I'm just the type of guy who wants the ball in my hands any type of way.
I'm the type of person where, at the end of the game, if there's 10 seconds left, and you need to get somebody the ball, and you're behind by one, give me the ball. Get me the ball every single time.
I think that's what separates the NFL because they're so many different cultures in here that you get to learn from, that you get to experience that people from the outside don't get to experience. We don't live in a box. We understand that there's different type of views, different type of actions, and we have an open mind to listen to them.
In Brazil, there is a different type of football, but I think I am seen as an elegant type of ball player, who is creating for other people.
When covering the man with the ball, the defense should be able to touch the ball with his hand. He should assume this touching position as the ball is being received. When the ball is received, the defense should discourage the pass into the post area. The hands should be kept up. Keeping the hands up reduces a tendency to foul and allows a player to move his hands quickly.
I'm used to having the ball, man. So, not really having the ball in my hands... it's just me trying to find different ways to impact the game.
I want to be the best with the ball in my hands as a receiver - or as a player, period. And I think when I get the ball, my game changes. I don't know what it is, I just shift gears.
I know the type of player I am so I don't feel there's too many people in the NFL that could really do what I'm capable of doing when the ball's in my hands.
With 'Love & Basketball,' I played ball my whole life and did track at UCLA. So, I'm an athlete. And it was very important for me to get it right. I started with casting: As an athlete, there's nothing worse for me than watching a sports movie and the woman that they hire can't run or can't shoot. It sets women's sports back years.
I consider myself an athlete. I train like an athlete, I eat like an athlete, I recover and get sore just like any other athlete.
I would need a book to describe Jamal Miles. He can do it all. We line him up in the slot. We bring him into the backfield. We hand the ball to him. We send him in motion and get him the ball. He throws the football. He might be the best athlete I've ever been around in my life.
And I get asked all the time about my career, growing up as an athlete, as kind of an underdog type of player. I thought, what better to get your message out than to do a book?
Ball-tampering has happened before. Bowlers and fielders have found different ways to get the ball roughened up on one side.
Whenever I get the ball in my hands, I just try to get the thing as north as possible and get in the end zone.
I've always considered myself a crunch-time player. I just love having the ball in my hands. Everyone in the arena knows the ball is supposed to be in your hands and you still make it. It's the odds. I love the odds.
I feel more comfortable with the ball in my hands, playing the point guard. But I like playing the 2, too. I think I bring tough defense and the ability to score and also get my teammates the ball to score.