DB: "What kinds of things can you do defensively to help out on the pick and roll and defending guys like Bibby, who were able to get wide open looks?"
AJ: "I feel that actually stopping guys like Mike Bibby is out of the question. What I want to do is keep him 10 to 12 points below his average. Defending the pick N roll is the most difficult task of the game in the NBA. I will need just a little bit of help from the big man, but because I have fairly lengthy arms and good timing I will sometimes be able to get a hand up and deflect a shot or two and bother a couple of shots."
br> DB: "What do you consider to be your best skills and also skills you are working on?"
AJ: "Everybody knows that my greatest skill is my ability to score. I scored over 2,000 pts in the Big Ten and anybody who has played in the TEN knows how hard that is. My most unsung attribute as a player is my ability to handle the ball, and more importantly than that is take care of the ball. Historically, my assist to turnover ratio has been pretty good."
DB: "Kobe does a lot of initiating of the offense. Phil Jackson was hoping to find someone to help with that role, so Kobe could play more aggressively on the wing. With your knowledge of the triangle, what does it take to be an initiator the triangle offense?"
AJ: "I do have the ability to initiate the offense. I'm sure that early in the game I will be intitiating the offense but when it comes to crunch time and Kobe is in the game, he will take it upon himself."
Interesting about his wingspan. Anyone know what it is? I'm glad to hear about his confidence in his handles, as well. It should be a good battle in training camp...only a few more weeks. I've got to see if I can track down Kareem Rush. If anyone has any leads, that would be cool.
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