- First of all, thank you for the interview,
and kind of just jumping right into it,
you were one of the first athletes,
first big names to invest in esports
as an industry back in 2016 with NRG.
And I'm wondering, with the way that things have progressed --
here we have a name-rights deal, which is obviously a big step --
I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about
how you feel about your NRG investment at this point.
- Well, one, when I make investments,
it's never because of the monetary things
that can or cannot happen.
I was in California, was spending time with the kids,
and they said, "Dad, there's this event
at the Staples Center, and we want you to take us."
So I know people at the Staples Center.
I call over there, I said,
"Hey, you guys got an event going down?"
"Yeah, it's this new thing
called esports, blah, blah, blah, blah."
'Cause I'd never heard of it.
So they when I get there, feels like a basketball game.
There's 30,000 little kids screaming,
and they're watching these two kids play on a screen.
I asked my son, I was like, "What is this?"
And he says, "The future, Dad, esports."
So I look into it, and then when I got the opportunity
to invest in a, you know, esports team,
I thought it was the right thing to do,
because, you know, especially when it comes to technology,
kids dictate what's going to be and what's not going to be.
For example, TikTok.
When it first came out,
it was third, fourth, in the space.
But then the kids start getting on there,
doing videos, and doing this.
Now you don't do TikTok,
especially dealing with these brands,
they're looking at you sideways.
So the kids really dictate a lot.
So when I saw those 30,000 kids
involved with this esports thing,
I just knew I had to get involved.
- Is it still the case that it's kind of your kids
and younger folks that are sort of,
I don't want to say influ--
well, I guess maybe influencing or pushing in that direction,
or have you started to follow the industry itself?
I mean, are you watching "Call of Duty" league
or "Overwatch" or any games like that at this point,
or not so much?
- I must admit, I do not watch any of the games.
I do keep up with NRG and who's hot and what they're doing,
but I got a lot of other stuff going on.
At some point, I would like to just sit down
and just take a couple weeks off and just, like --
especially "Call of Duty."
I've always wanted to play "Call of Duty,"
but never really had the opportunity or the chance.
- Gotcha.
With how the industry has evolved,
just again, in kind of general terms since 2016,
is there anything that has especially surprised you
or that, I don't know, that just kind of has struck you
as interesting in terms of the development of esports
in general at this point?
- The longevity has definitely surprised me.
I think I saw a stat that said most professional esports
only last three to four years.
That was surprising.
A lot of these kids, when they just keep playing,
keep playing, keep playing, they get burnt up.
And there's a lot of stars emerging every day.
I went to an esports event
and they was naming off these kids' names,
and the crowd was going crazy.
I was like, in this world, these guys are the Kevin Durants
and Steph Currys and Michael Jordans and all that.
And it was actually a fun event.
I went to an event in, I think it was --
I want to say it was probably Comic-Con, I think.
No, not Comic-Con.
- E3? - Yeah, E3.
- E3, yeah, okay.
- I had a little question-and-answer thing,
and it was me and a couple guys from NRG.
And the crowd was going crazy.
I was like, "Wow.
This is impressive." - Speaking of Michael Jordan,
I'm gonna transition this right here.
I would argue -- and I talked with my editor about this
to confirm it's not just in my head --
that you are actually more associated with video games
and with esports than he is,
despite the fact that you're both investors.
We were talking about going through some more articles,
and actually,
as sort of a legitimacy issue, a lot of times we say,
"Okay, here's who's investing with esports."
You're always, most of the time, on that list.
And so I'm wondering, what are your thoughts
about that association?
Are you happy with that?
Do you think it's fair, do you think it's accurate?
And the last thing I'll say is that a lot of people,
when we were asking,
particularly before the sort of, like, Robert Krafts
and that sort of money started coming into it,
even though it's still going on, a lot of people would say,
"Well, why'd you invest in esports?"
"Oh, Shaq's invested into it."
So how do you feel about that association?
- Man, I think I was one of the first.
- Yeah.
- As an alien being, I don't want to get worried
about what other Earthlings are doing.
I wish them well, but when I do investments,
it's all about partnerships,
it's all about learning, it's all about growing.
And, again, it's never about the monetary value for me.
When I went to there, I saw something and felt something
that I knew would have longevity,
because it was just playing one game.
But then the guys playing, "Yeah, we just play games,
we create leagues, and boom-boom."
I was like, "This will work."
A lot of kids, not want to --
are at home, sitting down, playing video games.
Much safer that way now.
But this thing has emerged into something
I never thought it would be.
And I've been with The General for awhile,
so I figured The General and NRG would be a great,
great partnership.
I introduced the two parties and laid a foundation.
- I was gonna ask you, yeah, if -- so that was --
so you brought this deal --
I don't know, is brokered the right for it?
But you connected both parties?
- Yes, because The General and NRG,
they acknowledged a natural synergy
between high-octane gameplay, like,
especially when it comes to the "Rocket League,"
and the need for quality auto insurance at affordable rates.
So, hey, you know, cars, affordable insurance --
a no-brainer.
- Is there anything else that you wanted to share
about that partnership in terms --
and 'cause what stuck out to us is being a names-rights deal,
something that is, I think,
an indication of the maturity of esports industry,
also the fact that they can track that to them.
Do you want to share the figure or the value of it?
We'd be happy to hear it and print it,
but short of that, yeah, just, any thoughts on that?
- Man, again, it was a natural fit to bring my trusted partner
The General together with the NRG organization.
They're the best high-octane car game
in the world, "Rocket League,"
and I had recognized the potential
for a seamless and organic partnership,
so I introduced both parties together.
- Just a couple more questions if we have time.
One is, just if -- you've mentioned
that you believe in the longevity of esports.
That's why you invested into it in the beginning.
How far do you think that this industry can go
in the sense of one day
becoming more popular than the NBA
or becoming more popular than a Hollywood film?
What do you think the upside is for this industry?
- Well, I know now that it's one
of the fastest-growing industries,
and it just appeals to so many people.
We've seen a huge increase in both gamers and viewers,
and that's why brands like The General,
we thought it was a great fit.
There's a lot of people engagement there.
But only -- listen, I really wish I was the expert
that could answer that question.
But I do know that it's appealing, people like it,
people like playing, people like watching.
So hopefully it lasts forever.
- And then the last question we have,
just on esports in particular --
with "Overwatch" league and "Call of Duty" league,
they have franchises, right, geolocated franchises.
So you have a -- I literally cannot think of one --
anyway, teams associated with names.
Do you think that that's something that could catch on?
You know, where you could actually -- like,
Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Rokkr, right, like,
where those sorts of relationships
could develop between team and fanbase?
- Of course.
Any way the fans would like to --
you know, that the fans like to be associated with,
it always works.
It definitely always works.
I think esports is gonna stay.
- Favorite video game?
- My favorite video game back in the day would be "NBA Jams."
- Fair enough.
Actually, there was one other question I was hoping to ask.
When you had talked about -- that reminded me at the top
when you talked about how you got into this at Staples Center.
Very similar story to what Rick Fox
said about how he got into it.
Actually, there were a lot of people who went to
that same event.
There have, obviously, some challenges
with Rick Fox's team in esports.
Have you spoken to him about that at all?
- No, I haven't.
You said that there's been some challenges?
- Yeah, with Echo Fox.
- Good or bad? - Bad.
I'm trying to be neutral, but, like --
-No, I haven't talked to him. - There's some definite --
I think anyone would say that there have been some challenges.
They had to fold the team, it turned out.
- Oh, man, I'm sorry to hear that.
- Yeah, but, and then I guess to wrap it up --
unless there's something else that I didn't ask about
that you want to share --
I got to ask your pick this season for the championship.
- You know what? Since all the big dogs are out,
I wouldn't mind seeing two underdogs go for it,
because this year
was kind of a rebounding year from the COVID thing
and a lot people got hurt, whatever.
You got all the big names.
There was only one big name, two big names left --
Giannis and Chris Paul.
But I would like to see Atlanta versus Phoenix,
or Phoenix versus Milwaukee,
and then the little dogs take on the big dogs.
- Fair enough, but do you have more allegiance, do you think,
towards Phoenix because of your history there, or not as much?
- I have allegiance to no team except the Sacramento Kings.
- Fair enough.
Shaq, unless there's anything else you wanted to share
that I didn't specifically ask about,
that is all the questions we have, and thank you.
- No problem Thank you, brother.