Jon Jones Reveals Most Influential Sports Hero at the ESPYs

I want to know, who was your most influential sports hero growing up and why?

Muhammad Ali. Just cause he's Muhammad, man. He claimed to be the greatest well before anyone thought he was, you know, he grew up in a very a lot of interesting time where where it was just dangerous for him to be so confident. Um he just broke down a lot of walls. Not only was he great in the boxing arena, but uh he was just an innovator and he was great in life and I think that's the one. I tried to model my life after for sure. Second guest: Honestly, Michael Jordan was my Jordan. Yeah, always. Yeah. Was my.

Do you have a favorite moment of his? Second guest: When he came back, made a comeback and was playing for the Wizards. That was cool. You love that. From DC, you know, so that was like huge. I was like, oh, this is awesome.

Okay. Michael. MJ. Third guest: And Kobe.

And Kobe. Okay. What you got to pick one or the other. Third guest: Kobe. Kobe all day.

Wow. Why is that though? Third guest: Kobe's mentality. He's uh his grind. I would be the one to do the research on like what he would do like besides, you know, basketball. If they lose a game even if they win a game, he when they fly back to Los Angeles, he'd go straight to the gym and start shooting again. That's crazy. Fourth guest: I think Baker Mayfield inspires me. I think that's somebody that was coming out of the draft. Everybody kind of like questioned his talent and said, oh no way should he be the number one overall draft pick. Why are the Browns taking a chance on him? And then to look at what a player like he did in this day and age and how he turned a team around and it's kind of been the focus of turning the Cleveland Browns around.

Sports and fashion become synonymous. Fifth guest: Yeah.

Why do you think it's so important in sports world? Fifth guest: Um, I think it's just, you know, growing up as a female athlete, I these were my role models. So like the Grammys wasn't really big for me or like Oscars. So like it's really cool. This was always the kind of something I wanted to watch to see people outside of their sweats and actually what they look like all dressed up. So it is really cool to kind of and then it's like, is it that person? Like you never really see them that way. Sixth guest: With fashion, it's like, you look good, you feel good. Type stuff, you know what I'm saying? So I mean, I think it's cool like Westbrook, you know, Westbrook's been started a hot trend like a couple years ago. Looking different, changing the game up and other people like Odell Beckham and, you know, O is my boy, right? That's my boy. Yeah. I've known O for a minute. So, you know, they always like to change the game up because they stand out. All the cameras and the opportunity to build your brand. Um people expressing themselves in newer ways and in more unique and creative ways. Uh, so it's, I mean, it's cool. It's a it's a cool aspect. Uh, I try personally not to get too caught up in it, you know, concerned like a fashion show sometimes walking into games, but.

Do you have like a favorite pair of sneakers or like clothing brand that you do wear? Sixth guest: Oh, for sure, yeah. No, I love I don't want it to come off like I don't care about what I wear, but I I do. Uh, I just try not to I try to remember why I'm in the NBA and um, you know, that's just how I go about my business. Seventh guest: The way that players have kind of learned to showcase a personality when they're off the field is through fashion. They make fashionable statements. I mean, who doesn't look forward to seeing Cam Newton's post-game pressers wearing his Fedoras. What is he going to wear to Coachella this year? Even somebody like Christian McCaffrey, who last year went to Paris Fashion Week. Travis Kelce, who's very into fashion. A bunch of these players that you would never suspect they're such like.

Getting into fashion. Seventh guest: Yeah, getting into fashion and I think it's just become a way that players have learned to express themselves and showcase personality and kind of take the helmet off. Eighth guest: Well, fashion is such a big thing now. And being a a sports, you know, a sports figure, you got to make a fashion statement. Whenever you got a platform like this, you got to do your best. You got to bring out your best stuff.

Break down, break down what you got going. Why did you decide that this look? Eighth guest: Uh the classic checkerboard, you know, I just I don't know, it's just something that popped in my head. I was like, you know, this would be a good look. I'll stand out. They can pop. Send them on my six eight frame.

Okay. So, we we like to talk sneakers here, okay? Tell me about these classic shoes. Eighth guest: Real classic, real basic. You know, keep it simple. That's all I that's all I got.

Okay. Do you have a favorite pair of sneakers that you love wearing? Uh, All time? All time? Eighth guest: Yeah. Jordan 13s.

Jordan 13s. Why? Eighth guest: I don't know. Something about that shoe. Especially the he got game, the black and white ones.

Okay. I was going to say, yeah, favorite color, why? So, it's black and white. Okay. We we're talking shoe game, and I see your shoes are really phenomenal. What are they? And can you can you just show them off a little bit? Ninth guest: Well, it's just some it's just some secret that I found.

Some secret. I like the spikes in the back. Can you show me the the little spikes real quick? Yeah. There we go. Yes. Those are awesome. I love I love them. Tell me about the the shoes that we got working right here. We're doing a little shoe cam right now. Ninth guest: These are the two chains of Versace collab, all black, light work.

Light work? No, no, no. Hard work. Hard work.