Mark Jackson played 19, 20 years in the NBA. Shouldn't even have probably been in the league, and he's the third-ranked assist guy in the NBA. But you describe his game: Can he jump? No, not really. How's his outside shot? Eh, it's inconsistent. Can he defend? Nah, he can't stay in front of guys. And he played 19 years!
I always say this to people: 'If Shaq can be in the NBA for 19 years and dominate for 19 years using his body, why can't I be in the music industry for 50 years using my brain when my brain is way stronger than anyone's body?' I have to have a successful record company, more hit records. I want to dominate the game.
If I were involved with the NBA, I wouldn't want a 19-year-old or a 20-year-old kid to bring into all the travel and all the problems that exist in the NBA. I would want a much more mature kid. I would want a kid that maybe I've been watching on another team, and now he's 21, 22 years old instead of 18 or 19, and I might trade for that kid.
You can be 19 or 20 and playing reserve team football, be able to say 'I played at,' say, 'Manchester United,' even though you have no actual first team appearances. But there are 19- and 20-year-olds at League Two level with 100 appearances under their belts. I know which one I'd rather be.
I can't think of any NBA team over the last few years that lost three starters. And we replaced them basically with three guys who really haven't played in this league.
When I played in the NBA for 12 years, Seattle had some of the best fans in the NBA.
My dad has kind of been the standard for me, he played 16 years in the league, and since I've been in the league, every year that I go through and deal with the scratches, the bumps and bruises, just the grind that it is to go through one NBA season.
Hey, the Clippers are a good NBA basketball school. Helps out all the young guys who come into the league. It's not a fast team, not like a real NBA team. All the players have to worry about is improving on their own. You are there for your first few years. They teach you a little bit about the game, and then they let you go.
In the two years that I've been in the NBA, I don't think I've played to my ability.
I wore No. 19 because of Bryan Trottier. I liked the overall aspect of his game. I liked the way he conducted himself on the ice. He was a quiet guy. He played really hard; just a good all-around, prototypical center man who could do everything.
A lot of people don't understand that playing in the NBA, the toughest thing is to win an NBA championship. I was in the NBA 15 years. I'd been in the playoffs. I'd been in the Finals. But it took me 15 years to finally win one.
One of the reasons I didn't make it in the NBA - I played 3 1/2 years - and one of the reasons I was in Europe for 20 years was because I lost my confidence. That comes from coaches that are emphasizing the mistakes, taking you out anytime you make one.
Coach Blatt's been great! He comes with a worldly dynamic and I think that's what our game has been lacking. He's coached and played all over the world, so his perspective on the game of basketball is kind of different from most traditional NBA coaches. But at the same time, it makes it interesting and exciting.
I always tried to be an all-around player. In college, I felt like I needed to add to my game to get to another level, to get to the NBA. The NBA has really turned to positionless basketball, so it was very important to me to have an all-around game so I could stand out in front of other guys.
I played Sunday junior football for 6-7 years. Then I was at Stansted for two years between 19 and 21.
The game shapes you. I played for 20 years at all levels, apart from the Premier League. I had a disaster at Bristol City, where in two years I learnt more about myself, the industry, fans, how you get treated, than I ever learnt in my career.
I frankly think the NBA All-Star game has run its course, the whole dunk contest... The game - if those guys actually played hard in that game, it'd be the best watch ever.