The Rush: Hall of Fame photographer Andy Bernstein on Kobe, Legends of Sport, and the 6th gear
Hall of Fame photographer Andy Bernstein Skypes in from the Orlando bubble to discuss his relationship with the late Kobe Bryant, what attribute makes sports legends like Kareem, MJ, and Shaq so legendary, and how we can learn more about NBA bubble life on the podcast: Legends of Sport. PLUS: Giannis got a triple double in the bubble, Russell Westbrook rocked a Kobe jersey, but Dennis Schroder led the Thunder to a Game 4 victory over the Rockets, the Heat took care of business, sweeping the Pacers, and the Lakers channeled their inner Kobe, defeating the Trail Blazers for a 3-1 series lead.
Video Transcript
- He could fire a 3 for 81. Instead, he's going to the basket all the way. LeBron James, the King! And the Lakers score 80 in the first half!
- Wow.
JARED QUAY: My conversation with Hall of Fame photographer Andy Bernstein from in the bubble is coming up. But first, we got to talk NBA playoffs. Clearly channeling their inner black Mamba after honoring Kobe, the Lakers took charge of their series against the Portland Trail Blazers and are now up 3 to 1 in the series.
- Oh, no.
- No-- pull up! LeBron!
- No. No.
- He's got it from deep!
- No.
JARED QUAY: Lead by Bam Adebayo's 14 points and 19 rebounds, the Heat swept the Indiana Pacers away from the playoffs. Gone fishing, baby. Mostly because Indiana's bench only scored three points. I could score three points I think.
The Rockets' Russell Westbrook was rocking a Kobe jersey on the sideline. But it was Dennis Schroder's Mamba mentality that lead the Thunder to a second straight win. And now the series is tied at two.
- Corner good! It's a 21-7 run!
JARED QUAY: And finally my man, Giannis, got himself a triple-bubble as the Bucks are now three games to one against the Orlando Magic.
- And look out, Antetokounmpo.
JARED QUAY: All right, enough of me here. Let's talk about somebody in the bubble. Because I got to sit down with Hall of Fame photographer and a host of "Legends of Sport" podcast Andy Bernstein. Andy, how are you doing, brother?
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: I am great, Jared. How are you doing, man? Are you good?
JARED QUAY: I'm good, man. I'm out-- you're in that bubble, man. You're in the thick of it all, and I'm out here in this rona-filled world, man. How safe do you feel in there?
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: I'm probably in the safest place on the planet right now. I haven't taken a picture since March 11. I'm in the final wave of the photographers the NBA sent down-- myself and my colleague, Matt Butler. And we're going to be here from basically the second round of the playoffs through the finals.
JARED QUAY: Yesterday was 8/24-- obviously, Kobe Day in LA. And I know that you were very close to Kobe-- had a lot of great photographs of him. How has his legacy changed for you, obviously knowing him so well?
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: Well, I was so fortunate and so grateful that he let me in, honestly, to his inner circle to what made him tick from 18-years-old to retiring 20 years later, and then post-retirement. We had the opportunity to do this amazing book together, "The Mamba Mentality-- How I Play." And that book now is really the connection, the thread between his legacy and his own words, and the millions and millions of fans out there. So I'm incredibly grateful to him.
You know, Allen Iverson said it best. That, you know, he might be gone, but he's still living within all of us. And it's absolutely true.
JARED QUAY: All right, so you've photographed some legends. I'm talking about Magic, Jordan, LeBron, Kobe, Shaq. Is there something that you sense in every one of these people that you-- like, that you've took photos of that they have? Like is it a gene? What is it they all have? Competitiveness? Or what is it?
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: Yeah, I was telling a friend of mine recently that the first time I was ever in a Porsche, I saw sixth gear on a shift, you know. And I had never seen a sixth gear before, right? There are always five gears. And it's the same thing. These guys have another gear, man. And, you know, to be able to witness that and document that-- really, quite honestly, I've been blessed.
JARED QUAY: I love the sixth gear analogy. That's really great. Like, as a photographer, you know you're like, oh snap. Three seconds on the clock. Kobe's getting the ball. He's about to kick it to sixth gear. Get my camera lens ready.
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: Oh, yeah. The last thing I want to do is be watching that, you know. I'm on-- no, but really. I'm on the court. I'm put there on the court. They're trusting me. I got to be locked in to record that and document it.
JARED QUAY: You just opened up a whole bag of worms of questions. I never realized that you don't get to see if the shot goes in.
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: No. No, no, no. No, if I see the shot, then I'm not doing my job. The shutter is being clicked, which is actually-- you know, you don't see anything. So if I see it happen in the viewfinder, I'm cooked because that means I missed it.
JARED QUAY: Talk about this, man. You are obviously known for taking pictures that say a thousand words. And now you have a podcast where you get to say a thousand words that paint a picture. How is this different? What kind of muscles are using? Is this a new side of you, or is it still the same you you've always been?
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: Well, this has been a great kind of left turn for me in my career. I mean, I'm still obviously very active in my photography career. But I'm approaching my 100th podcast on my "Legends of Sport" podcast platform, and we just recently co-partnered with the "LA Times." So they're a great partner of ours.
And right now, we're in a block of 16 episodes, halfway through, called "Restarting the Clock," which basically is very loosely based on what's going on in the bubble here at the NBA, the WNBA bubble, and, of course, has our legends slant to it. So we're bringing in legendary conversation.
- Well, thank you again, man. I appreciate you, man. This is amazing to get this perspective that you have, man. So I appreciate you coming on the show.
ANDREW D. BERNSTEIN: Thank you, Jared. Appreciate it, man.
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