The advent of so much dribbling has created a different kind of player, and it starts at a very early age. We have so many gifted ball handlers. Everything is pick-and-roll. Unless he's a catch-and-shoot guy, a player is going to put it on the floor and attack. Kevin Durant is a wonderful ball handler.
The league is changing, and we don't have many back-to-the-basket players. We now have a game that requires skill and versatility. A lot of that is about being able to think. It makes all the difference in the world to have a player in there with a high basketball IQ who can make the right decision.
Coaches who have been players in the league, they get so attuned to playing how they were successful and who their coaches were.
I've always been really nationalistic, and I had a brother killed in Korea. And I think the 'Star Spangled Banner,' even today - and I've heard it a heckuva lot of times, OK - has always been a significant feeling to me.
I'm at the point where you look back on your life and reflect. I've always been an unbelievable critic of me. If we lost a game, I blamed myself every night. I'm very proud of some of the things I did as an athlete, as an executive.
Kevin Garnett was a great player, but he wasn't Kobe Bryant.
To be candid with you, free agency hurts all sports. It's great for athletes making an enormous amount of money. But to say it helps the sports, I don't believe that.
You need lofty goals. Then cement it with a great work ethic.
The support this city and our fans have shown the Grizzlies made my decision to stay in Memphis an easy one. Memphis deserves a championship team, and I am committed to that.
A shot is a lever; it's all it is. You don't open a car door differently each time. A car door is efficient - it opens and closes. So is a shot.
The season is a beast within itself. It's not the quickest race; it's a marathon. In the playoffs - if you're fortunate enough to make the playoffs - that's more like a dash. You have to concentrate on one opponent. When they're done, you have to concentrate on another one.
Defensively, from a team standpoint, I didn't feel I played very well. Very rarely was I satisfied with how I played.
At one time, we were asked to play your own man; you're responsible for your own man. And, if you were good enough and kind of a ball hawk, you helped everyone else. Now it's really much more of a team concept defensively than it was when we played.
I'm a Gemini. Know what that means? There are two very different sides to me.
It's discouraging for me to come out there and watch the lack of fan support for a good team.
When it's time for me to walk away from something, I walk away from it. My mind, my body, my conscience tell me that enough is enough.
I would never stay under circumstances where I felt I was a figurehead and might look good in your team media guide. I don't want to be that. I do want to contribute, and if I don't contribute, I'll walk away from it. If I don't feel welcomed, I'll walk away from it.
A lot of people would be happy that they got through a long career and had a chance to play as many times in the finals. To me, I wanted to win for the franchise and for the people. And when you can't do that, it's devastating, particularly for someone like me.
I like to keep people guessing.
Some guys lay their fannies out there every night - they play the game at such a high level, and they give so much that, frankly, they don't get credit for it. And I think it's tragic sometimes.
