D'Angelo Russell

As far as coming out on top with the right mentality and it molding you into the best human being you can be, I think that's what Brooklyn did for me. I became an All-Star, I got to touch the playoffs. To get a piece of that, I'm forever thankful.

When I play, I'm playing for myself and I'm playing for my family too.

My family is my biggest critic.

Any time anybody says something bad about me, that means I've got to work. If they say I'm not living up to what my potential is, I've go to work - and that's every day.

I really didn't get to experience college. I enjoyed Ohio State, but I didn't feel like I had a chance to live the college life. When some guys got bored, they went out partying or to the student center. When I got bored, I went to the gym.

Some players thrive in the open-style, AAU games - the all-star games. But when it comes to playing in an actual system and having to 'think' the game, you see where some guys separated themselves.

No one is going to give me opportunities. I've gotta take them.

I'll adapt to any situation. I've been adapting to different situations my whole life.

It's hard to be the point guard, especially playing with a young team.

I know how easy it is to get assists. But you can't be a pass-first guy and get assists. You have to attack.

The coaches that I've had, my teammates that I've met throughout this journey, it's something that you can't take away. It almost feels like a degree. You can't take that away from somebody.

I got the chance to experience the full effect of New York and win in New York. There's nothing better.

I appreciate the city of New York just embracing me, and Brooklyn in general.

No player in this league - they might be really, really good and they look like they're playing nonchalant, but they're not.

I think I created my own narrative, being a guy who kind of got chewed up and put through the grinder and coming out on top.

I did my first winter in New York and that was tough. So to get the opportunity to go somewhere where it's warm again, I think that played a major part in my plan.

I'm the best player in the draft. I truly feel that way. But I feel like you can ask anybody in the draft and they would have said the same thing. I just feel like I showcased it on many levels and I was put through so many different scenarios where I had to make the best out of it. And I had a lot of success with it.

I just really try to model my game after Steph Curry.

Every year you want to keep elevating you. And that's what I want to do.

Guys that get that second year under their belt, get the first year under your belt, you come back with a different swag and a different confidence, a different pace to your game. You can showcase what you've been working throughout the summer.

If I've lost anyone's trust, I'm going to work my tail off to get it back.

I'm playing against my peers, and if my peers respect me, that's all I can ask for.

I understand every piece of business in this league.

I take pride in creating genuine relationships with people that genuinely care about you.

Yeah, once you get a taste of the playoffs - I couldn't imagine not making it back to the playoffs. Give credit to LeBron and those guys who do it so many consecutive years.

I've always been my own guy.

Kobe was a legend.

No matter what you've been through or what's going on ahead, a fresh start's always good.

Any rumor you can think of, I've been a part of it.

I've always been a guy that, I don't know, just attacks pressure.

People want to be Lakers. There's just so much pressure, and some guys handle it and some guys can't.

My dad is one of the smartest guys I know.

Going around the league, people know, 'Oh, he got in some trouble' or 'He didn't play well his rookie year' or 'He's a bust.' That's the headline. I'm going to have a million more opportunities to create new headlines, and I can't wait. Can't wait.

I'm happy that I got an All-Star under my belt.

I'm addicted to showing people what they don't get to see, as far as the everyday lifestyle of an NBA player.

I really don't know what it takes to make it to the playoffs.

I'm not going out of my way to eat something that's not prepared for me.

I didn't know what it meant or what it took to be healthy and be prepared for 82-plus games... Injuries come with sports. I know that. But you can be prepared, get your body as prepared as it can be through practice and weights.

That's my ultimate goal, just being a part of something special.

Coach Matta recruited me the best, I had a close relationship with him immediately and I saw a great opportunity at Ohio State. Sometimes it's just that simple.

After any game you're going to get the love, the hate: That's just what comes with being a professional athlete.

I've been through losing so much in this league, so to finally get a taste of winning and what the playoffs are going to feel like, I'm excited.

I just know what I'm capable of. When I don't do it, you can always throw the excuse - you're young, it's a process, this and that - but I know what I can do. Just staying patient and just keep putting in hard work and keep God first and the sky is the limit.

Me being young, I'm going to definitely mess up a lot more than I'm going to make the right play, but I want my teammates to be able to trust me and look at me as a veteran guard trying to run the team.

I am tired of talking about what I do or what I am going to do.

I feel like wherever I go, I will make it home.

I wasn't upset to leave Los Angeles.

It's almost like going to high school before you got to go to college. You felt a little bit better before you got to college. That's how I feel about Brooklyn.

I have nothing but great things to say about Brooklyn.

I knew I wasn't going back to Brooklyn... I never knew exactly. I just kinda - you work with these guys every day. You see the same players, you see the same coaching staff, you see the same trainers every day. So when they start to act a little different, you recognize it... I could feel it.