Interview with Marc Stein
In which I discuss the GOAT debate, the start of my Skyhook, and LeBron breaking my NBA scoring record.
This week, I did a fun email interview with NBA writer Marc Stein, first published on his Substack here. With Marc’s permission, I’m reprinting the full text for you:
Marc Stein: Substack has attracted some prominent figures to its platform, but not too many six-time NBA MVPs. What made you decide that you wanted your own Substack?
Kareem: I think I’m in pretty good company. Salman Rushdie is a terrific writer and Scott Snyder is one of my favorite comic book writers. You’re one of the best sports writers. When I see a lot of people I like and admire form a creative and energetic community, I’m eager to join in.
I also saw this as an opportunity to create my own community of fans, friends and others who share my interests and point of view about sports, politics and popular culture. I wanted to provide a more personal, even intimate experience for us to examine the world, celebrate it and even try to make it better.
I also get to create unique content in one place that I couldn’t do before. Each publication I write for wants a different kind of article from me. But here I can do whatever I want. Plus I can interact with my audience with audio and video clips just for them.
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Marc Stein: You have been writing columns and books and various other forms of content for years, so you know as well as anyone how taxing this medium can be. What is it about writing that appeals to you so much?
Kareem: Since high school, my academic studies have always been just as important to me as my athletic pursuits. I have a deep interest in history, literature, science and the arts. I also have a passion for social justice — for voicing the needs and concerns of marginalized people. Writing is an opportunity to combine those interests by using my knowledge to help promote the causes that make America better.
The documentaries I’ve worked on at the History Channel about Black Americans’ contributions in the American Revolution and Civil War allow me to educate America on parts of history that have often been deliberately suppressed. The books I’ve written about the Harlem Renaissance and overlooked Black inventors create pride in the African American community.
I also like to entertain. Writing gives me a chance to be frivolous. I’ve written novels and a graphic novel about Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock’s smarter brother. I was a writer on the TV show Veronica Mars. I wrote young adult novels about basketball-playing kids who solve mysteries. That was pure fun for me and, I hope, for my readers.
Marc Stein: I saw a picture of you recently near a mural in downtown Los Angeles that lists more of your off-the-court achievements than on-court achievements. Do those things mean more to you than basketball honors?