From the Court to the Family: CJ Watson & His Mom Cathy on Sacrifice, Legacy, and Raising Champions

What does it really take to raise two professional athletes while still showing up for your community? In this special episode of The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide, Candace Dellacona sits down with retired NBA player CJ Watson and his mother, Cathy Watson, for the show’s first-ever conversation with both a parent and their adult child.

CJ played for the Golden State Warriors, Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn Nets, Indiana Pacers, and Orlando Magic, and is the founder of the Quiet Storm Foundation. Cathy has spent more than 30 years in youth development in Las Vegas and now serves as the foundation’s executive director. Together, they open up about the sacrifices behind CJ’s success, keeping character and education front and center through an athletic career, leading by example instead of by words, and how their relationship has evolved now that CJ is an adult, a father, and a business partner in the family’s foundation.

Whether you are raising children with big dreams, redefining your role as your kids become adults, or thinking about the legacy you want to leave behind, this conversation offers a rare, honest look at what family, faith, and sacrifice look like from both sides.

• (00:00) - Special Mother Son Episode
• (00:31) - Meet CJ And Cathy
• (03:00) - Parent Sacrifice And Balance
• (05:14) - Lessons Kids Remember
• (06:31) - Community Leadership At Home
• (09:44) - Making It To The NBA
• (11:19) - Parents Show Up In Greece
• (12:52) - Quiet Storm Family Mission
• (14:35) - Working Together In Service
• (17:17) - Vision For The Foundation
• (19:28) - Parenting When Kids Grow Up
• (23:19) - Staying Connected And Grounded
• (27:21) - Legacy Beyond Basketball
• (30:20) - Resilience And Final Reflections
• (33:27) - Closing Thanks And Subscribe

Learn more about the Quiet Storm Foundation at https://quietstormfoundation.org/
Follow on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/qs_foundation and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/QuietStormFoundation/

Follow CJ Watson on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/quietstorm_32/
Follow Cathy Watson on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/cathy.watson.146/

Follow and subscribe to The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide wherever you listen to podcasts. New conversations are released on the first and third Tuesdays of every month. If this episode resonates with you leave a five-star rating or review and share it with another sandwich generation caregiver!

Creators and Guests

Host

Candace Dellacona

Principal, Offit Kurman

Producer

Eric Kovac

Creative Team Manager, Offit Kurman

What is The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide?

Welcome to The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide, where we explore the challenges and strategies of navigating life caught between work demands and supporting our loved ones while maintaining our own well-being. Join us in this dynamic podcast series as we uncover the complexities individuals face balancing multiple roles in the modern world. Our host, Candace Dellacona, shares personal experiences and professional insights to guide listeners through this complex journey.

[00:00:00:03 - 00:00:27:14]
Candace Dellacona
Hey, survivors, this is a special episode of the Sandwich Generation Survival Guide because it is the first time I'm interviewing an adult child and their parent. Yes, it's CJ Watson, the professional basketball player and his amazing mom, Cathy, but our conversation is not just about basketball. It's about how a family navigates success, sacrifice, legacy, and the changing roles within the family dynamic. Tune in.

[00:00:27:14 - 00:00:30:16]
(Music)

[00:00:31:18 - 00:01:28:04]
Candace Dellacona
Hey, survivors, you're in for a treat today. Not only do I have retired NBA star CJ Watson as my guest today, but I have his mom, Ms. Cathy Watson. For those of you living under a rock and don't know, CJ had an incredible career. He played for the Golden State Warriors, the Bulls, the Nets, the Pacers, and I think the Magic even. CJ holds a degree as well from the University of Tennessee in Psychology Go Vols. He's also a children's book author, a dad of three, and the founder of the Quiet Storm Foundation, which was actually founded more than 17 years ago, which fosters youth learning opportunities, social skills, school success programs, professional development, personal development. He focuses on health and fitness. How is that for a CV? Welcome, CJ.

[00:01:28:04 - 00:01:29:21]
CJ WATSON
Appreciate it. Thank you for having me.

[00:01:29:21 - 00:02:19:12]
Candace Dellacona
You're welcome. Now let's get to mom, Ms. Cathy Watson, who arguably has an even more impressive resume than both of her professional athlete sons, having dedicated her entire career to youth development. More than 30 years to the city of Las Vegas running the Las Vegas business community, school districts, community services, private stakeholders, Cathy has run countless youth conferences and trainings and camps. She's incredibly engaged in her faith. Her other son, who's also a professional athlete, Kashif, is also a big part of the family and her husband as well. She is the current director of the Quiet Storm Foundation. So welcome to Cathy.

[00:02:19:12 - 00:02:20:19]
Cathy Watson
Good morning. Hi.

[00:02:20:19 - 00:02:50:13]
Candace Dellacona
Quite an intro for both of you. I think if anyone is insecure listening to this, they are definitely going to feel doubly insecure after listening to all of your qualification guys. So I really appreciate you being here. As we talked about, this is the first for the Sandwich Generation Survival Guide. We never had a parent and an adult child join us together as guests. So I have to start by asking, who's more excited to do this podcast? Is it you or CJ or mom, Cathy?

[00:02:50:13 - 00:02:54:17]
Cathy Watson
Well, I would say, I don't know, both of us, CJ more so. Yes.

[00:02:54:17 - 00:03:31:17]
Candace Dellacona
Okay, fair enough. It's both. Yeah, fair enough. Well, I'm really happy to have you here. I'm going to start with you, Cathy, for the first question. You're the mom. You're the founder of it all, as they say. You know, everyone sees this NBA career that your amazing son has had and very few people see the mom behind it. So when you look back to the very beginning, what do you think that your sacrifice, you and Mr. Watson stands out the most for your sons and their endeavors to be these incredible players?

[00:03:31:17 - 00:03:58:18]
Cathy Watson
Well, when I think about it, as you say, what I look back, I think about, you know, my sacrifice was just in, I don't know, it was just part of my life. What I did for my kids, for the family to try to make things, you know, a little bit better, where we could just feel like we could be a family and do it together. So sacrificing is just doing things that I typically would do, but I didn't do because of my children. And I know I was responsible for. And I wanted to prepare them for real life.

[00:03:58:18 - 00:04:27:11]
Candace Dellacona
And that you did. And, you know, not focusing specifically on that, just thinking about getting them prepared for life in general. Did you ever worry because you had these two incredible young men who were obviously gifted athletes? Was there a concern with you and Mr. Watson that basketball could overshadow education or character? And how did you sort of keep those things in place as the mom?

[00:04:27:11 - 00:04:48:19]
Cathy Watson
Most of you got definitely got to be organized. And I mean, just find find find areas in your life that you can bring in that balance, you know, as a parent and having the two student athletes. Not to say it was easy, but it was the right was fun. And it still is a fun ride. Exciting too, as well. But I just wanted to just

[00:04:49:20 - 00:05:09:07]
Cathy Watson
say that it just takes a lot. You know, it takes a lot. And then and I just want to say that that my faith is real strong. And that's really what kept us together as a family, you know, with all the things that was going on with like two children, you know, and then being married. So I just thank God for having, you know, for putting that in inside of.

[00:05:09:07 - 00:05:28:20]
Candace Dellacona
So it was sort of like the constant theme in the Watson family. And so, CJ, then I'll throw it to you. Growing up, what did your parents do for you that maybe you didn't appreciate or recognize as much until you became an adult?

[00:05:28:20 - 00:06:15:14]
CJ WATSON
Like she said, just being organized. My dad had a cleaning janitorial service. So we were up every whenever he went to go clean. We were going with him. They said they would pay us, but they never really paid us. So, you know, being organized in that manner, that's why I have pretty much OCD. I'm always like cleaning up. I'm always doing stuff around the house because of those, you know, those daily habits and making us do chores and doing those things that teach us responsibility over time. And I think that's the biggest thing you have to teach kids when they're younger. And that's the same thing I try to teach my kids, also making them, you know, do their laundry, you know, clean up asking themselves. Those are little things that, you know, dictate the character of a person whenever your parents are there or not there. So I think that's the biggest thing, you know, for me that I remember.

[00:06:15:14 - 00:07:13:22]
Candace Dellacona
That's so true. Those are those are sort of good character traits and lessons to pass on regardless. Right. Whether you're a professional athlete or not, just sort of having your daily routine and your standards together day to day. I think for you, Cathy, you know, you are obviously so committed to other people children, too, right? You are so entrenched in your community of Las Vegas. You've spent your entire career promoting and celebrating other people's kids. So how is it for you, Cathy, trying to be the mentor to the youth of Las Vegas while still being, you know, the incredible mom you were at home? How did you balance the two for those of us in the sandwich generation where we have careers outside of the home and we're, you know, parents? What's your best advice?

[00:07:13:22 - 00:08:01:07]
Cathy Watson
Oh, and then, as I said earlier, it's just my best advice is just to really focus on your goals, focus on what you desire to do and like, whether you're a parent, a student athlete. I think having that major focus and concentration on what's before you, what do you want to compare yourself for, you know, in terms of those specific objectives and getting to those goals? And I would just say that a lot of it just came from focusing and knowing what you wanted and then getting the support. The support is huge. It really is all the way around. Even as a parent, you know, I always had individuals that I could always look up to and I did, you know, and they got me focused in my area where I was going as well just to see the model, the positive model lifestyle.

[00:08:01:07 - 00:08:37:11]
Candace Dellacona
Yeah, you're right. Kids are always watching us. Right. And so doing is sometimes as important as saying and maybe in some ways more. So, you know, Cathy, in your career, you have held various leadership roles. So what do you think would be the most important from those leadership roles that you taught your sons through modeling? What do you think they saw in you that you've now seen appear in them as they become, you know, adult men and dads themselves?

[00:08:37:11 - 00:09:27:16]
Cathy Watson
The consistency of their life, their schedule, you know, the consistency is what I see in terms of a positive role model. And also as a leader, you know, you always want to be that person that, you know, that you could really be true to what you're doing. You know, you don't want pain or false advertisement or anything of that. Just be honest and faithful to yourself. And as you move forward and just knowing where you're going, where you want to go, you know, in life, you know, and that's from a parent perspective and from a student perspective. And that's what I used to think about all the time. And I work with the students. It's like I come in every day. What do I have on my plate today? How can I make someone happy or make their life change in any way possible? You know, so I always had that positive thought starting out every morning and it does help as to what will be coming forth during that that day.

[00:09:27:16 - 00:10:00:20]
Candace Dellacona
Yeah, no, that I mean, that makes sense. I think to, you know, your role as a community leader, all of those skills certainly translated into your household because, you know, you raise these two incredible young men who are incredibly gifted, not only from an athletic perspective, but in life. So, CJ, you're in the NBA and was there ever a moment where it sort of dawned on you like, wow, I am here or this is happening because of my mom and dad. Is there any one moment where you kind of can go back to that?

[00:10:00:20 - 00:11:06:15]
CJ WATSON
I would just go back to the first moment when you put that jersey on when I got a call up because I wasn't I don't know if the dream was ever to honestly play in the NBA. It was just to go to college, help my parents financially because I knew that it was going to be a struggle to pay for college. So that was like the goal. And then, you know, going into college and continue to get better, continue to play on the USA team, play with other players who are my caliber and kind of felt like I was on the same caliber. So like I said, I was never the most talented. It was just just worked hard. And then, you know, putting that jersey on for the first time when you're in an NBA game and after, you know, going overseas and then coming back and just going through the journey that I went through, you know, made it all worthwhile because I definitely thought about quitting a couple of times. And my parents came overseas when I was in Greece to kind of talk me out of it. So like I said, it was definitely wasn't the easiest ride or the easiest journey. But those things, you know, make it worthwhile, you know, putting that jersey on senior last name on the back of a jersey and, you know, just, you know, being one of the one of those four hundred and fifty guys every year is pretty pretty remarkable.

[00:11:06:15 - 00:11:34:19]
Candace Dellacona
It's so remarkable. I mean, if you think about the statistics being the top one percent of the top one percent of the top one percent. I mean, it's I can't imagine you ever get over that. So I'm sure it's such an incredible memory. So so for Cathy, what was it? Do you remember that CJ said that prompted you and your husband to hop on a plane and go to Greece? What was it in him that you thought I need to be there with him in person? Do you remember? Yes, ma'am.

[00:11:34:19 - 00:12:15:08]
Cathy Watson
He was young. He was just a child. So I couldn't send him over by himself. So, you know, quite naturally, both of us, one of us had to go and support him. And he was at that point, you know, he was thinking, well, the night I want to do this or not, we were like, you know, you're going to do it. So let's keep going. And that's that consistency. You know, you got to keep, you know, and, you know, supporting them and letting them know it's going to be OK. You're going to get there. And it's kind of the fear, the unknowns for the children, you know, because we're parents, we knew we know. But as a young person, that's what really allowed us or made us to consider going over with him during that time of his life.

[00:12:15:08 - 00:13:07:21]
Candace Dellacona
That makes sense. I mean, you know, I think, too, as parents, Cathy, we we all struggle with the feeling of not wanting our kids to struggle. I think that's like a normal right where you want to like remove every hurdle. And I love the fact that you and your husband were able to sort of sort through the noise and focus on the fact like, no, you're going to stick with this because you're good in finding the way through. And obviously, CJ, you know, you got the message out of that, which is consistency and discipline and dedication, which obviously brought you incredible success. And what resonated so much when we met CJ was I looked up the foundation and the quiet storm foundation really isn't just a nonprofit to you, an athlete. What I see it as is a family mission. Would you agree with that, CJ?

[00:13:07:21 - 00:14:12:12]
CJ WATSON
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, and definitely a family mission and something that my parents wanted to start. And I think when I first got into the NBA, that's kind of how it started. And with their background, I'm giving back. And like I said, it goes back to us being in the church three or four times a week and going to nursing homes and singing to the elderly. I probably couldn't sing a lick, but we were just there. And that was their way of giving back and feeding the homeless and doing stuff like that. So I think it was always in me to be able to give back. And I always wanted to give back to just from my upbringing, you know, because a lot of resources we didn't have in the neighborhoods that I lived in and seeing the same kids who had more talent probably than me just to have the resources or the parents who are as active my parents to try to put me in places of position to be successful. So we just wanted to do that and give back. And I think that's it's always been in their heart. And now it's obviously in my heart to give back. And we've been doing it for, you know, for 17 years and it's still still going, still, you know, making people smile, making family smile, kids smile. And I think that's just the biggest, you know,

[00:14:13:13 - 00:14:34:05]
CJ WATSON
thing that we get out of it, you know, seeing people say, hey, this is a great event or, you know, this this book was was fun or this this basketball camp really my son really enjoyed it. He doesn't even play basketball. So I think that's the biggest moments that you get from, you know, just supporting your community and also, you know, not really wanting anything return, but just for everyone to be happy.

[00:14:34:05 - 00:14:43:08]
Candace Dellacona
I love that. I mean, so so Cathy, you spent decades investing in your children and other people's children. And now you're actually working alongside your son.

[00:14:43:08 - 00:14:43:18]
Cathy Watson
Right.

[00:14:43:18 - 00:14:54:12]
Candace Dellacona
Which is incredibly cool. And part of the reason why I had you on the podcast today. So how has your relationship with CJ evolved through the foundation?

[00:14:54:12 - 00:15:05:23]
Cathy Watson
Well, I've watched him grow and mature and develop, which is what we know we have been expecting and he's continuing to do that. A great father, he's a great son.

[00:15:07:00 - 00:15:30:01]
Cathy Watson
I just think that the majority of the things that I see in CJ now or lately, it's just his maturity level. How he really just steps up and you know, and if it's a risk, it's a risk, but if it's in his heart, he'll go ahead and do it. And it comes out just fine. You know? And so I just think he's a phenomenal person. That's my son. Both of my sons are really phenomenal. I really love them both. And they've done a great job.

[00:15:30:01 - 00:15:56:10]
Candace Dellacona
Amazing. And CJ, you played on teams your whole career, right? Like your whole life has been teams in some ways, you know, having your family, your mom being the executive director of this passion project that's just made such an impact in your community. What's different for you about working alongside mom in the community versus playing basketball?

[00:15:56:10 - 00:16:47:12]
CJ WATSON
Honestly, it's nothing really that much different because I've played on so many teams and been on so many different levels and positions on good teams, bad teams, what worked, what didn't work. I try to take those lessons and kind of incorporate them into the foundation or maybe they're something that I see that they may not see just from my experience and vice versa. That's why there's a board of people that we just not just us making the decisions as people, you know, we vote on certain things that we want to get done or that's brought to the table. So I think those are definitely the lessons you learn. Like I said, just being on so many different teams, traveling the world, seeing different things, being in rooms where with people who are, you know, billionaires and millionaires, like they have different perspectives on life and on different missions. So I try to take those life lessons and put them into my own life, but also put them to others that I'm associated with.

[00:16:47:12 - 00:17:32:02]
Candace Dellacona
It's kind of like the perfect combination of talents, right? Where Cathy, you have been so entrenched in your community and giving back and all of these initiatives through the city of Las Vegas and CJ has traveled the world. And as he points out, has met all different kinds of people from all different walks of life with lots of money to no money. So it's really this convergence of this great set of ideas that you've culminated into a quiet storm. So what is your favorite part, Cathy, about quiet storm? And you know, what is sort of your vision moving forward, let's say in 2026 to 2027? What are you the most excited about?

[00:17:32:02 - 00:18:40:20]
Cathy Watson
What I like most about the Quiet Storm Foundation, number one, is that it's a service organization. And I grew up as a service person because that's what my parents were. They were always giving back to the community. My mom was a social worker and a teacher. So you know, I've always been in that type of atmosphere or I've always been associated with that type of area. So that's pretty much what I like about Quiet Storm is that it provides services to people of needs and whether that be children, the whole family, et cetera. And I just love the idea of just having a vision and how can we help other people, you know, not in a large perspective, but just in a small way because we figure out if we have, you know, just one person a day, we've done our job, you know? And so I enjoy doing that. Just visioning what we look like in a year of my vision is that we can become, I guess, more involved. I guess we can never get too involved, I guess, to get more involved and not just here in Las Vegas, maybe other communities abroad.

[00:18:40:20 - 00:18:42:03]
Candace Dellacona
In a broader sense.

[00:18:42:03 - 00:18:43:13]
Cathy Watson
In a broader perspective, yeah.

[00:18:43:13 - 00:18:52:15]
Candace Dellacona
Yeah. And what about you, CJ? Is there anything that you're like thinking about in the next year that you want to see the foundation do that maybe it hasn't done yet?

[00:18:52:15 - 00:19:17:12]
CJ WATSON
I would say just continue to change lives. I think when if you do that, you know, other things will come, things will get, events will get bigger, more sponsorships, more donors, meeting more people like you in this. I think if we can do that, hold on to the events that we do and make those, obviously nothing can be perfect, but close to perfect as we can. I think that will be the biggest, you know, vision for me from year to year.

[00:19:17:12 - 00:20:15:03]
Candace Dellacona
Yeah, let's do it. I mean, that's why we're having you on here for our listeners. We're going to have, obviously in the episode notes, all of the information you need to donate to the Quiet Storm Foundation. But let's go back to parenting a little, Cathy, since you're, you know, you are really an expert. You're somebody who has done your best to not only raise these two amazing humans, but also improve and add to so many of the youth in your city of Las Vegas over the course of three decades. And now you just shared with me that your mom, so this is like a generational mission that you have that your own mom was a social worker and a teacher. And I think especially I have three kids and CJ and I've talked a little about our kids. And I think a lot of people make the assumption that parenting gets easier when kids become adults. So has that been your experience? Is it easier now having the boys as adults? Is it harder in some ways? How do you see it?

[00:20:15:03 - 00:20:59:08]
Cathy Watson
Well, it's not so much harder, but maybe a little easier because I don't have that one on one, you know, that responsibility and it don't hang on my head, you know, anymore. But there's still my children and they keep me busy. Yes, mom, can you mom? Is it, you know, some always there in their lives. I just think, God, that they are now adults and I can see them becoming, they are parents and I can see their parenthood. And I can see a lot of the models and the things that they learned from their parents. I see it coming out and it's just a natural thing. You know, it just came from childhood and it's a beautiful thing to see that they picked up and they're carrying on all the values in the morals that in the standards that we set

[00:21:00:08 - 00:21:01:12]
Cathy Watson
into them as family.

[00:21:01:12 - 00:21:36:11]
Candace Dellacona
Absolutely. It's like a full circle moment where you probably look at your husband and go, wow, okay, we did it. We, you know, they listened. Yeah, exactly. They, you know, they took heed to our advice. So, so CJ, you know, you have this incredible mom and dad and this beautiful family, right? And as an adult and a great father yourself, somebody who is emerged as a leader, you know, you're a philanthropist yourself, you're an author, you're successful in the business world. Have you ever caught yourself giving advice to your parents?

[00:21:36:11 - 00:21:42:12]
CJ WATSON
Giving advice to my parents? No, not yet. Not yet. I'm still trying to perfect being a parent myself.

[00:21:44:06 - 00:22:13:17]
CJ WATSON
I'm still, I'm still working on it. It's a daily struggle. There's no, there's no parenting book that can really, I think, help you just all through experience and what to do, what not to do. Then like you said, you revert back to how you were growing up and then you got to realize it's a different day and age. You got to kind of retract what you did or what you were learning as a kid and kind of make it to the millennial kids these days and make it, you know, understandable and stuff like that. So it's a lot. It's definitely an everyday struggle.

[00:22:13:17 - 00:22:26:08]
Candace Dellacona
Yeah, that's for sure. And so now that you have three kids of your own, are you going back to mom or dad and asking them for their best parenting advice? Like have you ever been in a jam with any of the kids to say like, what should I do or what would you do?

[00:22:26:08 - 00:22:29:23]
CJ WATSON
Not yet. Maybe hopefully soon we'll see or hopefully not soon maybe.

[00:22:29:23 - 00:22:30:18]
Candace Dellacona
Hopefully not.

[00:22:30:18 - 00:23:03:21]
CJ WATSON
Yeah. Yeah. It's like I said, but it is like I said, it's just different when you have, I have all girls. So I grew up around mostly, you know, I had a brother. So it's nothing that I never knew already. So now all this stuff is a learning. I was telling my oldest daughter all the time, I'm learning as a parent. This is my first time. So you're the, you're the, you're the test dummy. So now I can do everything better with the second and third ones, hopefully through my mistakes, you know, through with you and and hopefully you can teach me some things to help them help parent them. So I think like I said, it's just always a learning curve.

[00:23:03:21 - 00:24:12:05]
Candace Dellacona
I love that you share that with her, that, you know, I think that's a big part of parenting too, is that sharing with our kids that we don't have it all figured out and we're doing the best we can to let the kids, you know, perhaps share with us too, because we are, we do learn from them, right? So, you know, a lot of the conversations we have on the Sandwich Generations Revival Guide is sort of being in the middle. And you know, Cathy, you're probably not the greatest example because you are a dynamo in and of yourself and you certainly are not headed to be slowing down anytime soon. But, you know, many of our listeners are like CJ, where they're they're raising their children and they're perhaps having to provide some care to parents that are not as sort of active as you. And maybe you dealt with it with your own mom, Cathy, but how do you each find a way, especially CJ, you travel a lot to stay intentionally connected with both your parents and their kids and Cathy, you know, to the extent that you can recall, how did you find it trying to stay connected to your boys when they were playing overseas?

[00:24:12:05 - 00:24:15:15]
Cathy Watson
Oh, I love that little device called an iPhone.

[00:24:16:23 - 00:24:37:10]
Cathy Watson
It's helpful. But again, because, you know what, in the days we used to write letters and all, but even when they were, he was overseas and all, it was always the device that we used, you know, the phone or something of that nature. Wouldn't many letter writing, you know, it wasn't quick enough. But however, I use that tool to help stay connected.

[00:24:38:13 - 00:24:47:03]
Cathy Watson
They connected and also through prayer. I'm telling you, it's great to have those those resources to keep you connected as a family.

[00:24:47:03 - 00:24:52:01]
Candace Dellacona
For sure. And is faith something that you talk to the kids a lot about? Absolutely.

[00:24:52:01 - 00:25:01:04]
Cathy Watson
Yeah. Faith is very strong. Spiritual faith is very strong. And we we know that's how we are where we are today. So I would definitely give credit to that.

[00:25:01:04 - 00:25:19:23]
Candace Dellacona
And what about you, CJ? How do you feel as you travel throughout the country? You know, you are an author and you're an investor in so many different endeavors. So you're bopping around all over the place. How do you make sure to stay grounded and connected with your mom and dad and your brother and your girls?

[00:25:19:23 - 00:26:00:08]
CJ WATSON
Like you said, the phone, you know, a lot of FaceTiming. A lot of text. But also when you know, when you travel, you just take a character, those morals and values with you wherever you go. So those never leave you even if you're going, you know, to a different place, different city, different crowd, people you may not know. You still carry those things that were taught to you. And you want to you know that, you know, I always tell my daughter this now that she's a and I am athlete, student athlete. You're a brand now. You're a CEO. You just can't do everything anytime, anywhere. You got to really make sure you make the right choices and right decisions because those can cost you. So you know, just being aware of what you're doing, how you're carrying yourself, I think is always something that you can always take with yourself.

[00:26:00:08 - 00:26:33:10]
Candace Dellacona
I love that, too. CJ, that's something that you didn't get from your parents in the sense that they were never where you were in the professional athlete, you know, landscape in the same way that you are with your daughter. And you know, she's this incredible for those who don't know, volleyball player with NIL. And you know, she's out there in the same way you were. So she has you to kind of look to in a way that obviously you had the incredible guidance of your parents, but they didn't walk the same walk issue.

[00:26:33:10 - 00:27:15:03]
CJ WATSON
Yeah, it was definitely a little different. And she has, like I said, a cheat code, but sometimes, you know, kids don't listen these days. So they try to do things on their own. And I think one thing that parents always can do, they always have the experience. They've been there before. They've done that. They've seen, you know, maybe friends who might want to be your friend or friends are just hanging around and they give you their their their two cents. And I think that's always a good thing when parents can do that. So like I said, maybe they didn't walk the same walk, but they have the experience, you know, in life. And I think that matters. And that kind of when parents can be honest with you and talk to you about those situations and you as a kid can take that positive or negative criticism is going to help you out in the long run, because most of the time, you know, 99 percent of the time, parents are always right.

[00:27:15:03 - 00:27:19:18]
Candace Dellacona
I mean, as a parent, I will agree with you. I'm sure Cathy will do. I agree.

[00:27:21:04 - 00:28:02:18]
Candace Dellacona
OK, so, you know, when when you talk about all of these these themes in your family, right, like your faith and, you know, being a good citizen in the world and raising good humans, really, it's like the grander topic of legacy. And so a lot of our listeners and even my clients in the legal world, that's what they're talking about when they think about the character and the content of who they are. So for Cathy, you know, you've developed this incredible legacy yourself within the confines of the city of Las Vegas and beyond as the parent to these incredible athletes. And when you think about how you want to be remembered, Cathy, what do you hope that people say about you one day?

[00:28:02:18 - 00:28:14:13]
Cathy Watson
Or that she was a selfless young lady. She cared about it. She was kind. She was respectful. And she loved to be a service to individuals that needed her

[00:28:14:13 - 00:28:47:20]
Candace Dellacona
service. Service. Yeah. Service is the theme. Yeah, that's me. Yeah. I mean, it's it's it definitely sounds like you. And lots of love. I mean, what's better than that? And then, CJ, you know, when you think about what people remember you for, obviously, the NBA is going to be something that is the rarest of rare air. But what do you hope about what your kids or your future generations, what do they what do you hope they remember about you that doesn't have anything to do with the NBA or with basketball?

[00:28:47:20 - 00:29:25:15]
CJ WATSON
Just more so the same breath, more so that I was a person that wanted to help others that will give the shirt off my back if I needed to. But you know, really was didn't really care about myself getting the credit or anything like that, but just others getting there just do. And that's really about it, honestly, a person of moral and values. But also, I really honestly don't really care about the basketball side because that's really a small part of my life, you know, I played for a long time, you know, growing up and all that kind of stuff. But just just a good person, I think, is the biggest thing, creating a legacy for my kids to be able to do the same and create their own legacy also.

[00:29:25:15 - 00:29:40:12]
Candace Dellacona
I love that. And Cathy, for you, you know, staying with a theme of legacy, if you could go back and tell your one your younger self as a younger mom that you wish you knew back then, what would it be that you'd want to tell your younger self?

[00:29:40:12 - 00:29:46:18]
Cathy Watson
I know. Let's stay tuned for the next chapter. I don't know. Maybe I'm not sure. I'm not sure.

[00:29:46:18 - 00:29:51:19]
Candace Dellacona
No, I love that though. Stay tuned for your next chapter. Just like hold on and keep going, it sounds like.

[00:29:51:19 - 00:29:57:03]
Cathy Watson
But that's what came to mind really at the end of the day as a young parent. Yeah, a young person.

[00:29:57:03 - 00:30:04:03]
Candace Dellacona
It's hard, right, as a young mom, like we're stuck in the everyday and the grind. And sometimes it's really hard to have perspective.

[00:30:04:03 - 00:30:17:04]
Cathy Watson
That's true. That's true. But I loved every minute. I wouldn't, I'd live it all over again the same way. I mean, you know, with some course, some different directions and angles slightly, you know, but other than that,

[00:30:18:04 - 00:30:20:10]
Cathy Watson
I'm disgraceful. I really am.

[00:30:20:10 - 00:30:35:22]
Candace Dellacona
CJ, for you, you know, you've talked about all these lessons that that mom and dad taught you, right, working hard and being just sort of grounded, finding your faith, never forgetting who you are. What would you say the biggest lesson basketball taught you about life?

[00:30:37:07 - 00:30:49:19]
CJ WATSON
To be resilient. I think there's always highs and lows in life, but never, you know, I would say never getting too, too high or too low, but also just keeping even kill and being ready for the next game because in basketball, you have so many games,

[00:30:51:13 - 00:31:03:16]
CJ WATSON
you have so many, you know, you can have one bad game and the next night you can have a chance to redo that again and be better. So I think just being resilient, you know, over time and taking every day like it's your last, so just leave it all on the court.

[00:31:03:16 - 00:31:43:03]
Candace Dellacona
I love that. Well, I'm going to ask you guys one more question to close this out because you've been so kind to spend so much time with me. So, you know, CJ, as I mentioned, like everybody, everybody immediately knows you're CJ as the basketball player and you're so much more than that. You know, you live your life with integrity and care as a parent, as a son, as a community member and Cathy, you obviously know CJ as your son first and foremost. But if all the basketball and everything disappeared tomorrow, everything, the foundation basketball, what would make each of you the most proud of each other? I'm going to make CJ go first. What would you be the most proud of for mom?

[00:31:43:03 - 00:32:28:23]
CJ WATSON
I would say just being a mother. I think it's definitely hard. Like I didn't, obviously I didn't realize how hard it is being a parent, you know, growing up and I don't know all the sacrifices that her or my dad made, but you know, I know some just from stories that people tell me. So I think just being a parent, being a supportive parent, and then also just being, being there, I think that's the biggest thing to some, some, like I said, some parents, some kids don't have parents that are active in their lives or, or care if they're home by a certain time or care if they're out with certain friends or things like that. So I think just being a, being a parent and like I said, knowing as a parent now and knowing how hard it is to, to be a parent and this is a crazy world we live in. So I think just being supportive and being, being aware and being present is the biggest thing.

[00:32:28:23 - 00:32:40:03]
Candace Dellacona
And Cathy, for you, what is the one thing, if you could think of, well, you know, I'm sure there's a million things that make you proud about CJ, but one thing that makes you proud of him.

[00:32:40:03 - 00:33:11:04]
Cathy Watson
Um, he has a heart of gold. He has a giving heart. Like he said, he'll get taken straight off his back. So that's what I, I love about him and both of my children, they're just, they're givers, you know, they're givers because what you give it to come back. It doesn't matter, you know, I, that's just my motto, you know, and just having a heart of gold, it means a lot. And it comes back and shows in many, many, many different ways. I can be talking to someone and I don't know, they familiar with CJ, but then they tell me and I'm like, oh, okay, that's CJ.

[00:33:12:20 - 00:33:53:04]
Candace Dellacona
And it probably feels so good. It's like they have the paper, right? Like being, being good, giving good brings you favor. And I think that your kids live that. I don't know Kashib, but I'm sure that he is just like CJ and his generosity of spirit. I've loved this conversation and you will always go down as the first mother and son guests here on the sandwich generations revival guide. And you've definitely shown us and our listeners how to not only survive in the middle, but how to thrive. And you know, your lessons of giving back and faith and family are, are well taken. So thank you both so much for being here today.

[00:33:53:04 - 00:33:54:10]
CJ WATSON
I appreciate you. Thank you.

[00:33:54:10 - 00:33:57:23]
Cathy Watson
Thank you so much for having us. Really, it was very enjoyable.

[00:34:02:16 - 00:34:46:10]
Candace Dellacona
Hey survivors, be sure to follow and subscribe to the sandwich generation survival guide wherever you get your podcasts. So you never miss an episode. We're back with new conversations on the first and third Tuesdays of every month. If you're finding value in the show, I'd be grateful if you left a five star review and shared it with other survivors navigating this season of life known as this sandwich generation. For resources and a full library of past episodes, visit sandwich generation law dot com. Follow the conversation on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok at sandwich generation podcast. Until next time, take care of yourself while surviving and hopefully thriving in the sandwich generation.