Being underrated in the NBA is unlike being underrated in any other sport. When you’re a player like Mike Conley, who is one of the better point guards in the game, there isn’t much appreciation. He isn’t in a huge market and it hurts his marketability. Signing a $150 million dollar contract though offsets any pain he may have.
Or maybe, some recognition from one of the greatest living rappers is more his speed.
Conley during Memphis Grizzlies media day told a story about a late-night phone call he received from Kanye West. West wanted to give Conley a pep talk and let him know that he was appreciated.
VIDEO: Mike Conley got one of those famous late night calls from Kanye West this summer. The phone call story is hilarious. Check it out. pic.twitter.com/zZIJfXV747
— Sudu Upadhyay (@SuduUpadhyay) September 25, 2017
Here is Conley relaying the story for the media:
12:30 at night and I was just like, “Hello.” And he was like, “Yeah, this is ‘Ye.” I kinda just kept trying to put it together. Long story short: He was just like, “Man, come out to L.A. whenever you’re out in L.A. and we’ll get together.”
[He said], “I just want to let you know that I admire you. I really like what you do. I hate to see that you’re underrated.” Just going through these things like he actually watches me play. That’s what I was thinking in my head, “He knows a lot about me.” He wasn’t reading off a paper or anything. He was just like, “Man, I just think that you can be up here, and they just don’t see you like that.” I was just like, “Man, I 100 percent—I’m with you. I understand. What can we do? Help me.”
West reaching out may seem weird but it looks to have given Conley a little bit of a bump. He was excited about the phone call and wanted to be an even better basketball player afterward. Who could’ve guessed that a phone call from Kanye West is the motivation you need to be a better player?
