NBA Trade Shock: KCP Joins the Grizzlies — Here’s What Really Happened

NBA Trade Shock: KCP Joins the Grizzlies — Here’s What Really Happened

yeah down and we’re back with another episode of Dog Talk and this is a special edition dog talk man it’s been a lot going on and recent like it’s been a lot going on just Just put that out there’s been a lot going on so we had to come at y’all with some breaking news man well it ain’t even breaking because y’all already seen it but like everybody else in the world has seen it but anyway man I’m your host Jay Mack i got my dog to my far left Mr kg mr kenny Gains how you doing brother man you already know I’m alive so I’m going go he always coming with a slogan man i’m always looking forward to that every week but anyway man in our middle right here I got my dog Mr kcp Mr two Time himself Kavius Cwell Pope how you feeling brother i’m feeling good man feeling good no feeling like ready to just talk about some things now get some things off his chest yeah just a little bit we got a lot to get off our chest today man uh so let me just let me just break it all down man so on Janu I mean on June 15th I got my whole munch i got my whole munch but on June 15th man I’m riding in my car after my men’s league game i’m coaching by the way y’all but after my men’s league game I get the I’m like “What could this be?” It’s Father’s Day y’all it’s Father’s Day what could this be okay my boy Shawn’s he posted breaking the Memphis Grizzlies are trading Desmond Bane to the Orlando Magic for Contavius Cwell Pope Cole Anthony four unprotected first round picks and one first round pick swap that’s O yeah so sheesh and of course in my head I’m like man like you I see it all the time you know but this one hit home cuz it’s my family it’s my brother oh god a close friend man so man initial thoughts man like well first of all how did you find out uh I knew for everybody to just say that you know uh when when when wasn’t really breaking news for me uh but uh yeah like you said uh it happened on Father’s Day i’m on vacation like with my family it’s it’s literally it’s about 11:30 almost 11:35 around that range almost noon and I’m going to my bed to get something on my phone i mean out my bag and my phone is vibrating but I don’t get to it in time so I’m checking and it’s my agent and he never called me multiple times you know what I’m saying so it like this was like it was like literally always like three or four times so I’m like damn let me get to my phone let me call him back boom soon as I call just got traded to the Grizzly like whoa quick shock because like it kind of hit me like right there because damn I’m on it’s Father’s Day i’m in a chill mindset like I I didn’t want to get you know what I’m saying this this type of new we could have waited Monday yeah so type type [ __ ] you know like today respect my day respect not uh but so and then like we talked about it you know he he asked what my thoughts I I couldn’t really think about it at the time only thing I really could think about was like damn how I’m supposed to tell my family right now you know uh so yeah it happened and then the more I thought about it like the more excited I got about it you know you know even though I still was like a little you know sad cuz it happened on Father’s Day yeah uh but you know I know this game you know I know the business but like the more I thought about it the more I thought about the trade know the team I was going to like the players I gonna be playing with you know know some of the guys uh and then the way you know the organization is trying to go uh I felt like I you know fit I fit right in you know and then that’s I got it like super excited you know so that’s all that happened i’m not not new to this you know no facts fast facts now cuz you going to play with some guys now even though you just came from playing with a group of guys but you’re going with another group like what was kind of like like I know like what was that small moment of feeling when you were like right after you got the call and you were just like okay what do I like how do I even feel in this moment like do I am I mad am I upset that’s why I said I I I didn’t I didn’t have a feeling and I just like I I barely heard words from my agent you know he just said like I keep you updated call you about everything else you know what I’m saying that was like the call um and then um I think I talked to um Brandon mhm talked to Brandon uh like mostly just like about no how I felt you know but like I said the more I thought about it and the more I talked about it the excited I got you know so like cuz at the time like and it just hit me all of a sudden damn i just got traded i’m on vacation sitting on the boat yeah like literally like I got my margarita in my head like I’m I’m sitting relaxing so but other than that like man like like I said like the more I talked about it the more I got excited you know what I’m saying like you said playing with a group of guys you know what I’m saying josh you know what I’m saying you got JJ Jack you know what I’m saying you got the Zack the nude the rook you know what I’m saying big for all like a lot of the guys over there you know that you know I know you know what I’m saying and what going to enjoy playing with you know what I’m saying my style of play you know what I’m saying just seeing them playing against them and their style that they have i think man it it fits right into my game most definitely i think the coost part about it though man it’s on Father’s Day after all day business father’s Day he got a family of five and then Desmond Bane we not even Desmond Bane has No he has he has kids he has kids i think he has kids or two i think he had one or two I think yeah so it’s just like out of all days father’s Day like the one day out of the whole year that you actually get to yourself them folks said they working on the Sabbath basically i ain’t know nobody like there’s no love lost you know what I’m saying like like I said this it’s a business like whatever day it falls on that they trying to make it happen but like let’s just say this technically I didn’t get traded on Father’s Day i I just got the news I was getting traded on Father’s Day okay you know what I’m saying let’s just let’s just back up right there let’s just fix that because people don’t know really how it works but it it it did officially later come out on Father’s Day let’s just back up the pieces but like yeah it officially happens on on Father’s Day but like I got the news like before it even like became official okay so like I already had my feelings like know I was already feeling you know what I was feeling and then once it went you know official you know that’s when I got all the feelings like now I got now my wife rushing to see like what’s going on you know what I’m saying now my my son 13 now he got a phone he don’t see what’s going so like and then we had fans friends and family out there too so a lot of a lot of people seen it before I even like you know announce it so like they already knew do like [ __ ] i feel like that was more like you know that was excited as well too like I mean we always look at it as like you know a new chapter you know so like you know wherever we stop at you know how long we be there you know what I’m saying like we gonna always show our respect you know what I’m saying we’re gonna always leave our mark so like at the end of the day you know what was like what was your family’s reaction like McKenzie what was what was her reaction to it cuz of course like it’s not an easy it’s not easy cuz you have five kids you just bought a house you just bought a house in Orlando it’s not like an easy move i can understand if you are by yourself single whatever you can pick up and just go no that that’s first and foremost like no that’s my family you know i don’t want to like you know ever like have opportunity like just to be apart from them you know but like we we’ve been through this situation before you know so we we know like how how how to how to move how to navigate as far as like keeping that connection as a family cuz it happened uh 2020 uh 2023 my first year in Denver we won a championship you know what I’m saying i had to move and leave my family back in DC got you so you know it’s just the same situation here so like we already know we felt how we felt you know it wasn’t too long because we we still had to like you know entertain our friends and family yeah got to got to still try to find a way to enjoy yeah it was hard it was hard you know cuz like my wife you know she’s she’s a little bit more emotional than me know as far as like when them things type happen and then as far as like thinking about me being like away from the house you know for that long so yeah but we we got we got a system man we we we make it work pro aspects yeah i’m Yeah for sure with the family man we we make it work i don’t think it’s no loose ends as far as like making sure our kids and like and our family is good yeah where the kids like their initial reaction like “Daddy I don’t want to change schools.” Like no no no no no no that was just our like initial reaction cuz like just like bought the house just like you said you know what I’m saying they just just really got into sports right like in Orlando like and they really locked in like they all their friends are here so like you know just not moving them out of there like cuz you know uh I don’t know know what’s going to happen you know not really know what’s going to happen as far as like move but like it takes a lot in until moving you know my family a five for sure you know to another city within like you know a couple months now you know cuz it’s summer time we got to go to find schools try to find a house you know try to find all this stuff like so that that that takes a lot to for my wife cuz she got to do it by herself cuz I got I got work out you know what I’m saying get ready for training camp you know so a lot goes into the organization behind the scenes so I have two organizations I work for you know what I’m saying so like let’s just say you know my family is an organization too but like I say man we got a we got a strong powerhouse like we got great help you know great people around us you know and like we we got a system you know yeah i can just I can just say man the NBA is a cold business but hey they pay y’all well and you I mean at the end of the day you’re still going to be making $22 million in Memphis man it’s not even about the money i’m trying to go get me another championship come on man y’all better know that in Memphis man you trying to win man i’m getting I’m I’m I’m going to an organization that I’m I’m I feel comfortable like like where I I’m back like into what I do like you know I don’t want to spill too much of what the organization try to do so I’m not even trying to point like uh what they what we talked about you know and and how they they they want to play and how they trying to uh take the organization I think I fit right into you know what they trying to do like I said the more I talk about it the more I get excited about saying even when I I I was just in Memphis you know I did my physical and stuff uh you just watching some of the the some of the guys for the like getting ready for Vegas yeah uh man I got antsy i already go put on my shoes like I was like man this just feel I told you it’s time it just feel right you know what I’m saying it’s like you say it’s a vibe in the air right now man i’m so ready and then like first thing my son was he he looked at me and did which is crazy he do this hey shout out to y’all man i was like that’s thing he say like they they they excited like my kids are excited man especially my oldest kids old man he he hella excited yeah so that that like like I said like that and that’s more fueler to my fire you know what I’m saying my kids are excited for you know what I’m saying our new chapter you know what I’m saying so hey I’m ready to rock let’s do it let’s do it that’s the first thing he did to me i was like Hey I told you initially too man just because of the city of Memphis I know I know what it is so it’s time to put on that hard hat and get to work get that that grease up under your nails it’s time to go because the city they gonna ride with you that’s all I know man they gonna ride with you and they they like the hard workers bro they love you that’s all I know you know that you know what I’m saying like I work hard to this day you know i’mma play to to the bail you know what I’m saying to the wheel fall off you know and I’m play the right way like everybody know that everybody know how I play right you know and then that’s why it’s like so much is like I’m able to fit into a lot of systems you know what I’m saying and and not cause any problems yeah got a very transferable thing yeah yeah you know I know how to adjust well i like to say that’s an Aquarius thing but you know I’m biased i’m biased you know I’m not biased though cuz I I mean I I’ I’ve seen it i’ I’ve been known what what this is my 16th now 16 like so a lot of the teams are not the same you know you go into a different organization you got know different players you might not know some of the guys or none of the guys you know so you got to try to navigate and and adjust and try to fit right in so like I’ve learned over the years how to how to adjust for sure and this is like your first time well your second time actually being quote unquote traded because of course you had free agencies and all that you know what’s going on so this is your second time yeah from DC to Denver yeah from Orlando so this is your second time so when you like that first time did you like have a chip on your shoulder with like like Washington like you like man I got something to prove but now going into this situation like I got something to prove man but me getting traded to Washington yeah like Well you going from Washington to to Denver and now you So I got traded three times so I got Lakers to Well that was free agent summer though was that a free agent summer i got traded i had my contract with the Lakers i traded for for Russia but that was that trade for to Washington oh and then I traded to Yeah it is the third time so this is my third time three times my question again so from Laker to DC or which which Well I’m just saying like going in like when you’re traded do you ever go into that new franchise like man I got this chip on my shoulder i got some I got something else to prove uh all depends yeah okay well how about this with this situation right now do you do you feel like you have some [ __ ] to prove whether it be to yourself to the fans to just period is it I I don’t I I I I don’t have I don’t think I don’t have much to prove i think you know my performance like what I bring to the table have done that for me and I still do it right like I’m 32 years old still got the same type of energy same motor you know what I’m saying i still play the same type of defense you know uh but yeah I I feel like I ain’t got nothing nothing to prove i’m a two-time champion you know man i’m I’m I’m a great vet you know what I’m saying i I’m I’m very knowledgeable of the game you know what I’m saying so like I feel like I have my value brings a lot you know what I’m saying to any organization and I’m so thankful and blessed that Memphis Grizzly is giving me opportunity like just and that’s how I look at it like any any team I get traded to or like when I’m in free agent it’s like thanks to that organization for giving me another chance know first and foremost you know what I’m saying to be out here to play you know be able to feed my family so like at the end of the day like appreciate it’s it’s a blessing yeah yeah you know and I I I don’t never go in like with a chip on my shoulder like Yeah my younger days Yeah when I was you know I think my first time when I got uh free agency when I got left Detroit to LA I was like “Yeah I got to get back to,” you know what I’m saying being more in the ball like being like versatile like you know just actually showing a lot uh so and that changed pretty quick you know did it so I went from that so my first year in LA I was I thought I was back you know what I’m saying i was averaging 14 you know getting the ball a little bit more you know getting a little bit more shots [ __ ] next year that changed so like like I say like team like but I like I say like that’s why you got to go in with a with an open mind always right because it could change just like that facts well yeah man well y’all heard it here first man we got the first reaction from my dog KCP man but yes the best of luck in Memphis you know the dog talk fam your family your friends we all here to support you dog and we logged in man we ready we going to be ready i know we are lockmith vibes we are man cuz I like just like I say man look i I got energy now like the more I talk about just being with this team the more I just see myself you know what I’m saying just being free like playing like I see like I see I see the vibes already yeah you know like and where this team and this organization going to go but just know first game I come up to come to up there I’m coming that push i’m dressing like NBA Young Boy hey I’m going to have my best my black my black forces on everything man we on that hey we on that man we rocking with the city of Memphis for sure man we cannot wait to come over up there man and for sure and man hey y’all are family now so but yeah man we about to wrap this thing up man but anyway please like share subscribe find us on all podcast platforms and on YouTube man memphis Grizzly family hey we here hey my name J M got KG KCP we out of here go Grizz baby yes sir [Music]

In this special edition of Dawg Talk, KCP (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope) sits down with J Mac and Kenny Gaines for his first public reaction to being traded from the Orlando Magic to the Memphis Grizzlies — and yes, it all went down on Father’s Day.

We dive deep into how KCP found out, what was going through his mind in the moment, and how his family took the news after just settling into life in Orlando. From emotions to excitement, family logistics to locker room vibes, this is an unfiltered, emotional, and real conversation you won’t want to miss.

This episode gives fans a rare, behind-the-scenes look at what it’s really like to be traded in the NBA — not just from a player’s perspective, but as a husband and father navigating life in real time. From handling the emotional impact to preparing for a fresh start in Memphis, KCP keeps it raw and honest. Whether you’re a hoops junkie, a Memphis fan, or just someone who respects the grind, this conversation pulls back the curtain on the humanity behind the headlines.

Whether you’re a Magic fan, Grizzlies supporter, or just love hearing what really goes on behind the scenes in the league — this one is for you.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro – Special Edition Dawg Talk & Trade Rumors
1:58 KCP Gets the Call: Traded on Father’s Day
3:52 Processing the News with Family
5:48 How the Trade Went Down (Agent Call & Timing)
7:36 From Shock to Excitement: KCP’s Honest Thoughts
9:23 Memphis Fit: Style of Play & New Energy
11:05 Family Dynamics: 5 Kids, a Move, and Emotions
13:12 KCP’s Perspective on the NBA Business
15:03 Final Thoughts + KCP’s Message to Memphis
16:47 Wrap-Up & Dawg Talk Sign-Off