Michelle Obama’s brother Craig Robinson revealed he didn’t think her relationship with Barack Obama would last more than a month when they first started dating. Robinson made the candid admission during a recent episode of their podcast “IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson,” where they discussed dating alongside special guest Tracee Ellis Ross.

“And I’ve told this story many times about when you first started dating Barack. So Mich starts to date Barack, and we don’t know who this guy is, we’re just like, Barack? Who’s got a name like Barack? And I’m thinking it’s gonna last a month like most of your relationships,” Robinson recalled during the podcast episode.

The former first lady disagreed with her brother’s description, stating that she had several long-term boyfriends before meeting Barack. Robinson dismissed her protest with a laugh, implying he wouldn’t consider those past relationships significant.

Robinson went on to describe their mother Marian’s first impression of Barack, noting how she was impressed by his height. Despite this positive initial reaction, Robinson admitted, “And I said to myself, too bad it’s not going to last.”

The sibling conversation took an interesting turn when Robinson revealed how Michelle asked him to take Barack to play basketball as a way to assess his character. Robinson was initially reluctant, telling his sister he didn’t want to do her “dirty work” if Barack turned out to be a “bad dude.” However, he eventually agreed to the basketball test.

“This is what I learned,” Robinson explained on the podcast. “Aside from the fact that he is tremendously left-handed so he couldn’t go right at all, most importantly, he was a team player, right? He fit in with the people.”

Robinson explained that his assessment of Barack’s character through basketball stemmed from a lesson his father taught him. He stated that you can really determine a person’s character by how they play pick-up basketball. After their game, Robinson was able to report back to Michelle that “everything was fine” with Barack, and as he put it, “the rest was history.”

The timing of this podcast episode is particularly noteworthy as it comes amid persistent divorce rumors surrounding the Obamas. The speculation intensified after Michelle decided to skip President Jimmy Carter’s funeral and President Donald Trump’s swearing-in ceremony earlier this year, both of which her husband attended without her.

The former first lady addressed these rumors, not on her own podcast, but during an appearance on a podcast hosted by actress Sophia Bush. She explained that her decisions to miss these high-profile events were simply personal choices she made for herself, not indicators of marital trouble.

Michelle told Bush that the two January events straddled her birthday, and she chose to remain in Hawaii while her husband traveled back to Washington. She expressed frustration that people couldn’t imagine she was making these decisions autonomously.

Michelle suggested that society often struggles to accept when women make independent choices that don’t fit expected stereotypes. She noted that people automatically assumed she and Barack were divorcing because they couldn’t fathom that she was simply making choices for herself as a grown woman.

She explained to Bush that women often struggle with disappointing others, sometimes at the expense of their own needs. She elaborated that when women finally start asking themselves what they’re doing and who they’re doing it for, their choices are often labeled as negative if they don’t conform to societal expectations.

The IMO podcast represents a new venture for Michelle and her brother Craig. The podcast features the siblings bringing their unique perspectives and experiences to listeners’ personal dilemmas. The format allows them to share candid insights while drawing on their close relationship.

At the start of the dating-focused episode, Michelle expressed her interest in the topic, noting that it had been a long time since she was personally involved in the dating scene. She remarked that she enjoyed discussing dating, even though she hadn’t participated in it for decades, referencing her 32-year marriage to Barack.

Despite stepping back from some public appearances, Michelle has remained active in her advocacy work. She continues to give speeches and work on various projects, including her focus on girls’ education. She also delivered a high-profile address at the Democratic National Convention last year, where she urged support for Kamala Harris in the presidential election.

The basketball assessment that Robinson conducted all those years ago seems to have been a reliable predictor of Barack’s character. The Obamas celebrated their 32nd wedding anniversary last year, proving Robinson’s initial month-long relationship prediction dramatically wrong.

Michelle has previously written about challenges in their marriage, particularly during Barack’s political career and their time in the White House. However, the couple has consistently worked through these difficulties, with Michelle noting in previous interviews that they sought marriage counseling when needed.

Michelle’s decision to skip President Trump’s inauguration in January marked an unusual break from traditional protocol, where former presidents and their spouses typically attend regardless of party affiliation. However, it’s worth noting that both Donald and Melania Trump skipped Joe Biden’s 2020 inauguration, setting a recent precedent for such absences.