Tajai Massey of the Souls of Mischief A couple of weeks ago I got a chance to meet Tajai and Phesto while they were being interviewed for the Golden State Warriors Believers documentary. https://www.facebook.com/thebelieversdoc/ We tried to record then but the day went long and schedules starting clashing but I knew I had to get these cats on the mic to discuss general life topics expanding beyond of their musical history as one of the most celebrated hiphop groups from the West. Here is an hour-long interview with Tajai we conducted while he was driving going from one job to the next. He’s currently working as an architect during the day, collabin with the crew on various Hiero related projects while raising two daughters. The crew is busing. Hiero Day. The Hiero Emporium. Recording. Imagining a better place. This was recorded on February 23 on the heels of the Nevada primaries so we were amped. Fired up. But that energy pushed the discussion to a place that allowed us to shine light a grown man’s concerns, perspective and goals. There’s a distinct high pitch tone running through the recording that I couldn’t shake—my bad. I don’t know if it were Skype, the cell phone or what-- so my bad on that but trust it didn’t get in the way of a dope convo. Enjoy.

Finally a post Super Bowl edition. We follow up on our predictions from Episode 37—we were wrong. All wrong. But look at Payton Manning sidestepping HGH rumors from the Al Jazeera report published in December. Meanwhile Cam Newton wrote a pretty big public relations check being boisterous and cocky. Can he cash it? Will we allow him a chance to make good on his talent and brashness? And while Cam Newton was under the radar for his post game behavior, it was the Denver Broncos defense that pushed Cam off his mark on the field and off the mic during the post game press conference. We also hit on the first regular season matchup between the Golden State Warriors and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Warriors just make it look easy. How? What’s good Sacramento! Should the Kings boot George Karl or trade Boogie Cousins? Derek Fisher where are you? Busy chasing booty and not enough time thinking about triangle? I’m dedicating this episode to Maurice White who passed away last week at the age of 74. Maurice White is of course the founder of the super group Earth, Wind & Fire. They perfected top-tier musicianship coupled with chart domination selling over 80 million records. And of course the African influence was on point and evident in their instrumentation, polyrhythms, wardrobe and albums covers. If you’re aware of the music around you chances are you can identify a key moment in your life, a celebration, a family affair or Netflix and chill (the reasons why we’re here) and Earth, Wind & Fire was part of the soundtrack.

The Super Bowl teams are set. The Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers are ready to go and while Denver was a safe bet at the start of the season nobody picked the Panthers. But if you step back and appreciate the MVP season Cam Newton put together, you’ll notice he actually got better in the playoffs—makes sense. But what about interesting choices with his wardrobe? Dab. Oscars Always So White, right? But look at Common makin’ them Hollywood adjustments with Laura Dern.  As the show flows on we also hit on the Golden State Warriors handling the San Antonio Spurs highlighted by a damn near perfect game from Steph Curry. But what do you get from that outside of one more regular season notch in the win column? If Kawhi Leonard can’t guard Steph, what’s next for San Antonio? Lebron bounced David Blatt and Blake Griffin bounced an equipment manager, some dude no taller than 6 feet.  Reputation rehab, STAT! And what about these Kevin Love trade rumors?  Thinkin’ of A Master Plan - YZ No More Parties in LA – Kanye West feat. Kendrick Lamar Little Brother - Good Clothes Burn Hollywood Burn Nothing Can Come Between Us - Sade Anderson .Paak - Come Down     First reference to “Steph” means Steph Curry, second reference is for Vino significant other, Stephanie Banner. Hi Steph! Frank said, Steve Bowman. Steve Balmer is the owner of the Los Angeles Clipper. Flint: profess didn’t know the second or more polluted (not diluted) water source serving Flint Michigan. Answer: Flint River Also, the state changed Flint’s water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River but currently the water might be coming from Lake Huron again but the pipes feeding the city need replacing ASAP and there’s a call for help including direct funds to purchase water or for funds to support more studies on the damage and solutions. Honestly I’m still trying to catch up on this and that includes figuring out the best way for folks to help in the most effective way. Administrative costs are necessary to a degree but some of these nonprofit foundations are mismanaged so if you have any information on the best ways to help Flint residents, please pass it along. We’re on twitter, at GameTight Sports and you can always hit us on the line – 510-214-2808.  That’s good for sport talk too. A nod to the passing of David Bowie was left out  but GameTight Sports remembers Bowie as an advocate for more black artists on MTV and for taking risks.

Robert Griffin III. Remember that first year? He was handling the spread offense like he was still at Baylor. Subway commercials. Playoffs! Life was good. But then he stayed in a game too long after suffering a leg injury, Shanahan moved on and Jay Gruden moved in. Bye bye spread offense and bye bye huge speed differential between RG3 and most NFL linebackers. Hello Kirk Cousins. What now? And what about Kaepernick? He was flexing with no sleeves just a minute ago. There were haters but he had Beats by Dre. He came close in the Super Bowl then another loss in the NFC championship and the next thing you know his protector left for Ann Arbor and the Honey Badger had his number. So what's next for these two? Thanks to a great question from a caller, FrankRed handles those questions. It was easy to get caught up in the streak because streaks are fun. But Young Vino looked deeper at the way the Warriors are playing. The win loss record still looks sexy and when you have the greatest shooter in the game, you can always sidestep a loss. But the defense isn't the same and the turnovers are hot. Let's be honest, right now the way things are trending, the arguments for San Antonio looking stronger than Golden State are pretty compelling.    2015 favorites: Skyzoo | Alabama Shakes | Kendrick   Love you Cheryl!    

 12-13-2015 We made some NBA predictions in episode 34 so here in Episode 35 it’s time to check on the progress since we’re about a third of the way through the regular season.    Steph Curry as MVP: On schedule Paul George as Comeback Player of the Year: On schedule Karl-Anthony Towns: On schedule. Dwight Howard as DPOY: Like flying United.   Look the Eastern Conference is no longer a tire fire. Why? Improved players AND coaching of course. How do you explain Puffy Combs? Like from musical perspective? He’s not a producer in the traditional sense. Not a bandleader. Not a writer. But yet with his vision he’s been able to carve out an amazing over the last 20 years.     Music please: High & Might feat. Mos Def. New Puffy feat. Jadakiss New Jadakiss feat Swizz Beats Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band Ghostface 

The Warriors as champs are like an amalgamation of the Celtics and Laker championship team of the 80's. On the crunchy side you have the Celtics: hated and not really respected by many. Too fundamental. Too good.  And on the sweet side you have the Lakers. Showtime. Slick dimes. Magic.  That's Golden State.  The greatest show everyone wants to see but because you rock Cavalier, Clippers, Thunder, Rockets, Kings or Wizards jerseys you have to be quiet when they say shut up. But when your squad ain’t around, you be cheering again. For the Warriors. This will be one of the most entertaining NBA seasons in years because of that duality. MVP Draymond as DPOY and a pretty solid rookie class. Who you got?