Lebron: ‘I’m home’
Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant reflects at news conference on why he decided to announce his retirement on Nov. 29, 2015. AP FILE
WASHINGTON, United States — A selection of quotes from the NBA for the week up to December 31:
Bigger than LeBron
“The most important thing that we all need to understand, the most important thing, this issue is bigger than LeBron. This issue is bigger than me — it’s about everyone. And gun violence and tragedies and kids losing lives at a young age, some way, somehow we need to understand that that matters more than just an individual.” – Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James on an activist’s Twitter campaign calling on him to sit out games to protest the lack of charges brought against police in the fatal shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice in Cleveland.
Don’t get technical
“I’m done with those days. I learned in the summertime, once they make a call, they ain’t changing it. Took me a while, but I learned it… I watched film. So I decided to tell myself there’s no need to argue. They’re not changing it, so move on.” – Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook on trying to cut down on his technical fouls, which totalled 17 last season and 52 over the past four campaigns.
Winning changes everything
“I’ve put up good numbers before. I put some good games together last season, but it didn’t feel the same. We’re winning now, and that changes everything. When you’re losing, the numbers don’t mean anything. Now they do.” – Orlando Magic center Nik Vucevic after scoring a season-high 28 points with eight rebounds and seven assists in a 104-89 win over New Orleans that moved the Magic to 18-13 — seventh in the Eastern Conference.
Size not all that matters
“He’s not a big stiff. People love his size and sort of think he’s a big stiff, but Boban is a hell of a player.” – San Antonio forward David West on 7-foot-3-inch (2.21m) Serbian rookie center Boban Marjanovic, who made seven of seven shots and scored 17 points in the Spurs’ 101-95 win over Minnesota on Monday. The victory moved the Spurs to 18-0 at home this season.
Winning is hard
“When you lose, people ask, how did you lose? When you play in the NBA, every team has an opportunity to win and every win is really hard. They are capable of winning any night, and tonight they came out with a win.” – Golden State swingman Andre Iguodala after the Dallas Mavericks handed the Warriors just their second defeat of the season.
Sixers swagger
“We’ve got our swag back. We are walking around like we are the big kids on the block. I love it.” – Philadelphia’s JaKarr Sampson after the 76ers notched their third win of the season, a 110-105 victory over the Kings in Sacramento.
Fond farewell?
“As soon as I touched the ball and they booed, I was like, ‘Ah, I’m home.'” – Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant, after Boston fans cheered and jeered him in his final game at the Celtics TD Garden arena.
