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Hey, BBN, Cameron Mills here. This morning, I got the chance

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to sit down and chat with New Kentucky big Man's von Amir Ivasich. If

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you'd like to see the video of our interview, check out UK Sports Networks

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Facebook page or be sure to follow behind Kentucky Basketball on your favorite podcast player.

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Hope you enjoy all Right, so let's start with this one. Why

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Kentucky? Why are you here? I mean, I know you're here to

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play basketball, but why did you decide that your next step needed to be

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Lexington, Kentucky to play for Calipery. My mom wanted to me to finish

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high school and something big like college, so he kind of decided, like

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I don't know, Kentucky is the best option to play basketball, a good

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basketball and to finish school? Is that like the reputation? I mean,

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because you come from Europe, right, and starting with one of your heroes,

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Draws and Petro Big right, Drawsen was one of the first guys who

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came to the United States. It's from Europe and all of a sudden,

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this onslaught of players, many of whom you mentioned is some of your favorites.

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But what is Kentucky basketball? Because you even were quoted saying that you

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know, this is the best way to get to the NBA is through Calipari's

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So what's is that the reputation in Europe among young players like yourself was like,

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well, college basketball in the United States might be just as good of

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an opportunity to make that leaked NBA as playing euroball. Yeah, means that

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the way it works. Yeah, I mean, everybody knows who he is,

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what he has done, and how many players he sent on the NBA

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draft and how many makes it. So yeah, he has a good reputation

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back in Europe. Okay, And yeah, so you're seven foot two.

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You haven't always been seven foot two, but everyone looks at you and says

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has to be a basketball player, even if they don't know who you are.

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Right, So, at what point did you start playing the game?

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I mean, were you tall and someone said you need to be playing basketball? Or did you just grow up loving the game because of where you're from.

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I mean I started. I started playing when I was six, and

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then I played for like I don't know, even just like like a kindergarten.

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You know, I was just running and didn't do nothing. So so

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I kind of did that, and after that I stopped playing basketball. I

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started playing soccer, of course for a year. Yeah, for a year.

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And then and then when I came back, I fall I love it

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too, really yeah, with basketball, and that's what I was. Had you grown a lot in that year? I mean, I mean I was

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always taller than everybody, were you? Yeah, I mean a lot taller

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than everybody. Don't you don't play I mean I've seen some highlights. I

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saw you warm up at the Blue White game, your warm up jet.

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You don't play like a guy that's seven for two. Everybody says that play

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like guards. Yeah, I mean you've got you've got handles, You've got

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you certainly could block shots. That's a big man. Yeah. But your

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stroke, your shot looks it looks amazing. So how did you go from

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playing kindergarten ball, taking a year off playing soccer, coming back falling in

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love with it to I mean, develop the form you have, the skills

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you up because even most guys at some foot two that are your age don't

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have their coordination. Yet you kind of look like you've got your coordination. I don't know, I just did what I love. I practiced. I

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grinded and uh, I don't know. Did you have like a mentor for

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practice, like somebody that could teach you how I mean? Yeah, like

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like who Yeah, I did, like bend in my back in my hometown.

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Yeah, in Bosnia, a few coaches that I was working with. Yeah, and uh. And then in in Schebanic after I moved there,

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I had some coaches, yeah, two that I've been working out with.

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And then in monteneger so yeah, I had a few. Let's talk about

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you've got three siblings. Yeah, right, but you mentioned your twin brother.

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Yeah, your is your brother seven foot too, he's like seven foot

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some food on something later, okay, all right, So but you mentioned

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him as like your your inspiration. Yeah, why is your twin brother your

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inspiration? Because you always competed between each other. You know, I want

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it to be better than he. If he does better than me, I

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won't let that happen. So I just you know, and that's how it

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goes. You came and he wasn't coming to Kentucky too, No, No,

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still play ball, yeah of course. Okay, all right, So

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like if you all how often at these days? Obviously right now you're here,

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where is he Okay, So when was the last time you all played

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one on one? It's been a long time, has it really? Yeah?

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All right, so we need to make that happen soon. We need

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to get another game like that. It's Thomas lave right, Thomas Love is

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your brother. What what do you think? In your eyes? Not I

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I don't care what the coaches have told you. I know because they're going

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to tell you right, But in your eyes? What is the thing you

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need to improve on the most? Not just for the NBA? So let's

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break this down to two questions. What does he need to improve on the

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most to get to the next level that he wants to get to? And

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then right now for this season, right, what do you need to improve

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on the most? Because you've practiced what a week? Right? So in

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that week, what have you learned about your game against who you played with?

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Even though we've got a bunch of big men that are out like you

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may be the only healthy big man we've got right now, But what have

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you learned that you need to improve on? I think the I think the

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more important thing that I have to that I have to be working on is

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is my strength? Okay? In my condition? Yeah? And uh,

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there's the more sported thing. Other things just come by itself, like of

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some luck, staying healthy and other things will come. So in the last

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week that you've been here, because I think I think also you got here the day of Madness something like that, so or before something like that.

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Have you been and this this is this is gonna sound like an ignorant question,

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I guess it is. But is this your first time in the States?

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No, this is my third time? The third time? Yeah, okay, what were the first two times for I went here? Oh?

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No mba draft okay, yeah, both times both times had to do with

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basketball. It's just your first time in Kentucky. Yeah, all right,

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So you don't have to answer politely, answer honestly, ze, what what

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what? What? What do you think of Kentucky so far? I mean,

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I've just been on a campus, so he's been greating so far?

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Actually, yeah, I like it here. Are you enjoying your college?

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Yeah? College careers? Yeah? People are people are nice here? Yeah?

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Everybody welcome me formally? Does everyone? When you walk around campus?

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You think everyone knows who you are? I mean, I mean I think

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they do. Well. You're seven foot two to start with, yeah,

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a little bit that way, and I guarantee they know anyway. Yeah,

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I asked Deb, but I didn't know you were in practice, But I

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asked Deb if you could bring your harmonica? Oh when was the last Is

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that something like like you do a lot? Or is that just something you

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enjoy like every now? I mean, I mean I still didn't learn that.

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Okay, I have to play, but I want to learn it so bad. So if I have any time, I'll try to learn these instruments

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though, that you could learn to play. Why the harmonica, I don't

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know. I just liked it. I mean, but when did you first

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hear it? I mean, this is my in yours? Again? Is

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it a Croatian thing? No? I mean yeah, creation in Bosnia?

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Okay you know yeah, like like those instruments are are played on weddings,

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snow in some bars and that stuff. So yeah, I like that.

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I mentioned Draws Petrivick before he passed away, before you were even close to

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being born. Yea, why did you? Why did you list him as

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like your hero, like the guy that you look up to. I guess

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your brother would be that guy as well, if you drive inspiration so much

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from him. But draws in obviously. I mean he paved the way for

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a lot of Europeans to come over here and play. But he passed away

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before you were born, So how did you? What is it about him

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that that draws you to it? The first jersey I got from uh,

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first NBA jersey I got was it was actually his hu jersey And I was

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always wondered, like, who is who he is? And and after I

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moved to Sibeni where he was born actually yah, and where he made her

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career and everything, Yeah, I just thought like like focusing on on his

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past what he did, how he did, how did he practice? And

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uh and yeah, I just realized he was my motivation? So was that

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did you? When you got that first NBA jersey? Was that after you stopped playing soccer and came back to basketball and always before before? So okay,

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so someone gave you a jersey you're older, but a guy you didn't

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know about, you hadn't heard of. Yeah, why why did he give

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you that jersey? If you I mean, you didn't have an affinity for

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him? So why why why do you think he gave you that jersey?

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Oh? No, I think he might have to ask him then all right, all right, fair enough, that's time I talked to you, but

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just for the because you got the jersey, the jersey made you all right,

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I'm going to find out who this is. Yeah, and then when

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you found out who he was, so how much did he have his career

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short as it was? How much did that have to do with you loving

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this game or you? Would it be fair to say you wanted to follow

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in his footsteps? Yeah? Okay, yeah, all right? So did you? Surely you've seen videos of playing? Do you pat in your game

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after him at all? I mean you're taller than he. He was a goal Yeah, yeah, I know, but I just like, I just

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want to have a mentality like he has. You know, this was what

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what was that meant about? Practices about the game? Okay? Uh?

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Hell? You think so of the game and that stuff most other than harmonica,

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and I think you mentioned video games, but I'm going to rule out

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both of those because we've already talked about harmonica and I don't allow video games for this next answer. Okay, but when you want to get away from

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downstairs, right, when you want to step away from basketball in general and

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have some Z time, what do you do I like to go a drink

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of coffee, travel a little bit, okay, hang on my friends okay?

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And yeah? Is it is it hard being here because your friends are

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well presumably they were just downstairs, right, I mean your teammates are the

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only people you know here, is that right? Yeah? So I mean

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is it hard because if you're wanting to get away from basketball, you can

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hang out with them. But I mean, is it is it easy for

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you just in general? Because it seems like it would be based on your

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personality? Been all smiled so far, But it's easy for you to make

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friends? I mean I mean yeah, yeah, yeah. My whole life,

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I'll just feel like I'm always buzzed. So it's not hard for me

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to make any friends here. What you said travel, you like to travel?

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What's one place in the world you have never been that you really want

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to go? I would say beha Mes, the Bahamas. Yeah, welcome

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to Kentucky. We go there about once a year, it seems like,

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so you might enjoy that. Yeah. What is it about coach cal other

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than because it's one thing when a coach recruits you, Yeah, want to

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coach recruits you? He's all smiles, right, come play for me?

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Right? This is yeah, I like you, I want you to come,

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come, come play for me. But when you when coaches get players

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in practice, they become coaches. Right, how much of that is cal?

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Like? Like has cal changed it all? From Hey, zee,

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I want you to come play for me. Now you're practicing, So he's

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yelling at you, Like, how different is that? Of course, if

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I do something wrong, of course he's gonna yell at me. So and

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how do you handle that? Because when I was a freshman year, I

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got yelled at an awful lot. I didn't handle it well because it sounded

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so personal, but it wasn't. So how do you get past that?

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Okay, this guy was you know, friendly when he's recruiting, but now

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he's coach. It's because I know, like, like that thing only happens

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on practice. If you if you go outside of the of the court,

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he's going to hug me or something like that. So I'll take it personal.

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But how did you know that? And I'm just a personal thing because it took me a year to realize that. And you've got it now,

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you've realized that within a week and granted you've played. I mean this isn't

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your first time playing big time basketball. Yeah, but you just you've learned

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it that you know what coaches on the court are different from coaches off the court. Yeah. I mean I had a lot of coaches who had been

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like yelling at me, so I kind of got used to it, and

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I take nothing personal in the court. Tell me about your mom and dad?

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Okay, what do you want to know? Well, okay, so

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where do where do they currently live? They live in the place you were born. I know they are currently with my brother. They came to visit

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him. Yeah, yeah, but they living in Creation Okay, all right.

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And last time you got to see your parents, I mean the day

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the day I flew here. Okay, all right there, okay, And so what what because you mentioned earlier your mom wanted you to finish high school

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and then finish college. All right. So and you may have ang into

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this fort, but was was she excited about your pick? I mean,

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was she swaying you at all? You need to go to Kentucky? I

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mean she she kind of did her research about like what Kentucky is, you

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know what the culture here is? So he was and then she found out,

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Yeah, she was excited to say, what's been your favorite part of

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being here? You've only been here a week, but what's your favorite part

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so far? I would say that probably like people around me, Yeah,

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the best thing you seem to have, because I got to sit down with

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all your teammates a couple of weeks ago and they talk about how close they

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are. Is that what you've seen? Yeah? What does that mean?

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Though? Like what does it mean for a team to be close on or

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off the court? Like, what does it mean to you? I mean,

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if you're close off the court, like like, there's a big chance

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that we've been like we've I if you'll have a special connection on the court,

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so it kind of help us, you know, to read everybody.

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Yeah. Yeah, one of the big things that Kentucky fans since Calu has

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been here, have always I don't know if frustrated is the right word,

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but the fans want championships, national championships, right. So most of cal

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players Cows players, not all, but most of them are here a year.

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It's the reason you're here. You want to make it to the NBA

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as soon as you can. But is it fair to say that this team

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you've only been around them a week? But I'll include you and this you

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and this team. Is it fair to say that, Okay, we all

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want to make it to the NBA, but we've got a job to do here before we get there. Is that seem Is that kind of your attitude

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or the team's attitude? Is it? Hey, the Kentucky Matters too.

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Don't want to make an NBA, but we want to do something special here

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while we're here, at the team I came here. I mean, I'm

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want to help my teammates win and uh, if possible, win championship and

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then I can go like b to the NBA with Clevehead with yeah, perfect