Mike Conley has made a 19-year career out of being the guy who never looks rattled. He’s the steady hand, the voice teams lean on when things start to tilt, and the point guard who always seems to have the room under control. But this week, Conley gave an answer that cut through all the usual veteran talk and landed like something every tired parent knows all too well.
He was asked the simplest question of the night: How do you manage 3 games in 4 days while raising three young kids who also play basketball?
“I don’t know. I’m a zombie half the time. I’m waking up early. My son slept with me last night at 3 a.m., so it’s like, you never really get to sleep. But I try not to think about it, but thank you. I think that’s part of it. You just kind of don’t think about it. It’s just part of your life. I want to do this thing, and you don’t. And I want to be both. I want to be a dad. I want to be an NBA player. I want to compete.”
Conley and his wife, Mary, have been open about the chaos of raising three kids while he’s still trying to keep up with players nearly twenty years younger. There’s no magic fix. There’s practice, film, road trips, and then there’s the other full-time job waiting at home.
At 38, Conley is still one of Minnesota’s most reliable pieces. His minutes are monitored, and Anthony Edwards handles more of the heavy lifting now, but Conley’s presence keeps the Wolves steady. He organizes their offense, makes sure possessions don’t slip away, and settles the group when things get sloppy. On most nights, he’s the calmest person in the building.
That makes the balancing act even harder. He isn’t just playing out the end of his career. He’s still asked to lead, still asked to mentor, still asked to control games. Then he goes home, gets woken up at three in the morning, and starts it all again the next day.
His answer hit because it stripped away the idea that NBA players float above everyday life. Conley is juggling long seasons, aging legs, three kids, and all the things that come with being the adult everyone else leans on. And somehow, he’s still managing it with patience and a sense of humor.
Year 19 isn’t simple. Neither is raising three young kids. But Conley is doing both, even if it leaves him feeling like a zombie more than he’d like to admit.
