Nuggets DJ Austin 'Paws the Music' Pawelka speaks on NBA Finals, carrying father's legacy

Austin Pawelka turned heads when, at nine years old, he announced LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony at the 2004 NBA Rising Stars game during All-Star weekend.

He wasn't new to announcing as he had been introducing Denver Nuggets players for a year at the then-Pepsi Center.

Now, he's the official DJ of the Nuggets and will orchestrate Ball Arena in his first NBA Finals as Game 1 against the Miami Heat tips off on Thursday night.

"It doesn’t really feel like it’s real," Pawelka, who goes by the DJ name "Paws the Music" told USA TODAY Sports. "I think it’s just been such a long time coming and being a fan of this organization for my whole life, I feel like I’m going to wake up tomorrow and it’s going to be like, 'Ok, that wasn’t real. That was just fake. That was a dream.' But no, it’s surreal, it’s exciting. It’s nerve-wracking. It’s any real term you can come up with for a way to feel, I feel like I’m feeling all of them."

Pawelka, 29, grew up in Denver and played basketball and lacrosse until he attended Columbine (Colorado) High school. He decided he wanted to play only one sport to lighten his workload. He chose lacrosse, a decision that he regrets because he eats, sleeps and breaths basketball.

Austin 'Paws' Pawelka inspired by his father, Shawn 'Tribal Touch' Martinez

He found a calling toward music at a young age as his father, Shawn "Tribal Touch" Martinez, has been a DJ for 33 years. Pawelka really found a love for music himself after going to his first Electronic Dance Music shows and seeing Skrillex perform.

"Skrillex was the first guy that I was really like 'wow, this is what I want to do,'" he said. "I think just the combination of how new the dubstep sound was to the EDM space and his craft is his stage presence and his ability to just jump around and look like he was having so much fun up there. It was just really enticing. And that was what really (made me say) like, 'You know what, I know I can do that. I just need to learn how.' And I think that was the first time that I really like realize that dance music ... it spoke to me in the way that it speaks to everybody."

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Martinez recalls that moment well and cherishes it with their other accomplishments, including the 2004 Rising Stars game and the two of them deejaying together at the 2022 NBA All-Star game.

"He made a deal with me at dinner before Skrillex," he said. "Like, 'Dad, I will mow the lawn for the rest of your life if I get to meet Skrillex.' You know dad always tries to make it happen and try to make those dreams come true for his kids. I made it happen.

"He was so excited and I’m still waiting for payment," he laughed, "but I know it’s coming. ... We always say we should write a book because man, we always say, 'What just happened?'"

Martinez is now the Senior Director of Live Presentation for the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury. As a member of the Navajo people, it is important to him to represent his culture. He was influential in the Suns' City Edition uniforms that paid tribute to the city's 22 tribes. The turquoise jerseys were a nation-wide sensation.

"That jersey has just taken a life of its own. It’s bigger than basketball, the reach that it has, bringing hope to the Native American kids," Martinez said. "... We definitely became Native America’s team last year with that turquoise jersey and we’re still talking about it and letting people know it’s not gonna go away and we’re still gonna do things to amplify the voices of all nations, all the tribal nations across the country. ...

"Growing up on the reservation, the Navajo reservation, I had dreams of making it to the NBA, just made it a different way."

As Pawelka reflected on the impact his father has made in the NBA, he said he is "very proud to be a Native American and growing up that was one of the things one of the pillars that my dad used to always instill in me."

"Our tribal affiliation has always been at the forefront of a lot of what my dad's done and I mean, same with me," he said. "I think that representation is everything when it comes to the indigenous communities. ... if my dad didn't go to Phoenix, I don't think that would have happened."

How Austin 'Paws' Pawelka does his job as the Nuggets DJ

Besides being a pioneer in the local house music and nightclub scenes, Martinez was also a member of the Nuggets' game-day experience for seven years, serving as Coordinator of Game Entertainment and climbing the ranks to Director of Game Presentation.

Pawelka has fond memories growing up watching his dad and the NBA team.

"Music was just always in the house, whether it was him making mixes or him trying to find new music to spin at his raves or his nightclub nights," he recalled. "And then, obviously, I would imagine many of those nights that were Nuggets games on the TV somewhere in the background."

Paws soaked in everything he could from his father and prides himself on his awareness of big moments. He has worked for the Nuggets for 18 years in various game-day capacities and, after building his name in the Electronic Dance Music scene, was named the team DJ ahead of the 2018-2019 season.

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"A lot of our job it's like, very, very stressful," he said, "and when it comes down to the big moments of you know, tight games or going to the NBA Finals, I think that one of the things he's always told me, that we do our best work when we’re under pressure. So that's one of the things that I definitely tell myself on a regular basis to keep myself from having little lapses in, you know, confidence or whatever it is. That's one of the things my dad's always said that we've always been good at."

The role of the DJ is very situational. Pawelka said the only piece of the night he has prepared is the 20 or so minutes of pregame warmups, which features a mix of nine to 12 songs. The rest of the game, he has to act fast on his feet to match the moment of the game. He subscribes to several music subscriptions and keeps his eye on TikTok to make sure he's aware of all the hot songs. He said that he has enough music so he's ready to keep going even if a game goes into four overtimes.

Besides EDM, Pawelka is a big fan of pop-punk and R&B. He noted that most of the Nuggets players like current hip-hop hits, but one in particular has expanded his palate.

"Bruce Brown really enjoys country music," he shared, "which is a nice change up, kind of given me some more awareness of what else is out there. I'm not super familiar in the country genre, but since Bruce Brown has come to our team, it's been nice to kind of have an inside agent that knows what's going on in the country world. I gotta say Bruce Brown has definitely turned me into a fan of Luke Combs and Morgan Wallen and all those. It's been a pleasant surprise."

Austin 'Paws' Pawelka speaks on working with Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray

Paws went viral recently for a pop culture trivia competition the team posted in January. The DJ asked two-time MVP Nikola Jokic and rising star Jamal Murray some questions about television shows, slang and if they could identify a Furby toy. He said that the moment was special for him to remember the players are people and their interactions were a sign of the team's key to success.

"The chemistry between our team is just so obvious. You can see it on their faces and in the way they talk to each other," he said. "... I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. ... Nikola Jokic, his personality is second to none. And it's just like, he's one of the funniest, most genuine and just honest people I think I've ever met and been around."

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The Nuggets are in their first-ever NBA Finals after sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Along the way, they also defeated the Suns in six games in the conference semifinals. Martinez said it was all love that the potential NBA champions beat his team. He texted with his son after every game, as they always do, reflecting on how the experience went.

"You’re kind of telling a story as you go as soon as the doors open, you see what fans are doing and the team runs out, you’re playing music for the players, you’re playing music for the warmups that not only gets them fired up, but it gets the fans fired up, just keep building on that momentum and take people on a journey, make sure it ends on a high," he said, "because you want people to leave and say, 'Man, that was amazing I wanna come back because that DJ was awesome.' And Paws the Music is gonna bring it for the Finals."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nuggets DJ Austin 'Paws the Music' Pawelka talks NBA Finals journey