Well, learning curves are all dictated by who\u2019s around you. And first of all, I had Tommy Heinsohn<\/a>, who was the biggest straight shooter you\u2019ll ever find in your entire life<\/a>, telling me exactly what I needed to do on a daily basis. We used to sit down and have dinner together, and if I was being too technical about pick and rolls and single side bumps, he would just be like, \u201cScal, people don\u2019t wanna hear about that garbage. It\u2019s not a basketball video. Just make people laugh and be entertaining.\u201d So I had a constant supply of that from Tommy. And Mike [Gorman]<\/a> was the same way. Mike was way more diplomatic about it, like maybe we should focus on this and that. I\u2019m also not me if not for my producer, Paul Lucey, who\u2019s been producing games for thirtysomething years, and an 80-year-old man named Jim Edmonds, who\u2019s also my producer and a straight shooter. So you get this guy who loves basketball, and he gets inserted with no experience whatsoever with a bunch of people who just nudged him exactly the right way to become the broadcaster he needed to become. I probably would\u2019ve failed in this business if it wasn\u2019t for those four people who were exactly what I needed. Let\u2019s be honest, I played basketball in the \u201990s and 2000s, right, so straight shooter is really the only language that I understand.<\/p>\n
In some alternate universe where you never picked up a basketball, what do you think you\u2019d be doing right now?
That\u2019s really hard because I actually never thought I was gonna make the NBA. It was all about being a coach. My whole life, all I wanted to do was be a history teacher and coach basketball, and then see where it could take me. My goal was to play as long as I possibly could, so it would help my r\u00e9sum\u00e9 for me to become a coach. But I fell in love with the game at such an early age that it was never a question. Anybody who knew me growing up knew that I would be involved in basketball.\n<\/p>\n
You\u2019re from Enumclaw, Washington<\/a>, which I\u2019m guessing isn\u2019t exactly the Seaport or the North End. What was the most thrilling thing that ever went down there? Give me one line each: Nets, Celtics<\/a>, Bulls\u2014how would you describe them? Photo by Ken Richardson<\/p>\n You had a few nicknames over the years\u2014\u201cVeal,\u201d \u201cWhite Mamba<\/a>.\u201d Which one did you prefer? Did you ever try to work \u201cWhite Mamba\u201d into a pickup line? What\u2019s the best piece of swag from your NBA career? Are you a sneaker freak? What\u2019s the most you\u2019ve ever spent on a pair of sneakers? That\u2019s\u2026surprisingly reasonable. Scalabrine, Paul Pierce, and Kendrick Perkins in 2009, walking onto the court against the Orlando Magic in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Semifinals during the NBA Playoffs in Florida. \/ Photo by Marc Serota\/Getty Images<\/p>\n What\u2019s the best basketball game you\u2019ve ever experienced, on the court or off? Which NBA venue has the best home-court advantage? And that\u2019s because of the fans? What was the worst injury of your career? Scalabrine interviews Kevin Garnett during his number retirement ceremony at TD Garden on March 13, 2022. \/ Photo by Maddie Meyer\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Who is the player you admire the most? How exhausting is playing an NBA game\u2014physically, emotionally, all of it? What\u2019s your take\u2014are NBA players making too much money? Outside of basketball, what sports do you follow closely? Really? Any regrets about your facial-hair choices over the years? Do you wear your championship ring?
Well, you know the kid Kasey Kahne, who used to race in NASCAR, he\u2019s from Enumclaw as well. But it\u2019s a small town at the base of Mount Rainier. The story of me really starts with my parents moving right across the street from a park. And I lived at that park for six to eight hours every single day, in the summertime maybe more; during the school year, I\u2019d go home when it was 11 o\u2019clock at night. And whether I was playing one-on-one, two-on-two, or three-on-three, I was living there. You know the 10,000 hours rule? Well, I was more like 20,000 or 30,000 hours, and that\u2019s probably how I ended up making it.<\/p>\n
The Nets were great because I was a rotational player on a championship team. We didn\u2019t win it, but we went to the Finals. I learned a lot that I needed to know about the NBA, playing with Jason Kidd<\/a>. The Celtics were amazing because of the teammates, winning a championship<\/a>, and the relationship that I have with the city. And then the Bulls, Tom Thibodeau<\/a> brought me in to be a mentor. And it really sparked that inner desire\u2014you know, I love the game as a player, but I also love the game as a mentor and teacher to keep guys accountable.\n<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/BoMag_Scal_9_25_31141.jpg\")
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I like White Mamba<\/a>\u2014it\u2019s a good nickname. There\u2019s a lot of funny parodies involved, and I think that people like to know that I\u2019m cool with the parody jokes.\n<\/p>\n
[Laughs.] I\u2019ve been married since before I was the White Mamba<\/a>, so I\u2019m gonna have to say no on that one.\n<\/p>\n
My favorite thing is we have a warmup jacket with every one of the banners on it. I think it\u2019s one of the coolest things the Celtics have ever made.\n<\/p>\n
A little bit, but not crazy.\n<\/p>\n
$180.\n<\/p>\n
Yeah, I usually buy when the Jordans go on sale. But there were some Jordan 3s that had a great color combination I was looking for, and I splurged on them for full price. It\u2019s the only time I\u2019ve ever paid full price for a pair of shoes.\n<\/p>\n![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1200x800_BrianScalabrine_2009_GettyImages-86858550.jpg\")
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I think the best I\u2019ve ever played was Game 5 against Detroit in 2004<\/a>. It was like a triple-overtime game where everyone fouled out, and I was just banging down threes in overtime. The exhilaration of that and the magnitude of it were phenomenal. Best game I\u2019ve ever watched\u2014I think the most excited I\u2019ve ever been was the Jayson Tatum dunk over LeBron game<\/a>, so that would be Game 7 of the Conference Finals. Tatum was a rookie, no Kyrie, no Gordon Hayward, no one thought this team would ever be able to do it. And I was certain when Tatum had that dunk that the Celtics were going to the Finals.\n<\/p>\n
It\u2019s all day Boston. Everybody I talk to always privately\u2014they won\u2019t do it publicly\u2014they always talk to me about the Boston crowd. They\u2019re like, \u201cIs it like this every night?\u201d and I\u2019m like, \u201cYeah.\u201d We are so spoiled, because I go to a lot of the other arenas, and it\u2019s just okay, but Boston is completely different.\n<\/p>\n
Oh my God, yeah, I was in the building the year after COVID, but there were no fans. The Garden is not the Garden without the fans\u2019 uniqueness and the way they dress up and paint their face\u2014they\u2019re all part of the show, and it\u2019s really cool. It\u2019s not like that everywhere.\n<\/p>\n
After I was done playing in the NBA, I got my tooth knocked out during a pickup game, and it was by far the worst, because it takes maybe 10 to 15 different surgical procedures to get a tooth back\u2014it would\u2019ve been less rehab for an ACL. I\u2019m telling you, it\u2019s crazy how many appointments you have to do just to get your smile back right.\n<\/p>\n![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1200_BrianScalabrine_KevinGarnett_GettyImages-1384939251.jpg\")
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So Kevin Garnett is an incredible human being. The guy cared about everyone in the organization. I also got a chance to coach Steph Curry, and I never met a player who, whatever is going on, doesn\u2019t really get caught up in all the drama. It was really eye-opening to see a star player just literally not be affected by all the crazy noise of the NBA.\n<\/p>\n
When you\u2019re in the NBA, it doesn\u2019t matter what you\u2019re doing\u2014when the lights go on and the ball is tipped, you can compartmentalize all of it. The only thing that you can really feel is injuries, but everything else goes away. I find it really amazing how athletes who play professional sports can block out the world and then focus in\u2014not on the game, because that sounds like that\u2019s a two-and-a-half-hour process. They can focus in on the second, make a read in that moment, and nothing else in their life matters, whether they\u2019re exhausted or not.\n<\/p>\n
I mean, it\u2019s the percentage of the revenue coming in, so no, I don\u2019t think they\u2019re overpaid.\n<\/p>\n
Uh, nothing, really.\n<\/p>\n
Yeah, nothing. My life is all basketball. I don\u2019t do anything else. I don\u2019t know anything else.\n<\/p>\n
They\u2019re based on laziness. It\u2019s not a choice. It\u2019s like choosing to shave or not shave, you know, but yeah, I mean, who doesn\u2019t regret certain ways they look throughout the years?\n<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t wear it that often. I should wear it more. You know, to galas and stuff like that, but I don\u2019t wear it as much as I should.\n<\/p>\n
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