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00:00Former NBA forward Robert Covington built his career the hard way from Tennessee State and the G League
00:06to becoming one of the NBA's premier defensive specialists over a 12-year career.
00:10Now, his story is being told in a new PBS documentary, Allergic to Failure, the Robert Covington story.
00:16And the film takes a deep look at his journey from an HBCU to the NBA,
00:20the adversity that he faced along the way, and the broader conversation about opportunity and representation in the game.
00:28Robert Covington joins me now here in studio to talk about the film, his career, and so much more.
00:32Robert, what's going on, man? Great to have you.
00:34Appreciate you for having me.
00:35No, man. Thanks for having me.
00:37First of all, I've got to say congratulations on this documentary.
00:40You're working with 10th Collective on this. I know this is great.
00:44So I've got to ask you this. First of all, I love the title, Allergic to Failure, because I love
00:48that.
00:48I'm allergic to failure. Everybody should be allergic to failure.
00:51But when you watch this documentary, because one thing to be a part of it, when you sit back and
00:55you watch it,
00:56what moments hit you the hardest emotionally, right?
01:01What parts of your journey really connect with you and make you think about how far that you've come?
01:06I think the main thing that hits me is the amount of things that I've ever had to overcome.
01:13My story is a journey of literally overcoming obstacles, from not only college, MBA, but my entire life, high school,
01:23before high school.
01:25It's literally a stepping stone. It's a pillar. That's been my whole mantra.
01:28My whole mantra is I've had to overcome obstacle after obstacle after obstacle when it came to playing basketball.
01:34A lot of people get discouraged with the amount of things that I've been faced with.
01:39But one thing about me, I had a great support system, my parents, my family, and they helped push me
01:46through.
01:46So my thing is that, like I said, just looking at that, like I said, that amount of things that
01:53I've continued to have to overcome from young age into my adulthood.
01:58And one thing that never stuck was is that I quit.
02:03Never quit.
02:03Yeah.
02:04Right?
02:04Can't ever quit.
02:05And I feel like when you watch this, Doc, for people, when you see it, one of the themes is
02:10resilience in this film, right?
02:11When you talk about the idea of just being allergic to failure, that you have to be resilient.
02:16So when you talk about that journey, right, going from high school to college, right, to the league, what kept
02:24you believing when you had those early doubts?
02:26Because we all go through that.
02:28This is something that's relatable to everybody.
02:29But what kept you believing when you had those early doubts in your career?
02:33Like I said, it goes back to that support system.
02:36My family, my college coach, John Cooper, Danny Ford, them guys, like, really pushed me.
02:45And at one point, like I said, the way that they pushed me, I got discouraged, you know, my freshman
02:53year.
02:53I was like, yeah, that's not for me.
02:55Like, I can't.
02:58But they understood.
02:59Well, you say that's not for you.
03:00You meant, like, basketball wasn't for you?
03:02Or the goal of making it into the league?
03:04No, it just was, like, the way that they pushed me.
03:07Like, it was, I feel like they was on me too much.
03:10Got you.
03:11And so reality was is that my coach sat me down and was like, the reason why I'm on you
03:17is because I see something in you.
03:19Like, which is what I've been told.
03:21Like, even in high school, like, you have more in you, but what does it take to bring it out
03:28of you?
03:29You know, my high school coach said something that was, it caused a lot of controversy in my high school
03:35team.
03:36He wanted me to be more selfish.
03:39And I was never that type of player.
03:41Like, I wanted, I feel like my success came from us succeeding.
03:45And so that's what I built my, like, team ball, like, is what I've been doing.
03:54And that's how I felt success was for me.
03:58And at that point, yeah, it built animosity amongst people, but it was unfortunate because we had a team in
04:09high school that was really good.
04:11Like, that was really good, but we wasn't able to reach our peak because of the fact of, like, egos,
04:18animosity, and all those different things,
04:20which was unfortunate because we had a group of brothers, like, you know, I go to bat with them dudes,
04:25but it was just the outside noise that literally crept in that caused our brotherhood to fall apart.
04:31And so then going to college, like I said, craziest thing is that, you know, everybody had their school.
04:39I didn't commit to my school until three years before I graduated.
04:43And so I had no idea where I was going.
04:46I had no idea, like, anything.
04:50My coach, Dana Ford, is actually the one that found me.
04:54And even in the doc, we talk about this, about how crazy this man was.
05:02And when I say crazy, I mean, like, ultimate.
05:06Like, he's calmed down heavily now.
05:09But when coming to recruit me, like, when I say, like, I literally thought this man was, like, crazy.
05:15Like, when I say it was on a whole other level, like, the way we met, he didn't have a
05:20job.
05:21So he was like, man, look, I'm going to call you every single day.
05:24Like, wherever I go, I want you to come.
05:26And literally, he called me every single day, two, three times a day because he didn't have a job.
05:31So he wasn't violating the NCAA rules to the point where it's like it got annoying.
05:36I even talk to my dad, my family about, like, why are y'all talking to this man?
05:41He don't have a job.
05:42What is that going to help me?
05:43But then right after, for two weeks it went on, I stopped answering his phone calls.
05:47And then he went to calling my dad.
05:50He went to calling my dad every single day.
05:52So did you like something about his persistence?
05:55Because that's what I'm hearing.
05:56No, I actually didn't.
05:56He was allergic to failure.
05:59It definitely is about, you know, that persistence and resiliency.
06:04Right.
06:04And so, like I said, I got annoyed by him.
06:08I got annoyed by him.
06:10And even in my first year, like, I was beyond annoyed by him.
06:14Like, because it was, now that he's my coach, it was on another level.
06:18Right.
06:18That's why I was like, yeah, it's not for me.
06:20Like, bro, what's this?
06:22But then my head coach sat me down and was like, the reason why he's on you the way he's
06:27on you is because he sees something in you.
06:30Like, we had a meeting, yeah, we had a meeting that that's what it looks like, what a pro looks
06:36like.
06:37And he says this in a documentary.
06:41And I never understood that initially because, like I said, people told me that, yeah, man, like, you got what
06:47it takes.
06:47Like, you just got to dig deep.
06:49And it's like, yeah, I'm doing what I need to do.
06:52But I don't understand what y'all saying.
06:55And nobody could ever, I've heard from Pop Warner, from AAU, high school, like, Antoine Walker even told me, my
07:05OAU coach, Kevin Dockery and him, like, bro, you got a little bit more.
07:10Like, what is it going to take?
07:12Like, what is it going to take?
07:13But he was able to really show you what it would take.
07:16So you saw it in a different way.
07:20And then the thing is, you do get to the league.
07:22Yeah.
07:23And you played for, what, five NBA teams over your 12-year career.
07:27And for people who know, you were one of the elite 3&D players of your era in the time
07:34you played.
07:35And so when you look back at your career, what are you most proud of that you built for yourself
07:40in your career when you look back at it?
07:42The thing that I'm most proud of is that I fight for those that don't have the voice.
07:48I fight for those that don't have the opportunity because if it wasn't for the year that I had, my
07:55junior year, and the opportunity of going into my senior year and playing my coach then at the time, Travis
08:04Williams, giving me an opportunity.
08:06Like, going to bat for me and getting me into Adidas Nations, I wouldn't have had the attention that I
08:11had.
08:13And me going to Adidas Nations transformed everything.
08:19Like, because these are the top, I forgot how many players it was, I think 32 or so.
08:25These are the top 32 players in the country.
08:28And I go there, nobody knows me.
08:30It was only two people that knew me, and it was the two people in my conference.
08:34But everybody else, you got kids from Florida, you got kids from all over, like, these are the top names
08:39that you see on the draft boards.
08:40And so I went in there with, like, now I have to just show that I deserve to be here.
08:47And so for me, it's just about seizing the opportunity.
08:52And every moment that I've had, I've seized the opportunity.
08:55And so that's what my entire thing is, is that giving kids an understanding and an opportunity to be like,
09:04well, he did it, so can I.
09:06And the fact that I'm the last HBCU player that really had a real impact, like me and Kylo Quinn
09:13held the throne down for a very long time.
09:16Shout out to Kylo Quinn, Norfolk State.
09:17Yes, we held it down for a while.
09:21Like, I can't even tell you who, the last one, I think, was Anthony Mason after that.
09:25And he went to Tennessee State.
09:27That's right.
09:28Yeah, he's Tennessee State alum.
09:29That's right.
09:29Knicks fans will know that.
09:31Exactly.
09:32For sure.
09:33Yeah, don't know that.
09:34But it's so unfortunate that we don't have the opportunities, but I say that I give people the understanding that
09:44all it takes is a chance.
09:48And that's exactly what I did, was I had a chance.
09:51I mean, you were able to, you know, I'm sure that followed you as you got into the NBA and
09:55your career.
09:56And, you know, you use that as fuel in a way, because, you know, you came from a smaller HBCU
10:02school.
10:03You were able to rise up and do that.
10:05But I want to get back to that, what you mentioned about the lack of HBCU talent in the NBA
10:12right now.
10:12But I got to ask you this, because you played with a lot of talent in your career, a lot
10:16of different places you played.
10:17If you had to build a starting five of the players, putting yourself in it, so four of the people
10:22to play with you.
10:23Or maybe we could just do five.
10:24Five of the teammates that you played with, who's your starting five of all the players that you've played with?
10:30Not including me.
10:31Yeah, I'm going to take you out of it.
10:32You get to coach these guys.
10:33We'll make you the coach.
10:36At the point guard, I'm like, five is hard.
10:42I know somebody's going to be disappointed that they get left out.
10:48Five is hard.
10:51I would say to make it positionless, but then I feel like that's too easy.
10:54So let's...
10:55I mean, everybody is...
10:58We got Russ.
10:59Yep.
11:01James.
11:02Yep.
11:03Paul George.
11:05Kawhi.
11:06Joel Embiid.
11:08That's a damn good starting five right there.
11:11It's a damn good starting five.
11:13And then I got to throw one more.
11:16I got to throw Dame in there.
11:17That's six man.
11:18Oh, that's right.
11:19I almost forgot you played with Dame.
11:22We're putting Dame into six man.
11:25I mean, that's crazy.
11:26That shows you the amount of talent you play with.
11:28It's hard to pick five.
11:30Like, them six are off-rip like you.
11:33I like that, though.
11:34That's strong.
11:35That's...
11:36You'll go to war with those five or six.
11:38You'll go to war with those five or six.
11:40Absolutely.
11:40Okay, that's a strong one.
11:41Now, I got to ask you this, because part of your reputation was you were a defensive stopper.
11:45I talked to you about being one of the best 3D players of your era.
11:48So, who was the hardest player that you ever had to guard?
11:51The hardest player I have ever had to guard was Kyrie.
11:54Really?
11:55Yeah.
11:56Because Kyrie has an unlimited back.
12:00And Kyrie is so crafty that even if you stop Kyrie, he's still going to go.
12:07He's going to hit...
12:08You stop the first move, he's going to hit you with a counter.
12:10You stop that move, he's going to hit you with another counter.
12:13I had a specific in play where I was guarding Kyrie.
12:17It was me and him one-on-one.
12:20And shot clock coming down.
12:21I stopped the first move.
12:24Stopped the second move.
12:25And he hit me with something that I don't even remember what he hit me with.
12:29And my foot slipped up under me.
12:33And I knew if I didn't do what I did next, if I didn't foul him, I was going to
12:38fall.
12:39So, he was my momentum from literally me not falling.
12:43And literally, it was like, come here.
12:45Like, hook.
12:46One of those.
12:47You were going to be on the SportsCenter highlight.
12:49You didn't want that.
12:50Oh, yeah.
12:50You made sure that was not going to happen.
12:52I like that.
12:53All right, that's cool.
12:54Kyrie, toughest player you ever guarded.
12:56You mentioned a player in your starting five, Joel Embiid.
12:58Yeah.
12:59You spent a lot of time with him.
13:00You know, he's dealt with a lot of injuries.
13:02But this was one of the most dominant big men that we've ever seen in the game.
13:06What was it like playing with Joel and seeing a big that dominant up close?
13:11Man, I seen the evolution of Joel.
13:14Like, that coaching staff really put the time in with him.
13:17Um, Brett Brown didn't really put a lot of emphasis into him.
13:21Um, and just over them years, he has so many people that just pour knowledge into him, pouring
13:26different things into him that, you know, is, is great to see the evolution.
13:33And we, they saw it, like, early.
13:36But it was just early on with the injuries and everything.
13:38But once he got, once he got it, his work ethic and skill set is tremendous.
13:44I've never seen nothing like Joel at first.
13:46And the way that he's evolved into one of the premier elite scorers, like, two, basically
13:54two-way player, like, all levels he scores.
13:57Um, that was what I dealt with for years of evolving.
14:05We were in training camp one day.
14:07And I watched probably the greatest battle between him and Jaleel Okafor going back and
14:15forth.
14:16Huh.
14:17Like, it was literally one of the greatest matchups I've ever seen.
14:21Like, and they're both perennial scorers in the post.
14:23Yeah.
14:24Great, great post players there.
14:25Oh, man.
14:26We literally dribbled that thing up and threw that thing to the post and let them guys just
14:30go.
14:31Like, it was the craziest thing.
14:33And probably about, they went to each other for about eight, eight minutes straight.
14:37Really?
14:38Who got the best of that battle?
14:39It was, Joel ended up winning at the end, you know, of course, um, because of, like,
14:45his size and everything.
14:46But that was, like, Jaleel held his own.
14:50Jaleel had great post moves, great footwork.
14:53That great footwork.
14:54Number two overall pick.
14:55People forget about it.
14:56Forget about it.
14:57And literally, like, it was, like, amazing.
15:04Like, if we would have had that more, like, throughout that year, I don't know what our
15:09seven would have been.
15:10It could have been a lot higher for that six or 16.
15:14Okay, so we just talked about bigs.
15:15But I think one thing, when I think about you specifically in your career, I talked about
15:19the three and D play, the good defensive play.
15:21But you also played a lot of small ball center.
15:24Right?
15:24Right, and you kind of were one of the first, I would say, six, eight guys that kind of ushered
15:29that in.
15:30So, first of all, did you enjoy that?
15:32That's my first question.
15:33Did you enjoy playing that?
15:35And then, because we're here in New York doing this, and I do a Knicks show, who do you think
15:39on this current Knicks roster could thrive in that role if they have to play some small
15:43ball five?
15:43Who do you think could work with that?
15:46First, yes, I did enjoy it.
15:47You did enjoy it?
15:48It was actually the most fun that I had.
15:50And it's actually the best basketball probably I played during that time.
15:55Was it because you were able to take advantage of slower bigs?
15:59It was just the freedom.
16:02I wish I was a free agent at that time, because the way that these guys are getting paid, I
16:09would have got paid.
16:10I would have got paid.
16:12But the way, that was the most fun, even though, like I said, I had to battle big guys, but
16:16I've been doing that my whole career.
16:18Like, I've had, what helped me with that is having to guard guys in practice when I was
16:24with Philly early on.
16:26I used to have to guard Joel.
16:28I used to have to guard Jaleel.
16:29Like, just because, like, if we get switched, like, you got to see.
16:34And people don't realize is that I'm stronger than what I look like.
16:39So, when people sit up there and see me and they look at it, they like, oh, he's smaller,
16:44like, this and that.
16:45But when in reality, I'm actually stronger than what people anticipate.
16:48So, I'm able to hold my own.
16:50Like, and some bigs are getting thrown off by that.
16:53And I'll talk about my quickness.
16:55Because, yeah, you might got a couple pounds on me, but I'm going to use my quickness to
16:59my advantage.
17:00Like, and because I watch so much film, like, I know pretty much a lot of players' moves.
17:06So, that has been my thing, what has helped me get to that point.
17:12And, like I said, I have fun.
17:14Because I like battling.
17:16Like, people don't know this, but I actually enjoy it because I play football.
17:23And me playing football, I play D-end.
17:26I play nose guard.
17:27I play on the defensive line.
17:29So, I like hitting.
17:31Ah.
17:32So, if you got a guy, your height, your weight, you like to battle, you like hitting, this
17:36could work for you.
17:37Yeah, it doesn't, it doesn't, like, throw me off the fact of having to run through screens
17:41or big setting screen on me or me having to fight with a big, like, no.
17:46Right, fighting for position to post.
17:47Because some guys, 6'8", maybe a little smaller around, they might not like that.
17:51They may not like the physicality.
17:51I like the physicality because it gets me going because I am a defender.
17:56Right.
17:57I'm going to have to battle through that throughout the game.
17:59That's actually what I actually enjoy.
18:01Like, I've had people that I've run through screens on, and they said, damn, like, bro,
18:06you ain't got to get through like that.
18:08But, like, but that's my job.
18:10Right.
18:11And it's because if I actually set the tone, then it actually shows, like, it makes people
18:16want me on their team.
18:18Because I, my toughness, my grit, I'm not backing down from anything.
18:25Like, nobody in that case.
18:27And so, that's what I enjoyed about it.
18:32And, you know, the position is, like, like you said, that was the most fun I had.
18:35Yeah, and now it's, like, you see a lot of that in the league.
18:38You see a lot of teams trying to do that.
18:41Knicks team.
18:42Does anybody think they could play that small ball five?
18:44OG.
18:44OG.
18:45I felt like you were going to say that.
18:46OG.
18:47He kind of reminds me, I won't say of you exactly, but he could bring that physicality.
18:53He's going to fight through a screen.
18:54He did a great job on Joel Embiid, your boy.
18:58Knicks played the Sixers in mid-January, mid to late January.
19:01He did a fantastic job down the stretch.
19:02Yeah, I watched that.
19:02You watched that game.
19:03And he was really good in that one.
19:05So, OG is the guy in the Knicks that you can see.
19:07Yes, absolutely, because his physicality, he's not going to back down.
19:11And OG don't say much.
19:12Like, even if he gets hit, OG is going to sit there.
19:17He's on that next play mentality.
19:20So, yeah, OG is that person that literally will thrive.
19:25Nah, I can see that.
19:26Speaking of the Knicks, what do you think of this Knicks team?
19:28Do you think they have what it takes to win a championship this year?
19:31Absolutely.
19:32I think they do.
19:33The opportunity is right there.
19:36It's just about seizing the moment.
19:38One of our brothers, my best friend, Kat, is on the team.
19:42So, you know, I'm a fan.
19:45And, of course, my old agent is here.
19:47It's a lot of ties of people that I know here.
19:50So, yeah, I am rooting.
19:53I am rooting.
19:54Knicks fans are excited.
19:55They've been waiting.
19:56It's like one of the most anticipated seasons this season was in 30 years.
19:59So, Knicks fans are hungry.
20:03They're hungry to see that.
20:05Let me ask you this, too.
20:06A couple more things before I get you out of here.
20:07The documentary, it raises, I would say, a really interesting question that we just talked about earlier.
20:13That you might be one of the last NBA players from an HBCU right now, you know, in terms of
20:19how the league is.
20:20Why do you think we're seeing fewer players from HBCUs reach the association?
20:27And also, what needs to change about that to get more HBCU players back into the league?
20:31There's a lot of talent there.
20:34It's just we don't get the same opportunities.
20:37You know, if it wasn't for me going to Adidas Nations and me being completely unknown, me being known to
20:47the smaller scene, but the overall scale of the NCAA, I went from being, because of this camp, I went
20:56from being pretty much unknown to being ranked the top ten power forward in the country just based off of
21:02this one camp.
21:03Like, the exposure, like, the exposure, there's not a lot of people paying attention to them.
21:09There's not a lot of people that sit there and feel like we're playing against enough competition.
21:13When, in actuality, a lot of NBA talent came from my conference during that time.
21:19You had me, you had Isaiah Cannon, you had Ian Clark, you had Kenneth Fareed, you had a lot of
21:26NBA talent that literally was right there.
21:29Like, and a lot of high-end guys from other conferences, I mean, other schools that literally was the peak
21:38of basketball.
21:39So, given the right opportunity, a lot of people would have thrived.
21:43Like I said, all of them guys have made an exceptional career.
21:46You know, it's unfortunate that, like I said, we're smaller conferences.
21:50So, we haven't, they've played great careers, but HBCUs, we just don't get the opportunity because of resources, exposure, opportunities.
22:01And people don't feel like we play against enough elite competition.
22:06We don't play against the best.
22:07And so, that's the reason why.
22:09Like, because that was the same knocks that was said when I was in college, the same thing that they
22:14say now.
22:15Because we don't give the opportunity, like, we don't have the resources, we don't have X, Y, and Z.
22:21And also, people aren't checking for it.
22:23Like, my alma mater just won the OVC Championship for the first time in 32 years.
22:27I was going to bring that up.
22:29And the, this, this team, Nolan has, because Nolan is who he is, and he's come and brought a different
22:38light to him.
22:41I told, I'm behind the scenes with them, and I tell them all the time, like, listen, y'all have
22:50an opportunity to literally write y'all own future right now.
22:54Because, and literally before we had, before they won the conference, before they went off, I sat, I literally met
23:01them at the end of practice, and I had a conversation with them.
23:03And I told them that, this is going to change our lives, because we don't have the exposure.
23:09Y'all going to be put on a national scale now.
23:11How did it feel for, and Nolan's done a, Nolan Smith, for folks who don't know, Nolan Smith has done
23:16a fantastic job there at Tennessee State.
23:19You came very close to playing in the tournament and getting a bid.
23:23How did it feel for you to see those guys in this current team get it?
23:26That had to be a proud moment for you, especially because you talked to them right before it.
23:29Yes.
23:29Because I literally, at the beginning of the season, like, I'm tissue, I ride or die.
23:37They won, I won.
23:39Like, and me being behind the scenes with them, like, people don't know that I'm tied in with them heavily.
23:48And me and Nolan, from the very beginning, we sat down and we've talked.
23:53And a lot of the players, like I said, I played with them throughout the summer.
23:57And I sat with them before the season started, and I had them look up in the stands.
24:04And I had them look at the banners, and I said, this conference is for the winning.
24:13It's not the same as what I was when I was in college.
24:16Like, the powerhouse that was in college when I was there, it's not here anymore.
24:22Y'all have the opportunity to seize the moment.
24:25I said, I wish I had these schools in the conference when I was here with my team.
24:32I'd have four championships.
24:35I said, I would have four championships.
24:38Not saying that them schools aren't good.
24:40Right.
24:40But the level of basketball that we played and what our coach did, bro, we had four championships.
24:50Now you got to see them get won.
24:51Now I got to see them.
24:52And like I said, day one, I won.
24:54And that's what I'm happy.
24:57Like, I wasn't able to be there with them.
24:59Like, actually, in the moments, I had to take my daughter back.
25:05But I watched the entire thing.
25:07Like, I was sitting at my little spot eating, and I watched the whole thing as if I was there.
25:13And as soon as the game was over with, I called Mama Tess.
25:17And literally, I talked to all them boys.
25:20Like, this is what we talked about.
25:22Now we got a selection Sunday on Sunday.
25:24Yeah, now they can go make some history.
25:27And I told two of the main guys, I said, listen, I'm going to need y'all.
25:34I'm going to need y'all.
25:37Bring it home.
25:38I said, I'm saying this because this is going to give y'all an opportunity to literally take care of
25:48your families.
25:50This is going to give an amazing opportunity.
25:52I said, I was never able to get there.
25:54I said, I was this close.
25:56This close.
25:58I said, two seconds changed my entire trajectory.
26:05And now y'all have the moment to sit up here and do exactly.
26:08Mind you, my story is different because I still had an opportunity to be on the national scene.
26:13Right.
26:14But this will help y'all get in the doorway.
26:18Yeah, no doubt about it.
26:19It's going to be a special moment.
26:21There is a player in the NBA.
26:23He's played a little bit with the Portland Trailblazers, Javante Cook.
26:26I know you know him a little bit, and you've caught up with him.
26:30He's played at HBCU.
26:32What does it mean for you to see him in?
26:34I know he's back in the G League now, but what does it mean for you to see him chasing
26:38his NBA dreams?
26:39And what do you think the potential is for him?
26:41I just hope that he'll get the right opportunity.
26:43That's all it takes.
26:45I'm thankful that somebody has come and been able to get the opportunity.
26:51But just hoping that he gets the full opportunity to really expose what he's capable of doing.
26:58Because, like I said, I've held â Kyle held it down for a while, very long â me and Kyle
27:04held it down for years.
27:05Yeah, you guys did.
27:07And there is somebody that deserves to literally hand that anchor.
27:10And considering, like, how things are, someone will have that opportunity again.
27:19Like, hopefully, as Javante, he can ride out the same way we did.
27:25We had an exceptional career.
27:28But, like I said, I just â I hope it allows others.
27:32You know, I talked to a couple players from the All-Star weekend, and I just said, listen, just seize
27:39the moments.
27:40Like, the opportunities when they come, even if they don't â even if you're not happy with it.
27:46I just â I had a lot of bad days.
27:49I had a lot of good days.
27:51I said, but my bad days, I weighed my good days because of my experience in the NBA.
27:59But it's all a story.
28:00You either going to allow it to make you or break you.
28:05And never give in to the breaking you.
28:07Because if you do, you'll miss out.
28:12You don't want to miss out on those great opportunities in life.
28:14I guess we can end with this.
28:15This has been a great conversation.
28:18People, hopefully, they watch this documentary.
28:20Go watch the documentary, Allergic to Failure, on PBS.
28:23But when people watch the documentary, what do you â
28:27there's one thing for people to see your story, see your evolution, your journey through everything.
28:31What do you want people to take away from this documentary?
28:34And if there's one thing they could take away from watching Allergic to Failure, the Robert Covington story,
28:38what do you want them to take away?
28:43One thing?
28:45Maybe one theme.
28:47You know, maybe one theme, overarching theme that you'd want them to take away from this
28:51that you really feel should sit with people when they watch this documentary.
28:56You are the creator of your own story.
28:58And every day you write on these pages and you create the story.
29:06Don't let nobody else dictate it for you.
29:09And that's been my mantra because I've been told everything, like you can imagine.
29:17When I first came in the league, I remember at the combine, they were telling me I had no position,
29:26that I was a tweener, that he won't last long in this league just for the NBA to become exactly
29:37what they said.
29:38But I wasn't.
29:41That's because they said what I was, a tweener.
29:44And now you see positions as basketball.
29:47Now you see literally small ball fives.
29:52You literally see, like, the transition of what they said I wasn't.
29:57And I really was one of the first to actually be in that position because of the way that the
30:05league was transitioned.
30:06Nobody saw it until it was actually in it.
30:08And then it's just like, so my thing is, is that you are the creator of your own story.
30:16Never give up.
30:17And literally, you write your own story.
30:21Never let nobody else dictate it for you.
30:23That's perfect.
30:24That's perfectly set.
30:26It's real talk right there.
30:27True words.
30:27You are the creator of your own story.
30:30And, yeah, those people who said that he was a tweener, Robert Covington was a tweener, or he wouldn't last
30:34in the league,
30:35well, you proved those people wrong.
30:37You definitely proved those people wrong.
30:38You know, I always say this about drafting and scouting.
30:42People get these things wrong.
30:43Then you never hear from them again.
30:45They have nothing to say after this.
30:47Everybody, Robert Covington.
30:49Check out the documentary, Allergic to Failure, the Robert Covington Story, produced by 10th Collective.
30:55And I got to shout out, the person who does the stuff for 10th Collective is a fellow University of
31:01Pittsburgh graduate.
31:01My God, Jemoke Davis.
31:02I got to shout him out.
31:03He's behind him.
31:04Pitt greatness here.
31:05You know how that is.
31:06Although our technical director goes to that school that Pitt doesn't like, but we're not going to talk about that
31:10right now.
31:11Rob, man, I appreciate you coming through and chopping it up with me about the documentary.
31:16It's a really good one for people to check out.
31:17And I love all the stuff you're doing, and hopefully we see more players from HBCUs in the league.
31:22So keep up the good work, and good luck to Tennessee State in the tournament.
31:26Man, them guys got the opportunity.
31:28Appreciate y'all.
31:29I appreciate y'all for having me, man.
31:31No, man.
31:31Thank you for coming through.
31:32Appreciate it once again.
31:33Everybody, check that out.
31:34Documentary, Allergic to Failure, the Robert Covington Story.
31:36Rob, thank you, man.
31:37Man, I appreciate you, baby.
31:38All right.
31:40All right.
31:42All right.
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