Shawn Marion - NBA (Suns, Mavericks, Heat, Raptors, Cavaliers)

1) Shawn Marion is a former NBA star small forward/ shooting guard/ power forward who played for the Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors, Dallas Mavericks, and Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. 

2) Marion began his collegiate career at Vincennes University (a junior college in Indiana) where he garnered 2nd team All-American and 1st team All-American honors as a freshman and sophomore. Following his sophomore year, Shawn attended the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) for one season (1998-99)  before getting drafted 9th overall by the Phoenix Suns in 1999 NBA Draft.

3) Shawn Marion finished up his illustrious 16 year NBA career with 4 NBA All-Star selections, he was named All-NBA 3rd team two times ('05, '06), and finished his 2011 season on top with an NBA Championship in which his Dallas Mavericks defeated the Lebron James and Dwyane Wade led Miami Heat in six games.

Jordan: What brand of shoes were your favorite to wear when playing in the NBA?

Shawn Marion: NIKE

Jordan's Follow Up: That's cool because Nike is what I rep. I almost always wear Nike.

Andrew Bernstein / Getty Images

Danny: What is your favorite NBA memory?

Shawn Marion: I have lots of great memories. Not just one. Getting drafted was a great one as I started my career in the NBA. But also winning the championship and the All-Stars, I've got a lot of them.

Danny's Follow Up: Winning the championship sounds awesome. It would be pretty cool to be an All-Star too because it means you are one of the best players in the league.

The Vincent family was all over Chicago during the weekend of February 15-17th as the NBA held their All-Star festivities in Chicago for the first time in over 30 years. Our team decided we would try to take advantage of all of the amazing opportunities for fans to take part in while the NBA was in our city. Our first stop of the day was the AT&T flagship store on Michigan Avenue where we knew Shawn would be attending later that afternoon. After trying out all of their interactive photo and game opportunities we made our way back to meet The Matrix!

It was 2:30 pm and Shawn was right on time. He greeted all four of us with a hand shake and asked both Jordan and Danny for their names. Jordan jumped in right away with his shoe question and Danny followed by asking about his favorite NBA memory. With 16 years in the league, it's understandable that so many moments stand out to Shawn. My boys are up to date on nearly every current NBA star in the league and many legends but it was fun to catch them up on the career of Shawn Marion on our way into the city. I told them that he was born in Waukegan (just 20 minutes from us in Mundelein) and turned himself into a tremendous NBA player. From his run and gun days with the high speed Phoenix Suns to the unforgettable late comebacks in the fourth quarters of the Finals against the Heat, Marion got to be a part of it all in his time in the league.  

Big thanks to Shawn for giving our team a special experience and spending his time meeting with fans in Chicago during All-Star weekend! 

Doug McDermott - Dallas Mavericks

1) Doug McDermott is a small forward playing for the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA. He has also played for the New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder and the Chicago Bulls.

2) McDermott attended Creighton University where he was a three time consensus All-American and ended his career as the fifth leading scorer in NCAA history. McDermott was named the National College Player of the Year in his senior season.

3) Doug was coached by his father, Greg McDermott, throughout his entire college career at Creighton University.

D: What is your favorite fruit and vegetable to eat?

DM: I love strawberries and oranges and for a vegetable I really like sweet potatoes.

D's Follow Up: I really like strawberries and oranges. Strawberries are my favorite. I like the sweet ones that taste like lollipops. I don't like sweet potatoes at all. I've tried them but they're not good.


J: What other sports are your favorite to play?

DM: I love to play golf and I was also a baseball player.

J's Follow Up: I'm a golfer and I love to golf too. Baseball is not really one of my favorite sports to play but I'll watch it sometimes. 

We met Doug McDermott in January of 2016 at the Sideline Marketing store in South Barrington when Doug was still a member of the Chicago Bulls. He spent the second half of last season with Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder and this year he was with New York Knicks before the trade deadline. He was recently traded to the Dallas Mavericks.

Jordan was excited to wear his #3 McDermott jersey to this signing that he got for Christmas and to meet one of his favorite Bulls players. Danny had just begun watching basketball and although he is a Warriors fan first, the Bulls come in second on his list of favorite teams and he was excited to meet his first NBA player. 

Doug did not disappoint and was excited to meet J and D and gave Jordan a compliment on his jersey. It was McDermott's second season in the NBA and there were not a ton of #3 Bulls jerseys with his name on them yet in the streets of Chicagoland. Doug signed for about an hour and met with about 100 fans on January 16th, 2016. 

The boys love to ask professional athletes about their favorite healthy foods and Doug mentioned strawberries and oranges were his top fruits. Those fruits happen to be our family's favorites as well and you can find them in our house nearly 365 days a year.

On the other hand, we only have one fan of sweet potatoes in the house and that is mom. The only time we see sweet potatoes is at Thanksgiving dinner or I will occasionally order up sweet potato french fries. 

Finally, Jordan asked Doug about other sports he loves to play. The three of us boys love to golf whenever we can. Jordan and Danny can play free at the Lake County courses all throughout spring, summer and fall and we like to take advantage of that perk. If Doug ever makes a return trip to Chicago, he is always welcome to join in with us! Although we wish Doug was still in a Bulls uniform, we wish him the best of luck in Dallas with the Mavericks.