How does a 5-foot-7 player rise above the giants of basketball and win the 1986 NBA Slam Dunk Contest? For Spud Webb, the shortest NBA player at the time, it wasn’t about proving doubters wrong, it was about proving to himself that hard work is undefeated.
In this episode, Spud Webb opens up about his journey from being underestimated to becoming one of the NBA legends who gave hope to “the little men” of basketball everywhere. He shares why showing emotion matters and how his true legacy goes beyond his Spud Webb height, by mentoring kids, coaching, and giving back to help others keep their dreams alive.
In this episode of Less Than One Percent, Dr. Imamu Tomlinson and Spud Webb reflect on resilience, challenging the status quo, and the power of generosity as a superpower.
This is how Spud Webb disrupted expectations, inspired generations, and became one of the most inspirational players in basketball history.
1:30
But it's an honor for me to welcome Spud Webb. And you know I I don't know
1:39
if you understand, maybe you do, maybe you do. I don't know if you understand the impact you've had on the game, on
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the world, on individuals. I mean to be, you know, the idea of like the the worst
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term in the world for me is small guard. Like I hate that term, you know, and now they use big guard, small guard, but you
1:57
really changed the game elevating, you know, when nobody expected you to in
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the key going up against the big. So it's welcome. I appreciate you. Thank you for coming.
2:08
Yeah, thank thank you for having me. I mean, uh, sometime you come to places and you don't get people don't get to
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know you your story, you know. Yes. They see the slam dunk and they think, "Oh, he just in dunk." But there's a lot
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more to go to that. And, uh, like you said, um, I didn't know how valuable that was of
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playing at my size in the NBA or winning a slam dunk until you go around the world and you find out that many people
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does that. I mean, like you say, the 1% is probably lower than that. But, uh,
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you learn that, uh, the kids think, you know, looking up to you that they can do it, they can keep that motivation. Maybe
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if they don't play pro, they at least go to college and things like that. So, that's my mindset when I uh, go to camps
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or speak at corporations or anything. Even with the G-League, with the legends, uh, we do a lot of basketball
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camps. So, um, you know, we hopefully that can we get a a story out about it
3:06
so that cuz if you're not tall this day, they they don't even look your way. They don't even look your way.
3:12
And Calvin Murphy was the guy that I kind of looked at. Um, well, the only
3:17
guy that was playing the NBA at that time. Yeah. It's crazy because I I I coached AAOU for 12 13 years and um you know and
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I had I had a group of misfits basically and I remember I had two kids one my one
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of my um players just got signed the Memphis uh Cedric Coward
3:37
you know he just got signed number 11 and it's amazing but we had a bunch of kids that nobody really wanted
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and the the truth is I would be talking to coaches Jordan and they would literally come in the gym
3:48
and they would just scan above a certain height, you know, and they're just and, you know, I have kids like come in drop 35
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on, you know, on a kid that, you know, that that's gonna, you know, ranked number two, number three in the country,
4:02
but they're looking for a certain player, looking for a side. And I think at some level,
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the NBA has lost a little bit because they're looking for one prototype. And I think
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that they've lost a little bit of looking for the spuds of today. Um, even
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they don't even look. They don't even look. They don't even look. Um, you know, being in with the legends,
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you see a lot of what they're looking for, skill set they're looking for. They all looking for guys where they are so
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intangibles they can switch everywhere and that's not really playing defense. So, yeah. Um, I don't even know if they have a guy
4:39
uh under six feet. Maybe the guy in New Orleans, but Brunson. Maybe Brun. How tall is Brunson? Brunson.
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They say they six feet, but I doubt it. But um it's not many left, man. And it's
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really bad. Me and Mugsy talks, we talk about it all the time. So uh we just,
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you know, try to keep hope that uh somebody come along. Barkings played, you know, when we play after we played.
5:01
Yeah, I remember Borkins. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Cuz I mean I obviously I'm I'm not tall, but you know, we we all of us keep
5:08
track of those those guards that were playing different. And it's funny, you think about how many of guards like that
5:15
have had an impact in the game, but it's almost like forgotten. It's almost like it's not even, you know,
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when you start to get some of the conversations uh for me like AI. Mhm. Like AI is in my top 10,
5:28
right? Has I mean, he's in my top 10. Like, and when I say that to people, they no this
5:34
one, that one, like, you know, they talk about some, you know, even some of these guys like a 7 ft, you know, and and 90%
5:41
of the shots come at the rim and then they're like, "Oh, he's the greatest of all time." Like, "No one, this is I'm sorry."
5:46
But, but you said more than basketball. We had Martellus Bennett on here, Super
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Bowl champion. Um, and he didn't want want to talk about football. He's like,
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I'm He's like, football was just a part of me. And you talked in your opening that you feel like your impact is
6:04
greater than just Duncan, just basketball. So tell us, I mean, you you're doing a lot. Tell us tell us what
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you're excited about right now. Yeah, absolutely, man. Uh, you know, like I said, when I go uh speak
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somewhere, camps or whatever they introduce you as, you know, 1986 slam dunk champ. Then you have to get up
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there and really tell them, you know, you played 12 years. You know, you uh, you know, led the team in assists and
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and still have records that that uh hasn't been broken in know, well, I don't know how long I haven't played 30,
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40 years that uh haven't been broken and they you have to show you started a lot
6:39
of the games and you played, you know, scored 8,000 points. That's what people don't understand. You
6:45
you scored Yeah, you scored some points. Yeah. I grew up uh you know being order
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to stay on the floor you had to score in my neighborhood where I grew up in Oakliff that uh you lose you get off. So
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you had to learn to score the basketball to stay there and and it helped me. Uh I
7:06
only played one year high school uh basketball my senior year. Probably averaged 30 points and didn't
7:12
get a scholarship. So when I got to college, I went to junior college cuz I didn't get no scholarship. And uh we won
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the national junior college championship and I probably averaged 30 points, 36 in the final game and still didn't didn't
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get a scholarship. But scoring back then for me was all I knew till I got to
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college where you learn had to learn to pro. That's where I started watching guys like uh Mari's Cheeks and uh Isaiah
7:39
Thomas play and try to pattern your game. You can't beat them. You just try to pattern your game after them.
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That's That's amazing. So So along the way, I I love that you cuz
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we're going through that. I'm going through that as a father. Mhm. You know, my daughter came out ESPN 100.
7:58
I'm a scorer and you know, she got the ACC and they're like, you know, this you're going to do some
8:04
other things. And so I mean and even with my son who's a you know a shooter but now you know as you get um move on
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every level up you have to change or at least adapt. Um but along the way like
8:17
so I think I told you the story as I as we were walking in and we were getting ready to start. You know I I shouldn't
8:24
be a CEO. I mean you know Vitui revenue is $2.6 billion. You know we take care of you
8:30
know over 14 over 12 million patients. Mhm. And you know, I shouldn't be the
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CEO. And I'll remember a lot of people doubted me. That's what my book's about. A lot of people um doubted me.
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And I I
8:42
didn't make it about me, but I thought, how many other people are getting left behind? How much more greatness would we find in the world if we didn't just
8:50
ignore a whole pool of people, right? So, is there somebody along the way or maybe there's many people who said you
8:58
ain't you ain't going to make it. you like probably every guy every person in the world except uh maybe three people. So
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um you know in high school you you know you're probably 411 5T if you trying to
9:13
get a scholarship you think that'll work right so uh I just didn't play was I
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guess wasn't good enough or uh wasn't tall enough to um play my junior year uh
9:27
sophomore year. So, wait a second. So, in high school, you're trying to make the team and not making the team. Is that
9:33
Yeah. Wow. So, uh you know, uh you make it the senior year and end up starting. But, um
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you just nobody believed that you can make it. So, you do all those things and then nobody can believe you can go to
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play college. So you got you don't have YouTube, you don't have, you know, the
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internet, you don't have uh emails and stuff to send out to film to send out to
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coaches. So wherever you played, that's where you had to, you know, show that
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you could play. And I figured if it's one time that I don't play well, that
10:08
that's that's going to be in like, oh, he can't play. Yeah. So that was my mentality. Like when I
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went to junior college, I said if I don't play well, that's going to be the end of like going to division one of
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being able to go to school, you know, so you can um you know, get education and then you come to find out you
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working hard just as hard as the other guys that's taller and probably they think is better and more skilled
10:35
and I get to college and play against those guys and be successful. So that's what made me um well what really made me
10:42
is seeing Dr. J. You can't be Dr. J cuz he's he's the coolest the baddest you seen.
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So you know you try to play your position. So uh you just try to keep that motivation that whenever I'm
10:55
playing against somebody it don't matter where we are that I'm going to try to be better than them.
11:00
Did did you were you were you an angry player? I think so. I I hate losing. I mean,
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that's the way you grew up, you know, when you're at the gym, you lose, you don't get back up. So, you just mad about if you lost, you know, you're not
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going to get up till tomorrow cuz, you know, every guy wants to play. Yeah. You know, so, uh, yeah, I I I hated
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losing. So, a loser, if that's what they want to call it. I just I just don't like guys that don't show no emotions
11:26
about losing. Yeah. If you can just don't want to go up a dark alley with that guy cuz he, you
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know, you going to be by yourself. So yeah, uh it just it just was my mentality of
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growing up u with your back against the wall or whatever you want to call it uh shut out or you know get not getting
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opportunity when opportunity come you have to take advantage of it. Do so I I sense that you feel like your
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impact on the world is more than basketball. So give me Oh definitely. Um
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um man it's everywhere you go uh kids uh you know recognize and know your stats
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and know now with the internet and all this stuff they know your story a little bit of not being you know tall and
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playing in the NBA.
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So they give you that uh you think you you know you're
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giving them that motivation to keep going because the most satisfying thing you know if you're walking through the
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airport and people are telling you you know I just like the story you told earlier uh I played basketball it wasn't
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size I told my wife that uh I was too short to play and you messed it up you know stuff like that but uh that's
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that's what you live for and then you see kids that we went to the camp and they in college or graduated done
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something and that's what make uh makes me uh feel better sleep at night as they
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say uh and that's why I keep mess uh going to camps and talking to kids and
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making yourself available and you know like where I grew up and stuff like that that that they can make it that they can
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you know if they put their mind to it you got to get to school but if you going to work hard you got as they say
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get in the lab and work on things to to get better because the opportunity is there you just
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you're not looking uh or you don't want it enough. If you don't if you if you think you can't get
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there, you just don't want it enough. Cuz I I tell people that people don't want they don't want to play basketball.
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They don't want to play football or whatever. You don't you don't want to play. You got to want this.
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Yeah. I tell I tell my kids all the time, hard work is undefeated. Oh. Now, you don't know when you don't know
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when that win's coming. And you know, I think like I think,
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you know, at some level because there was no YouTube,
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I have to convince people, especially my kids, that I was a lead athlete. Like I
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have to tell them, I'm like, "Dude, I was second in the city, you know, in 100 meter, you know, and they're like, "Ah, dad,
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whatever." You know, show me the tape. Show me the tape. And so I think that a lot of that too as we get older
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um you know we don't necessarily look you know like like the elite athletes
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that we we were and and I think a lot of people too to your point um they think some somehow it's is it's
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a l there's some kind of luck component of it but I think a lot of it too is that we we just work really you work
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really really really hard and when it comes out when it actually comes out that you have the result people forget
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at all of the work that that went up to it and all the times where you were in the lab, so to speak, somebody else was
14:37
going to the party or someone else was, "I'm tired." And that and that piece is uh you know, even even writing a book. I
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was complaining about that the other day. I said, "Writing a book is the hardest thing I've ever done."
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Actually, I lied. Selling a book is the hardest thing I've ever done because, you know, like people are
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people reading, they're like, "Oh my gosh, this is great." But nobody wants to read it. And so you have to be out there telling your story. And people can
15:03
tell me, "Hey, just tell your story. Just tell wait keep working hard, right? You you don't focus on the goal of sell.
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If you didn't work hard and you sold a bunch of books, you wouldn't feel as good, right? As if you worked hard and had the result."
15:16
Um so so one of the things that I talk to everybody about here, right? So that
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I have a lot of different theories on life. Like one one is that um I was an
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angry kid.
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I was I was on the court, you know. I remember I remember somebody set
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a screen on me and I and I stepped on his foot and turned an ankle and the next time man and I'm, you know, I'm
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thick. I'm not a small I was never skinny and I tried to I think I went through his chest and I got kicked out
15:47
of the game because I already had a tea, but that's the problem. But um yeah,
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that that's a different story. That's a different that's a different podcast, you know, anger management. Um, but for
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you, um, what do you think? I'm hearing determination. I'm hearing hard work.
16:05
I'm hearing impact that you want to have, but what what do you think your superpower is? What do you think that thing is that? And you
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and you can't have like I'm on time or, you know, or, you know, whatever. It has
16:16
to be something that it's intrinsically you. Oh, giving. Always giving. that's only
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giving you time, information monetarily or whatever. I'm always trying to help
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someone get ahead. That's why with the with the with the Texas Legends, I don't I tell them like when Donnie was there,
16:35
Malcolm there, I I don't want to go anywhere. I don't want to go for the Mavericks. I don't want to go uh work
16:40
for anybody else. I like being here cuz you help uh kids in the interns. You
16:46
help guys keep their dream alive playing basketball. And then you got a lot of
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people that you see working in the front office, working hard to go to other teams and you feel like you're a part of
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that. So, uh I that's why I've been there. This is like my 15th year.
17:01
Yeah. With the legend. So, I I really enjoy it. I get to stay at home cuz my parents older.
17:06
Yeah. And then I have a daughter and a grandson is 10. So it gives me opportunity to spend time with him where
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from when I was 18 to 32 I never seen uh Mother's Days, Father's Days, first day
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of schools, Christmas, none of that. Thanksgiving. So this this uh get being
17:25
around Dallas give me opportunity see old friends and then help old friends. So and help new friends. So, um, I took
17:32
up the I'm glad I took up the game of golf because it it gave me a chance to,
17:39
uh, meet a new new, I guess, bigger arena of different people. Yeah, you uh, where are you playing
17:45
most? I'm a member at Prestonwood right now. So, uh, but, uh, I'm trying to figure that out. Dallas is
17:52
different. Dallas is different when it comes to golf, man. It's it's busy. And so I I I would I would belong to a
17:58
course when I was in California, but when I moved here, I live in Flower Mound. And so trying to figure out, you know,
18:04
and I I want called up on courses like, "Hey, this is nice course. You know, I'm ready to join." They're like, "Do you
18:09
have a gift? Did somebody refer you?" I didn't know I needed to be referred.
18:14
Some clubs probably does that um to be referred probably helps.
18:20
Um it just different club. Every club have has it own thing, their own thing. They write their own
18:26
rules and they go by uh what what they think the body of uh the
18:32
the people on the board Yeah. have. So some of you can walk in and join right away. Some of them they want you
18:38
referred and all that. So that's that's that's that's just the country club.
18:44
Yeah. Okay. So we have to we have to do this now since you love golf too.
18:49
Greatest golfer of all time. Tiger Woods for me. Um, I know Jack had those uh majors, but uh the way the
18:57
dominance of uh what Tiger did for all being number one all those weeks and the
19:02
way he plays and and attacks the game is incredible that uh killer instincts that
19:08
he had u along with the talent. That's what I say separates stars from superstars is
19:14
is you better than me and then you got killer have killer instinct. So yeah, that's that's a hard thing to uh to beat
19:21
and that's the way Magic Johnson was. You know, Michael Jordan was that way, Larry Bird. So
19:26
um definitely uh Tiger Woods for me. Yeah, I I I agree. I mean, I think Tiger
19:31
Woods Jack for me is kind of like Jordan and LeBron. You know, Jack had a long career. He did
19:37
a lot of things, but to you to to to your point like when you come in when the game of golf is not a game that you
19:45
should have serial winners. It's just built to be a game where week to week you have a different winner every week.
19:52
You might some might people might win more than others, but man, Tiger showed up every every week
19:57
like I'm going to win and everybody knew he was going to win. Yeah, that's that's a hard to beat that athlete that you show up, you
20:04
they expect you to win, you think they expect to win, everybody going you want you to win. That's
20:10
that's that's a lot of pressure, but the guy so good and practiced so hard. Do
20:16
you um who who's the toughest player that you played against for whatever
20:22
reason? Basketball. Yeah. Other than the guys at the gym where I grew up
20:28
that beat you up every day. Uh but professionally uh Magic Johnson cuz um
20:34
you know like if you're playing against people say well you think it probably be Michael Jordan. You you can't guard Michael Jordan. It's Michael Jordan. You
20:40
know so Magic Johnson makes everybody better.
20:40
So, you know, Michael Jordan get
20:46
the ball, you defending him to shoot. But if you got Matty Johnson, he you just know tell him where he's going to
20:52
make a pass, shoot, or whatever. So, those type of guys are very hard to guard. Guys that shoot all the time, not
20:58
say they're easy to guard, but you know what they know what they going to do, week to week to week, you know, day game to game.
21:04
Yeah. But but I think he probably was the hardest. Um, you just can't guard any one guy in the
21:10
NBA now. You don't Yeah. They're way too too talented for that, but Magic Johnson
21:15
is probably cuz he's so big. Yeah. Well, you know, I was fortunate enough to meet Magic multiple times. He
21:21
wrote the forward to my book. Oh, okay. And uh so that you know, I'm partial, you know, when you said Magic, I was
21:27
like, "Yes, I'm partial to him." the thing that uh now I I mean obviously watch him on TV but the knowing him now
21:34
what what really struck me and I think it's the same thing the way he was on the court and I love that you said
21:40
giving because he's like you know we just we met um I was interviewing him and he uh I told him about the book he
21:47
asked me what I was doing and I thought he was talking about the business he said no what are you doing I told him about the book and he's like I want to
21:52
write that forward for you I'm thinking to myself I'm I'm just moo I'm nobody and he he he did that for for
21:59
me. So, yeah, I I'll cosign that. Yeah. I mean, he's he's a good guy. He's always been uh I don't know what you
22:06
call it. Nice or accommodating. Yeah. Like he come up to you and talk to you need some tickets for the game tonight
22:12
or you know, when I come to he he's just a he just, you know, genuinely good guy. And when you see guys like that, then
22:19
you you know, you you meet him and read about them and find out they even better. Yeah. That makes it uh all worth it. Just like
22:27
when I first met Dr. J. You know, Dr. Jay is my idol. I always wanted to meet
22:33
Dr. Jay and uh you know, you try to walk like him, you try to throw the afro like him, you know, all that stuff, but you
22:39
can't try to palm the ball, you can't. And um then you meet him and you're like, man, he's way cooler than the
22:47
game. So, uh I I it's so good to that cuz you know, so many guys out there that are
22:53
not like that. Yeah. So you um I mean I don't want to get you
22:58
in trouble, but do you we talked about the game a little bit and I maybe I'll start and
23:04
then you can so I so I don't put you on on the spot, but I I write about um
23:11
I I like disruption. So I like I like disrupting. I I mean I didn't know I was a disruptor, but then every time I see
23:17
something done a certain way, my my mind automatically wants to do it a different way to achieve greatness, to try to do
23:23
something different. Like this is how I'm wired. And if you tell me something's the way it always is, I'm
23:28
automatically gonna do something different just because that's how I'm wired. You know, I just got that whatever gene I got from the Jamaicans
23:34
is that's it just makes me disagree with stuff. And so when I watched the league, I did
23:39
I talk about this in the book that every year every year everybody's shooting more
23:44
threes than they did the year before. Mhm. And it was a dis when when you you talk about Stephen Curry and um when Golden
23:52
State kind of first won, it wasn't the first time that they did that. I mean, the Nuggets did it back in the day.
23:59
A lot of shots, early shot clock. Um but now that everybody's doing it,
24:05
there's no there's no disruptors anymore. It's not, you know, so that now like when I look at the league, it's like take a three, run back, take a
24:12
three, run back, and do and you know, I have, we have a we have a clip, which I'm sure you watch these all the time,
24:17
but there's you're at the rim and you're like, "Okay, I'm about to I'm going to throw it down." Like I'm at the rim. I'm
24:24
a small guard at the rim. It's going down. But now there's dudes 6, seven at the rim and they kicking a corner. They
24:30
kicking a corner. It's awful to watch sometime. So, so what what is your assessment like compared to when you played to now or do
24:38
you Yeah, I had to get used to it. Still not know totally used to it because you come in and watch a game and they shoot like
24:44
10, 12, 15 straight threes and you're like, uh, is nobody going to pin down and run the lane or take a two and
24:52
things like that or just drive to the basket, get to the free throw line and just come down and dribble dribble till
24:57
you shoot. It's it's hard to watch sometime, especially when these guys are so talented these days. Yeah,
25:03
they skill sets are so unbelievable. But I just get tired of seeing the threes. I'm just sorry about it. I'm just I
25:08
guess just old school of setting picks and you know um getting it down low and
25:15
let a guy go and if you double you know pass shooting
25:20
but that's that's just not how they play it. That analytics say is the three is
25:25
better than a two. So love what? Like it love it. Like it or love it. That's the way they going to play it. But I don't think
25:31
every team should play that way. And now Steph Curry and them uh buck the deal of a of a team that shoot a lot of threes to
25:38
win. But I don't think and Oklahoma kind of showed that this year, right? I mean Oklahoma take a lot of twos.
25:43
Yeah. A lot of twos. Lot of twos. Shout out to Canadians that my boy Yeah. Shad they they they take a two in
25:50
a minute. So that's why you like watching them in um teams like that that
25:55
uh like like Oklahoma plays with them young guys. They be playing too. Yeah. What I loved about the I mean that
26:02
I didn't love every aspect. I wanted the Knicks to be in the final just because of because I'm partial to small guards
26:08
and Brunson had played so well. But what I noticed about Indiana is that and I
26:14
haven't seen this for a long time. They played fullcourt defense. Yeah. And there the whole series.
26:19
Yeah. And you know, you don't find too many um teams that pick up we used to call 100
26:24
that pick up a 100 because of the the hand checking rule. you can get your uh big man in foul trouble down there
26:31
picking up 100 gold as we used to call it. Um
26:38
you know back in the day you can pick up 100 gold cuz you can guide the man where you want him to go. Yeah. Yeah.
26:43
But now but it's not no small guards to break a lot of people down. So right
26:49
you got those guys they trying to wait on down there to get a shot rather than breaking somebody down and passes. So,
26:55
yeah, it is give and take, but I I I I noticed that with Indiana kind of picking up early. Yeah.
27:01
But that's what uh the Celtics did to Luca in the finals, too, though. Yeah.
27:06
Yeah. So, so this part of the show, we're going to try to um you can call
27:12
somebody, anybody. And uh we have a we have a little setup, so it goes through Bluetooth.
27:18
And uh we we're going to ask them, well, you're going to ask them. You say just don't let them know you're on the show.
27:23
And um they start cussing. You can cut it out. Yeah, we we can beep out. Be beat up. We can beep out.
27:30
But yeah, you just ask them what their superpower is. I can say something. If I speak on the mic, they can hear me. If
27:35
they, you know, I'll say, "Hey, I apologize." Or whatever. But that's kind of We've had some cool situations where
27:42
people have been dead on where family members or friends are like and it's like I was like, "Did you call
27:48
them before?" And they're like, "No." And then we've had some people that have just been way off. Yeah. Um, yeah. I don't know who I can call like a
27:55
hundred of them. Any anybody anybody you think that would know or would would identify with your
28:03
superpower or know about it. That's that's that's let's let's see.
28:10
That's a lot of people. Um Oh, okay.
28:15
You got it. Yeah. Okay. So, um, hello
28:21
Deborah. Yeah, someone want I'm doing an interview. Somebody want to ask you a question.
28:22
Okay. Okay. So, uh, sorry to bother you. This is Mu. Um he's on uh we've got Spud
28:33
here on the Less than 1% podcast and we asked him what his superpower was and we
28:39
just wanted to now ask you what his superpower was and see if it matches up.
28:46
It's not a joke. Oh, I know. I know we caught you off guard, but we we we want everybody to
28:52
know that this is not planned. We just it's all spontaneous. Well, I'mma keep it clean, so
29:03
I'mma say his legs. Okay. You okay? Because he was a good dunker. I
29:10
Okay. Okay. She What do you What do you think about I I told him my given?
29:16
Oh, yeah. Oh, definitely. Well, I guess. Yeah, definitely.
29:24
That's an understatement, right? Yeah. Yeah. That's Yeah, that's superpower. and some
29:30
other things. But yeah, that's that's that's a good one. Well, okay. Well, give us one more. Give
29:35
us one more. His heart. Oh, man. That's awesome. That's awesome.
29:41
Well, thank you, Deborah. Appreciate you. Appreciate you.
29:46
All right. All right. Take care. All right. Bye. See you. Bye.
29:51
Hold up. You gonna hit Ron back? Yeah. I mean, growing up, at least for us who
29:57
grew up watching you, I I actually honestly thought your legs were your superpower legit.
30:04
Yeah, they tried to get me to come to Colorado, do that stuff to see how height Yeah. jump all that.
30:10
What was your vertical? Probably like 46 somewhere around there. 46. Damn.
30:15
Ron probably playing golf. Well, he hit your back. I know.
30:26
He He can't be playing golf in this 100. 110 110 out there.
30:31
Yeah. He probably He'll call. Okay. Yeah. But Deborah is my assistant. She's
30:37
been my assistant for probably going on 20 years now. Yeah. Yeah. She uh got bored probably and uh
30:45
do you know you do a lot of appearances and she's like I handle it for you
30:50
because you know you don't want to be talking to the people and negotiating and then get there and they mad. Yeah. Yeah.
30:56
So uh she used to be uh at um over HR at American Airlines. So,
31:01
it's something to know she communicate know how to communicate with people. That's amazing. That's amazing.
31:07
That's amazing. You go ahead and take those headphones off. Well, I think he's waiting on I think he's waiting on Ron. You want to try them again?
31:13
I try one more time. One more time. Let's do one more time cuz I I I mean, this will be I That'll be great. Maybe. Did you call
31:20
him or FaceTime? Because maybe he doesn't want to FaceTime. Maybe he's Who are we calling? Ron Harper. Oh.
31:34
He must be out playing golf. He might be at the games. Oh, hey, I'm on this show. They want to
31:40
ask you a question. So, don't be talking about my Cowboys, man.
31:49
Matter of I love them. Hey, we on the show, man. We're on the
31:55
show. Oh, man. Oh, I'm sorry. It's not live. Hey, don't worry. It's not live. It's not live. It's not live. Don't worry. We ble We can bleep that
32:01
out. We can bleep that out. How you doing? Hey, appreciate you taking this time. I know you're on that course getting those birdies. So,
32:07
look. Look, look. Yes, I am. Yeah. Oh, man. That's wild. Hey, real quick. Uh, we sitting down here talking
32:13
with Spud. We having a great time. We asked him what his superpower was and uh we said, "Can you call somebody to ask
32:20
what the superpower is?" And they said, "Call." He's calling you. So, we want to know what do you think his superpower is? than the Cowboys or winning the
32:26
Super Bowl this year. Well, well, well, for for for sure, not the Cowboys.
32:34
I think his superpower was he very uh
32:39
prestigious at what he want to do on the basketball court. He was one of those guys who love to love to compete. You
32:46
know, everybody talk about he not tall, his size, he's
32:52
all he went out there every day and gave it everything and you got to respect
32:57
that part. Oh, that's awesome. Well, let's Ron, I I'll say too. Oh, go ahead. Go ahead. We appreciate it, man.
33:03
Yeah, I was just saying I appreciate you, man. Hold on. Hold on. I got one more thing.
33:11
He playing for them sorry ass Hulks in the P.
33:18
He got laugh in the NBA. Okay. Okay.
33:24
That's awesome, man. Well, hey, appreciate your time and and love loved watching you. You're appreciate you.
33:30
Actually, Moo Moo, as an Eagles fan, I might have to just leave that in. Yeah. Yeah, you have to leave it in. You
33:35
have to leave it in. Yeah. They finally won a Super Bowl in 50 years. All right, Ron. I'll hit you later.
33:41
All right. That's awesome. That's awesome. That's awesome.
33:47
Me and Ron been friends since I don't know. It's his rookie year, my
33:52
my second year. Yeah. We go on vacation together, family, godfather, his first kid, and all that.
33:58
But, you know, his son, his son just got drafted. Drafted. Yeah. Yeah. So, he's got two sons in the NBA now.
34:03
Yeah. Okay. So, so couple more questions and I think we
34:09
there's and now I'm going to push you again. I'm I hear heart and giving, but
34:14
I know there I know there's an angry dude in there. I know. I mean, it's not evident now. Like right now, like it's
34:21
not evident. I know I know it's in there. So, tell me is who is there anybody that you that
34:29
you were motivated to just murder him on the court or or or in life? It could have been somebody that you just hit
34:36
your buttons, man. Um, you know, grow growing up, you know,
34:41
just in the in the neighborhood I grew up in, you you you had your back against
34:47
the wall every day. So, uh, if you didn't have that edge on you that take advantage of you, right?
34:52
Yeah. So, that's that's my thing. When I when I go against anybody, I'm out there to destroy him, you know? I'm out there to
35:00
win. And I'm out there and embarrass them any way I can cuz I know that they think that they have it easy.
35:06
Yeah. You know. Yeah. And you know, you want to be that person they that they remember just like said is they respect the way you play and
35:12
play hard. So yeah. And and that's that's all I could that's all I could ask for. you know, um,
35:19
you know, being being had that chip on your shoulder, uh, being angered about
35:24
wanting to play coach, you know, that's how I got started in basketball in the seventh grade is cuz I only went out cuz
35:30
my friends played, right? I just wanted to be with them. And then those guys, you know, didn't have the grades and conduct to play and we end up
35:36
playing. That's how I really started to playing basketball, you know, trying to be like Dr. J or somebody like
35:43
that. Yeah. Yeah. So, if there was if there was one thing that you had to say to
35:49
people listening because we have a lot of different people on this podcast. We have a lot of people that are like sports people, then we have healthcare
35:55
people, we have business people, you know, we we appeal kind of bring a lot of different communities together that
36:01
aren't normally together. Um, so if you had to say something, you know, that you leave them with, what
36:07
what would be that one thing that you would say, you know, hey, I'm listening to this podcast. I'm watching the
36:12
podcast. I saw a spot on there. He said this and it it changed my my world.
36:13
Yeah. I mean, you just never give up on
36:19
yourself, you know. I always have that uh motivation that you you belong.
36:24
And I that's what I always figured that hey, if they playing basketball, I belong out there, you know. So, uh
36:29
that's that's what made motivated me to go out and play well and work hard to get better.
36:34
Oh, that's amazing. That's amazing. Hey, can you pass uh that book? I don't want to get up and mess up my mic. It's right
36:40
here. It's right here. Yeah, appreciate you, Jordan. Yeah, so
36:46
here's uh this is uh a signed copy of my book, Less than 1%. Appreciate it, man.
36:51
You uh I have to read it to my grandson cuz he he's already think he's in the NBA.
36:56
Yeah. And then how old is he? He's 10. He's 10. So just appreciate this. Yeah. Appreciate it. You know, like I
37:02
said, I walk through it start you'll you'll love it because it starts a little bit with Seph Curry and his
37:08
ranking, his high school ranking. Oh. Um, but it it you know goes into a lot of different people, business, sports,
37:14
entertainment, Bob Marley, and just really how we spend a lot of time putting people's in boxes
37:21
and not giving them the opportunity to shine. I still think today, man, whether it's basketball or business,
37:26
we pick we try to pick winners and losers before the race is even run, right? And I don't I I think that I'm
37:31
I'm trying I'm trying uh to change that even though I know I can't, but I really
37:37
want to impress upon the world that you need to go out and find the spuds of today and stop picking all them 67s.
37:45
Right. But but I appreciate I know I know it's time out of your day. I know you didn't have to do this. So, thank you so much.
37:51
I appreciate it, man. Uh you know, God gave you a gift to go out and play basketball. You try to give it back. And
37:57
I that's the way I try to find my way of giving it back. Um it's it's going to
38:02
kids camp. If it's going to someone home or anything, my the guys know that they can depend on me,
38:07
man. I appreciate you. Appreciate you. Awesome. Awesome.
Spud Webb is a former NBA player best known for being one of the shortest players in NBA history.
He attended Midland Junior College after not being recruited by any Division 1-A universities. While at Midland, he led his team to the junior college national title in 1982. He would eventually get noticed by North Carolina State, who eventually offered him a scholarship. He helped lead them to a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA tournament.
After not being drafted in the NBA, he would sign as a free agent with the Atlanta Hawks. He would go on to play 12 seasons in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks, Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Orlando Magic. Besides being known for being one of the shortest players in NBA history, he is also known as the shortest player to compete in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. He entered the contest in 1986 and went on to win the event.
For more on NBA Legend and 1986 Slam Dunk Champion Spud Webb, check out: https://www.instagram.com/spudwebb86/?hl=en