There are some perks of being around avid collectors. For former San Antonio Spurs player Malik Rose, David Robinson‘s love for watches turned out to be one of the many advantages of having him as an NBA teammate. During a recent appearance on the Run It Back show, Rose talked about how winning a championship with Robinson helped him get a Rolex watch, before explaining what makes his former teammate the “dumbest smart guy.”
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During the show, the NBA veteran was asked by Chandler Parsons if the Rolex story with the Admiral is true. Robinson was drafted into the league by the San Antonio Spurs in 1989, and he played for the franchise for the entirety of his career. Rose, on the other hand, joined forces with Robinson in 1997 and stayed there till 2005. In that time, the Spurs won two championships together and one of them also got Rose his first Rolex.
The time that David Robinson forgot about his million dollar bonus, and bought the whole team a Rolex⌚️@MalikRose: “David is probably the dumbest smart guy I know.” pic.twitter.com/KzXdLXVr5h
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) April 4, 2024
Rose revealed that the Admiral had a million-dollar clause in his contract which basically meant that if he wins a Championship, he will get an additional one million dollars. The 49-year-old said, “We were all playing StarCraft and he [Robinson] says, ‘I think I just won a million dollars’. I was like, ‘What are you talking about…Are you serious?’ He was like, ‘I’m buying all of you Rolexes’, and I’m just like, ‘This guy, man.'”
Robinson stayed true to his promise and spent a large chunk of his money buying Rolex watches for all of his teammates. Surprisingly, Rose was wearing the same watch during his interview. However, he still proclaimed Robinson as the ‘dumbest smart guy’ he had ever seen, because the Spurs legend would do and say the most outlandish things despite being very intelligent.
David Robinson is an avid watch collector
The Admiral and his love for watches is well known. But with a 7’1 physique, he often finds himself in difficult situations, because most of the dials are just too small for his wrist. However, there’s a great collection of watches that he has gathered over the years and during an interview with YouTube channel Hodinkee in 2018, the two-time NBA champion showcased some of his most prized possessions.
On the top of the list is a Piaget Upstream Chronograph that was gifted to him by Tim Duncan upon his retirement. On the back of the watch, Duncan engraved a heartfelt message for the Spurs legend, “My teammate, mentor and friend.” No wonder it’s so special for the Admiral. Apart from that, he also owns a Hublot Big Bang, a Rolex Yacht-Master, and a Panerai Luminor 1950 GMT Ceramica, which was gifted to him by his wife.
