(2877,2,'2010-11-18 11:59:51','2010-11-18 19:59:51','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2869\" title=\"Jo_Newman_LEAD\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Jo_Newman_LEAD.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"599\" height=\"282\" />\n\nA graduate of New York University\'s Tisch School of the Arts, <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2491555/\" target=\"_blank\">Jo Newman</a> is a gorgeous, up-and-coming actress who’s about to make her big screen debut in the upcoming film <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758752/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Love and Other Drugs</em></a>, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway. Newman has made numerous TV appearances including spots on <em>Gossip Girl</em>, <em>The Sopranos</em> and <em>Law and Order: SUV</em>. I had the chance to speak with Jo about her acting background, TV experiences and her excitement over the November 24<sup>th</sup> release of her first feature film.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So where are you from originally?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> I was born in a little hippie town in western Massachusetts and then I was in New York for 8 years and I moved out here in January.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So in your hippie town did you grow up a Patriots fan?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> I somehow along the way became an Eagles fan (laughs)\n\n<strong> </strong>\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> An Eagles fan from Massachusettes? Wait a minute.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Eagles fan.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So you said you just came out in January, how does the West Coast compare to the East Coast?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Well, obviously the weather is fantastic\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Right, no complaints here.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> It seems like this is absolutely where the concentration of the industry is. You know it was a much more eclectic mix of people in New York. I’m really happy to be here. I feel really motivated. I feel good and encouraged and it feels good. And I just love riding around in a convertible in January.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs) Yeah, that’s awesome. So did you get into modeling before you started doing acting?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> No, I moved to New York when I was 17 and I went to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy which is an acting conservatory. I decided I wanted a much deeper and more thorough education and I got into Tisch at NYU. So I studied Meisner for two years, Shakespeare, Viewpoints with Mary Overly and then I did some television school for the last two years I was there and really got into it. Then my first job after NYU, I think I graduated and a month later I got a spot on <em>The Sopranos</em>. Things were rocking and rolling in New York. I figured after I cast this move, I did some very cool modeling campaigns and then I got a great spot on Law &amp; Order and I figured “okay, time to try L.A.”\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So was it totally awesome being on <em>The Sopranos</em>?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Oh my god, it was <em>so</em> much fun. I was a month out of college, I’m on set and I had a scene where they killed my boyfriend. So I’m wearing this J.Lo type dress – it’s down to my bellybutton – I’m 21 years old and I’m being splattered with blood on everything.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> I could not have had a better time, it was awesome.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how many takes did you have to get splattered?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> A lot. I mean, a lot a lot. I mean those guys were perfectionists. It felt like being on a movie set. I think that was one of the reasons that it took so long to get the seasons out there, because it just took them a long time to shoot it. I probably got blood splattered on me like 25 times.\n\n<strong><img class=\"size-full wp-image-2873 alignright\" title=\"jo-newman\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jo-newman.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"299\" height=\"273\" />CS:</strong> Oh wow.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> And there’s a guy under the table with a little blood apparatus.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yea, I had to keep my legs crossed during that scene.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh geez.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So what was your role on Law &amp; Order?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> On Law &amp; Order I got - it was on SVU.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Okay.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> I played a girl who works in a copying – like a Kinko’s – shop and she was the last person to see the victim alive. She was a super ditz, and I had hot pink underwear sticking out of my jeans.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> And I got interrogated by Chris Meloni. It was a blast!\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh nice. So is that guy really intense or what?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> He turns it on for the camera and in between takes he’s showing me pictures of his kids on his iPhone. He’s a good actor you know he just … I don’t know if it’s because we all know him as a detective but he’s just shifts into the role so seamlessly. It’s a good acting study for a young person.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Yeah, I’ve seen him in a couple like stoner movie roles so I can see how he could be the kind of guy to flip the switch and just take on a different persona quick.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yeah, he has a way of just melting into the words. Everything sounds very, very organic and natural coming from him. It’s pretty cool to be around him, really it is. And with Love &amp; Other Drugs, seeing Hank Azaria do his role I felt like I – I wouldn’t want to say this to any of my professors at NYU – but I felt like I learned just as much watching him do the take six times as I did in a year of college.\n\n<strong> </strong>\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh wow. So that’s your big screen debut then coming up.\n\n<strong>JN</strong>: I know!\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: So you’re excited?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> It was a phenomenal experience. I can’t wait to be in another movie. It was so great.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So you mentioned the Sopranos had that kind of more of a film set atmosphere compared to other TV work you’ve done. What was it like on the set of Love &amp; Other Drugs?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> First of all, I don’t know if it was because the director is such an approachable and actor friendly director, but there was a real camaraderie on set, everyone was really, really cool. There was no ‘don’t approach anybody.’ I got to hang out with Jake Gyllenhaal a bunch and I got to talk to Hank Azaria. And people are very, very interested in telling the story. It’s really going to be a fun movie. It’s fun, it’s sexy, there’s a lot going on, but it really does touch on some incredibly hot issues right now as far as the healthcare performance goes and the pharmaceutical industry. There’s a lot going on in this romantic comedy.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now I want to ask you, is Anne Hathaway hot?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> She’s <em>beautiful</em>.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Really?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Oh, she’s beautiful and it’s like she doesn’t know she’s a star yet, which hopefully, if I make it big, I’ll be able to maintain that grounding.\n\n<strong> </strong>\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs) And that’s nice to be around, because I’ve been around some people where it’s like hey, guess what, we’re all still human.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Yeah, I won’t ask you to name any names, because I never really get too far when I ask those types of questions. So what are you working on now?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> I am producing a TV show and we start on Saturday, so I’m really, really excited. I wrote a pilot, I got incredible production company involved and I did the casting. I am absolutely blown away by the amount of talent that’s willing to work for (laughs) not a lot of cash. We start filming Saturday. It’s called “Greeting From Sunny Beaches” and it’s the behind the scenes dirt of the making of a fictional reality show, but it’s all scripted.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh wow, that sounds like you have a lot of material to run with there.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Oh, it’s going to be so much fun. The characters are fuckin’ insane and there’s just no end to the amount of situations that you can put these people in that are real.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So do you hope to do more producing and writing work in the future? Are you going to keep acting? What are your plans?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> I’m going to do it all. I feel definitely in the past couple of years that the auditions that have come over my desk as far as women’s roles are not fleshed out, they’re pretty limited. And I love writing, I studied a lot of writing in college and my Dad writes, and I feel very at home and alive and inspired with a pen in my hand or in front of the computer. And I love acting and I hope – I would love to do all this, do it all you know? I remember reading an interview with Kevin Smith in high school and he said “I never thought I could get anyone to hire me as an actor, so I just started writing my own shit and hiring myself.” And I thought, okay, good call dude.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs) That’s funny. So do redheads have more fun?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Always, and we have a higher pain tolerance.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Really?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Mmm hmm.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now let me ask you this, do you find it offensive…\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> …I’m just going to go ahead and accept that as truth and move right on. Do you find it offensive when people refer to your people as “gingers”?\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> No. I think as redheads we’re used to standing out and we’ve got to get used to all nicknames.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Okay.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> And they can be a lot worse than that.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Yeah, I guess that’s true.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> I’m sure you’ve heard much worse.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yeah I think if you’re called “ginger” you get off pretty fuckin’ easy (laughs)\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs) So best of luck with this new film and everything else in the future and thanks for taking the time to speak with us.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Hey, thank you so much this was really cool. Hopefully next time I’ll be telling you about something even more grand.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> And just make sure to maintain a level head when you become a big star, like you said.\n\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yeah. I have a Jewish mother, I don’t know how you could not.','Jo Newman Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2868-revision-6','','','2010-11-18 11:59:51','2010-11-18 19:59:51','',2868,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2868-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(2878,2,'2010-11-18 12:07:30','2010-11-18 20:07:30','<object id=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"515\" height=\"330\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"flashvars\" value=\"key=cd14a180a2\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf\" /><param name=\"name\" value=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" /><param name=\"quality\" value=\"high\" /><embed id=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"515\" height=\"330\" src=\"http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf\" quality=\"high\" name=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" flashvars=\"key=cd14a180a2\"></embed></object>\n<div style=\"text-align: left; font-size: x-small; margin-top: 0pt; width: 512px;\"><a title=\"from FOD Team, Nick Kroll, Jon Daly, Alison Becker, and Kat Bardot\" href=\"http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/cd14a180a2/ed-hardy-boyz\">The Ed Hardy Boyz: The Case of the Missing Sick Belt Buckle</a> from <a href=\"http://www.funnyordie.com/jon_daly\">Jon Daly</a></div>','The Ed Hardy Boyz: The Case of the Missing Sick Belt Buckle','','inherit','open','open','','2876-revision','','','2010-11-18 12:07:30','2010-11-18 20:07:30','',2876,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2876-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2879,2,'2010-11-18 12:08:40','2010-11-18 20:08:40','<object id=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"515\" height=\"330\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"flashvars\" value=\"key=cd14a180a2\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf\" /><param name=\"name\" value=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" /><param name=\"quality\" value=\"high\" /><embed id=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"515\" height=\"330\" src=\"http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf\" quality=\"high\" name=\"ordie_player_cd14a180a2\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" flashvars=\"key=cd14a180a2\"></embed></object>\n<div style=\"text-align: left; font-size: x-small; margin-top: 0pt; width: 512px;\"><a title=\"from FOD Team, Nick Kroll, Jon Daly, Alison Becker, and Kat Bardot\" href=\"http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/cd14a180a2/ed-hardy-boyz\">The Ed Hardy Boyz: The Case of the Missing Sick Belt Buckle</a> from <a href=\"http://www.funnyordie.com/jon_daly\">Jon Daly</a></div>','The Ed Hardy Boyz: The Case of the Missing Sick Belt Buckle','','inherit','open','open','','2876-autosave','','','2010-11-18 12:08:40','2010-11-18 20:08:40','',2876,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2876-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2880,2,'2010-11-18 12:13:47','2010-11-18 20:13:47','','Jo_Newman_lead-','','inherit','open','open','','jo_newman_lead-2','','','2010-11-18 12:13:47','2010-11-18 20:13:47','',2868,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Jo_Newman_lead-.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2881,2,'2010-11-18 12:00:28','2010-11-18 20:00:28','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2869\" title=\"Jo_Newman_LEAD\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Jo_Newman_LEAD.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"599\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nA graduate of New York University\'s Tisch School of the Arts, <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2491555/\" target=\"_blank\">Jo Newman</a> is a gorgeous, up-and-coming actress who’s about to make her big screen debut in the upcoming film <a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758752/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Love and Other Drugs</em></a>, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway. Newman has made numerous TV appearances including spots on <em>Gossip Girl</em>, <em>The Sopranos</em> and <em>Law and Order: SUV</em>. I had the chance to speak with Jo about her acting background, TV experiences and her excitement over the November 24<sup>th</sup> release of her first feature film.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So where are you from originally?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> I was born in a little hippie town in western Massachusetts and then I was in New York for 8 years and I moved out here in January.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So in your hippie town did you grow up a Patriots fan?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> I somehow along the way became an Eagles fan (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> An Eagles fan from Massachusettes? Wait a minute.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Eagles fan.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So you said you just came out in January, how does the West Coast compare to the East Coast?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Well, obviously the weather is fantastic\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Right, no complaints here.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> It seems like this is absolutely where the concentration of the industry is. You know it was a much more eclectic mix of people in New York. I’m really happy to be here. I feel really motivated. I feel good and encouraged and it feels good. And I just love riding around in a convertible in January.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs) Yeah, that’s awesome. So did you get into modeling before you started doing acting?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> No, I moved to New York when I was 17 and I went to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy which is an acting conservatory. I decided I wanted a much deeper and more thorough education and I got into Tisch at NYU. So I studied Meisner for two years, Shakespeare, Viewpoints with Mary Overly and then I did some television school for the last two years I was there and really got into it. Then my first job after NYU, I think I graduated and a month later I got a spot on <em>The Sopranos</em>. Things were rocking and rolling in New York. I figured after I cast this move, I did some very cool modeling campaigns and then I got a great spot on Law &amp; Order and I figured “okay, time to try L.A.”\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So was it totally awesome being on <em>The Sopranos</em>?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Oh my god, it was <em>so</em> much fun. I was a month out of college, I’m on set and I had a scene where they killed my boyfriend. So I’m wearing this J.Lo type dress – it’s down to my bellybutton – I’m 21 years old and I’m being splattered with blood on everything.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> I could not have had a better time, it was awesome.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how many takes did you have to get splattered?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> A lot. I mean, a lot a lot. I mean those guys were perfectionists. It felt like being on a movie set. I think that was one of the reasons that it took so long to get the seasons out there, because it just took them a long time to shoot it. I probably got blood splattered on me like 25 times.\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"size-full wp-image-2873 alignright\" title=\"jo-newman\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jo-newman.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"299\" height=\"273\" />CS:</strong> Oh wow.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> And there’s a guy under the table with a little blood apparatus.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yea, I had to keep my legs crossed during that scene.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh geez.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So what was your role on Law &amp; Order?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> On Law &amp; Order I got - it was on SVU.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Okay.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> I played a girl who works in a copying – like a Kinko’s – shop and she was the last person to see the victim alive. She was a super ditz, and I had hot pink underwear sticking out of my jeans.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> And I got interrogated by Chris Meloni. It was a blast!\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh nice. So is that guy really intense or what?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> He turns it on for the camera and in between takes he’s showing me pictures of his kids on his iPhone. He’s a good actor you know he just … I don’t know if it’s because we all know him as a detective but he’s just shifts into the role so seamlessly. It’s a good acting study for a young person.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Yeah, I’ve seen him in a couple like stoner movie roles so I can see how he could be the kind of guy to flip the switch and just take on a different persona quick.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yeah, he has a way of just melting into the words. Everything sounds very, very organic and natural coming from him. It’s pretty cool to be around him, really it is. And with Love &amp; Other Drugs, seeing Hank Azaria do his role I felt like I – I wouldn’t want to say this to any of my professors at NYU – but I felt like I learned just as much watching him do the take six times as I did in a year of college.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh wow. So that’s your big screen debut then coming up.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN</strong>: I know!\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: So you’re excited?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> It was a phenomenal experience. I can’t wait to be in another movie. It was so great.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So you mentioned the Sopranos had that kind of more of a film set atmosphere compared to other TV work you’ve done. What was it like on the set of Love &amp; Other Drugs?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> First of all, I don’t know if it was because the director is such an approachable and actor friendly director, but there was a real camaraderie on set, everyone was really, really cool. There was no ‘don’t approach anybody.’ I got to hang out with Jake Gyllenhaal a bunch and I got to talk to Hank Azaria. And people are very, very interested in telling the story. It’s really going to be a fun movie. It’s fun, it’s sexy, there’s a lot going on, but it really does touch on some incredibly hot issues right now as far as the healthcare performance goes and the pharmaceutical industry. There’s a lot going on in this romantic comedy.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now I want to ask you, is Anne Hathaway hot?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> She’s <em>beautiful</em>.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Really?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Oh, she’s beautiful and it’s like she doesn’t know she’s a star yet, which hopefully, if I make it big, I’ll be able to maintain that grounding.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs) And that’s nice to be around, because I’ve been around some people where it’s like hey, guess what, we’re all still human.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Yeah, I won’t ask you to name any names, because I never really get too far when I ask those types of questions. So what are you working on now?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> I am producing a TV show and we start on Saturday, so I’m really, really excited. I wrote a pilot, I got incredible production company involved and I did the casting. I am absolutely blown away by the amount of talent that’s willing to work for (laughs) not a lot of cash. We start filming Saturday. It’s called “Greeting From Sunny Beaches” and it’s the behind the scenes dirt of the making of a fictional reality show, but it’s all scripted.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Oh wow, that sounds like you have a lot of material to run with there.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Oh, it’s going to be so much fun. The characters are fuckin’ insane and there’s just no end to the amount of situations that you can put these people in that are real.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So do you hope to do more producing and writing work in the future? Are you going to keep acting? What are your plans?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> I’m going to do it all. I feel definitely in the past couple of years that the auditions that have come over my desk as far as women’s roles are not fleshed out, they’re pretty limited. And I love writing, I studied a lot of writing in college and my Dad writes, and I feel very at home and alive and inspired with a pen in my hand or in front of the computer. And I love acting and I hope – I would love to do all this, do it all you know? I remember reading an interview with Kevin Smith in high school and he said “I never thought I could get anyone to hire me as an actor, so I just started writing my own shit and hiring myself.” And I thought, okay, good call dude.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs) That’s funny. So do redheads have more fun?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Always, and we have a higher pain tolerance.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Really?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Mmm hmm.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now let me ask you this, do you find it offensive…\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> …I’m just going to go ahead and accept that as truth and move right on. Do you find it offensive when people refer to your people as “gingers”?\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> No. I think as redheads we’re used to standing out and we’ve got to get used to all nicknames.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Okay.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> And they can be a lot worse than that.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Yeah, I guess that’s true.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> I’m sure you’ve heard much worse.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yeah I think if you’re called “ginger” you get off pretty fuckin’ easy (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs) So best of luck with this new film and everything else in the future and thanks for taking the time to speak with us.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Hey, thank you so much this was really cool. Hopefully next time I’ll be telling you about something even more grand.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> And just make sure to maintain a level head when you become a big star, like you said.\r\n\r\n<strong>JN:</strong> Yeah. I have a Jewish mother, I don’t know how you could not.','Jo Newman Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2868-revision-7','','','2010-11-18 12:00:28','2010-11-18 20:00:28','',2868,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2868-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(2882,2,'2010-11-18 16:25:37','2010-11-19 00:25:37','<a href=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2883\" title=\"BSP\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"440\" height=\"230\" /></a>\r\n\r\nDamn right that\'s a photo of Brian St. Pierre! (Back when we was the third-string QB for the Cardinals). Brian\'s getting the call for the Panthers this week. Carolina is not going to be Baltimore, but we can still cheer for a guy who\'s only thrown five passes in eight NFL seasons. Go BSP!\r\n<table border=\"1\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" width=\"599\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Miami -2.5 Chicago\r\n\r\nPICK: Dolphins -2.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Jacksonville -1.5 Cleveland\r\n\r\nPICK: Jags -1.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Pittsburgh -7 Oakland\r\n\r\nPICK: Steelers -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Kansas City -8 Arizona\r\n\r\nPICK: Chiefs -8</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At NY Jets -7 Houston\r\n\r\nPICK: Jets -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New Orleans -11.5 Seattle\r\n\r\nPICK: Saints -11.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Baltimore -10.5 At Carolina\r\n\r\nPICK: Ravens -10.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">Atlanta -3 At St. Louis\r\n\r\nPICK: Falcons -3</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Tennessee -7 Washington\r\n\r\nPICK: Titans -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Francisco -3.5 Tampa Bay\r\n\r\nPICK: Bucs +3.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Dallas -6.5 Detroit\r\n\r\nPICK: Lions +6.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New England -3.5 Indianapolis\r\n\r\nPICK: Pats -3.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Green Bay -3 At Minnesota\r\n\r\nPICK: Packers -3</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Philadelphia -3 NY Giants\r\n\r\nPICK: Eagles -3</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Cincinnati -6 Buffalo\r\n\r\nPICK: Bills +6</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Diego -10 Denver\r\n\r\nPICK: Chargers -10</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>\r\nLast week: 5-8\r\nSeason: 69-67-6','NFL Week 11 Picks','','publish','open','open','','nfl-week-11-picks','','','2010-11-18 16:26:55','2010-11-19 00:26:55','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2882',0,'post','',0),(2883,2,'2010-11-18 16:22:42','2010-11-19 00:22:42','','BSP','','inherit','open','open','','bsp','','','2010-11-18 16:22:42','2010-11-19 00:22:42','',2882,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2884,2,'2010-11-18 16:25:20','2010-11-19 00:25:20','<a href=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2883\" title=\"BSP\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"440\" height=\"230\" /></a>\n\nDamn right that\'s a photo of Brian St. Pierre (back when we was the third-string QB for the Cardinals)! Brian\'s getting the call for the Panthers this week. Carolina is not going to be Baltimore, but we can still cheer for a guy who\'s only thrown five passes in eight NFL seasons. Go BSP!\n<table border=\"1\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" width=\"599\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Miami -2.5 Chicago\n\nPICK: Dolphins -2.5</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Jacksonville -1.5 Cleveland\n\nPICK: Jags -1.5</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Pittsburgh -7 Oakland\n\nPICK: Steelers -7</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Kansas City -8 Arizona\n\nPICK: Chiefs -8</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At NY Jets -7 Houston\n\nPICK: Jets -7</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New Orleans -11.5 Seattle\n\nPICK: Saints -11.5</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Baltimore -10.5 At Carolina\n\nPICK: Ravens -10.5</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">Atlanta -3 At St. Louis\n\nPICK: Falcons -3</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Tennessee -7 Washington\n\nPICK: Titans -7</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Francisco -3.5 Tampa Bay\n\nPICK: Bucs +3.5</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Dallas -6.5 Detroit\n\nPICK: Lions +6.5</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New England -3.5 Indianapolis\n\nPICK: Pats -3.5</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Green Bay -3 At Minnesota\n\nPICK: Packers -3</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Philadelphia -3 NY Giants\n\nPICK: Eagles -3</td>\n</tr>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Cincinnati -6 Buffalo\n\nLast week: 5-8\nSeason: 69-67-6\n\nPICK: Bills +6</td>\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Diego -10 Denver\n\nPICK: Chargers -10</td>\n</tr>\n</tbody>\n</table>','NFL Week 11 Picks','','inherit','open','open','','2882-revision','','','2010-11-18 16:25:20','2010-11-19 00:25:20','',2882,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2882-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2885,2,'2010-11-18 16:25:37','2010-11-19 00:25:37','<a href=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2883\" title=\"BSP\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"440\" height=\"230\" /></a>\r\n\r\nDamn right that\'s a photo of Brian St. Pierre (back when we was the third-string QB for the Cardinals)! Brian\'s getting the call for the Panthers this week. Carolina is not going to be Baltimore, but we can still cheer for a guy who\'s only thrown five passes in eight NFL seasons. Go BSP!\r\n<table border=\"1\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" width=\"599\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Miami -2.5 Chicago\r\n\r\nPICK: Dolphins -2.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Jacksonville -1.5 Cleveland\r\n\r\nPICK: Jags -1.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Pittsburgh -7 Oakland\r\n\r\nPICK: Steelers -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Kansas City -8 Arizona\r\n\r\nPICK: Chiefs -8</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At NY Jets -7 Houston\r\n\r\nPICK: Jets -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New Orleans -11.5 Seattle\r\n\r\nPICK: Saints -11.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Baltimore -10.5 At Carolina\r\n\r\nPICK: Ravens -10.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">Atlanta -3 At St. Louis\r\n\r\nPICK: Falcons -3</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Tennessee -7 Washington\r\n\r\nPICK: Titans -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Francisco -3.5 Tampa Bay\r\n\r\nPICK: Bucs +3.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Dallas -6.5 Detroit\r\n\r\nPICK: Lions +6.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New England -3.5 Indianapolis\r\n\r\nPICK: Pats -3.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Green Bay -3 At Minnesota\r\n\r\nPICK: Packers -3</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Philadelphia -3 NY Giants\r\n\r\nPICK: Eagles -3</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Cincinnati -6 Buffalo\r\n\r\nLast week: 5-8\r\nSeason: 69-67-6\r\n\r\nPICK: Bills +6</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Diego -10 Denver\r\n\r\nPICK: Chargers -10</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>','NFL Week 11 Picks','','inherit','open','open','','2882-revision-2','','','2010-11-18 16:25:37','2010-11-19 00:25:37','',2882,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2882-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(2886,2,'2010-11-18 16:26:30','2010-11-19 00:26:30','<a href=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\"><img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2883\" title=\"BSP\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/BSP.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"440\" height=\"230\" /></a>\r\n\r\nDamn right that\'s a photo of Brian St. Pierre! (Back when we was the third-string QB for the Cardinals). Brian\'s getting the call for the Panthers this week. Carolina is not going to be Baltimore, but we can still cheer for a guy who\'s only thrown five passes in eight NFL seasons. Go BSP!\r\n<table border=\"1\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" width=\"599\">\r\n<tbody>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Miami -2.5 Chicago\r\n\r\nPICK: Dolphins -2.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Jacksonville -1.5 Cleveland\r\n\r\nPICK: Jags -1.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Pittsburgh -7 Oakland\r\n\r\nPICK: Steelers -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Kansas City -8 Arizona\r\n\r\nPICK: Chiefs -8</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At NY Jets -7 Houston\r\n\r\nPICK: Jets -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New Orleans -11.5 Seattle\r\n\r\nPICK: Saints -11.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Baltimore -10.5 At Carolina\r\n\r\nPICK: Ravens -10.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">Atlanta -3 At St. Louis\r\n\r\nPICK: Falcons -3</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Tennessee -7 Washington\r\n\r\nPICK: Titans -7</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Francisco -3.5 Tampa Bay\r\n\r\nPICK: Bucs +3.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Dallas -6.5 Detroit\r\n\r\nPICK: Lions +6.5</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At New England -3.5 Indianapolis\r\n\r\nPICK: Pats -3.5</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">Green Bay -3 At Minnesota\r\n\r\nPICK: Packers -3</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At Philadelphia -3 NY Giants\r\n\r\nPICK: Eagles -3</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n<tr>\r\n<td width=\"299\" valign=\"top\">At Cincinnati -6 Buffalo\r\n\r\nLast week: 5-8\r\nSeason: 69-67-6\r\n\r\nPICK: Bills +6</td>\r\n<td width=\"300\" valign=\"top\">At San Diego -10 Denver\r\n\r\nPICK: Chargers -10</td>\r\n</tr>\r\n</tbody>\r\n</table>','NFL Week 11 Picks','','inherit','open','open','','2882-revision-3','','','2010-11-18 16:26:30','2010-11-19 00:26:30','',2882,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2882-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(2887,3,'2010-11-19 10:47:55','2010-11-19 18:47:55','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/IcWJ79yUy3U?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/IcWJ79yUy3U?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','Teach Me How to Panda','','publish','open','open','','teach-me-how-to-panda','','','2010-11-19 10:47:55','2010-11-19 18:47:55','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2887',0,'post','',0),(2890,2,'2010-11-22 17:48:15','2010-11-23 01:48:15','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2852\" title=\"Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Schick-Hydro-Target-Holiday-Pack.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"480\" />\n\nChristmas is coming up quick and that means it\'s time to start making a list of all the people you need to get gifts for. You\'re likely to hook up some people more than others, and if you need an inexpensive holiday gift for someone, don\'t blow your small budget on a useless item. If you only have 10 bucks to spend on your dad, uncle, brother, cousin, son, nephew or any other dude needing an affordable gift, consider the Schick Hydro Holiday Pack at Target.\n\nThis holiday gift package is available at Target for $10. Yep, just one Alexander Hamilton. It comes in a nice big shiny box, so you won\'t look like a massive cheapskate in front of your family. The box  includes one Schick Hydro razor, five replacement cartridges and a bottle of Schick Hydro Moisturizing Shave Gel.\n\nThe <a href=\"http://www.schickhydro.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Schick Hydro</a> razor is pretty sweet. It has five blades that have these skin guards that smooth your skin over as you\'re shaving, The hydrating gel reservoir is where it\'s at though. This is the protective strip above the blades that has this gooey combo of Aloe and Vitamin E. I received one of these boxes and I\'ve used the razor a bunch of times. It\'s still gooey without too much gooey. That thing still glides up and down my face after multiple uses. The Moisturizing Shave Gel is one of those extra-blue, super-foaming gel deals where a little gel can go a long way. A tiny amount of blue will end up covering your whole face in foam.\n\nIt\'s all pretty high tech sounding, but it works. The thing about the Hydro is that you always feel like there\'s a protective layer between your face and the blade. This reduces irritation and razor burn and generally makes for a pretty comfortable shaving experience. Getting someone all this in a $10 package is a nice way to say, \"I couldn\'t spend all that much but hey, at least I got you something that you\'re actually gonna use.\" It\'s the thought that counts, but it\'s the practicality of the gift that\'ll score you extra appreciation points in the long run.','Schick Hydro Target Holiday Gift Pack','','inherit','open','open','','2851-autosave','','','2010-11-22 17:48:15','2010-11-23 01:48:15','',2851,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2851-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2891,2,'2010-11-19 10:48:25','2010-11-19 18:48:25','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2852\" title=\"Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Schick-Hydro-Target-Holiday-Pack.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"480\" />\r\n\r\nChristmas is coming up quick and that means it time to start making a list of all the people you need to get gifts for. And let\'s face it, you\'re likely to hook up some people more than others. If you need an inexpensive holiday gift for someone, that doesn\'t mean that it has to be an impractical item. If you only have10 bucks to spend on your dad, uncle, brother, cousin, son, nephew or any other dude who you want to  make sure gets an affordable gift from you, consider the Schick Hydro Ultimate Skin Comfort System.\r\n\r\nThis holiday gift package is available at Target for $10. Yep, just one Alexander Hamilton. It comes in a nice big shiny box, so you won\'t look like a massive cheapskate in front of your family. The box  includes one Schick Hydro razor, five replacement cartridges and a bottle of Schick Hydro Moisturizing Shave Gel.\r\n\r\nThe Schick Hydro razor is pretty sweet. It has five ultra glide blades that have these skin guards that smooth your skin over as your shaving, The hydrating gel reservoir is where it\'s at though. The this protective strip above the blades has this gooey combo of Aloe and Vitamin E. I received one of these boxes and I\'ve used the razor a bunch of times. It\'s still gooey without too much gooey. That thing still glides up and down my face after multiple uses. The Moisturizing Shave Gel is one of those extra-blue, super-foaming gel deals where a little gel can go a long way. A tiny about of blue will end up covering your whole face in foam.\r\n\r\nIt\'s all pretty high tech sounding, but it works. The thing about the Hydro is that you always feel like there\'s a protective layer between your face and the blade. This reduces irritation and razor burn and generally makes for a pretty comfortable shaving experience. Getting someone all this in a sext $10 package is a nice way to say, \"I couldn\'t spend all that much but hey, at least I got you something that you\'re actually gonna use this Christmas.\" It\'s the thought that counts, but it\'s the practicality of the gift that\'ll score you extra appreciation in the long run.','Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack','','inherit','open','open','','2851-revision-4','','','2010-11-19 10:48:25','2010-11-19 18:48:25','',2851,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2851-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(2894,2,'2010-11-19 10:36:04','2010-11-19 18:36:04','http://unrealitymag.com/index.php/2010/11/16/movies-i-fear-will-be-remade/#int8\n\nhttp://www.unathleticmag.com/2010/11/16/5-best-coaches-from-sports-movies/\n\nhttp://www.asylum.com/2010/11/18/pew-poll-40-percent-of-americans-believe-marriage-is-obsolete/','Weekend Linkin\'','','inherit','open','open','','2812-revision-3','','','2010-11-19 10:36:04','2010-11-19 18:36:04','',2812,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2812-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(2892,2,'2010-11-19 10:51:24','2010-11-19 18:51:24','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2852\" title=\"Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Schick-Hydro-Target-Holiday-Pack.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"480\" />\r\n\r\nChristmas is coming up quick and that means it time to start making a list of all the people you need to get gifts for. And let\'s face it, you\'re likely to hook up some people more than others. If you need an inexpensive holiday gift for someone, that doesn\'t mean that it has to be an impractical item. If you only have10 bucks to spend on your dad, uncle, brother, cousin, son, nephew or any other dude who you want to  make sure gets an affordable gift from you, consider the Schick Hydro Ultimate Skin Comfort System.\r\n\r\nThis holiday gift package is available at Target for $10. Yep, just one Alexander Hamilton. It comes in a nice big shiny box, so you won\'t look like a massive cheapskate in front of your family. The box  includes one Schick Hydro razor, five replacement cartridges and a bottle of Schick Hydro Moisturizing Shave Gel.\r\n\r\nThe <a href=\"http://www.schickhydro.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Schick Hydro</a> razor is pretty sweet. It has five ultra glide blades that have these skin guards that smooth your skin over as your shaving, The hydrating gel reservoir is where it\'s at though. The this protective strip above the blades has this gooey combo of Aloe and Vitamin E. I received one of these boxes and I\'ve used the razor a bunch of times. It\'s still gooey without too much gooey. That thing still glides up and down my face after multiple uses. The Moisturizing Shave Gel is one of those extra-blue, super-foaming gel deals where a little gel can go a long way. A tiny about of blue will end up covering your whole face in foam.\r\n\r\nIt\'s all pretty high tech sounding, but it works. The thing about the Hydro is that you always feel like there\'s a protective layer between your face and the blade. This reduces irritation and razor burn and generally makes for a pretty comfortable shaving experience. Getting someone all this in a sext $10 package is a nice way to say, \"I couldn\'t spend all that much but hey, at least I got you something that you\'re actually gonna use this Christmas.\" It\'s the thought that counts, but it\'s the practicality of the gift that\'ll score you extra appreciation in the long run.','Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack','','inherit','open','open','','2851-revision-5','','','2010-11-19 10:51:24','2010-11-19 18:51:24','',2851,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2851-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(2940,2,'2010-11-22 17:46:44','2010-11-23 01:46:44','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<!--more-->\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2935\" title=\"jordan_kobe_195\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"262\" />DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-21','','','2010-11-22 17:46:44','2010-11-23 01:46:44','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-21/',0,'revision','',0),(2893,2,'2010-11-19 10:52:00','2010-11-19 18:52:00','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2852\" title=\"Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Schick-Hydro-Target-Holiday-Pack.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"480\" />\r\n\r\nChristmas is coming up quick and that means it\'s time to start making a list of all the people you need to get gifts for. And let\'s face it, you\'re likely to hook up some people more than others. If you need an inexpensive holiday gift for someone, that doesn\'t mean that it has to be an impractical item. If you only have10 bucks to spend on your dad, uncle, brother, cousin, son, nephew or any other dude who you want to  make sure gets an affordable gift from you, consider the Schick Hydro Ultimate Skin Comfort System.\r\n\r\nThis holiday gift package is available at Target for $10. Yep, just one Alexander Hamilton. It comes in a nice big shiny box, so you won\'t look like a massive cheapskate in front of your family. The box  includes one Schick Hydro razor, five replacement cartridges and a bottle of Schick Hydro Moisturizing Shave Gel.\r\n\r\nThe <a href=\"http://www.schickhydro.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Schick Hydro</a> razor is pretty sweet. It has five ultra glide blades that have these skin guards that smooth your skin over as your shaving, The hydrating gel reservoir is where it\'s at though. The this protective strip above the blades has this gooey combo of Aloe and Vitamin E. I received one of these boxes and I\'ve used the razor a bunch of times. It\'s still gooey without too much gooey. That thing still glides up and down my face after multiple uses. The Moisturizing Shave Gel is one of those extra-blue, super-foaming gel deals where a little gel can go a long way. A tiny about of blue will end up covering your whole face in foam.\r\n\r\nIt\'s all pretty high tech sounding, but it works. The thing about the Hydro is that you always feel like there\'s a protective layer between your face and the blade. This reduces irritation and razor burn and generally makes for a pretty comfortable shaving experience. Getting someone all this in a sext $10 package is a nice way to say, \"I couldn\'t spend all that much but hey, at least I got you something that you\'re actually gonna use this Christmas.\" It\'s the thought that counts, but it\'s the practicality of the gift that\'ll score you extra appreciation in the long run.','Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack','','inherit','open','open','','2851-revision-6','','','2010-11-19 10:52:00','2010-11-19 18:52:00','',2851,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2851-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(2895,3,'2010-11-19 15:37:49','2010-11-19 23:37:49','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ug6hhpzaRIY?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ug6hhpzaRIY?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','It Could Be Worse...','','publish','open','open','','it-could-be-worse','','','2010-11-19 15:37:49','2010-11-19 23:37:49','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2895',0,'post','',0),(2896,2,'2010-11-19 15:37:17','2010-11-19 23:37:17','<object width=\"425\" height=\"344\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ug6hhpzaRIY?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\"></param><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\"></param><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\"></param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ug6hhpzaRIY?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\"></embed></object>','It Could Be Worse...','','inherit','open','open','','2895-revision','','','2010-11-19 15:37:17','2010-11-19 23:37:17','',2895,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2895-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2897,2,'2010-11-19 15:38:53','2010-11-19 23:38:53','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ug6hhpzaRIY?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"425\" height=\"344\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ug6hhpzaRIY?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','It Could Be Worse...','','inherit','open','open','','2895-autosave','','','2010-11-19 15:38:53','2010-11-19 23:38:53','',2895,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2895-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2898,7,'2010-11-22 11:16:27','2010-11-22 19:16:27','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2904\" title=\"20091011_zaf_cs5_026.jpg\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Brad-Childress-Fired.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"550\" height=\"385\" />\r\n\r\nBrad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\r\n\r\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress was out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was in as interim head coach.\r\n\r\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players in purple, signed to big money contracts, did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\r\n\r\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\r\n\r\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\r\n\r\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\r\n\r\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\r\n\r\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.','Vikings Fire Brad Childress ','','publish','open','open','','vikings-fire-brad-childress','','','2010-11-22 11:16:27','2010-11-22 19:16:27','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2898',0,'post','',0),(2899,7,'2010-11-22 10:53:04','2010-11-22 18:53:04','Brad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\n\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress is out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier is in as interim h\n\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players signed to big money contracts did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\n\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\n\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\n\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\n\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\n\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.\n\n(Image via: <a href=\"http://www.nfl.com \" target=\"_blank\">NFL.com</a>)','Brad Childress, Welcome to my World! ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-revision','','','2010-11-22 10:53:04','2010-11-22 18:53:04','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2900,7,'2010-11-22 10:53:14','2010-11-22 18:53:14','Brad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\r\n\r\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress is out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier is in as interim head coach.\r\n\r\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players signed to big money contracts did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\r\n\r\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\r\n\r\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\r\n\r\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\r\n\r\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\r\n\r\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.\r\n\r\n(Image via: <a href=\"http://www.nfl.com \" target=\"_blank\">NFL.com</a>)','Brad Childress, Welcome to my World! ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-revision-2','','','2010-11-22 10:53:14','2010-11-22 18:53:14','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(2901,7,'2010-11-22 10:53:30','2010-11-22 18:53:30','Brad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\r\n\r\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress was out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier is in as interim head coach.\r\n\r\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players signed to big money contracts did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\r\n\r\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\r\n\r\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\r\n\r\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\r\n\r\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\r\n\r\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.\r\n\r\n(Image via: <a href=\"http://www.nfl.com \" target=\"_blank\">NFL.com</a>)','Brad Childress, Welcome to my World! ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-revision-3','','','2010-11-22 10:53:30','2010-11-22 18:53:30','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(2902,7,'2010-11-22 10:53:39','2010-11-22 18:53:39','Brad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\r\n\r\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress was out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was in as interim head coach.\r\n\r\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players signed to big money contracts did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\r\n\r\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\r\n\r\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\r\n\r\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\r\n\r\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\r\n\r\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.\r\n\r\n(Image via: <a href=\"http://www.nfl.com \" target=\"_blank\">NFL.com</a>)','Brad Childress, Welcome to my World! ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-revision-4','','','2010-11-22 10:53:39','2010-11-22 18:53:39','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(2903,7,'2010-11-22 10:53:57','2010-11-22 18:53:57','Brad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\r\n\r\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress was out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was in as interim head coach.\r\n\r\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players signed to big money contracts, did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\r\n\r\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\r\n\r\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\r\n\r\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\r\n\r\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\r\n\r\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.\r\n\r\n(Image via: <a href=\"http://www.nfl.com \" target=\"_blank\">NFL.com</a>)','Brad Childress, Welcome to my World! ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-revision-5','','','2010-11-22 10:53:57','2010-11-22 18:53:57','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(2904,2,'2010-11-22 11:15:30','2010-11-22 19:15:30','','20091011_zaf_cs5_026.jpg','','inherit','open','open','','20091011_zaf_cs5_026-jpg','','','2010-11-22 11:15:30','2010-11-22 19:15:30','',2898,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Brad-Childress-Fired.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2905,2,'2010-11-22 11:17:31','2010-11-22 19:17:31','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2904\" title=\"20091011_zaf_cs5_026.jpg\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Brad-Childress-Fired.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"550\" height=\"385\" />\n\nBrad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\n\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress was out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was in as interim head coach.\n\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players in purple, signed to big money contracts, did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\n\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\n\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\n\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\n\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\n\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.','Vikings Fire Brad Childress ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-autosave','','','2010-11-22 11:17:31','2010-11-22 19:17:31','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2907,2,'2010-11-22 16:41:51','2010-11-23 00:41:51','','viva la resolution','','inherit','open','open','','viva-la-resolution','','','2010-11-22 16:41:51','2010-11-23 00:41:51','',0,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/viva-la-resolution.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2906,2,'2010-11-22 10:54:19','2010-11-22 18:54:19','Brad Childress now commands the same respect of the Minnesota Vikings that I do. That makes me feel pretty solid this morning. Write it down Vikings fans. The Brad Childress era ended in Minnesota on 11/22/2010.\r\n\r\nWhen morning reports were released in Minneapolis, Brad Childress was scheduled for his regular Monday interview. I\'m confident that every reporter was licking their lips to pose a few queries after yesterday\'s home debacle to division rival Green Bay. And beyond the division rivalry, this game was, for all intents and purposes, the hope of saving the season. <em>Saving</em> it. Well, saving it for \"Chilly.\" A couple of hours later, it was everywhere--Brad Childress was out, and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was in as interim head coach.\r\n\r\nIf there was one thing that was absolutely certain in the Minnesota Vikings organization before yesterday\'s beat down: The professional football players in purple, signed to big money contracts, did not want Brad Childress as their head coach.\r\n\r\nI have never been a fan of Childress. I wish I could say that \"he seems like a nice enough guy,\" but he doesn\'t. He comes across as pompous and arrogant in <a href=\"http://larrybrownsports.com/media-police/brad-childress-lies-chris-myers-game-plan/12926\" target=\"_blank\">every interview</a> I have ever seen. Even in last season\'s NFC Championship game, he offered a pre-game interview making himself look and sound like an ego-maniacal ass. No grace. No credit to the Saints. Just a guy who looked like he was reciting a script that he wrote and rehearsed, ready to spout toward the first person who put a microphone in front of his face.\r\n\r\nFans have been calling for the canning of Childress since Week 3, but I must say that I was shocked that Childress was ever part of the Vikings equation for 2010. I was just shocked that Zygi Wilf really thought that Childress was the man who would lead this franchise to the NFL\'s promised land. Clearly it became obvious to Wilf when Childress continued to <a href=\"http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/11/08/brad-childress-picks-an-odd-time-to-poke-fun-at-brett-favre/\" target=\"_blank\">grow in his arrogance</a>, continued to grow in cynicism, and within all of it, he failed to lead the team to strong performances on both sides of the ball.\r\n\r\nPeople want to point at Brett Favre for the downfall of last season\'s NFC powerhouse Vikings. While Favre has had his issues this season, quite honestly, what would you expect? No, it\'s not because he\'s older. The dude has looked sharp at the right times. No reason to believe he couldn\'t perform to task. But who would he throw to? It\'s not just Favre.\r\n\r\nBut oh, James, all the interceptions!? How many of those picks have been off people\'s hands, because receivers \"fell down,\" or tried to catch the ball with their body instead of their hands? Case in point, two of them yesterday--two of them the week prior. Where has the offensive line been? Where\'s <a href=\"http://www.vikings.com/team/statistics.html\" target=\"_blank\">the defense</a>? This team has been a direct reflection of the leadership of Brad Childress.\r\n\r\nI believe you\'ll see a very different team take the field next week vs. the Washington Redskins. And now that Chilly is gone, I\'m not so sure that Brett Favre is \"done\" after this season.\r\n\r\n(Image via: <a href=\"http://www.nfl.com \" target=\"_blank\">NFL.com</a>)','Brad Childress, Welcome to my World! ','','inherit','open','open','','2898-revision-6','','','2010-11-22 10:54:19','2010-11-22 18:54:19','',2898,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2898-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(2908,9,'2010-11-22 16:42:35','2010-11-23 00:42:35','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2907\" title=\"viva la resolution\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/viva-la-resolution.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"556\" height=\"658\" />\r\n\r\nVia: <a href=\"http://min.us/mvjjFwf\" target=\"_blank\">min.us</a>','Viva La Resolution!','','publish','open','open','','viva-la-resolution','','','2010-11-22 16:42:35','2010-11-23 00:42:35','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2908',0,'post','',0),(2909,2,'2010-11-22 16:42:12','2010-11-23 00:42:12','<img src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/viva-la-resolution.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"viva la resolution\" width=\"556\" height=\"658\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2907\" />\n\nVia: min.us','Viva La Resolution!','','inherit','open','open','','2908-revision','','','2010-11-22 16:42:12','2010-11-23 00:42:12','',2908,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2908-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2910,2,'2010-11-22 16:43:38','2010-11-23 00:43:38','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2907\" title=\"viva la resolution\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/viva-la-resolution.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"556\" height=\"658\" />\n\nVia: <a href=\"http://min.us/mvjjFwf\" target=\"_blank\">min.us</a>','Viva La Resolution!','','inherit','open','open','','2908-autosave','','','2010-11-22 16:43:38','2010-11-23 00:43:38','',2908,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2908-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2911,2,'2010-11-23 09:01:19','2010-11-23 17:01:19','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his <a href=\"http://www.nba.com/playerfile/doug_christie/index.html\" target=\"_blank\">14-year NBA career</a>. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed charity and sports management, married life for NBA players, trash talking,  how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan and Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2935\" title=\"jordan_kobe_195\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"262\" />DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','publish','open','open','','doug-christie-interview','','','2010-12-15 16:14:46','2010-12-16 00:14:46','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2911',0,'post','',1),(2912,2,'2010-11-22 17:19:20','2010-11-23 01:19:20','','Doug-Christie2','','inherit','open','open','','doug-christie2','','','2010-11-22 17:19:20','2010-11-23 01:19:20','',2911,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2913,2,'2010-11-22 17:19:48','2010-11-23 01:19:48','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"596\" height=\"281\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, Christie Sports Management is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – m yson, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Manager is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision','','','2010-11-22 17:19:48','2010-11-23 01:19:48','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2916,2,'2010-11-22 17:23:41','2010-11-23 01:23:41','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, Christie Sports Management is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-4','','','2010-11-22 17:23:41','2010-11-23 01:23:41','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(2914,2,'2010-11-22 17:20:42','2010-11-23 01:20:42','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, Christie Sports Management is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – m yson, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Manager is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-2','','','2010-11-22 17:20:42','2010-11-23 01:20:42','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(2915,2,'2010-11-22 17:20:47','2010-11-23 01:20:47','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, Christie Sports Management is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – m yson, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Manager is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-3','','','2010-11-22 17:20:47','2010-11-23 01:20:47','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(2917,3,'2010-11-23 09:01:47','2010-11-23 17:01:47','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','Nicolas Cage Losing His Shit ','','publish','open','open','','nicolas-cage-losing-his-shit','','','2010-11-23 09:01:47','2010-11-23 17:01:47','',0,'http://manjr.com/?p=2917',0,'post','',0),(2918,2,'2010-11-22 17:26:20','2010-11-23 01:26:20','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-5','','','2010-11-22 17:26:20','2010-11-23 01:26:20','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(2919,2,'2010-11-22 17:28:54','2010-11-23 01:28:54','','doug_christie_pass2','','inherit','open','open','','doug_christie_pass2','','','2010-11-22 17:28:54','2010-11-23 01:28:54','',2911,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2920,2,'2010-11-22 17:27:59','2010-11-23 01:27:59','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-6','','','2010-11-22 17:27:59','2010-11-23 01:27:59','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(2926,2,'2010-11-22 17:32:58','2010-11-23 01:32:58','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','Nicolas Cage Losing His Shit ','','inherit','open','open','','2917-revision-2','','','2010-11-22 17:32:58','2010-11-23 01:32:58','',2917,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2917-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(2921,2,'2010-11-22 17:30:06','2010-11-23 01:30:06','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"218\" height=\"337\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-7','','','2010-11-22 17:30:06','2010-11-23 01:30:06','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(2922,2,'2010-11-22 17:30:14','2010-11-23 01:30:14','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"218\" height=\"337\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-8','','','2010-11-22 17:30:14','2010-11-23 01:30:14','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-8/',0,'revision','',0),(2923,2,'2010-11-22 17:31:17','2010-11-23 01:31:17','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"182\" height=\"277\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-9','','','2010-11-22 17:31:17','2010-11-23 01:31:17','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-9/',0,'revision','',0),(2924,2,'2010-11-22 17:31:22','2010-11-23 01:31:22','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"182\" height=\"277\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-10','','','2010-11-22 17:31:22','2010-11-23 01:31:22','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-10/',0,'revision','',0),(2925,2,'2010-11-22 17:26:24','2010-11-23 01:26:24','<object width=\"560\" height=\"340\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\"></param><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\"></param><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\"></param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\"></embed></object>','Nicolas Cage Losing His Shit ','','inherit','open','open','','2917-revision','','','2010-11-22 17:26:24','2010-11-23 01:26:24','',2917,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2917-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(2927,2,'2010-11-22 17:33:17','2010-11-23 01:33:17','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<!--more-->\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-11','','','2010-11-22 17:33:17','2010-11-23 01:33:17','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-11/',0,'revision','',0),(2929,2,'2010-11-22 17:36:38','2010-11-23 01:36:38','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<!--more-->\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10. But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-13','','','2010-11-22 17:36:38','2010-11-23 01:36:38','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-13/',0,'revision','',0),(2928,2,'2010-11-22 17:34:41','2010-11-23 01:34:41','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-12','','','2010-11-22 17:34:41','2010-11-23 01:34:41','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-12/',0,'revision','',0),(2930,2,'2010-11-22 17:40:38','2010-11-23 01:40:38','','doug christie kings','','inherit','open','open','','doug-christie-kings','','','2010-11-22 17:40:38','2010-11-23 01:40:38','',2911,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2931,2,'2010-11-22 17:40:52','2010-11-23 01:40:52','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I talked about married life for NBA players, his sports management and charity efforts, trash talking, how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan and whether Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals was rigged.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<!--more-->\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10. But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-14','','','2010-11-22 17:40:52','2010-11-23 01:40:52','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-14/',0,'revision','',0),(2932,2,'2010-11-22 17:40:54','2010-11-23 01:40:54','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I talked about married life for NBA players, his sports management and charity efforts, trash talking, how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan and whether Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals was rigged.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10. But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-15','','','2010-11-22 17:40:54','2010-11-23 01:40:54','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-15/',0,'revision','',0),(2933,2,'2010-11-22 17:40:59','2010-11-23 01:40:59','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I talked about married life for NBA players, his sports management and charity efforts, trash talking, how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan and whether Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals was rigged.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10. But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-16','','','2010-11-22 17:40:59','2010-11-23 01:40:59','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-16/',0,'revision','',0),(2934,2,'2010-11-22 17:42:15','2010-11-23 01:42:15','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-17','','','2010-11-22 17:42:15','2010-11-23 01:42:15','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-17/',0,'revision','',0),(2935,2,'2010-11-22 17:44:18','2010-11-23 01:44:18','','jordan_kobe_195','','inherit','open','open','','jordan_kobe_195','','','2010-11-22 17:44:18','2010-11-23 01:44:18','',2911,'http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(2936,2,'2010-11-22 17:42:20','2010-11-23 01:42:20','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-18','','','2010-11-22 17:42:20','2010-11-23 01:42:20','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-18/',0,'revision','',0),(2939,2,'2010-11-19 10:56:25','2010-11-19 18:56:25','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2852\" title=\"Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Schick-Hydro-Target-Holiday-Pack.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"480\" />\r\n\r\nChristmas is coming up quick and that means it\'s time to start making a list of all the people you need to get gifts for. You\'re likely to hook up some people more than others, and if you need an inexpensive holiday gift for someone, don\'t blow your small budget on a useless item. If you only have 10 bucks to spend on your dad, uncle, brother, cousin, son, nephew or any other dude needing an affordable gift, consider the Schick Hydro Holiday Pack at Target.\r\n\r\nThis holiday gift package is available at Target for $10. Yep, just one Alexander Hamilton. It comes in a nice big shiny box, so you won\'t look like a massive cheapskate in front of your family. The box  includes one Schick Hydro razor, five replacement cartridges and a bottle of Schick Hydro Moisturizing Shave Gel.\r\n\r\nThe <a href=\"http://www.schickhydro.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Schick Hydro</a> razor is pretty sweet. It has five blades that have these skin guards that smooth your skin over as you\'re shaving, The hydrating gel reservoir is where it\'s at though. This is the protective strip above the blades that has this gooey combo of Aloe and Vitamin E. I received one of these boxes and I\'ve used the razor a bunch of times. It\'s still gooey without too much gooey. That thing still glides up and down my face after multiple uses. The Moisturizing Shave Gel is one of those extra-blue, super-foaming gel deals where a little gel can go a long way. A tiny amount of blue will end up covering your whole face in foam.\r\n\r\nIt\'s all pretty high tech sounding, but it works. The thing about the Hydro is that you always feel like there\'s a protective layer between your face and the blade. This reduces irritation and razor burn and generally makes for a pretty comfortable shaving experience. Getting someone all this in a $10 package is a nice way to say, \"I couldn\'t spend all that much but hey, at least I got you something that you\'re actually gonna use.\" It\'s the thought that counts, but it\'s the practicality of the gift that\'ll score you extra appreciation points in the long run.','Schick Hydro Target Holiday Pack','','inherit','open','open','','2851-revision-7','','','2010-11-19 10:56:25','2010-11-19 18:56:25','',2851,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2851-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(2937,2,'2010-11-22 17:44:30','2010-11-23 01:44:30','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2935\" title=\"jordan_kobe_195\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"262\" />DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-19','','','2010-11-22 17:44:30','2010-11-23 01:44:30','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-19/',0,'revision','',0),(2938,2,'2010-11-22 17:44:36','2010-11-23 01:44:36','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2935\" title=\"jordan_kobe_195\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"262\" />DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-20','','','2010-11-22 17:44:36','2010-11-23 01:44:36','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-20/',0,'revision','',0),(2941,2,'2010-11-22 17:33:33','2010-11-23 01:33:33','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','Nicolas Cage Losing His Shit ','','inherit','open','open','','2917-revision-3','','','2010-11-22 17:33:33','2010-11-23 01:33:33','',2917,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2917-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(2942,2,'2010-11-23 09:27:22','2010-11-23 17:27:22','<object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" codebase=\"http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" /><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" /><param name=\"src\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" /><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" /><embed type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/xP1-oquwoL8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US&amp;rel=0\" allowscriptaccess=\"always\" allowfullscreen=\"true\"></embed></object>','Nicolas Cage Losing His Shit ','','inherit','open','open','','2917-autosave','','','2010-11-23 09:27:22','2010-11-23 17:27:22','',2917,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2917-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2943,2,'2010-12-15 16:15:50','2010-12-16 00:15:50','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\n\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his <a href=\"http://www.nba.com/playerfile/doug_christie/index.html\" target=\"_blank\">14-year NBA career</a>. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\n\nChristie and I discussed charity and sports management, married life for NBA players, trash talking,  how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan and Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals.  Here’s the full interview:\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\n\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\n\n<!--more-->\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\n\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\n\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2935\" title=\"jordan_kobe_195\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"262\" />DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\n\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\n\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-autosave','','','2010-12-15 16:15:50','2010-12-16 00:15:50','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(2944,2,'2010-11-23 09:01:19','2010-11-23 17:01:19','<img class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2912\" title=\"Doug-Christie2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Doug-Christie2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"282\" />\r\n\r\nDoug Christie was a ridiculous defender during his 14-year NBA career. Since retiring in 2007, Christie has focused on his charity works, business ventures and his family. Christie home-schools his kids and every year, he and his wife get married on their anniversary – a full blown wedding to celebrate their vows. When he played in the NBA, Christie would signal to his wife countless times each game. A <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/24/sports/pro-basketball-the-christies-are-keeping-temptation-on-the-ropes.html\" target=\"_blank\">New York Times article</a> published in 2002 detailed the strong bond that the couple shared. Christie and his wife Jackie even wrote a book about their relationship – <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Love-Doug-Jackie-Christie/dp/0979482704\" target=\"_blank\">No Ordinary Love</a>. People like to give Christie shit about how his wife constantly keeps him in check and so on, but when talking to him, Christie sounded like a dude who’s genuinely happy to have such a tight relationship with his wife. When he talks about how important his family is to him, it really comes across as honest and authentic. Christie is a family man and he’s damn proud of it.\r\n\r\nChristie and I discussed married life for NBA players, charity efforts, sports management, trash talking, NBA rule changes, and how Kobe stacks up to Michael Jordan.  Here’s the full interview:\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> What do you want people to know about the organization you founded last year, Christie Sports Management?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Chris, <a href=\"http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nba-star-doug-christie-launches-christie-sports-managementathlete-training-firm-61741467.html\" target=\"_blank\">Christie Sports Management</a> is about mind<strong>, </strong>body and basketball. I train athletes from youth – my son, he’s nine, I train him – all the way to NBA. I trained Matt Barnes with the Lakers. I have an athlete in college at Washington State University, William Ayears. Obviously I love the game, but more than anything learning how to play the game the right way. The mind part of it is understanding how to break down your opponent, thinking the game, understanding clock management and all these different things. And then the body part of it is, you know, guys want to do all these fancy moves, Chris, and do all this stuff. And then you see guys breaking down like Greg Oden with knees and all these different things. But you have to strengthen your body. You have to understand how to move your body. And it’s kind of like martial arts, and the more you learn and understand it, the better obviously you will be.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So now do you have a bunch of different people who help out in this effort or is it really just more of a one-on-one approach where you’re helping these athletes out?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well, it’s just me. Christie Sports Management is me. I’m the main trainer and I work with them one-on-one. Sometimes we get together in groups. I did a workshop last year in Sacramento where I got together some guys, they were going to Europe – some guys going to Europe, some college guys up in that area – and I worked with them. I had like eight guys. So it just depends. But like with Matt I worked with him one-on-one. William, I worked with him and actually he has a little brother who is in high school in Washington so I work with them together. But most of the time it’s one-on-one so I can really … one of the things I try to do is bridge the gap in communication. Because a lot of the times the coaches nowadays they just say one thing to everybody and you really can’t do that. Everything isn’t for everybody. So the methods that I give to one person, I’m giving somebody else the same message, but I’m giving it to them totally different so that they get it specifically for them.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS: </strong>It’s got to be pretty rewarding when these guys go on to have some success, right?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> No question. I think even more than the team success in all of that is the moment of what I call the “a-ha” moment. Like with riding a bike where you get it. And when I’m talking to them and I’m trying to get them to grasp a concept or something, and all of a sudden I see that they got it and it’s like a-ha, that’s probably one of the most gratifying parts of the whole process. Just watching them learn from all the different things that I have picked up from Pete Carril in Sacramento and Rick Adelman to Pat Riley to all the different coaches that I’ve had to pick stuff from. And then all of the studying that I’ve done with the body and different stuff, watching them grasp that is just the ultimate reward.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So to go along with that, your organization places a strong emphasis on mentorship. Did you have many influential mentors when you were first starting out in the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2919\" title=\"doug_christie_pass2\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug_christie_pass2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"170\" height=\"255\" />DC:</strong> You know Chris, I was actually a soccer player when I was younger and then I picked up basketball and played it all the time. But then when I got organized and played in a group, I think I must have been in like 5<sup>th</sup> or 6<sup>th</sup> grade – probably 5<sup>th</sup> grade – I never looked back. At the time my Mom’s boyfriend needed a basketball player, you know weekend warrior, so I played with him. I would say once I got to Pepperdine – maybe in high school I had a couple. Mr. Williams he was my gym teacher and ultimately the head coach, Glen Smith was the assistant coach there. But Coach Carril was probably one of my most memorable, and Tom Asbury at Pepperdine. Those are probably two of the most influential mentors that I’ve had throughout my years of playing basketball that were really straight shooters. Tom Asbury was like a father and Coach Carril really, I call him Yoda.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Because he knew so much about the game, but he breaks it down so simple that it just really makes sense to guys.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> You’re also active in various charity efforts. Can you tell me a little bit about the Christie Bridge to Kids Program?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Well Bridge to Kids was started back when I first got to the NBA and more than anything it’s just what it says. I was trying to give back to the community and one of the ways obviously was basketball, because that was my biggest way to give back what I had taken from the inner city of Seattle and it made me able to go to college and a be a professional basketball player. So with the Christie Bridge to Kids, we started a camp and all the kids – it was like 300 a year – and they would come for free. All I asked is that on the last day of camp we’d all grab garbage bags and we would just go around south Seattle, the little area right there where the camp was, and we would just pick up garbage. We’d try to instill in them that there are a million ways to give back. You don’t have to give back monetarily all the time. You can give back in a lot of different ways. My wife and I also have the Infinite Love Foundation and we focus to the less fortunate. We have a club in Seattle that adults – called The Millionaires Club – we’ve helped on Thanksgiving, and we’ve dealt with children’s hospitals and toys. And things right now, Thanksgiving, Christmas, is probably one of our biggest times. Because when we’re there or we present Thanksgiving dinner and turkeys and different stuff, it’s just something that when you’re blessed the way that we have been – not only monetarily but with the love that we have as a family and all these different things – we just try to give back in whatever way possible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> That’s excellent, man. So I’m sure you’ve heard about this whole Tony Parker/Eva Longoria divorce thing and I know you and your wife actually wrote a book on marriage and basketball. Much has been written about how you and your wife maintain a close relationship. From your experience with your own relationship and the relationships of teammates you’ve had over the years, how many NBA marriages really have a chance to survive?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2930\" title=\"doug christie kings\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/doug-christie-kings.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"176\" />DC:</strong> You now I would think Chris that all of them have a chance to survive, but it’s going to be … if you put that to a percentage. then all of a sudden it starts getting into the lower percentages because obviously there’s right now just in America, outside of sports, it’s like 50% of the people who get married get divorced. Well when you break that down even farther in professional sports, where guys are away longer and all these different things that keep pulling at them ,and that probably boils down to into the 30% range. They might make it through the NBA career and then once they’re done and the lifestyle changes all of a sudden they get divorced. But you know my wife and I, a lot of people were saying things to make fun and, you know, I would give her a sign and grab her after the game and all these things. You know, this is my soul mate, my lover, my everything, and I want her to be safe. Because once basketball is done, like it is now, I still have my family. That is the most important thing in my life no question. And you have to make it that way. You’ve got to want to survive in a very competitive world if you want to play professional sports and entertainment and all those things, because so many people are coming at you from so many different angles and care nothing about your marriage and what you have going on. You have to take real extreme measures to make sure you survive in an extreme environment.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> So how have you and your wife maintained such a strong relationship over the years?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know my wife would – I told her “if you want to come with me you can travel on the road with me,” and people would say “hey your wife follows you everywhere”. But this was … we got married in ‘96 and we were building the roots and the strength of our relationship. So yeah, come with me. Let’s have fun. So we<strong> </strong>would be able to go and watch movies, and obviously the kids were at home with Mom, so if we wanted to have wild sex we could do whatever we wanted to do.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> We were just having a good time, and I think that is the basis. A lot of guys leave their families at home or whatever and there becomes a wedge in there. We just totally stayed strong, and at the same time, when we were travelling, we were staring businesses. And all of those fruits now are coming to fruition with the different things from publishing companies to record companies, clothing, all the different things that we have going on we would set the table and plant the roots for all that stuff when we were on those trips and talking on the phone all the time.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So let me ask you a few quick basketball questions. Who’s the best offensive player you’ve ever defended?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I would say the best was Michael Jordan, hands down. Just a total juggernaut of an offensive player – always on attack, looking for any small weak spot in your defense and taking advantage of everything that he is given. He can shoot the ball from the 3 pointer, shoot the ball mid-range, he can dribble and pull up, finish with a dunk, finish with either hand, incredible free throw shooter. So you know man, incredible.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS</strong>: You\'ve also gone up against Kobe Bryant on multiple occasions. How do the two compare and do you think Kobe will ever be able to challenge Michael Jordan\'s status as the greatest player of all time?\r\n\r\n<strong><img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-2935\" title=\"jordan_kobe_195\" src=\"http://manjr.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/jordan_kobe_195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"262\" />DC</strong>: I would say that these are two of the most ultra competitive alpha males that I\'ve ever competed against. The comparisons are easy to make because they were both coached by Phil Jackson. Also both have had tremendous success in his system. Michael and Kobe are both ultra aggressive offensive players as well, and they have very similar offensive games. I would give the nod to Michael Jordan\'s post-game though. And I would have to say that on the defensive side of the ball, they are both extremely competitive. People don\'t understand that this is really one of the main reasons that made Michael so dominant. He not only dominated the offensive end of the court – averaging 30+ points per game – but he also <em>dominated</em> his man on the defensive side of the ball. This is really unprecedented. It\'s hard to compare the greatness of Michael Jordan to any wing player like Kobe, Lebron, D-Wade etc., because Michael Jordan revolutionized the game for these types of players. They\'ve all had the benefit of learning and being able to pattern their game after arguably the best player that\'s ever played the game. In saying that, if Kobe – without Shaq – was to win six championships, then there is going to be serious conversation about the Kobe and Michael Jordan comparison.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Who’s the biggest trash talker you’ve had to go against?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Trash talker… I would probably say it’s between two guys. Probably Reggie Miller and Kevin Garnet, those two guys were trash talkers. And Kevin, I don’t even play his position, but he’d more or less be talking to himself at the same time, but he’s talking trash to everybody else too.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Reggie you know he was talking trash to me, because I was guarding him one-on-one, but both of those guys were pretty good at it.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Now on a scale of 1 to 10, how rigged was Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> Oh man! You know, I would say 10…\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> (laughs)\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> But then I’d preface that by saying, I would truly hope that … and truly in my heart of hearts I believe that didn’t happen. Because as bad as it hurts in the different phases when I look at the game and I just go “what the hell is going on?” I truly don’t believe something like that could go on. It would hurt my heart of hearts because I love the game of basketball and I played totally fair with all my heart, everything. That would be crushing.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> All right man. So you think they’re doing a good job of cleaning that stuff up now?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> I think they’re doing a terrible job with changing the rules constantly. The trash talking thing, that is just totally – that’s part of the game. That’s part of what the ref’s have to monitor in the game. If a guy’s getting out of hand, well give him a technical. But every guy who raises his hand who says something, you give it to him, that’s totally crazy. In the late 90s, when they started changing… every year the rules change. It was messing up the game, ‘cause now guys are out there thinking and what’s sad is you’re taking away from the most beautiful essence of the game. You’re not able to play your best when you think. It’s not a thinking game. You do have to think, but that’s molded in practice. You don’t want to be out there thinking “oh hell what do I do?”And they were, you know, you can’t put your hand on guys passed this point or this point. The game is the game, and the refs have to adjust to reffing the game and not putting road blocks and stop signs up so that a ref doesn’t have to do his job. I don’t think that anything of the things that they’re doing right now are really helping the game.\r\n\r\n<strong>CS:</strong> Gotcha. So just to boil it down to its real essence, what do you love most about the game of basketball?\r\n\r\n<strong>DC:</strong> You know, the team aspect is… you know it’s not the individual first, but just the team aspect, the camaraderie of the guys, watching something collectively come together. Then when you start training camp or early practice in high school and all these different things, you’re getting to know guys and then all of the sudden things start clicking. That is the ultimate beauty. But as an individual, the game of basketball is just… for me I love soccer, but the game of basketball is just the most beautiful game that there is. Because you have to learn so many different facets, it reminds me a lot of ballet. But at the same time you’ve got tap dance and you’ve got jazz, you’ve got hip hop.  You get everything when you watch the game of basketball. In football, they’ve got the helmets on. In baseball, you’re kind of far away. In basketball, the guys are right there, you can see them. You’re very close to the action. From the passing to the defense, just all the different facets of the game… it’s truly why I just love it.','Doug Christie Interview','','inherit','open','open','','2911-revision-22','','','2010-11-23 09:01:19','2010-11-23 17:01:19','',2911,'http://manjr.com/2010/uncategorized/2911-revision-22/',0,'revision','',0),