For me, I was always just a down-to-earth guy. From Day 1 my rookie year, I've been the same. As an offensive lineman, we just want to be under-the-radar, humble guys, just like to do our work and not be noticed.
There are a lot of things that you learn as a rookie and you grow the most, I would say as a rookie from your first year to your second year.
When I was a rookie, what motivated me was trying to win Rookie of the Year and play the best that I could that I would compete so hard.
I want to be on the All-Defensive team, be rookie of the year, make the All-Star team, all that type of stuff.
I always end up saying, whether it being my rookie year, not playing as many games as I should have with the new coaching and whatnot, and then my injury and my suspension, I feel like every year, it's always been something, you know what I mean?
I've always felt like the most improvement you can make is from year 1 to year 2, much like a college freshman who the most improvement he can make in an entire one year of college football is going from year 1 freshman year to his sophomore year. Like a pro football player going from his rookie season to his second season. There's a window there that will never come again that you have a chance to making your biggest strides.
For me, I spent four years at Duke, and I was 22 my rookie year. For a lot of guys, I was old as a rookie, but nothing could prepare me for the NBA, both on the court and off the court.
Honestly, I chose 1 because I wore it in college and my rookie year. My mind wasn't even thinking about D-Rose and everything like that.
It was always in the back of my mind while we were working on the first year of 'Rookie' that we'd do a print version at some point.
During my rookie year, Kobe was always on me. Get in the gym early with him, getting shots and stuff like that.
Veterans get priority in the training room and better parking, but there is not a whole lot of difference in terms of how they're treated in the competition for playing time. To me it doesn't matter if a guy is a 10-year veteran or a rookie. If the rookie is better, he finds his way onto the field.
Winning the Rookie of the Year would be nice but making the playoffs would be even nicer for me.
I almost got traded my rookie year or my second year in the league.
I'm trying to be a sponge. People say, 'Well, that's what your rookie year is.' I still feel that way in my second year.
Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man he will be what most people call "humble" nowadays: he will not be a sort of greasy, smarmy person, who is always telling you that, of course, he is a nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him.
My uncle, my dad always made sure I had guard skills. But as far as defending everybody, that wasn't really my mindset until my rookie year.