Welcome to “5-and-5,” a new series from US Lacrosse Magazine that features prominent athletes, coaches and personalities combining on-field perspective with off-field persona.

Nakeie Montgomery briefly and unexpectedly walked out of frame. He came back into focus seconds later, dragging behind him a shelf neatly organized with shoes of all colors.

“Have to get them in the frame, show them off,” he said.

The Duke midfielder entering his senior season figures to play a large role for a loaded Blue Devils team in the spring. He’s all about flash, and it’s no surprise that his all-time favorite athletes have a thing for flair, too.

Montgomery broke down his favorite athletes ever with Kenny DeJohn in the latest edition of “5-and-5.”

Kobe Bryant

Just growing up, that was back in the day when he was just ballin’. He was ballin’, and I was a kid watching him in the finals against the Celtics, and I always just liked how he was. He was a savage. He just wants to win. He wants to make everyone better.

I read his book. If anyone hasn’t read his book, I seriously ask you to read it — “Mamba Mentality” — it’s really a fantastic book.

Lacrosse guys, when we wear the tape on our helmets, it’s kind of your “why” for why you play. I’ve had “Mamba” on it, and I’ve had my mom’s name.

2020 is a crazy year. Kobe died, obviously, so I went ahead and got a tattoo on my wrist.

Dirk Nowitzki

2011, he brought it to the city, the 2-1-4. Dirk’s the man. He’s the tall dude from the G.

I just love him. He’s just so loyal to my city, I have to be loyal to him. He played the longest tenure that anyone’s every played on a team. That team was my city, and he brought a championship.

Even back when he was in his prime, he was probably the least athletic guy on the court. He was just giving everybody buckets. It’s just greatness.

Kyle Harrison

I can’t even put it all into words. Watching him ball, watching someone that looks like me play at the highest level, it was just so inspiring. I would just always have his highlights going. His split, his shooting on the run, all of it.

He was just the guy who I saw and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, that could be me.’

Emmitt Smith

Emmitt, he’s just a good dude. He and his wife and his whole family, they think outside of themselves.

The whole lacrosse team, we’re reading “Across That Bridge,” a book by John Lewis, and he just talks about how it’s so easy. The American Dream is to get to the top. It’s not easy to get there, but it’s easy once you get to the top or whatever that is to you in your world and your profession.

His example was Martin Luther King. When he got his Nobel Peace Prize, he got like $56,000, which was, back then, the equivalent to like a half-million dollars. That could have changed his life. He could have moved out of Atlanta, moved up North. He gave pretty much all of it back to the Civil Rights Movement.

John Lewis’ point was that making it to the top is not the American Dream. That’s not all there is. Making it to the top and then giving back, elevating people, being a steppingstone for other people to get there, is what it’s all about.

Emmitt and his wife and his family did that for me and probably 60 other kids in Dallas. He just took us under his wing and exposed us to different ways of the world. He taught us a lot of stuff and spent time with us.

He’s just a great person. Obviously, a beast on the football field. I’m a football guy. I love football. Then to see him in my life, it’s not just football. It’s more than that.

Kyrie Irving

He’s just saucy. Duke guy. I just like how he’s an enigma, man. He’s just a baller.

No one really knows anything else about him unless you’re in his circle, and that’s also kind of what I like about him so much. He’s just a baller. He hoops. He can do it all, and he’s so fun to watch.

He’s just Kyrie.

Y’all have seen it, but stay tuned. Michael Sowers. He was rocking 22 at Princeton. He’ll be 23 this year, but he’s got a little of that, too.

Honorable Mention: Neymar

Fun fact: Actually, I played in one soccer game my whole life, a JV soccer game. Scored a goal. It was junior year, and I scored a header off a free kick. One game, one goal. C’mon.

Soccer’s always been a really cool sport. Back when I lived with my guy Reeves, he really, really, really turned me on to it. We’d wake up and watch El Clasico. We were always up on soccer. And Neymar was always, kind of like the same reason why I like Kyrie. Neymar’s just saucy with it.

He’s got crazy good feet. Not the biggest guy out there by any means, but arguably the most dangerous. I love that. I just like his vibe. He seems like a cool dude.

The Place(s) to Be
Nakeie's Top Venues to Play In

• Koskinen Stadium — It’s just fun playing at home. You get to wear the all white, get drippy.

• Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium — That’s a hell of a place to play. Such a storied school and sick stadium, too.

• Shuart Stadium — The fans felt right on top of you at Hofstra, which I loved.

• Gillette Stadium — It was sick playing up in Foxborough for that Final Four weekend.

• Ridley Athletic Complex — Playing at Loyola is pretty fun. They get a good crowd.

• Honorable Mention: Vert Stadium — Playing at High Point is super dope.