My role models in the business were the older guys on my team when I first got there: Gray Scott, Adrian Smith, Roland Taylor. These were the guys who took me under their wing, and really schooled me in terms of what the business was about.
I always had to keep in mind that I’m here because I do have a talent, and some aspects of it are unique. I should keep that in my mind, not feel that I’m here because people just like me, and because I’m a nice guy. Sometimes I will be treated differently by a lot of people because of that talent, but don’t let that become a distraction, and don’t be deceived by that. See it for what it is, and then play the hand out. So much of becoming a good athlete involves bringing other things to the table, other than physical skills. It involves intelligence, it involves many of the things that you learn during the process of being educated. How to analyze, how to assess, how to equate, how to reason. This is what the whole elementary, and secondary, and even the college educational process is all about — teaching you and preparing you to be able to deal with what you ultimately have to deal with in life. Even though I was dealing with sports, which many people feel is totally physical, that people don’t have to think, everything is done for you and you’re catered to, I found that to be so far removed from the truth that it’s almost a joke. The ones who become stars or superstars are the ones who have a head on their shoulders and know how to use it.