Los Angeles Lakers undrafted rookie Quincy Olivari became an internet meme after the team’s media day when he was caught in the background of a SportsCenter’s Bronny James interview taking a selfie with LeBron James.
The “Who’s 41?” meme was born.
On October 10, Olivari answered that question with a big-time performance as he led the Lakers to a come-from-behind 107-102 preseason win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
“Yeeeeaaaahhhhh Q!!,” James posted on Instagram. “They know who 41 is now.”
Olivari scored 11 points and added five rebounds with two assists and without a single turnover, leading the Lakers’ frenetic 20-0 run in the fourth quarter to storm back from an 89-74 deficit.
Olivari’s life quickly changed overnight from just an internet meme to becoming a legitimate NBA prospect. The light-spirited guard found the jokes about him funny and just laughed it off.
“I looked at it, and all the jokes were [NBA] 2k-related,” Olivari told reporters after the game. “And I’m a huge 2k fan. I’ve been playing 2k since about 2k 10, with Kobe Bryant on the cover on the Wii. They started talking about, oh that, like, that’s ‘My Player.’ … I was just crying laughing. And my homeboy, he texted me and was like, ‘You got to capitalize on his marketing.’ So I hadn’t got my media day pictures yet, but I got the picture with LeBron and I said, ‘I’m just gonna post it.’
“And I used the caption, ‘Who’s number 41?’ And that’s been my mantra.”
JJ Redick Calls Quincy Olivari’s Play as The “Blueprint”
Olivari did not only get a huge shoutout from James but also a great compliment from Lakers coach JJ Redick.
“Quincy just completely changed the game,” Redick told reporters afterward. “And to me, and I told our guys this after, what he did is the blueprint for what we’re asking for a few of our players in terms of just picking up full court, being disruptive, taking time off the shot clock.”
“I thought he just executed exactly what we want from someone in his position. And we’ve challenged a number of guys, and they’ve done it well to varying degrees but haven’t seen it executed that well until tonight with Quincy.”
Redick shared Olivari’s cross country running background has made him one of the best conditioned Lakers players in the training camp.
“He takes the game very seriously,” Redick said. “He’s a player who, I talk about care factor, he’s a player who has a care factor for doing it the right way and wanting to execute whatever vision you give him. I’m excited that he’s in our program, I really am. We look at him as a coaching staff in very high regard.”
Inquisitive Rookie
Lakers veterans Rui Hachimura and Gabe Vincent told reporters after the game that Olivari is an inquisitive guy.
“I asked Gabe a lot of questions, whether that’s his time with the [Miami] Heat,” Olivari told reporters. “What is it like playing for coach [Erik] Spoelstra, what is Jimmy Butler like? What is the Heat culture like? What did it take for him to get to where he’s at?”
Olivari also shared his rapport with James started when he asked him about his “I Promise” school in Cleveland.
“I mean, I have a lot of knowledge whether that’s LeBron, [Anthony Davis], [Austin Reaves], [D’Angelo Russell], Gabe Vincent, just so much knowledge that can be soaked up that I try my best to take advantage of this opportunity,” Olivari said.
Alder Almo is a basketball journalist covering the NBA for Heavy.com. He has more than 15 years of experience in local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Alder is from the Philippines and is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo
