LeBron James may not be in the playoffs for the first time in over a decade, but he’s still managing to gain attention during the 2019 NBA Playoffs. During the second half of Saturday’s Warriors vs. Rockets game, James was front in center on HBO for a new episode of The Shop. This time around, the shop welcomed in Travis Scott, Seth Rogen, Don Cheadle and many more. Throughout the episode, the accomplished cast touched on a variety of topics including the 2019 NBA Draft, the ongoing college admissions scandal and much more. If you couldn’t catch tonight’s episode, be sure to check out our top seven quotes from tonight’s show.
“I didn’t really get comfortable with [LeBron James] until after [the] All-Star [Break].”
Throughout the episode, we start to get a glimpse into the relationship between Lonzo Ball and LeBron James. From the show’s opening moments, Maverick Carter begins to dig into how James and Ball’s first reactions went. Ball explains that for a moment in time he was awestruck by James and was timid around him. As time went on, they began to build into the teammates they are now.
“I know.”
One of the best quotes from the latest episode of The Shop was also the shortest. Emerging from a discussion about accolades in film and music, Maverick Carter shifted the conversation towards individual accolades in sports. Carter challenged the athletes in the room to have a discussion about publicly pursuing MVP trophies and the title of the best at your respective positions. During the conversation, DeAndre Hopkins recalled a time in which a coach told him he was the best receiver in the league and he responded, “I know.”
“If I was much more famous that [movie] would have happened very quickly.”
Don Cheadle was the MVP of this week’s episode of The Shop. At various points throughout the episode, Cheadle offered jokes and bits of insight that were invaluable to viewers. During this episode, the actor touched on one of his most critically acclaimed roles, Miles Davis. Early on, the acclaimed thespian discussed how long the Miles Davis movie took to make. Cheadle mentions that the role had been coming in his direction for a long period of time, but his star profile had to match the role before he could take the role. In essence, he said that he had to become much more famous before a studio would take the chance of casting a Black lead in a film focusing on a Black jazz musician in 2019.
“He was like my second Dad. He was way more than that though. People don’t understand. I bought my Mom and Dad a house. He had a room in there.”
One of the more controversial topics addressed on tonight’s show was Lonzo Ball’s recent issues with Alan Foster. Foster was a father figure to Ball and a close friend to his father. Recently, the Ball family discovered that Foster had been stealing money from him and his family. In discussing the situation, the Los Angeles Lakers point guard touched on how the news affected him, how he told his father and his decision to cover up his Big Baller Brand tattoo. Ball said that his decision to cover up his tattoo was driven by his desire to distance himself from anything having to do with Foster. He also mentioned that his father was silent when he told him about Foster’s disloyalty.
“She’s a f*cking criminal. That’s how they treat criminals.”
Outside of the world of sports and entertainment, The Shop also touched on a number of topics such as reparations, class division and the ongoing college admissions scandal. Most notably, Cheadle gives his read on the situation. From his perspective, the parents involved were paying to help their kids get into college for their own self-image. He asks, “How are you helping your kids by doing that?” Carter later follows up by responding to critics who believe the authorities went overboard in the manner in which some of those who were involved were arrested. Maverick responds by stating that those who were involved are criminals and the authorities run into the homes of criminals in the early hours of the morning.
“I found out through him.”
The most eye-opening portion of The Shop came towards the very end of Saturday’s episode. Lonzo Ball and LeBron James addressed how they learned Magic Johnson had stepped down as President of Basketball Operations for the Los Angeles Lakers. Lonzo Ball simply said that he learned of the news from James. To which James responds, he learned that Johnson had stepped down from his close friend, Randy. Shortly after, James goes more in-depth about the feeling of distrust he had for Johnson following the move. He states, “I feel like there’s a time and place for things and I believe that you knew you were going to make that decision, so why would you do it here?” He asks, “Why would you do it now?”
“Ye must be born again.”
The seventh and final quote to take away from tonight’s episode was not a quote. In fact, it was something that was never said. Pharrell wore a hoodie that seemingly took shots at his friend and collaborator, Kanye West. Pharrell’s hoodie read, “Ye must be born again.”
