NBA and WNBA champions Kobe Bryant and Tamika Catchings reminisce about their childhoods in Italy while discussing their professional careers in Spike Lee’s Lil’ Joints: Italian Imports. The two spawned from NBA patrilineages who took their careers and families out of the country where the athletes had their first encounters. While Catchings remembered the difficulties of growing up with a hearing deficiency, Bryant struggled with assimilation after returning to the States. Both All-Stars used basketball as a coping mechanism to communicate emotions and overcome barriers.
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The almost 20-year veteran roots his technique to his time overseas when basketball was at the purest form and athletes showed true effort on the court. Both admitted to problems adopting the leadership role, but agreed that their high demand on the court caused them to be the compass that everyone looks to today.
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