 It's been amazing, you know It's been a lot of support. I'm especially going through rehab. So that's all I really wanted at this point and There's been that and much more. So everything's been cool so far Kevin, how's it going Christian Winfield in New York Daily News? Kyrie was talking about his relationship with different guys and how he was able to kind of bring you here with him Can you kind of talk about how you guys's relationship has built over the years and just what it's like now to be on the same team now and going forward for the next four years? Yeah, man We got to build that mutual respect for somebody especially following since high school kind of following each other's careers and It's very rare. We could meet up at this point and have a decision in front of us where we can control our destinies and We sat down and talked about it and what basketball meant to us as as a whole and you know I think this is the perfect spot for us to hone our skills and continue to keep growing. So, you know, it was a It was one of those things you just it kind of happened organically and we kind of move just pretty smooth with it Kevin Greg Logan of Newsday. Can you also tell us? He said that that what better place to start than with the nets and the the core of guys they had grown How did that discussion go? You know, there was so much talk about you guys would go to the Knicks and so on How did how did you wind up choosing the nets themselves? And what did you see? I mean, we just fans of basketball and we know it pretty well and it's really easy to see You know with these guys brought to the table. So It's not like I had to do any deep analysis on any player here. I mean just watching games and playing against them and Seeing a continuity throughout the last couple of years is pretty easy to kind of figure out what kind of team this And kind of organization is this place is Kevin Brian Lewis from the New York Post front row here When Gary was just up here, he was talking about I guess his relationship with you and he was mentioning that He'll never go out and say hey, I I expect Kevin will be back x-day or y-day Because he says You know the guy was put on the floor before he was ready to play and we see the result of that I'm gonna protect him from that I'm just curious your reaction to hearing that from him and I take it That's basically a window into the kind of relationship that you guys are formed look, I mean when I when I went down it felt like Everybody wanted to put their arms of protection around me from People I didn't know to you know my best friend and Kyrie, you know So I felt like everybody was real protective of me around this time And I feel like they will continue to be that way especially involved in my health But I make my own decisions Kevin Gerard Hector BSO You know Kyrie talked about the personal side of it that you guys are humans not just basketball players I know that's something you talk about regularly as well What's gonna be different for you when Kyrie talked about that and what are you gonna sort of share with your teammates in terms of? Making sure that That side of you the personal side is taken care of and everything is good so that you can do what you want to do When you show up at the arena and in practice I don't get what you're trying to say Kyrie's basically Kyrie said that It's important that we're human he was talking about his grandfather dying and you know Sometimes basketball is not the most important thing and you've often mentioned the same so for you How are you gonna approach that in terms of balancing balancing both? I mean we're veterans. I mean just because we talk about it. I don't mean we don't have it balanced. I think it's We when we talk about things like that is just a inside look into what we're thinking as basketball players Really thinking that you want to hear what we got to say so you know at this point in our lives we're accomplished so much and We fought through learning how to balance both and It's hard to do that But I think we're being Kyrie especially gone through so much in his lead understand Exactly what we need to do to maximize our talents every day and it'd be great people off the floor Kevin over here to your left Justin Walters files one Kenny I can submit long ago that he thought that your presence alone would help the team and that you'd be able to help the coaching staff I'm curious what type of role you plan to have with the team while a practice and during your rehab And do you think that it can really help them play well and mesh together as just yourself when you're able to re-answer the lineup? I mean just be a teammate. I mean I'm not gonna do anything extra Just do what I usually do. I mean Come in work hard at my rehab and hopefully that sends a great message out Anybody has a question on anything what they're in practice or in the game. I Know the game pretty well So I can answer those questions as quick as quickly and honestly as I can and just try to approaches In an everyday manner, and then you don't try to take it a day at a time, you know, I'm not planning to do anything I'm just it's gonna be myself Kevin to your rights Michael Lee with the athletic Just want to ask you how you plan on approaching this year. I know how much basketball means to you and how much it's always Been a shelter for you, but now that it won't be there How do you plan on approaching this upcoming year where the game may not be there for you? It's still there. I just don't Miss not playing an NBA arena that's 7 p.m. The game is always gonna still be there I still can walk into the gym and shoot shots and work on my game Kevin Mike Masia right over here from Yahoo Sports a lot was made of that talk you had with Kyrie at the all-star game It's kind of wondering, you know, how that friend how your friendship kind of started He called me and said his best friend and you know Did you guys think even at the all-star game that this was a possibility you could play together? Yeah, I mean really doesn't matter how we became friends. I mean, I don't really think that's a huge topic You know, I think We're friends with me you cross-pass with all these basketball players, you know whole life You know basically especially once you get out to the circuit, so It is not like we sat down and say, you know Kyrie you're my friend, you know, we just just kind of happen, you know, so With anything's possible we feel in life Kevin Steve Lichtenstein WFM to your left We hear a lot about the Nets performance team and training staff I was curious what your interactions have been so far and is it different than in the other places you've been? I mean the great thing about the NBA is that you know teams are investing more and more and to You know supporting other players whether it's from, you know meant to leave obviously physically and so One says better or you know worse than any other place But I think it's just top of the line and he lead nothing. That's just what the NBA is as a whole So every every program is at that level now Ian Bagley from SNY Kevin any team with cap space this summer I'm sure would have loved to sign you but it seemed like The Clippers Golden State the Nets and the Nets were those teams that were the serious shooters How seriously did you consider the Clippers Golden State and the Nets before you made your decision to come here? I thought about it for a couple seconds and See how my life would look in all of those places for a minute, but ultimately I wanted to be here Hey Kevin Stefan body with the New York Daily News a couple days ago Sean was saying that the expectation of team is that you will not play next season. I'm just curious in your mind What do you think? I mean do you think that you can return this season or? even I mean me and Sean have been in contact since day one So if he says it then it came from me We came together and make me sure that was a message So yeah, I mean anytime he comes up here and say something you don't have to ask me right after him because I'm gonna say the same thing That's how we think in the day. It seems like think he said last week is what I'm thinking right now Kevin Adams agoria from Forbes. How you doing? It seems like the NBA is more wide open You know this year than in the past five or six years. There's no team. That's favored to win it Do you agree with that? Do you see that it's more wide open than it has been and and how do the nets fit into that in the next Couple years attempt into contend for a title Yeah, there's I mean, I just think the landscape is different. I want to say more open. I think a Lot of you guys probably favorite of Clippers as a team to beat So, you know every year is a team to beat team you think is gonna win But you know just like last year Toronto came out of nowhere Milwaukee came out of nowhere After losing in first year on the previous year to be a finals contender. So each year. I think teams are getting better and Guys are improving and also free agency. Half of the league was free agents So obviously it's gonna be a landscape change when it comes to the dynamics of the league So I just think the business of basketball is booming and the league is always gonna be great if the players continue to keep Getting better and you see it every day. So, you know, you never know what you'll see coming forth coming in the future The NBA with type of players you'll see in the league. So every year I feel is wide open Kevin Barber Barker from Newsday You said when you thought about other teams you thought for a minute or two what your life might be like there When you think about what do you think? What did you think when you thought you're what your life is gonna be like in New York slash Brooklyn? What did you really like both basketball and non-basketball about being here? I Was doing a lot of YouTube research on like Kenny Atkinson and watching interviews and See how he talked after games and stuff and I really liked his approach to his craft as a coach and That's what drew me in pretty quickly. I Didn't really do too much research on other coaches. So I guess I guess he always had to leg up But you know, once I started to get comfortable with how he you know approaches his craft This it started to make me feel at ease even though I'd never even had a conversation with him I could just see it through YouTube and through the clips that that he was pretty genuine about the game And you know, obviously the talks with Kyrie and then watching the team and Knowing Karris and all of this stuff kind of combined at once and obviously being in the East Coast again Was something I was really excited about playing most of my basketball career either in like The Midwest or West Coast, so I was excited about being at least a few hours from home so all that stuff played a factor and I thought about it all and You know, but basketball is probably the main factor Kevin Brian only from the Associated Press You were obviously an MVP of the World Championships. It's always Kyrie actually were you surprised what happened with the US this summer and Knowing you're not gonna play a lot of ball this year. Will you consider playing again next summer if they're interested? I wasn't surprised About team USA, I thought a lot of those guys were young and still you know experiencing a lot in the league and still trying to figure out the International game and I feel like a lot of players dropped out at the last minute to that kind of kind of hurt that momentum and continuity a bit So they had to work on the fly I think so I wouldn't expect a great results But I feel like a lot of those guys got a great experience out of that, especially Joe being a part of that group I think it's gonna do nothing, but but help him but as of right now I'm just rehabbing every day and thought about even shooting a jump shot. Yeah Kevin Bob Windrum Nets daily Just before Kyrie Irvin talked about how you and DJ and he spoke at 416 in the morning The day of free agency. Can you tell us a little bit more about those conversations? I mean We just like we are we ready to do it and Everybody was like, yeah He was really that simple. I Tried to think of something deeper, but it really was that simple Kyrie Joe, Miss. Here. He picks 11 news Obviously said best basketball the main reason that you wanted to come here to Brooklyn But all of the areas that you were considering pretty metropolitan areas How much does being in the city for you and your brand impact where an NBA player goes in today's basketball? Well, I just look I mean, I'm I just looked at how I came up in the league I mean, I came into the league with a lot of expectations You know having a good college career. So I came in kind of like with some popularity if you if you would say so Market stuff really didn't matter Coming up, you know brand and stuff is only how I play on the court That's how I kind of looked at it. So if I play well on the court, then that stuff will follow So it wasn't huge, but I also knew that you know Who I am right now and being in a big city like this couldn't do nothing but help my situation You know I'm saying so I looked at that as well. So yeah, I deserve to live in a Good city. I've been in the league for 12 years and I get to make a decision like this Of course, I only looked at cities like that How we can saw in New York post Kevin you obviously were on one of the greatest teams of all time You went a bunch of titles and I guess how difficult was the decision to leave there? And I guess how important was it for you to have a new challenge? Did you feel like you had done all you needed to do there? No, I didn't look at it that way Every day is a challenge To stay at this level that I met So I never looked at me switching teams as a new challenge every day. I wake up I got a fight against that standard I set for myself but I Felt like it was a time for a change and I wanted to play for a new team and simply put I just did it I Didn't really think about What I was leaving behind or like what we would be accomplished I put that up on the shelf already and when it was time to make decision on my future Just thought solely about me Kevin Christian Winfield again New York Daily News There's been a lot of reports about your relationship with Karris. I'm just I guess I would like to know how You've watched his game develop over the years and really where that relationship started growing I'll really do Adam Harrington. I mean I work with Adam in a critical part of my career And I was transitioning to a different player And so we built the relationship and when he got this job, he was Just wanted me to get in the gym with a few of his players. It was just Karris and Sean kill Patrick at the time. So You know, just we just hanging out at the crib every day then going to the gym It was just cool and that turned into having a relationship and just bouncing texts and when he came to the city, you know, we hung out so Like I said, everything kind of happened kind of organically once again And I see his career and see how good a player he's become always Always figure he'd get to this point