ladies and gents welcome to yet another episode of what's next podcast I'm your host Mario Matlin make sure you hit that like And subscribe button uh this episode is sponsored by win King uh where quality is King we got a very very special guest right here right next to me Mr Willie col Stein one of my favorite UK Legends they call him Trill so I'm I'm going just call him Trill all day all day every day all day man welcome to the show Welcome to what bro I appreciate the invite man I'm excited to be here and kind of just talk sh yes for sure man let's let's talk about just coming back to Lexington when was the last time since You' been here how long has it been 2016 2016 yeah 2016 I came back for Expedition game we played uh the Wizards and Pelicans okay and so that was the last time I ain't been back since I haven't been to any games so you know I've just been busy at the league so watch from afar it's always U you know can never really get back to do to watch any of the good games and go to tailgates that's right in right in the beginning of our stuff so I mean it kind of you know it's better sweet but man being back is amazing though bro soon as I stepped off the plane it was like oh this is home this is home I'm texting my wife like y I think I think we got to make this move like it's it's incredible out here I've seen you four or five times in the last few days I've seen you multiple times and I overheard you saying like man it's like I don't know who you were talking to I guess you were getting interviewed and you were like man it's like everybody's growing up everybody's growing up everybody you having kids your wife you can see everybody can see that you're growing up now man what is it like to see like the Harrison twins some of your old teammates all grown up UL guys you play yeah no man it's it's it's a blessing bro honestly it's a blessing to see you know I mean can be taken quick you know life is quick so like seeing getting to see these guys again that I went to war with and kind of just see how they grew up seeing the kids that they have like Sam alone he's got two kids and you know Todd just got married last week Marcus Lee's getting married this week like was on their grown man [ __ ] I love it bro like that's what it's about and you know not getting to be with them every day and seeing that but then like coming back 10 years later and kind of getting to hear what they're man it's it's it's special bro really is do the memories flood back into your mom once you're around them yeah and you don't even remember a lot of them and then somebody start get to tell a story and then you're like oh yeah that [ __ ] did happen and then you start telling you start thinking of another story man mean like last couple nights just had dinner I mean I have no desire to stay up past 12 anymore but I'm still talking to Todd till 120 and just like yeah man it's just you know so free flow and organic like there's so much stuff that's happening you know it's just putting it all together that's what's up man now now words around town that you a big golfer now yeah basketball is you're a leite at basketball but golfing is your thing man how' you fall in love with golfing man where did that come from but honestly just saved my life man uh I I had I had gone through a couple like the last like couple years man two probably like not these last two years these last two years have been great but the two years before that um was a little rough yeah and uh the the beginning stages of it yeah well talking about life was rough okay and then I found golf man and just seriously saved my life man how how did it well the reason why I tell it straight up on here man the reason why uh I had to go like I left Dallas and [ __ ] like that um you know I had to go to rehab and then so when I was in rehab I met this guy named Parker and he was a big golfer and so we just got to like betting like on a little chipping range putting range yeah and I was like it's might survive survive so then after all that I finished all that up and start my recovery it was like a big it's a big part of recovery for me like it's like a it's it's something for the soul bro symbolizes what you yeah and so like with that all that that happened my grandmother passing away like I needed something basketball was taken from me I needed something to CH old like heartache the the the heartache of losing ball the heartache of losing my grandma the heartache of losing my boy Rex like all that and then like I found this thing that I could just Channel and work on it every day and it's just me I don't have to worry about politics I don't have to worry about coaching I don't have to it's just me getting better and it's leave everything else where at the door bro as soon as I step out of my car put my my golf shoes on bro it's like it's just gone gone bro it's just me for 4 hours I see why you say saved your soul man I definitely see I've been I've been sober for you know 2 and a half years now it's I I I I give a lot of that to go that's what's up man I didn't a lot of people don't know about the first I ever told that story hey what's next we got we got it on what's next man you talked about your kids U I want to kind of touch a little bit back on your kids what's it like they going to be seeing you play in in in Lexington and seeing the fan base you know rally around you man what is it like for them and for you a man they it's they're they're hype like my daughter she she obviously has got to uh experience the league when she was younger so like being around that and being around how was your daughter she's four now okay and she's turned four last week and uh yeah man it's just um my wife she she's really diligent on showing them like YouTube videos especially I'm gone right now she like she's like we watch your YouTube videos every night they're going crazy the dad dad chance so that's what it's about we got we got Drew Franklin in the cut shout out to Drew what's up Drew what you're fine you're fine man but yeah man let's let's talk about familiar a little bit since the reason why you're here um walk me through like what was the process like for uh Beckham recruiting you how did he pitch to you and what was your initial it was easy it was an easy call bro like I'm like I said I'm in a position where like I'm I'm smart enough to know Hoops is coming to an end and like he brought this opportunity to me and leaving here the last time I left here I'm like man I'll never play with these groups of guys again I'll never play in that building and I'll never play in front of these people again and then like he brought that I'm like it's a perfect time to do this right now and like I said I'm in caho like I'm probably like 85% sure that I want to move back and and kind of start my life here as a a retired you know person I want to go back to school and uh finish my degree I got like 38 more hours left and I you know so I kind of got that going in motion what's your degree uh I'm just a C major okay some some light uh Hey degree is degree go finish it the paper the paper but I want to uh you know the JR Smith Story how he walk so that's something I want to do here is walk on the golf team and um put on for Kentucky again bro I think it would be lit that I did not know you was thinking about doing that yeah bro moving back and finishing that and hopefully walking on the golf team and um bringing some different energy out here y biggest takeaway regardless of you guys winning this thing or losing this thing what's your biggest takeaway from this whole experience I mean it's just giving back to the community you know I mean like all tournament aside you can win and make some money but it's really just the opportunity to play for these fans again and kind of get back like a lot of us ain't been back in a decade so like to to be able to give back to them and kind of make them dive back into that time with basketball that was here that was like at its peak um that's good for them you know what I mean and get that feeling again so that's that's why I chose to like it was basketball aside you know what I mean a lot of these guys are still trying to hoop somewhere I'm like if it happens it happens you know what I mean I'm not I didn't come here to try to go back to the league or try to get a SC or a deal overseas yeah I came back to just play with these guys again and enjoy the community that's love that's what it's about man you talked about basketball I learned a lot I'm learning a lot so far man you're big basketball guy and you like golf let's rewind a little bit to football you used to be a big football star your high school days man what was that like if you guys haven't seen his highlights his football highlights just go look at it go just go look at it but what was that like man um being a football star do you think that you possibly could have been a football star basketball did work out for you I mean I could do whatever I want to do you know what I mean like I feel like I I have that type of mentality and um that type of faith that like put something in front of me and if I wanted to do it I could knock it out and do it so football was one of them things where you know I grew up playing and everybody was like oh you can't play football oh you're too t I was like okay yeah watch this then so then I you know I wanted to do it more than basketball like there was a time where my firstman year of basketball I wouldn't even going to play basketball I want to be a football player I want to be a quarterback I want to go D1 quarterback and then got a new coach in and everybody in the well everybody in town was like come on man like we don't got enough guys anyway we need we need you to and I was like yeah you're right I'm a play and then I think I know I had 30 college coaches in the building and it was just a bunch of energy rolling now we're here you know still still still love the game man I still I loved competing in football man it was fun you ever play uh on your free time anytime like that now no I I a I might throw the ball around a little bit but other nothing serious nothing serious man so where did basketball become really serious I know you talked about your you got a new high school coach kind of Chang for where did it really come serious where you're like oh man this is I can make a living off this probably my sophore year high school yeah when we got this new coach his name is Jared Stanford um he came in he was a young guy um kind of come in and kind of shook up our little small town of what we were taught how to play basketball he came in with like these Iverson workouts had me do all these iers nobody's seen that out there and uh it was unfortunate cuz he had ended up getting fired going into my junior year so then I transferred to a whole different like 6 s hours away from where we were and that's that's when the football thing really took off cuz I was at like a 68 school now big school now so it's a little a little more height a little more loud um but to me like it's all about art and all these little football basketball golf it's all art it's all it's life it's all an art to me so just living is an art so when I when I bust things down like that I mean it's super easy to get [ __ ] done facts facts man I get that I totally get that man um let me ask you about the transition from Kansas small town Kansas to Lexington Kentucky this is two different worlds and for you you're not only just a regular person you're a rockar you get on campus you're seen in that like you you experiencing it even today what was that how did you transition into that bro honestly it was like uh I I came in with no expectation that was like first thing you know no expectation just go in there I was a fourar you know recruit everybody else was five stars and number one in the in the draft class and position and stuff and so I I came in as you know a little chip on my shoulder like you want to prove something yeah like and I and I had like a you know my confidence of poops wasn't where it is today obviously but I had a competitive Spirit where like I'm willing to get get down and work on and that's what happened bro people would tell you bro when I came in here bro I couldn't score a left-handed [ __ ] jump hook and really I leave here and left-handed jump Hook is probably one of the most things that I do now is left hand and stuff like that game develop man I've heard the the off the court Stories the the skate in the class oh uh that's what I'm saying man I just came as a college kid like it was the first time away from home I came from a town of 800 people I was out here but yeah they was literally calling me the skater kid oh yeah you're the skater kid that that hoops right yeah the first places I was going to was the skate park right there behind the L yeah right by the park with a the swimming pool and stuff I was like some of the first places I was going to was pulling up to the skate park and uh meeting people throwing up graffiti and stuff like yeah so I wasn't a Hooper when I first got here for sure you developed into a Hooper you developed into a Hooper I have to ask you man you you talked about like some of your teammates you walked in you had Vans but your team LeBron all Jordans yeah I got Chucks and Van and very West Coast yeah no it was different definitely different man what what about your adjustment to the the style of play like who how did you adjust was it I know KP coach KP had a lot to do with to you know getting you in workouts late at night yeah how you adjust to the differences in the game from high school to college I think for me I was blessed my a program we were a real program like we two a we're having defensive practices so when I already came here I was already the defense was light years ahead of the offensive side of the so like defense I mean I didn't have to think about it it was natur we already drilled it as a kid of like helps side and you know sh yeah stunts and all these other things so when I came here I mean it was second nature like I was ahead of the game in that aspect so it wasn't hard to insert myself here and just play hard I want to talk a little bit about Cal Cal's obviously in Arkansas and a lot of fans I've interviewed a lot of play cow players I mean a lot majority of my people are cow players and what I've noticed about them Trail is cow's more than just a coach he's more like a family like yeah father like like a father figure absolutely what makes him so different from all the other Hall of Fame coaches in your opinion well I mean I don't know a lot of them other I mean I don't know you know what I mean I haven't talked to them guy like the other coaches and stuff like that but what I love and respect about Cal was wasn't about Hoops Hoops was we all know the pitch of when we come in here it's different it's not for everyone but if you come here and you put yourself in and you work yeah you're going to go to the league you're going to get drafted at least now it's like that's a whole another thing that you got to deal with like you get draft now so you know what I mean you don't have Cal on your backside yeah kind of directing you where to go anymore so a little bit different yeah so I think with him it was I mean we had so many meetings of like what to do with money what to do in crisis of women so this is outside of basketball me this is this is meetings that he would have at like random Mee we had so many meetings it's like especially like you see all these hor horror stories of you know rape allegations and stuff like this like he was not going to let that happen we had 10:00 curfew like no girls in the lodge no nothing like you know what I'm saying so like that stuff right there just protected us like yeah we were upset about it at the time but I'm looking 10 years now I'm like well we were never in a position to even get in trouble you know he kind of he kind of put that at the Forefront just like teaching us how to live outside of basketball was like that's the main thing that I got him new coach in town Mark Pope have you had any recent interactions with him what are your thoughts yeah I talked to him a little bit man I like I like him bro like I think he would be a fun coach to play for he's completely different vibe than C me and T you us three all just talk about completely different vibe but I mean it's a refreshing Vibe you know so I I I personally would have loved to play for him like after what I seen yesterday like he's a he's a he's a very uh chill guy but he's got an edge to him and uh you know you take it there with him I I think he's going to take it there with you so no for sure he always TR he seems like he's always on like like even like you see him on camera on TV he's like that in person like he acts the same way if you like wings like me make sure you go and check out Wing King at greyline station they've got over 15 flavors with a size as Rangers from 6 to 100 Wings boneless or traditional whatever you like dry or wet whatever you like make sure you check out win King over at Grey Line Station they've got to cover now before you even get there we got to talk about your moments in Kentucky some of your biggest your biggest moments What's your favorite moment here at Kentucky if you had to single it down to one or two what would you say you had a lot can I give my can I give my favorite yeah you give me your favorite I like the Florida we University of Florida you catch it and you extend slam dunk over catching bodies what's your favorite moment honestly not even probably basketball related probably just like after basketball like the like when we the last game we had here when we went 3 31 and like our last regular season t-shirts I think that after like after we won that we got to enjoy that on the floor and got to talk on the mic a little bit like that was probably one of the coolest moments that was a something man they had tup was going you think that was probably the loudest loud you ever heard R is that night I don't know I mean Louisville games is always hype yeah Tennessee games is always hype rival games yeah so all the rivalry games it gets Rowdy in there so let's talk about the NBA a little bit transition from college to the NBA College you're the rockar at the University of Kentucky and Lexington everywhere you go everywhere you go everybody wants a picture autographs all that good stuff NBA you just like you start from zero now you're in Sacramento and rockar to professional basketball player how did you adjust like overall mentally was it kind of weird in your sense of going from a rockstar to just you know an NBA player a draft pick potential no cuz you know I was a six pick so like I was still a rockar thr to sack like Baron sack was even is even like it's lowkey like here their fan Bas is very similar to this to Kentucky yeah so like when I went there a lot of them was Kentucky fans a lot of them you know what I mean so like I was just as much as a rockar there um in the beginning as as it was here so there was really no adjusting it was just like enjoying cuz now I don't have that you know what I mean until they come back here yeah fact so just the enjoyment of it just like riding the way on the court what was it like uh competition wise you're playing against some of the best players in the world compared to Kentucky I feel like Kentucky obviously prepared you for that cuz you're playing every day in practice I mean I had seven draft picks on my team so like it's always it was always against Pros like that's why that's why we came here to practice against Pros every single day and so I mean it's like it's a easy transition bro yeah wi in is you're a pro already before when you leave here are you open to a return to the NBA what does that look like for you oh for sure if it if it happened you know what I mean like if we we came out here and won this and I I had a hell of a run and I got a call up I'm there in a heartbeat you know what I mean if not you already you already heard my plan you know what I mean so yeah facts I got a plan you know that's that's that's not the case it's just I don't think it's it's about basketball at that level it's about everything else but basketball so that deters me from that side of it yeah so the politics side of it I hate it it's not fun and it takes away from the love of basketball there two things there's a business of basketball and there's basketball love basketball love competing I can come out here and just have fun playing but as soon as you get in like an organization and it's not about basketball anymore it's not fun man man I I I I get you on that one we got to go to our last segment this is sponsored by wi King it is called social Spotlight I basically show you a few photos on your Instagram or whatever you posted and you just got to walk us through what you what it means to you so first photo which I find very interesting cuz I've been watching the show I was talking to Yoku on his episode and then he's been putting me on Naruto and I've been watching that a lot so here's the first photo you just going to walk us through what what's that looking like I see you got a little aoty stuff yeah yeah yeah so uh this I mean this was we did this I mean coming out of a workout uh one of the guys that make jerseys um had a bunch of like anime jerseys and he sent me them he was like was just posting for me so I wore that to workout and had zoo with me and was like yo shoot me real quick so I can post this guy but it end up being a really dope picture shoots is a dope picture so mask on and everything like and the back of that is real cool too that's during Co so that's why we got the Mas oh okay and then the second photo this is probably my favorite and I wanted to put multiple of your paintings to your big painter yeah you still paint often or it's the photo we got walk us through that what were we looking at right here yeah I mean obviously I'm a a big music guy so um I wanted to just you know I got a Jimmy Hendrick tattoo um I just love what his movement was and so I'm like yo I got to I got to I got to I got to make something for him and that was like the first one I did oh this was the first one yeah I got I got a couple other ones but I I did a series of I like superheroes and villains and stuff like that so I did like a a three like a trio painting yeah so uh I did one of Michael Jackson as the joker I'm a big Mike mik fan so I'm going have to see that yeah so I did a Michael Jackson with u in a joker form and then I did a kurk Cobain in a joker form but a different one and then I did a a prince in a whole another Joker form so like all I did all three Jokers and then like and they all racked up on how did you even get into painting man well when I was here in Kentucky I was uh I was when I first started I wanted to be a art major so I was doing a bunch of art classes and then like eventually it was like I'm just trying to get out of here so then I changed the communications but yeah in the beginning I was taking like 2D drawing 3D drawing creative creative drawing uh this this one little creative art class that like they would literally when you come in they would put like dump like a bunch of just random stuff and you have to like put it together and make Co yeah it was cool little classes out that's cool that's I didn't know they had that man painting gaming you're a big gamer too I know Co kind of put you into gaming uh making music do you make music stick I haven't made it in a while you know it's there when I'm with the guys it's up it's up like matter of fact we got a session tonight we man man you should pull up I should I should pull up get some content sure got painting gaming making music ball player golf golfer I mean I can keep going but what outside of all those things what makes you Wily Callin if you take all those things away who are you at your court I think I wear it on my sleeve man like what y'all see is like that's that's I don't change for nobody bro so what y'all see on a daily basis how I interact with people ears that's that's what I'm on every day so there's not much not much change to what it is got we always end out two questions man first question you're on what's next podcast so you know what's next for you outside a lot familiar what were you thinking uh I mean I'm thinking come back get my degree um I I want to get into coaching so I got to grab I got to scoop the degree to get into coaching um I want like you know Yoku started the brick house a but like back when we was in college bro we was talking about starting an academy and this that's what brick house is so like it's all just kind of connecting the dots now bro like I'm back and I'm like really serious about coming back and I think uh the academy can be a really cool Foundation out here just shout out Yoku man shout out Yoku so I want to get into like not being like a agent but like more of a a consultant to young dudes that especially with the nil and um like how to navigate that part of it you know what I mean how to like set yourself up for after Hoops um cuz I didn't do a good job with that and so like now I want to pass that on to people and especially like the recovery aspect of what I've gone through um I think you know ky's obviously one of the spots that um the recovery part of that is big here I feel like and I think that just me having that experience I could I could relate to a lot of people here and really help a lot of people with that I love what you just said it seems like you're all about giving back as far as what my our conversation is uh all about so what's your best advice to anybody like what do you have to say what's the best advice for Willie Callin I would say I mean just doing like whatever it is that you do like just doing it with a purpose of of of getting better that day like not the whole the down the line of what I want but like this right here the day is the biggest part of it you know what I mean it's like enjoying that day enjoying that process of getting better that day and then like let the the end result like be the end result and then like having that Faith bro just having the faith that it's going to get done no matter what look what it looks like in that time of that day but knowing at the end of this thing it's going to get done I love that man and what what really stands out to me is the the connecting dots you might have a a longterm goal but just focus on a short-term goal might connect connect to it it's going to connect to us it's purposeful bro you know what I mean it's it's got to connect to that for sure man it's been a pleasure man chat with you man all love make sure you hit that like And subscribe button ladies and gents uh this episode is brought to you by wi King make sure you go check check wi King out as well Willie Callin make sure you check them out in live Familia this weekend they're going to make some noise hold up we need everybody to pack it up pack out R pack out R ladies and gents that's all we got for today we'll be back with another episode next week cool BR appreciate you my guy