Kevin Garnett Shops for Jewelry, Explained: a moot point

What's really going on

The scene shows Howard in his element, working a room and a customer at once. He has brought a basketball star into the store, and everything he does is calculated to keep him there: the free cleaning, the flattery, the story about the watch. KG gives as good as he gets — "I would think you'd have bigger rocks than that just 'cause you're a big guy" — and the talk about watches is really a negotiation by other means. When the question of papers comes up, Howard cannot answer it, and he does what he always does: he calls the problem a moot point and moves the conversation to the next thing. The scene is a portrait of a salesman who survives on charm and momentum, and it explains why his life is a series of deals that almost work.

Theme

What you'll learn

• Use for free to say a service costs nothing
• Understand iced-out and bling out in jewelry talk
• Use moot point to close an unproductive argument
• Follow the shift from basketball banter to watch shopping

Listen for

• charge it — liaison
• For free — weak form
• moot point — stress