I think any success you can have on the tennis court, doubles helps. If you're playing on the weekend, you're in the trophy ceremony at the end of it, one of the last guys in the locker room, it can only give you confidence.
I trained with a locker room and roster full of men, and we were all a family, and they all took care of me like their little sister. It's what I want out of a locker room. I think it helps the locker room, and it's a part of the success of the NXT women's division.
To me, mixed doubles is an undervalued tennis product. You have guys and girls playing on the same level, no handicaps. The guys aren't feeling bad for the girls. The girls pick on the guys. It's generally amazing tennis.
You know, I think playing doubles definitely helps your singles game in all aspects. Just being able to get that match practice, match preparation before playing singles matches. Then it also builds confidence just getting wins from doubles, yeah.
Real is when you go to training camp. Real is when you finally get the guys in pads. Real is those guys in that locker room setting those goals because we have some guys now that can set goals and expectations for those guys in the locker room because, ultimately, who are the Cleveland Browns but those guys in that locker room.
I grew up playing tennis. My father has a tennis court at his home in Bel Air and I was always watching him on the tennis court as a kid, he was a fanatic. I started playing seriously around ninth grade.
Each weekend I play at least one and maybe two sets of tennis a day. My doubles team was in the finals recently at my tennis club in Palm Beach and lost a tiebreaker after a three-hour match. I must confess, by the end of the three hours, I was relieved it was over.
I think it makes the game much easier to play once you have a good cohesion off the court. I think that's big because you come into a locker room at the NBA level, there's so much emotion, so much pride in the locker room.
I think any time you bring those guys in, one with a lot of playoff experience, with rings - those guys won - guys in the locker room gravitate towards those guys. Those guys have been there, so there's a lot that they can teach the guys.
I do doubles on Monday and Thursday, take Wednesday off or do easy cardio, do doubles on Thursday and Friday, and the weekend I just get outside and get active - jog or bike ride, or play tennis with my mom.
I'm not playing for anybody but the guys in this locker room.
I would like to be remembered as the guy who worked hard every night and set an example for the other guys in the locker room and girls in the locker room.
On teams that have won championships and got to the big game, there's a certain vibe and feel in that locker room. Everyone talks about how there's a brotherhood in that locker room, there's not a lot of dissent, there's not guys that go off on their own. It's a team atmosphere.
I can personally say if I'm not relevant in the singles world and my only choice is to play doubles, I'd probably stop playing tennis.
I always say there's a couple things that I look at when I'm playing basketball. Do I enjoy going to the gym? Do I enjoy being in the locker room? When I get on the court do I still have that competitive fire to hate the person I'm playing against?
You cannot trust 25 guys in a locker room to have the same respect and training as I do with a weapon. That I do understand. I've carried a gun for 10 years. I've carried them in the locker room, and nobody really knows about it. I know how to handle myself.
When I was on the Ryder Cup team and I surrounded myself with the other 11 guys and our captains, being in that locker room, it gave me an extra sense of confidence.