Not a one-trick pony: Kareem Rush has kept busy but basketball still holds his heart
It’s 2008 and I’m sitting in an empty corner of the terminal at the Phoenix Sky Harbor airport, waiting to board my red eye flight home. Just as I start wondering why the hell I scheduled a flight so damn late, it all became worth it at the blink of an eye.
“Kareem Rush is on my flight!” I text wildly to friends and family desperately hoping for someone to share my excitement. But alas, I’m showered with a host of who? and who cares? — needless to say I cut some ties that night!
Either way, it was a thrill for me, and thank God Southwest Airlines has open seating. Even on this half-full plane, I manage to sit one seat away from Rush and he chats it up with me, even though he doesn’t have to.
Seven years later and it seems like it’s been that long since I’ve seen Rush play in The Association. Actually, in some ways, it has been. In the 2007-08 season, Rush played for the Indiana Pacers, averaging 8.3 points and 2.4 rebounds in 21 minutes a night. Over the next two seasons, he appeared in just 32 games for the Philadelphia Sixers and Los Angeles Clippers before injuring his knee and being waived during the 2009-10 season.
“I’ve had time to explore my other talents since basketball. I jumped into music, got into some fashion and I’ve even become an inventor.”
Many former NBA players sail off into the sunset after their careers are cut short by injury, but Rush made sure to stay in the limelight as much as possible. Music, fashion, inventions, brands; you name it. Either Kareem has done it or he’s taken it into serious consideration.
However, while the 34-year-old is working on a multitude of projects, singing remains his true love. Rush lit up when talking about his passion for music: “At first I got into R&B and adult contemporary. Kind of a like a Joe or Donnell Jones type. I had a Billboard top 40 hit (“Hold You Down”), but really I’m a crooner at heart, man. Think of me as a black Michael Buble,” he said with a laugh.
Rush is currently working on a cover album of Frank Sinatra and Michael Buble songs. If all goes as planned, it should be released sometime in the fall.
While his passion for music is strong, he also ventured into the fashion world and talked about creating suit lines among other things. Rush is an intelligent business man. He’s been networking and getting his foot in the door wherever he can, so that when basketball is done for good, he has something to fall back on.
“I’ve been working on two inventions. I mainly look at things related to athletes so I have a travel loofah which has been patented and a workout chair for the office as well.”
If you watch late-night television like me, you have seen the InventHelp commercials that play seemingly 50 times per hour. That company picked up Rush’s idea for a travel loofah geared toward professional athletes and are marketing the product to retailers everywhere as we speak. Rush also has a pending patent for an office workout chair he’s dubbed “sit & fit” that offers a full workout for individuals who sit at a desk all day for work.
“You know, man, I just like a challenge and inventing something of your own,” Rush said when asked what drove him to start inventing things. “Getting people to buy it is a tough thing.”
As I’m talking with him, I can just sense the excitement oozing with every comment. This is a man who is accustomed to being in the spotlight, having adoring fans and being successful in his endeavors, and it’s just fun to listen to him talk about them with such fervor. But with all the talk about his music career and future business plans, everything in our conversation goes back to his love for basketball.
“I still have that itch, man. I’m in better shape than 95 percent of the league right now.”
Rush’s voice picks up as we start to talk NBA. He’s clearly been following it while he’s been out of the league. “With the small ball craze, I know I can help a team,” he says. “I can still hit shots, that never went away, I just had to get the physical part back after my knee injury and I’m in better shape that I’ve ever been, honestly.”
While the NBA is the first and main goal, Rush is open to playing overseas, too. He’s had offers to play in Italy and, like the true businessman he is, he’s quick to remind me “that would coincide real well with my suit line.”
No matter what it is, Rush is always thinking about the big picture.
I cut in so I can ask the question I’ve been itching to throw his way for a long time — Kareem, who is the best Rush brother? Who’s the best at hoop? He immediately perked up. “In our primes? C’mon, man, I’m the best. Ask Brandon or Jaron and they’ll both tell you I’m the best. I just whooped on both of them for Brandon’s 30th birthday a while back.”
Upon the mention of Jaron, we start talking about the documentary that will be coming out sometime in the fall about the Rush brothers. With the success of ESPN’s 30 for 30 series, Kareem pushed their family story and thought it would be an intriguing one to tell. DirecTV agreed after their project won a competition to become the television company’s first sports documentary.
“Everyone knows us from basketball, but I wanted to tell our true story. It really stems from me wanting to tell Jaron’s story and I think people will really enjoy it at the end of the day.”
Don’t be fooled by all the talk about music, fashion and inventions — Kareem’s sole focus right now is on making an NBA comeback. And even if that does not happen, he still has something to play for. “My youngest daughter is seven and she’s never seen her daddy play professional ball,” he said. “I want to play for her and for me. I think I still have two or three great years in me and at the end of the day. I just want to play.”
In the end, Rush is just like you and me. We all take different routes to reach our goals, but ultimately our heart tends to bring us back to the trigger that started it all. For Rush, that trigger is basketball and believe me when I say he’s itching to pull it.