Phoenix Suns small forward Nassir Little has achieved more than most in his life — he’s a former first-round NBA draft pick and Jordan Brand Classic MVP — but the new dad considers fatherhood “the highlight of my life.”
Little and his girlfriend, Ayani Kaliesce, became parents with the birth of their daughter Brielle Kaliesce Little on Nov. 27.
“I’ve had the opportunity to achieve a lot of things that I’m proud of, but that’s definitely the proudest moment I’ve had,” he said, according to Burn City Sports.
On Nov. 26, Little was playing in the Suns’ game against the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden before he learned his girlfriend was going into labor.
When his girlfriend told him she had started having contractions, he began looking at every available flight out of New York and even called several private jet companies to arrange a flight home, according to Burn City Sports.
He was able to get to the hospital in time — “barely.”
Brielle Little didn’t wait long to make her appearance into the world after her father arrived, and the Suns star said he’s “very blessed to experience that moment.”
“I’m talking like running through the door and she’s pushing,” he said. “The doctor’s like ‘We couldn’t hold on any longer. We tried to make her wait.’ And I walked in there and the baby was out 20 minutes later.”
He missed the Suns game on Nov. 29 due to “personal reasons,” according to CBS, which we now know was for his daughter’s birth.
What did Nassir Little say about becoming a father?
When it was time to leave the hospital, Little didn’t know how to put the carseat in the car, but with the help of YouTube and a nurse, he figured it out.
“I’ve been in games where I got to hit free throws with the game on the line, take big shots, and you know, putting that baby in that car seat was the most nerve-racking thing I had to do out of all. I was just like shaking, just cause she’s so little,” he said, per a video the Suns shared on Instagram. “That’s the highlight of my life so far. I’m just grateful I was able to make it. I’m gonna continue to do my thing, provide for her and continue to make her proud. I’m just excited for the journey of it.”
Being a father brings Little “a sense of peace” and serves as extra motivation on the basketball court, Little said, noting that he wants to make his daughter proud.
“Not to say that like I don’t care about what happens on the basketball court, but like I don’t in the sense of like as long as I’m there for my daughter and doing what I can to make sure that she’s fine. And everything else (is) kinda like it is what it is,” he said. “Good game, bad game, I’m going to be able to go home to her and just look at her little face, and I ain’t probably even going to remember what happened.”