Friday,
July 14
Outtakes with Penny Hardaway
By Dan Patrick
ESPN The Magazine
DP: What
do you know now about Jason Kidd that you didn't know before you became his
teammate?
PH: How
good he was at everything that he does. He makes plays that I don't even think
of making. Defensively, he gets his hands on almost every ball down the floor.
There are guys who are more flashy or score more points, but Jason is just an
awesome player.
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Penny has still kept
up his Memphis roots.
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DP: Who's
your best NBA friend?
PH: Elliot
Perry. We were the starting guards at the same high school [Treadwell in
Memphis] when I was a freshman and he was a senior. He was my idol because he
did everything by the book. I still look up to him.
DP: What
do you think of the new rules changes?
PH: I like
them. You get to the free throw line more and put more points on the board as
a team. On defense, the rules make you move your feet. You're not supposed to
play defense with your hands anyway.
DP: Ever
say to yourself, "Geez, I've got a lot of money, I'm going to buy something
silly"?
PH: Yeah.
(Laughs) A Lamborghini. But I don't have it anymore.
DP: No?
Well, who has the silliest car in the NBA now?
PH:
Probably my boy Darrell Armstrong. He has a Winnebago and a little old-school
Volkswagen bug.
DP: You
were shot during your freshman year at Memphis State. You still have a bullet
lodged in your right foot, don't you?
PH: No,
it's not in there anymore. (Ed.'s note: Penny was shot in April 1991 during a
Memphis street robbery in which he had no involvement. He had the bullet
removed six months later.)
DP: Did
that change your life?
PH: It did
tremendously. Because I was very naive. Just happy-go-lucky, thinking
everything was going to be safe. I was the type of guy who would leave his car
unlocked, door unlocked, trusting everybody. Since I got shot, I look twice at
everyone and everything in my surroundings.
DP: Are
you in love?
PH: Yep.
DP: You
want to shed some light on it?
PH: Yeah,
right. You'd love that. I've seen your articles.
DP: What
CD do you have that would surprise me?
PH: Kenny
Rogers' Great Hits Volume One. (Laughs)
DP: Do you
sing with Kenny?
PH: Yep.
As soon as he sings, I sing.
DP: You
good?
PH: Nope.
DP: Have
you and Shaq made peace?
PH: Yeah.
I knew that he liked me, but he wasn't going to call. I knew I had to break
the ice. This summer when I was thinking about going to the Lakers, I spoke to
him a couple of times, and we aired everything out.
DP: Do you
think Shaq will ever win a title?
PH: I
don't know. It takes more than him. It takes a bench.
DP: Do you
care if Shaq wins one?
PH: Not
really. Because I haven't won one yet