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World B Free – The Prince of Midair Part 4
As the player with maybe the greatest nickname in the history of the NBA, who do you think has the best nickname in the league today?
I like Allen‘s nickname, ‘the Answer‘. When he first came into the league they asked him what he was called. He said ‘Some call me Bubba Chuck. Some of my friends call me the Answer because when I‘m on the court I will answer every bell that rings.‘ And ever since then, for thirteen years he has been up there. So I like that name very much.
You mentioned the other day that you played with Joe “Jelly Bean“ Bryant and that Kobe used to join the team at practice sessions. Can you tell us a little bit about young Kobe?
At that time Kobe was a freshman in high school and he was playing against our guys as we had a pick up game going. I knew Kobe before because I watched him play at Lower Merion High School. So I knew that he had game. But what I didn‘t know was how good he had become from playing in Italy where he played against a lot of guys who were older than he was. And he also played with his father every day. And his father used to beat him up on the basketball court. Kobe would drive past him and Joe just kept hacking his son and fouling him. And I was like ‘Man, that‘s a foul!‘ But Kobe just kept playing. I knew that Kobe was going to become something really special because he didn‘t whine or cry about nothing. And the guys on our team knew as well. He’d wear them out. I think Vernon Maxwell was the only guy Kobe didn’t light up.
Tell me why style is important in basketball. What do style and basketball have to do with each other?
See it‘s just like a great one-on-one basketball player. You‘re talking about the Michael Jordans, the Magic Johnsons, the Larry Birds, the World B Frees of this world. What we do is we come out on the court and we play with a special style. And when you play like that you’re likely to celebrate your style off court too. And that‘s why it‘s important what you wear. So when you come out on the court or out on the street, people will see that‘s what separates us from the others.
Would you say that Allen Iverson is like the World B Free of this era because he brought a whole new, kind of style to the game and made it his own?
I would say that Allen Iverson would be a good second World B Free for what he has done in basketball – other than the thug life. He is an icon for young people. His clothes and the way he wears them, and also him coming into the league wearing braids. He has his own type of style.
How many shoes do you have at home?
(thinks) I would say over a thousand pairs of shoes.
Man, how much space does that take?
Well it does take up a lot of space. I have one of these clean houses and a closet where you just push a button and it goes round and round until you get to the style you like. A good friend of mine made this one for me and he did a really good job.
You played in the NBA from the 60ies all the way to the beginning of the 80ies and you were always leading the league with your style. What kind of reactions did you receive for your whole World B Free style?
I was always a trendsetter. When I saw someone wearing stuff that I liked I always tried to do it a little bit different. If someone wore his socks either high or low I would wear mine in between. I never wanted to be the same as the next person. I wanted to be World B Free. So I wanted the people to say ‘Wow, when World B Free wears something then it has to be something different.‘. That‘s what I wanted the people to know about World B Free.
You guys were wearing your gold chains during the games and everything. Tell me your honest to God opinion about the NBA dress code.
My opinion on that doesn‘t really mean anything. But I believe right now that the players should wear suits and ties. When you are a professional and you go out to the public you dress accordingly. When you get home from the game and you wanna get comfortable you can relax. But when you are doing your profession you should pay attention to the fact that there‘s kids looking up to you.
What was your reaction when you were approached by k1x several years ago to create whole line based around the “World B Free”? What were you thinking?
When they first came to me I was elated by it. I’ve had companies come at me before, big guns too. But I never really felt it. Then my son told me one day ‘Dad it would cool to have your own line. You should go ahead and do something like that.’ And a year later K1X approached me about the possibility a second time after first bringing up the ideas at the All Star Game in Philly back in 2002. You know, God is good in all kinds of ways. I think it’s a great thing because, like I said, I’m a stylish guy, a trendsetter. And I only try to wear the best. And this is what K1X has put out for me, the best.
Pics: Steve Boyle
Interview: Niels Jäger & Christian Trojan
