01x04 - Swish

[bunniefuu]

[music]

[Smith] It's finals week.

All this sh*t is
driving me crazy.

Papers.

Nerve-wracking quizzes
and all of that.

And getting work done
in the crunch.

[music]

Oh, my God.

[Burke] Never mind the media,
call your mama.

[laughing]

I could not believe it
when I pulled it up.

That she gave you the A.

Oh, my goodness.

[laughing]

I'm so happy
I got to be the one to tell you.

Me, too.
It is only right

because, for sure,
thank you, thank you,

thank you, thank you,
thank you so much, Ms. Burke.

- Oh, my goodness.
- You did all the hard work.

You got a 4.0!

Oh, my God.

I tell you, 4.0,

and I tell you,
some sh*t you work for,

oh, my God.

Monday through Friday,
8:00 to 11:00.

[Smith] I got a 4.0.

[Ida] Aah! You did?!

[laughing]

I need your mom,
I need your...

[laughter]

- Guess what?
- What?

I got a 4.0.

Get out of here!

- What'd I tell you?
- Appreciate it, Pops.

You put in the work,
that's what you get out of it.

Is that the dean's list,
or what is it?

That's the chancellor's list.

That's every list
right there.

That's an academic
All-American right there.

Hey, yo, your boy got
that 4.0, though.

- Yeah!
- [voice] Seriously?

I checked the grades
this morning, man.

[Jewel] Tell me how you feelin'.

It's dope, like...

it's crazy 'cause
I think about the times

when I was a kid, and...

the kids would used
to come past...

like, go past
the special ed rooms,

the classrooms and sh*t
and look in them,

and, like,
literally make fun of me.

Laugh at me and sh*t.

I used to feel so bad.

So, like, dumb or slow

in certain situations

and not really,
you know, as a kid,

understand that
you learn differently.

Why do I learn this way,
and why can't I...

you know...

be like the normal kids
and the regular kids?

And... you know what's funny?

Like, given my professional status

in basketball, and accolades...

All-American high school
and all of that sh*t.

And I still felt
like they were superior to me

because that's always...

was their, like,
criticism towards me.

Now, I, like...
to really alleviate

that sh*t is f*ck'...
it's amazing.

For so long,
you know, as a kid,

to when you're an adult,

you grow up
with that sh*t,

sh*t like that,

then to be able to...
feel like,

not even so much
you proved them wrong,

but you proved yourself right.

[Jewel] Right?

[theme music]

[theme music ends]

[soft music]

Your newest graduate.

[chuckling]

[sighing]

Ooh, let's go get
these pictures done.

[interviewer]
How do you feel about it?

[Williams] I feel
it went good, uh, you know,

I didn't really do
the grad pics for me.

I did 'em for my mom,
but, you know,

after looking
at my man Jerry's camerawork,

kinda glad that I did 'em.

Oh, man...

this feels surreal now.

Second semester,

when... I made
the dean's list,

that was probably...
that was really, really huge,

especially after
struggling so much

my first semester.

The biggest highlight,
I mean, in my opinion,

is, you know, senior year,

having, you know,
J.R. on the team.

I wanna...
I wanna see him get it.

You'll see it,
you'll see it.

[soft chatter]

[Williams] Being able to go
to TaylorMade like that,

that was
a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Xavier and A.J.
come on, man,

Hey, Scott, man, they've been
dying to meet you, bro.

I'm sorry, I know
they can't hear you.

But this is Xavier,
our senior,

this is the young boy
sophomore, A.J.,

and they...
they just wanted to say hello.

How you doin', Scott?
Big, big fan of yours.

Watch your show all the time,
it's good to...

you know, I can't see you,
but it's good to talk to you.

He's a journalism major
actually, too.

He said... he said,
"Give me his contact,"

if he can make it,
you can make it.

Yeah, I need that...
I need that ASAP.

Need that ASAP.
Appreciate you.

Don't leave me hangin',
all right, cool-cool-cool.

[laughter]

[Williams]
My professional aspiration is,

if playing golf don't work out,

then, you know,
going to TaylorMade

and being fitted by, you know,

the best guys in the world
at what they do,

and yeah, just seeing
that whole facility was...

was absolutely amazing.

[Gonzalez]
It was a long season.

For the PGA Works,
we were all burnt out.

Because we were
coming from

a tournament in Grandover,

and then wash our clothes,

pack, and then leave to Maryland,

coming to Maryland,
I won the tournament.

[soft chatter]

But, after Maryland,

we were, like, yeah,
we need a break of golf.

But I was grateful for...

having the teammates
that I have.

Being around the people
that I was around.

- Yeah-yeah-yeah!
- Whoo!

- I finished both of 'em, bro.
- I know.

[Gonzalez]
My plans right now...

keep playing golf.

One more year for golf.

Thanks to COVID,

one thing
I'm thankful for is that

the NCAA gave us
a COVID year,

so they let us play,

and they let us maintain
our scholarship money.

So it's just,
Coach giving me the opportunity

to come one extra year,

then there's more than enough
to be grateful for.

Diego... he had
a really, really good fall.

Um, I think
his scoring average was par,

if I'm not mistaken...

Did not... you know,
he did not have the best spring.

Nobody... nobody on our team

really had, you know,
the spring that

they were really hoping for.

There was a lot of controversy

on the team,
how we were feeling with Coach.

Because we didn't think

we were...
getting enough guidance

or... the support
that we needed.

We had started out early

with, uh... we could count on...

three good scores,
especially in the fall.

And then we weren't
able to ever put

that fourth score
in the mix.

So you and I are gonna have
to have a long conversation

- about your job.
- I got you.

[Watkins] We just didn't
have that consistency

that we were looking for,

and then we...
we struggled.

[Gonzalez] I think we were
not focused on the work.

We have to play the game well.

Every other player was
working harder

or double as hard than us.

We're just practicing
the minimum

instead of focusing
on the goals that we had.

[Smith]
Our team has been struggling

with discipline.

And structure.

We don't have plans
with practice.

We don't have a...

set direction, as a team,

where we wanna go,
where we see ourselves,

that we're...
what our missions are.

We don't work
on our craft as precise...

and have a specific game plan

on how to get better.

What I look for
from any player

is... is improvement.

When I got here,
I was... I felt like

I was a better player.

If you want
your team to improve,

regardless
of what the team is,

uh, in my mind, there's only
two ways for that to happen.

Number one,
the players that you have

have got to improve...

And that's because
they couldn't develop players.

...or you have to go out
and get better players.

They got good players,
but they made 'em worse.

We have outstanding
student-athletes.

Athletes that are committed
to their academics,

and athletes that are in...

very stringent
academic programs.

That's still
a problem that you have

in organizing practice,

organizing people,
so, you know, that...

I don't have
any complaints about that.

[Gonzalez] We had one pair
of shoes last semester.

We didn't have
no training shoes.

We had the bookstore shirts.

And...

...you're proud to be
a tier one school

and a tier one golf program,

but... you're not
having the fundamentals

to be a tier one school,
or a tier one program.

- Should I bring that, too?
- Huh?

No, we don't need it.

[Smith] I really wanted
to challenge them

to voice their opinions.

Feeling like
their voice matters,

because it does.

[Watkins]
It was nothing more than...

an internal discussion.

You know,
one of those...

professional sports,
closed-door,

players-only,
uh, conversations.

That's from a...
player's standpoint

and a coach's standpoint.

They have things
that they want us to do,

and there are things that
we want them to do.

[interviewer]
How was the meeting?

- Eh.
- It's not over.

[interviewer]
Give us a little breakdown?

Ahh, to be continued.
To be continued.

That's all I can say,
"to be continued."

[Smith]
It got a little heated.

It's hard when you tell somebody
they're not doing their job

to really grasp
and understand

that they're not
doing their job, you know?

It's like, especially
when it's, uh, you know,

young minds, and then
it's a collective,

and they all have...
pretty much have

the same outlook
and same viewpoint.

[Ford]
People felt like

the commitment level
wasn't there,

but that's just not the case,

because the commitment level

is there, it's just...

the results that we strive for

hasn't been what we wanted,

so let's all take...
a deep breath

and take a step back
and figure out

what's the main goal?
What's the mission?

This obligation is
a two-way street.

And it's not hard for me
to do my part.

The basic necessity
of a coach...

you coach.

That's it.

If you're a coach,
and you do not coach,

when your team underperforms,

then don't say sh*t.

Because you didn't coach.

Because I take offense to that,
'cause I'm a player.

And I play.
I play my a*s off.

I practice,
I work at any and everything

there is that I've done,
to be successful at... this.

So, when I get out there,
I have reason to be disappointed

in myself because I have
worked to a certain extent,

and I didn't live up
to that expectation.

I think J.R. helped
in a way that,

all right, we're having
this meeting this day

with these people.
And I think that was good.

It's just...
but it doesn't really matter

how good
a meeting could be

if attendants are not there.

So, next year,
we'll see what happens.

[Gonzalez]
So we're getting there now.

We're going
to pick up my parents.

I haven't seen them
in four or five years.

Uh, my brother's
coming tomorrow.

So... we're gonna be
all together.

We haven't been together
in, like, five years, six years.

And... hopefully
it's gonna be a good week.

My beautiful boy!

It's so good to see you!

Hi Dad.

Hello son.

How are you?

Good.

You look so beautiful.

I know.

You're all grown up.

[Gonzalez]
Having my parents

coming in here,
it was incredible.

I'm thankful for the effort

Mom and Dad made to bring us
the whole family,

to come see me graduate.

And I'm going
to play golf with them,

and I haven't played golf
with them in...

ten years, eight years.

So, just getting to see them...

together...

was... incredible.

[music]

That's enough.

[soft chatter]

Ooh!

I follow all his tournaments
and as a golf teacher,

I understand the kind of frustrations
that players experience.

...and that's why I understand him.

I think the university has
given him a lot of tools.

In reality, he is the one who has to
put effort into the game.

That's how success happens.

The university has given you everything,
the rest is up to you as a player.

[soft chatter]

[chuckling]

[soft chatter]

Good one, the old man's still got it.

Let's put money on this game.

He wants to bet.

[laughter]

That's a fade.

Clink.

Vamos.

Okay, let's go. Here we go.

[Smith] The biggest challenge
for me the first year was

overcoming the fear
of going back to school,

'cause I didn't know
what to expect.

I didn't know
if I was gonna have

a ton of homework,
I didn't know if I was

gonna be able to comprehend
everything I'm receiving.

I didn't know if I was gonna
be able to do the work.

'Cause I actually wanna
learn classes.

I actually wanna
educate myself in areas

that I've never been in.

You continuously grow
as a person.

This is my pop's office,

where all of my...
pretty much most of my accolades

have gone
since I was a kid.

All the way up to high school,
and things we collected,

and things that my dad
just ain't thrown away, too.

Uh, so...

that's my baseball picture
from little league.

All my trophies,
pictures, home run ba*ls.

This is all my cards
from my rookie year...

my pops got.

One of my, like,
my first rookie card deals.

You see those lockers
back there?

- Oh, yeah.
- What Christmas was that?

- Ninety...
- '96?

Heh, we thought
we was really in the league.

We had jerseys
in there, shirts,

I used to put my... I used
to have my big league games,

the league used to put
all my stuff in my locker

the night before
and make it seem like

I really had a game, like,
'cause we didn't have

lockers at the gym.

Aw, man.

But Jersey alone is just,
you know, it's my home.

I... every time
I come back here,

it feels good
because I see my family.

I see my kids.

I see my mom, I see my dad.

[coughing]

[laughing]

This is the '70, '67, '68.

[Smith] I think
my parents did a hell of a job.

Helped my pops there, man.

To see him smile
and to see him happy.

His spirit's come up.

And you just try to cherish it
as long as you can.

People be thinking
I be playin'

when I tell 'em
we got cars.

[Smith] That's the part
I love about it.

[laughter]

Yeah, that's just...

how it be
when I come home.

[soft chatter]

Congratulations.

[soft chatter]

You believe me now?

- [laughter]
- Believe me now?

[Onya Gardner]
I am... Xavier Williams'

number one fan.

I am his mother,
and I am so proud of him.

I am so proud of him
as an A&T Aggie golfer

and most excited that,
this weekend,

I have prayed
and worked and cried,

and we are here for him

to graduate
this weekend.

So... tomorrow's
the big day.

Aah, tomorrow's the big day.

Tomorrow's the big day.

- Next?
- Next, uh...

get all these clothes
in the car.

[laughter]

Get all these clothes
in the car.

Uh... real, real excited
to start my internship

this summer
with the PGA Tour.

- Yeah?
- Uh, really, really

looking forward
to that, and... ooh,

this'll be
some breaking news, uh,

I made the top five
of the APGA.

[laughter]

I made the top five...
I made the top five, yeah.

So, got some decisions to make.

I can't really
communicate in words

how proud I am of Xavier.

We are not
a family of privilege,

so, um, he has
worked really hard.

He's worked hard
to maintain his grades,

first and foremost;
he's worked hard

on the golf course
to improve his game.

And that's been over the...
I mean, all his life.

He's been playing golf
since he was potty-trained.

That's when my brother's dad
decided that he could

come on to the golf course
with him.

And he's taken
the initiative to get better.

I sent him here
as a young...

naive young man,

and today...

I have a... a grown man.

Still Mama's baby
but graduating.

So, when did you find out that
you were graduating with honors?

- Today.
- Today?

- Today, I...
- I need to get

- my graduation pictures.
- I had absolutely no idea.

He just went in there.

He said, "Congratulations,

you'll be graduating
with honors."

I said, "What?!

I'll be graduating
with what?"

I said, "Yeah, gimme my cord,
gimme my cord for sure."

For sure... but yeah,
real, real happy about that.

Not happy about having to be

at the Coliseum
at 7:00 in the morning.

Because you graduate, like,
with a class of 1,800?

It's... gonna be
a lot of people there.

Hah!

Whoo!

[music]

2022!
We doin' it now!

'22, '22,
Aggie Pride!

2022, we're out of here, baby.

We made it. Finally.

I mean, it's crazy to think that,
four years ago...

We came here together.
We were living together.

And, like,
this time has absolutely flown.

There's nobody else
I'd rather be graduating with.

This guy right here.
This guy right here.

This my guy.

I told you yesterday...

Students. Student first.
Athlete second.

The biggest college here is
the college of engineering.

We are the biggest producers
of Black engineers

and computer scientists
and all that, right here.

You know, like,
this is history in the making.

[announcer] Welcome
to the 2022 Spring Commencement

for North Carolina Agricultural
and Technical State University.

[cheering and applause]

♪ Lift every voice and sing ♪

♪ Till earth and heaven ♪

♪ Ring, ring with ♪

♪ The harmonies ♪

♪ Of... ♪

Whoo!

[overlapping shouts]

Yeah!

[cheering and applause]

[Smith] Man, I'm happy
for X and Diego, man,

to see them actually graduate,
and I know they're happy.

[announcer]
Diego Ignatio Gonzalez Barrios.

[Smith]
For Diego to be,

you know,
a foreign student,

to come over here
and make an impact that he did

on the golf team...

[announcer]
Xavier Lee Williams.

[Smith]
As well as, you know,

X being
from North Carolina,

not too far from the school
and making the impact he did,

coming from totally
different backgrounds,

and what they did for the school
is... really impactful.

Gives me so much inspiration
to what I wanna do.

I've just gotten
visions of graduation,

with honors and tassels
and all of these...

all of these
different things,

and...

I'm not gonna stop till I get it.

[cheering and applause]

[airhorn blows]

I don't know
that I can explain

the emotions that I'm feeling,
I am so elated

and so, so, so proud of Xavier

and his accomplishment today.

And I know
this is just the beginning,

but it's a heck of a start.

Firstly, I thank God.

Diego Ignacio has made
a tremendous effort,

and to say that I am proud
would be an understatement.

To be able to witness
your child succeed...

to work hard...

to persevere and achieve their goals...

Wow. I am so grateful.

[cheering, whooping]

Aggie Pride means
just finding your place

in the world;
Aggie Pride is culture.

Aggie Pride is love.
Aggie Pride is family.

Aggie Pride is...
what we do.

I'm a 2022 graduate

with a major
of aerospace engineering.

There's a saying:
it takes a village.

And A&T has been
that village for me.

An HBCU for... especially
a Black male like myself,

it's, like, your home.

I feel amazing.
I'm actually the first in my family

to make this happen,
so this is, like,

super-emotional day for us.

Oh, Black excellence,
that's A&T every day.

I wake up, I see people
that look like me.

That's so inspiring.

I know that inspires
a lot of kids

who don't even know
a lot about college

but to see a lot
of Black graduates out of here,

I'm sure that's inspiring
to someone's child.

...carry you back in there?

It's my little movie star.

No! Don't hold me
like a baby.

- You my baby.
- [laughing]

- A baby!
- Aww, look at

my little dumpling.

I'm not a baby!

- You my baby.
- No!

- No, how old are you?
- Four.

That's right,
you're not a baby.

- You see my big baby?
- Yes.

- Where my big baby at?
- Here.

Nope... yep.

No, I...
I wanna be the big baby.

You gonna be
the big baby soon enough.

Yes.

Just stay Daddy's little baby
for a little longer, okay?

Okay.

- Yeah.
- Thank you.

"Okay."

- Dad.
- Pass it, Soda.

Come on.

[babbling, humming]

You gotta dribble it, Soda.

[Smith]
I got four girls.

Take off
from the free throw line!

Dunk it, Soda, dunk it!

[Smith]
And a lot of people be like,

yo, you gonna try for a boy?

And to me, it's like, nah,
give me four more girls.

[interviewer]
Is it hard when you're away

and you're not being
with the kids?

Man...

Be over there
cryin' like a baby.

For real.

Greatest feeling in the world,
being a dad.

[Smith]
They taught me so much

about myself, and...

it's truly a blessing that,

you know,
I don't take for granted.

Like, I became a father at 24,

and, since that day,
my life was changed forever.

Um... for the better.

[camera snaps]

That don't count.

You can get one in.

[Smith]
With my daughters now,

it's like, to have my dad,

you know, telling my daughters

the same thing
he was telling me.

Hey, with me and your dad,

when I was showing
your dad how to play...

- Mm-hm.
- I always told him,

if he hit the rim,
it don't count.

So what it gotta do,
is it gotta go...

straight through
hitting the rim, just net.

Working on 'em
with their form,

and bending their knees
and all of that, it's just like...

I betcha, I'll put some money
on that you swish it.

I guarantee
that you'll swish it.

What more could you ask for?

[Smith]
Imagine there's a little ball

in the middle of the rim,

like,
two feet above it,

and try to hit that
every time.

There you go.

You know,
those are memories

that... that'll last forever.

[laughter]

Arms out.
Show your fundamentals.

Get your elbow tucked in.

There you go.

Don't count, though.
It hit the rim.

[Smith]
It's crazy 'cause it's like,

I get to live my dream twice.

I've literally learned that

self-discipline within anything

can take you...

so far internally.

If I can sit here and get a 4.0,

anybody can do it.

[Smith]
Just coming to A&T,

I feel like
my work ethic has

gotten so much stronger.

My discipline has
gotten stronger.

My level of focus.

My level of comprehensiveness

and being able to express
and communication.

[commentator chatter]

I just know me.

[commentator chatter]

I know who I am.
I know who I've been.

[commentator]
The New Orleans Hornets select

J.R. Smith
from St. Benedict's Prep.

[Smith] And I was fine
with being the dumb jock.

I was gonna be
the rich dumb jock.

[commentator] J.R. Smith
with the time running down.

[Smith] It wasn't
until the last couple of years

where I really took ownness
of who I wanted to be.

[distant commentator]

[Smith] And it's something
I'll cherish

for the rest of my life,
because I've seen

the impact
that it's had on myself,

my family, my kids.

[commentator]
Give it up for the...

world champion
Cleveland Cavaliers.

[cheering and applause]

Yeah, I think I've...

did a complete 180
from where I started.

[basketball bouncing]

Go!

[basketball bouncing]

Don't count.

[laughing]

[music]