The 10-time NBA All-Star sat down with Rich Kleiman to reflect on playing in his hometown and what it meant for him to handle the pressure of playing in Madison Square Garden.
Video Transcript
So knowing that Denver holds such a, you know, a strong place in your heart, but New York, I think everybody can see is like connected with you in a way that’s hard to explain.
Why do you think it clicked the way it clicked?
I think everybody that watched knew you appreciated playing in the garden.
It’s it’s really hard to explain, to be honest with you, because I went through it, right?
I don’t went through kind of against New York in a sense, right?
Like against, really against New York, like me playing like against my own fans at time, right?
So it’s like Most people would be like, why are you loving that?
Like, why are you connected to him like, I, I, I can’t be like I don’t went through hell.
I don’t went through the fire.
I didn’t took every responsibility, accountability that you could possibly take as an athlete uh here in New York.
For one, I had a greater appreciation of what it meant to play in the garden and to put Nick’s uniform on.
So I understood my assignment when I came here was I know I gotta perform no matter what is happening.
I got, I know I have to perform.
I can’t worry about what they did to to A-Rod or Jeter or, you know, Eli, like I can’t like Marbury even like I studied all of that.
I studied how they moved, I studied how the media moved.
I like I made, I really sat down and studied all of that to the point where I was like, yo, I’m not.
Um, I would never ever allow any of that to happen to me, and that was like my shield when I came to New York.
Like I’m just gonna play ball or whatever happened, whatever y’all say is cool.
Like I, I’m just gonna go hoop and play basketball.
I think my appreciation of for one, wanting to come to New York, and wanting to embrace New York, and really wanting to give New York an opportunity and a chance.
People will always respect that, right?
Um.
I think the fact that I went through what I went through in New York.
And it was only, it was one-sided when I was going through it, and I’ve never spoke on it.
I’ve never said anything.
I stood tall on, on, on everything.
I just backed out of it.
And I think once I left, it was a different type of appreciation because it’s like damn like it ain’t we still going through what we, we still going through this.
We still go.
I come back and Posing his head.
I’m like, Yo, what’s like, man, it’s it’s the same process and I’m like, fans just got the opportunity and fans grew up, like I’m matured, I grew up, you know, I got some I got growth, the fans that was at that point in time has grown up and got new perspectives and able to understand.
1 and 1 equals 2, not 1 and 1 equals 3.
So, I think that’s what we’re seeing now.
I think we’re seeing a uh uh a greater appreciation of somebody who really came to New York, really try to put New York on their back.
Somebody who’s outside, I’m, I’m, I’m in the streets, not in the back, you know, I’m in the streets, I’m talking to people, I’m with kids on courts, I’m in the rec centers, I’m in the hood, I’m in the, like I’m all over the place, so.
Well once you build that connection, it’s hard to break that bar.
