For NBA players, winning their first NBA title tends to bring forth a river of emotions that some fans would never expect them to have. What that often leads to is some great moments up on podium while talking to reporters as players start to see the big picture and break down at times. On Sunday night that happened for J.R. Smith, who was asked a question about winning his first title on Father’s Day and what it meant to him. What followed was a spectacular answer.
The postgame moment everyone's talking about - JR Smith's powerful words about the impact of family on his life https://t.co/5HkYB7mMGq
— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) June 20, 2016
Considering all the jokes made at J.R.’s expense over the course of his NBA career, this moment was the least expected of the night for many people. But in reality it was a great reminder of just how human these NBA players are and how important things like family are to them.
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J.R. speaking about how his actions impact his father was one of the more touching and impactful things I can remember hearing on a podium and the entire answer is one that should be replayed a bunch for a while.
It was raw, it was real and most importantly it humanized a player that many treat as an act more than a human being. J.R. Smith is fun, both because of his game and his personality but J.R. Smith also cares a lot about how his actions impact his family.
So if it wasn’t already easy to root for J.R. before this video, it should be very simple now. He is just a man who loves his parents a lot and is trying to live his life in the best way he can. Like all of us.