Former NBA champ and Kamala Harris bond over being step-parents for their respective kids
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris made an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson on Monday afternoon. Jackson and Barnes each played 14 seasons in the NBA and both played for the Golden State Warriors.
In the episode, Kamala Harris and Matt Barnes discussed the role of step-parents in their kids' lives and navigating the adjustment of earning the trust of their step-children.
"I'll start with this; I am a daughter of divorced parents," Harris said (8:06 mark). "My parents were divorced when I was five and, just being very frank and candid with you, when Doug and I started dating, you know his parents have been married over 60 years, I had to explain to him what it's like to be the child of divorced parents."
Kamala Harris went on to discuss the importance of establishing her relationship with her partner to ensure a consistent role in her husband's children's lives. Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, has two children from a previous relationship.
Matt Barnes, who is also a step-parent to three children, agreed and said, "You don't want to be in and out."
Harris continued, stating:
"I was very intentional about waiting until I knew, okay, this is a real relationship before I got to know the kids. Then we became, I mean, thick as thieves."
In the interview, Harris also discussed her sports affiliation and her favorite NBA team.
Kamala Harris discusses attending Warriors games during 'We Believe' era
Kamala Harris revealed her love for the Golden State Warriors on the show. Former Warrior Stephen Jackson asked Harris what it was like attending Warriors games during the 'We Believe' era when both Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson played for Golden State in the mid-late 2000s.
"Our Warriors are always good in whichever era, but that was a very special time. I mean, it was electric. You guys remember. It was electric... This is the thing I love about sports in general, I'm going to say my Warriors, our Warriors, is that it really was about bringing all kinds of people from the Bay area, and that team, you guys were the best of the best, I mean, legends. (2:00 mark)."
The Warriors finished the 2006-07 season with a 42-40 record, with notable players like Stephen Jackson, Matt Barnes, Jason Richardson, Baron Davis, Monta Ellis and Al Harrington.
Golden State upset the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the NBA playoffs, topping Dallas 4-2 in the series. In doing so, the Warriors became the first No. 8 seed to be a No. 1 seed in a seven-game series.