Shep Garner, an assistant basketball coach at Florida Gulf Coast University, is used to the spotlight from his college days as a basketball superstar. But some of his family members have their own spotlight.
"Yeah, so Flavor Flav, William Drayton, Public Enemy. He's my cousin," said Garner.
Flavor Flav, known worldwide as a rapper and TV personality, is Garner's second cousin on his mom, Kimberly Garner's side. Recently, Flav became the official hype man for the U.S. Women's Water Polo team in the 2024 Olympics.
"I'm living my dream right now," Flavor Flav said in Paris. "You know what I'm saying? My dream is coming true. I always dreamed what it would be like to be at the Olympics. Right now, I'm here!"
"When I saw him on TV [at the Olympics] and how everybody was supporting him, and he went viral again," Garner said. "I was like, wow, you know, to see him do it again. After everything he's been through, it was great. It made everybody happy, obviously, in the family, to see him doing positive things. You see him giving back, trying to put himself into the sports world. It was great."
But he's always been the hype man in the stands cheering on his cousin, Shep.
"When my family comes out and support, it's huge," said Garner. "Always made me go a little bit harder."
Garner was a star at Penn State, with his name all over the record books. When the sharpshooter would knock down a triple, you know who was going crazy in the stands.
"It's great to see him. The fans love him," said Garner. "For him to be like a hype man and for him to be that bundle of energy, it only brings us more energy on the floor."
Flavor Flav has sported the number 33 a lot for his cousin, so there's one thing Garner has to do in return. During a FaceTime call with Flavor Flav, Garner was given a giant plastic clock necklace, like the iconic ones worn by the Flavor of Love star.
"Oh, this!" exclaimed Garner. "I actually need one of these. I told him about this!"
"Wow!" said Flavor Flav, via FaceTime. "This is what I'm going to do. I'm going to find one of my old joints, and I'm gonna send it to you."
The two reminisced and laughed on the video call for more than 10 minutes, and Flav said if FGCU gets to host the ASUN tournament at home, he would definitely be there in the stands. No matter if they're a famous hip-hop star or a basketball star, the most important thing in this family ... is family.