Back in September of 2020, a picture went viral on the internet that featured prominent NBA legends (Kobe, LeBron, Melo, Jordan) and one of the greatest women’s basketball players ever, Cynthia Cooper, posing together during a Nike event in the early 2000s.
https://twitter.com/Howsito/status/1301411934470721536
When it surfaced on Twitter, it generated a huge reaction from the fans, as it’s one of the only photos we have of all those legends together.
Today, months later, the photo is again going viral, thanks to some added context given by Cooper in a recent episode of “The Truth” podcast.
“That was a huge Nike event and, at the time, I was pretty big in the WNBA, and Nike invited me up to help send off and it was a tribute to Phil Knight. It was an amazing night and, it’s so funny, because all of us spoke the same language. It was like a magnet, we were just drawn to each other.
Aand we just were hanging out and talking basketball and talking winning and talking how we get better, picking each other’s mind. And it’s so funny because the guys would call me over and they’d be like ‘Coop, come here Coop.’ You know me, I; like, that’s Michael Jordan. That’s MJ.
But, everybody was so great, and I love, I love being around greatness, because you can relax and feel good about your mentality. People don’t look at you crazy, you’re not the outcast. You’re just a part of this elite group that have the same mindset and y’all just vibe.”
Those six people are among the greatest athletes in sports history, holding a combined 156,632 career points and 19 Championships between them. And while it’s common for sports stars to meet, it’s rare to get a photo with so many of them at once.
That Nike meet was decades ago now, but it’s awesome to hear Cooper breaking down what it was like being around all that greatness and the mentality they all shared. I guess the saying is true: great minds think alike…
(Here is the full clip, with Cooper’s detailing of that day starting at 34:15)
