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...with Kenny Smith

:24 HOOP: Tell us about the camps¹ you're hosting this summer.
KENNY: They're a lot of fun. Ever since I've been an NBA player, I've been doing camps.

:23 HOOP: Do you teach the kids how to fish while camping?
KENNY: No, no fishing [laughs]. Strictly basketball. Just trying to make you a better player.

:22 HOOP: Where did the "Gone Fishin" idea originally come from?
KENNY: When I was playing, the Phoenix Suns² Gorilla came out to the Andy Griffith theme song and he had a pole with all of the other teams they had already beaten hanging on it. So I came to the bench and I said, "Yo, we ain't going fishin'."

:21 HOOP: Have any of the guys ever given you a hard time about being pictured?
KENNY: No. They know it's funny when they see other guys on it, but they don't want to see themselves. They don't want to see those poles³ come out.

:20 HOOP: Are there any players you've felt bad that they have ended up in those pictures year after year?
KENNY: No. The best don't get on it. That's how I look at it.

:19 HOOP: What kind of fisherman are you?
KENNY: My dad loves to fish, but I'm not a fisherman. I probably go once or twice a year, but my father probably goes once a week.

:18 HOOP: What's your favorite bait to hook Charles?
KENNY: Anything about food. If you have anything that has a double meaning with a food reference, he bites into it. No pun intended.

:17 HOOP: How often do you show him your championship rings?
KENNY: Well, my dad has my first ring and my brother has my second, but it only comes out as a last resort. That's like the piece de resistance. When I'm really losing the battle, I'm going there.

:16 HOOP: How close was Charles to being an NBA Champion? His Suns went the full seven⁴ games with your Rockets both years you won titles.
KENNY: One of them was a last-second shot by Mario Elie, too. So either team, I felt, with the right bounce of the ball, could have been NBA champs. I just felt we had the right plays at the right time.

:15 HOOP: What's the funniest picture your crew has created over the years?
KENNY: It wasn't a picture, it was a video. They put Charles and myself on these two guys doing a Michael Jackson tribute to "Thriller."

:14 HOOP: Your bio on Wikipedia describes you as the "straight man" to Barkley.
KENNY: That's funny, because before he got here, I was the guy who was the loose cannon and Ernie [Johnson] was the straight guy. But Charles is far more than a loose cannon, he's an uzi.

:13 HOOP: How often are you asked, "Where's Charles?"
KENNY: All the time. I'll be in a public restroom and someone will say, "Where's Chuck?" and I'll be like, "Well, he ain't in here."

:12 HOOP: Who is the best Mr. T?
KENNY: Oh, I was by far. Ernie is a little bit older, so I don't know if he watched it, but that was my era. And Charles is more of a movie guy. I'm a TV guy, so I can even tell you A-Team⁵ episodes.

:11 HOOP: Did you have the Mr. T chains back in the day?
KENNY: Just one. I had the starter kit.

:10 HOOP: What's your favorite bit you guys have ever done?
KENNY: When I did the thing with Kobe, jumping over the car. I saw Kobe's video⁶ on the Internet, so I came up with the idea for the bit, but the ending with me getting hit, our graphics guy came up with that. About three or four minutes before we aired it, they wouldn't show me what they had done. So I said, "Oh, I probably got hit." But I didn't think it was going to look so authentic. It was pretty funny.

:09 HOOP: Could you jump over Gwen's car?
KENNY: Well, as fast as my wife drives I probably could. She's from England, so they drive a little faster there.

:08 HOOP: We saw your competition at the Atlanta Motor Speedway this past spring.
KENNY: Yeah, I had been telling her I was going to take her there. She was doing about 160. It was ridiculous.⁷

:07 HOOP: For our readers who don't know, your wife is one of the "Barker Beauties" on The Price is Right. Actually, what are they called now with Drew Carey as the host?
KENNY: Just The Price is Right models. Drew is such a great guy. All of a sudden you'll find the new PlayStation Guitar Hero at your door. Or he'll be like, "I'm going to a soccer game, you want to go?" And it will be in Argentina, and he'll have two plane tickets for everyone. He's one of the most benevolent guys I know.

:06 HOOP: What's your favorite The Price is Right game?
KENNY: I like the little guy going up the Swiss Alps. I just told my wife last week, I've been coming to the set all this time and I've never spun the wheel. I've got to spin the wheel!

:05 HOOP: We hear your daughter just signed a recording contract?
KENNY: She signed with Interscope records. She's in the studio now working with a lot of big heavyweight producers. She's really talented and we are really excited see where this leads. It's kind of like she's made the league, now we'll see if she's Rookie of the Year.

:04 HOOP: Did she get her singing abilities from her father?
KENNY: Not from me.

:03 HOOP: How about your son? Does he have any Jet in his game?
KENNY: He's 13, he loves the game now and that's the key. He's got a good understanding of the game and he's unselfish. He's actually more skilled than I was at that age, but I was more athletic.

:02 HOOP: Are you more well known now or when you were a player?
KENNY: I'm probably more well known now by the casual fan. They get to know you. It's really interesting when someone invites you into their home, because they could turn the game off with 200-plus cable stations...
[background] CHARLES: Hey man, y'all have had enough interview⁸ You're done. We don't want to hear you all talk. We want to watch the game. This is my green room.
REGGIE: Your green room? Kenny, are you going to let him talk to you like that? Are you kidding me?

:01 HOOP: One more question, Charles, and we're done.
CHARLES: No, you're done now! Seriously! You've got to go!
KENNY: Don't worry, he don't run this room. Go ahead.

HOOP: EJ's got his "Neat-O Stat of the Night." What stat are you proudest of from your
playing career?
KENNY: Two chips. That's it. Bill Russell gave me that. One of my teammates asked him one
time when he was coaching⁹ us, "What was your shooting percentage?" He said, "11 rings."