One of the sweetest opportunities of my broadcasting gig is covering the Portland Trailblazers for half of their home games each season. During that time, my role is to interview the opposing team during their morning shoot around, then ask Coach Terry Stotts and the opposing coach a few questions prior to tip off. It’s a great chance to get a glimpse into the lives of some these players, beyond the polished sometime manufactured display that many of us see on our collective screens.

Every season has its moments, and this one was no different, so without further ado, here’s what you didn’t see on the court or on your screen, first up, quick little antidotes:

Any time in crossing, Damian Lillard calls me Thabo Sefolosha; hey I’ll take it.

It’s very easy to walk around the Moda Center feeling like a boss (Will Smith, Men In Black, circa 1997) when you have a name badge that pretty much lets you do anything except sub into a game (unless we play the Bucks, then everyone gets to play).

The security staff at the Moda Center may be the jolliest group of professional event staff I’ve ever met. I have about six exclusive handshakes and greetings among them, my favorite goes to Clint though, he’s who Santa looks up to.

Of all the food choices the media gets, nothing can hold a flame to the churros when they roll out. Pretty sure it was a toss up that night between LaMarcus Aldridge points and Jordan Kent churros devoured.

Speaking of LaMarcus, he’s fun to watch in games, but warm ups are the best. It’s amazing how effortless he makes mid range jumpers look, I have to remind myself he’s basically shooting old school college three’s each time. I can’t even make not spilling food on myself look that easy.

Coach Terry Stotts is an amazingly patient and kind man. Very warm and welcoming in the interviews, even when fielding a lot of repeat questions that we have to ask as reporters so we can shape our stores and shows. He also seems like the type of really cool Father–in-law in a family you would want to marry into someday.

Now to the awards for the opposing teams this season, keep in mind these are entirely not up to debate and are the final ruling for the remainder of human history, and will be referenced in the second coming of the Encyclopedia Britannica:

Tough Call between Jeff Ayers Spurs, who we knew each other form our Pac-10 (12?) days. Every greeting was big one armed “bro-hug” followed with him flashing a huge smile, talking about how blessed he is. Awesome to see someone embracing this special opportunity in life. It’s like a kid who appreciates every Christmas morning they experience knowing that this special feeling last only so many years.

The cake goes to Ryan Anderson of the Pelicans, one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. Super approachable and will actually talk to you like you know, humans normally converse. I judge the “coolness” of a player by what would the conversation be like if we were stuck next to each other on a plane and could not talk about basketball. Ryan Anderson would make a great seatmate; just make sure he gets the aisle.

Another tough call, ruling out Terry Stotts, he’ll get his own award, but Mark Jackson (Warriors) Jeff Hornacek (Suns) and Scott Brooks (Thunder) were all awesome dudes who would answer every question thoughtfully and share a laugh with the reporters, but the award goes to Erik Spoelstra. (Heat) You know he knows that he has one of the best jobs in all of sports, what with managing the world’s best player and seemed to achieve a cool work life balance. Plus, his hair is also the envy of the entire NBA coaching circle.

Phoenix without a doubt. It’s funny as a former athlete to observe the morning shoot arounds and pick up on the “vibe” of a team and gather a sense of how well they get along. One unnamed team from the East this year looked like that if they were stuck on a stranded island, they would either eat each other first or strike out on their own. Not a surprise they missed the playoffs like someone in a 6-month coma.

Phoenix on the other hand, it felt like a JV basketball practice, which is a good thing! Laughter, jokes, smiles, half-court shooting-contests. Chemistry is a funny term in sports, but it’s very real and Phoenix would have made Bill Nye proud this year with theirs.

When the Miami Heat visited Portland in December, both teams had top three records in the league and LeBron was nursing a hurt groin or some muscle that he possess and no other athlete does, that he suffered against Sacramento. The big question going into this game was of course, “would he play?” That question was answered when I approached the Heat locker room and witnessed King James murdering a burger and fries in the corner of the locker room. At that point, I either my brain would have exploded from learning the secret of the best pre-game meal, or he simply was not playing. I chose the latter and it became the first time I referenced french fries in a toss in my stand up. (Side note; totally don’t blame LeBron for eating either, those burgers are amazing and if I weren’t playing I’d get my grub on also. Plus, he’s the King; he can do what we wants.)

I’m patting myself on the back here, but when you get a chance to talk to Kevin Durant, there’s a good chance that 99% of questions pertaining to basketball, the Thunder, the NBA, or any other basketball related item, he’s been asked it. I felt proud of myself when I asked him who he thought was a better player: real life Kevin Durant, or Xbox Kevin Durant? Cross making Kevin Durant laugh off my bucket list.

Any of the ones I asked Spurs coach Gregg Popovich in which he gave me more than a one word answers. Getting more than one word from Pops in the world of sports journalism is like getting the Pope to take a selfie with you while giving him a fit bump. While drinking a slurpee.

Since I don’t ever ask annoying questions (just keep telling myself that…) this award goes to a reporter during the Houston series after all of the Donald Sterling nonsense came out. As a former athlete (my apologies for the shameless reminder) I do know that being asked encompassing political or ethical questions will trigger an immediate manufactured, cliché, PC response, much like if you scratch my dog’s butt he’ll most likely fart.

Dwight Howard had just finished beating a teammate in a three point shooting contest, and was all smiles and in a good mood. This is an awesome opportunity to ask Dwight some fun questions that he normally doesn’t answer, and you know, gain more of an insight into who he is and what makes him function. After two great questions asked about the shooting contest and team chemistry, this buzz-Killington asked a question framed as a question inside a question (questionception?) that basically pertained to if going to the Clippers as a free agent and minority player would be hard now. Dwight, along with the rest of the reporters, had a look on our face like that of someone who tuned into a season of Lost midway through the series for the first time. As expected and as he should have, Dwight’s answer was very PC and cliché. Interview over, smiles gone, everyone was now dumber for what we just heard. Thank you random reporter for farting in the elevator before leaving it.

When the Washington Wizards visited, there were two gentlemen who I think were with John Wall, who were standing outside of the court waiting for it to open up for interviews. Without any sort of introduction, one of them immediately asks me how old I am and when did my widow’s peak begin. I told him “almost 30 and two years ago” in which he said “you’re good playa, you gonna keep your hair.” Along with that sigh of relief, the conversation then evolved into a very authentic and refreshing conversation about how being of mixed race affects being approachable and how we embrace al walks of life. This was between myself, my cameraman, and the two John Wall representatives from Washington. It’s amazing how much we have in common if we just open up sometimes.

There simply wasn’t enough room for all of the musings, maybe I’ll do a part two, but let me know your thoughts and or questions you had about the NBA this year, and stay posted for more random life-generated content!