Actually when I was overseas I didn't watch any NBA. I was like, 'Forget the NBA,' and this and that. 'Cause I was hurt that I wasn't on an NBA team. I kind of was rebellious when it came to that because I was kind of jealous and envious that I wasn't on an NBA team, so I kind of just focused on my game and focused on overseas.
A lot of people look at playing overseas as a step down from the NBA. And, yes it is a step down from the NBA money-wise, but there is just as good of talent overseas as in the NBA. Not better talent.
I'm a competitive player, and I love being on the court. If the NBA cancels the season I'm definitely looking at my options and considering going overseas.
Even before I made my high school team, I'd say I want to be a NBA player, and people laughed at me with, 'Get out of here, you ain't going to be a NBA player. You don't even play basketball.'
It was even hard to imagine I was going to play in the NBA, because so many guys playing in Europe are not even getting to the Euroleague and everything. But everybody wants to play in the NBA. So when draft night came, it was a dream come true.
People travel overseas to do things overseas that aren't legal in Ireland all the time. You know, are we going to stop people going to Las Vegas? Are we going to stop people going to Amsterdam? There are things that are illegal in Ireland, and we don't prevent people from travelling overseas to avail of them.
There's a lot of guys who are drafted and end up not playing in the NBA. They get their money for their first whatever years and end up going overseas or something like that.
When I first went to Stevens Point, I never thought I'd ever be close to the NBA. I didn't even think about the NBA. The big start for me was making it to the final cut for the Olympic team, and I was the only one who was going to be back for my senior year of college.
If I make it in the NBA or wind up playing overseas, I will be at peace.
Here in the NBA they play a lot of fast basketball. Overseas it's not like that. It's more half-court plays and stuff.
Yeah, I was ready for the NBA. Because I went through a lot of things back overseas. And you know, playing professionally from a young age and then playing against the older guys - guys over 30; older, talented guys - was really tough, but it also helped my game grow and just get me ready for the NBA.
I'm looking into making toilet paper. It's not an option unless you a bum and gotta use newspaper. It's not an option. Like, it's an option if you wanna drive a car. It's an option if you wanna use a straw. It's an option if you wanna wear a pair of Nikes or Reeboks.
The NBA is a culture shock for college kids, and even more so for kids from another country. The NBA is a unique environment, so there is going to be transition for any young kid, but I think coming from another country and culture is even harder. It does take a special toughness and confidence to deal with that, especially since a lot of times you don't play a lot as a young player.
Today, if you're an American business, you actually get a benefit for going overseas. You get to defer your taxes. So if you're looking at a competitive world, you say to yourself, "Hey, I do better overseas than I do here in America".
I do everything by hand... Even if I'm doing really big letters and I spend a lot of time going over the line and over the line and trying to make it straight, I'll never be able to make it straight. From a distance it might look straight, but when you get close up, you can always see the line waver. And I think that's where the beauty is.
I've always found myself watching the NBA game more, even when I was coaching college. So I'll probably gravitate toward doing something in the NBA.