Hoosier by birth and attended UCLA for college, both places hotbeds for hoops! What else could I be?
Admittedly, I’m no good at it myself, but I enjoy watching it, particularly the NBA. Believe it or not, I’ve been a longtime LA Clippers fan, well before the Blake Griffin/Chris Paul/Lob City days. I’ve always preferred rooting for the underdogs, which is why I’ve never been a fan of the Lakers.
Of course, throughout the 90s & 00s, being a Clipper fan didn’t give you much to cheer about, so I often resorted to rooting
for whoever was playing against the Lakers! And for a few years around the turn of the century, that often meant rooting for the
Sacramento Kings, who were the Lakers’ nemesis at the time. And leading the Kings’ charge was power forward Chris Webber.
So it was a pleasure to meet Chris and chat about some of his favorite music when he stopped by for a recent Guest DJ Project visit. As skilled and polished a player as he was (and you don’t get to be Rookie of the Year, a regular All-Star or a rebounding champion by accident!) he has proven to be as intriguing a person in his post-playing career, not only as a TV analyst, but also as a philanthropist and a collector of important African American artifacts, which he has made public through various museums.
He is also clearly a big fan of music, which he approaches both from an intellectual and emotional level, as his Guest DJ set suggests. Here’s a quick peek into his musical mind:
Chris Webber Talks Motown on KCRW by KCRW
The new NBA season has begun with a lot of intriguing storylines, especially for us LA fans, with a bunch of new faces on our local teams, not to mention the coaching drama with the Lakers and the ascendency of the Clippers as one of the best teams in the league (both of which make me chortle with glee!)
What better way to celebrate the young season than an audio visit with one of the NBA’s former greats! (I’d also recommend Jason Bentley’s chat with legendary Clippers announcer Ralph Lawler from last season.)
ERIC J. LAWRENCE