Anyone who is facing some tall odds as they try to achieve their dreams will be interested in “D&K in the lab,” a podcast created by Dex G. and Kurt Lee. The two men delve into Dex’s experiences with playing basketball in high school and college and into stories about Division 1 college basketball players and their own lessons learned as they play at a highly competitive level. “When Kurt and I created our podcast,” Dex says, “we wanted to make it relatable to anyone. That means you don’t have to be a basketball person to get something out of it. The messages we discuss are ones that anyone can relate to no matter what their interests are.”
Dex uses his own life as an example for others. “I wasn’t expected to do much with basketball,” he says. “Other people thought I’d never get anywhere with it. I proved them wrong, though, when I started playing at Suffern High School in New York.”
Dex went on to graduate from Marist College and then continued his education at Montclair State. “I joined their basketball club and helped them go undefeated at 7-0 during that first semester,” he remembers. “What made this so awesome was that MSU competed in the NCBBA. This gave me so much confidence that I kept playing even while I was taking classes at different schools to become a medical records professional.”
Dex feels he really reached a higher level when he played for the team at SUNY Ulster Community College, a division 2 NJCAA. “I felt proud to be one of the four players who made it to the next level. I actually committed to playing at County College of Morris after Montclair, but after a month, I transferred to SUNY Ulster and walked on the team later on in the season. I also played semi-pro for the East Carolina Cardinals. I am still trying to play at a high level, and I will be working out with the Ghanaian team, Braves of Customs. It is one of the top basketball clubs in Ghana that competes in FIBA competition, and they have competed in the NBA-BAL qualifiers.” Dex has shown great enthusiasm for helping the team reach its ultimate goal: winning a FIBA qualifier once the pandemic slows down.
It wasn’t until the pandemic, however, that Dex decided to take his love for basketball in a new direction by starting his podcast with Kurt. “It was actually his idea,” Dex says. “We were like a lot of people: frustrated that we couldn’t play basketball. Kurt suggested that I talk about my life and other players’ to try to inspire the next generation of players and anyone else who faces a tough road to achieving their dreams.” Kurt, while not a player, is an avid watcher of the game and knows the stats of every player, so he was the perfect partner for Dex.
“To understand our podcast, you have to get how difficult it is for high school players to make it onto a Division 1 team in college,” Dex says. “It’s not easy to do. At that level, it’s all about winning – losing isn’t acceptable. Yet, so many high schoolers are aiming for that dream. That’s one reason they’ll like this podcast, as will anyone interested in inspirational stories. I interview Division 1 players like Ahmad Clark, who plays for Albany University, and Chris Galbreath, who plays for Sam Houston State. They get real about how hard you must work to make it to that level, how you have to eat, and how brutal the training really is.” That’s one of the messages Dex would like to get across to high school players: the importance of changing their mentalities so that they can play at the Division 1 level.
Ultimately, Dex and Kurt hope their podcast can encourage people who may be facing some tough odds. “The people we talk about will make you think about life differently,” Dex says. “You’ll leave our podcast with a totally new way of taking on the challenges life throws at you.”
