 Well, first, I'm incredibly grateful to be here. It's been a journey that I've taken numerous steps in different directions, and I've failed and succeeded. So for me, you know, eight years being an MBA, learning as much as I can from a business component, personal, leadership, just community. First and foremost, I wanted to reach out, especially when free agency started to Brooklyn and let them know that my interest was very high. And I had some other pieces that I wanted to bring with me as well. And this is the perfect place to do it. This has been very hard work in place for the last four years of putting together a team here in Brooklyn, transferring from New Jersey, transitioning from New Jersey over here to Brooklyn. It's just been an incredible, incredible journey to observe from afar, just as a player in the MBA, coming to Brooklyn, being at Barclays, feeling incredible about the energy in the stadium. And I wanted to transition that into being a player here as well and actually get to know the front office in a way that we had longevity and we had time to gel. Nothing was forced. So it was just a great, great feeling to know that I had the support of the front office, my teammates that I brought from other teams, teammates that I had to reach out to, and really make this thing feel like home. So Jersey's my original home where I come from, but the Nets transitioning here was just great. MBA has been full of ups and downs of mental capacity things that I've dealt with, injuries. Just dealing with this whole hoopla thing as well is just getting used to this and really igniting different things in an industry and a business such as the MBA has been incredible. So I'm grateful to see it unfold today and be here and just really talk about how gracious I am to be here. Kari, Greg Logan of Newsday, can you give us some insight into the conversations you had with Spencer Denwitte, for instance, before you came here and then also with KD and DeAndre as far as building that all-star core? Thanks. Well, I definitely have unique relationships across the league, just the respect I have for the different players and the different journeys that they've had to be MBA basketball players. So me and Spencer's relationship went far beyond the court itself. So we got a chance to know one another during all-star weekend in Los Angeles. We ended up hanging out. He won the skills challenge. Didn't really talk too much about any free agency or anything like that, but we had a relationship that we developed from then on. So it felt great. That was a core piece and really feeling comfortable here after free agency started. And then with Katie and DJ, it was 4.16 in the morning. Let's just talking about our futures and how this opportunity ahead of us is something that we haven't had in our careers, the ability to make a choice sitting down, actually talking in detail about the future and the investment we had in one another and investment we wanted to have in Brooklyn. So it made sense all the way around and then having the incredible people that they have in the organization made it that much easier. They made us feel like all-stars. They made us feel like we were supposed to be treated fairly from the media component, from our teammates, from the first-class service that they give here at Concierge. And most importantly for me was just the family atmosphere. They reached out to my family as soon as I committed and it felt like they were very inclusive with everything that they had going on here. And it was just like a step away being away from home and they made me feel as comfortable as I could as well as reaching out to Katie and DJ and as well as other guys on the team to make sure that they know what's going on, that this is for the future. We're here to build. We're not saying we're a championship team right now. We're not gonna say this is what it's gonna be going forward. We're just here to observe one another, care for one another and then be here to enjoy playing basketball. But first and foremost is our family. And I feel like sometimes that can get confused in this league about who we are as human beings. So I'm always gonna be an advocate for that. And they are advocates is that we're humans first and then we're basketball players. Brian Lewis, New York Post, front row here. I'm just curious between all of the, I guess, the things that you have alluded to. The family atmosphere, the tier, style of play, Kenny, the relationships that you have with some of your new teammates. In your mind, what was the most important thing, I guess, to you when you were making your decision and you decided to come here? If you had to crystallize and say, listen, this was really high, if not top on my list of priorities that led you here. I would say that on the list of priorities, the number one thing was acknowledging the fact of the steps it took to get here. That was the first step was eight years of really hammering home, being in a team environment, being an NBA basketball player and trying to be successful at a sport that sometimes, or for the most part, spills over into my personal life. And then allowing that to really put me in a place where I'm able to make a decision for me and my family for the long haul. And like I said, it was very, very trying this whole entire eight years of being in the NBA and learning as much as I could about the business and personal side of it. So I wanted to remove all of that and really take a step back and not be an advocate for people not being treated fairly, especially from different outside sources in the way the NBA product works. So for me, it was just about honing on what was important and that was coming back home. That was the important staple that I had in my mind. Mind you, it took months and months, it almost took a year and some change for me to even come to that decision because nine months ago, I was sitting in front of the Boston crowd saying that I wanted to resign. And after that, a lot of things happened in my personal life that really changed the landscape of how I felt about the game of basketball and actually playing it in a team environment. And that really affected me as a human being. And I didn't share it with anyone. I didn't want to come out and say that this is bothering me, Armand. A depression at this point of dealing with the death of my grandfather. So when all this happened and the NBA and the pressures I put it in quotations from this basketball game came into a free agency and what I was doing with my future, I wanted to dispel all those things, but I don't think I did it in the right way of being honest about how I felt. So I just wanted to come here with a very fresh mindset and make sure that I'm honest with my teammates going forward and also reverting back to apologizing to guys that I've been with and been teammates with to make sure that they know, hey, this is a game, but also our lives come into this. And when it affects our livelihood and it affects our happiness to play basketball, then the product or our service out there on the floor is not great. And that's just what it is. Personal lives, it seems like it's not as important, but in talking in terms about relationships and coaches and all this other stuff that go into the team environment, I think the important thing is to realize that the human being as a basketball player or in any industry struggles as well, dealing with personal issues. So for me, I just wanted to come in with that mentality like, hey, I'm just gonna be honest about who I am and what I'm doing going forward and my goals for myself. And then apply that into the environment here that we have in Brooklyn, so. Hey, Kyrie, Steph and Bonnie from New York Daily News. Obviously, we don't know if KD or if he's gonna play when he's gonna come back. What are your expectations for this first season in Brooklyn, not knowing about him? I mean, I'm pretty sure that question's gonna come up pretty frequently throughout the year. But even while he was injured, I made sure that he knows that he has our support 100%, that there isn't going to be any pressure from any of us at any time. And I will make sure of that because I've been in that same position of being the guy that's injured on the team and everyone looking like, are you gonna come back anytime soon? If you come back, then this is going to be our championship caliber team. If you were playing, then this would happen and naturally, I think you have to go into the inside of the mind of a competitor and realize that a lot of people have responsibilities for why that ended up happening the way it happened on a national scale. We all know K was not ready to play in that environment. We all know that, whether people want to admit it or not. He was out 31 days and we put him on a national stage on the finals to end up selling a product that came before the person, Kevin. And now I'm here to protect that. I'm going to be a protector of that all throughout the year and not allowing anyone to infiltrate that circle of, hey, K, do you get right? We'll be fine. We have expectations for our team. We obviously know he's an integral part, but we'll wait for that. I'm very patient. I'll be overpatient with Kevin because I don't want anything like that to happen to anyone again, especially on that type of stage where it happened and him having to answer questions about whether or not he's coming back or not. So I'm here to dispel it that you'll never hear me say he's coming back here. I think he's coming. I want him to be 101% healthy. Kyrie, Adam Himmelsbach with the Boston Globe in the middle here. You alluded to it a little bit a minute ago, but can you elaborate on the process for you, obviously making that commitment in October, kind of saying you'd like to go back to Boston? Obviously things changed and just kind of what changed for you over that time? Well, I think around that time it felt incredible in terms of the energy that we were building, especially for the future in Boston. It was something that I couldn't really explain at the time because personally I don't think I was acknowledging the things that were surrounding my life as well and how to lead this group of guys that I've been traded to, that I had what wasn't drafted by Boston. I had no type of affiliation with Boston before. I left Cleveland. There wasn't any works, anything that happened. Boston was a surprise team with Wick and Danny that took the chance on trading for me. And when they did and the way our first season happened and then also the way the end of the season happened and having so much youth and so much exuberance and goals set personally, I think that some of the actual knowledge that needed to be had in terms of being a championship team takes more than just two years. It takes more than just the environment that you feel just comfortable in. Hey, I think I want to resign here if you guys have me. Boston crowd was immense. It was crazy. They loved me in Boston. I love the Boston fans. And then two weeks later, things just got really, really rocky for me in terms of when I left for, I believe you know, after the Phoenix game, I went to my grandfather's memorial and he passed on October 23rd and after he passed, basketball was the last thing on my mind. So a lot of basketball and the joy I had from it was sucked away from me and there was a facial expression that I carried around with me throughout the year. Didn't allow anyone to get close to me in that instance and it really bothered me. And I didn't take the necessary steps to get counseling or get therapy or anything to deal with someone that close to me dying. I've never dealt with anything like that. So for me, I responded in ways that are uncharacteristic and like I said, I had to acknowledge that fact and I had to acknowledge that fact to the organization first because that was our internal bond and trust that we had. I talked to Danny, I wanted to resign. So throughout the year, it started becoming more and more clear that my relationships within my home life have way higher precedent than the organization or anyone. And I barely got a chance to talk to my grandfather before he passed from playing basketball. So you tell me if you would wanna go to work every single day, knowing that you just lost somebody close to you, doing a job every single day, that everyone from the outside or anyone internally is protecting you for. Like, hey, just keep being a basketball player. So throughout that year, it just became rocky and a lot of the battles that I thought I could battle through in the team environment I just wasn't ready for. And I failed those guys in a sense that I didn't give them everything that I could have during that season, especially with the amount of pieces that we had. So my relationships with them personally were great. But in terms of me being a leader in that environment and bringing everyone together, I failed. So for me, it's just a huge learning experience just to slow down and acknowledge that I'm human in all this. And then also take my steps going forward of reaching out to Danny and talking to those guys in WIC and reaching out to them and let them know, hey, look, basketball can end tomorrow. I care about you guys as a human being. I know this is a competitive environment, but let's move past this and let's go forward. Marcus, Terry, all those guys just wanna be great. We were all internally trying to be great. And I don't think we were trying to be great as a team to meet at the top. And that happens in team environments all the time, whether people wanna admit it or not. There are personal goals that everyone has, family, friends, media, telling everyone, hey, you need to be doing this. You need to be doing that. And actually, none of that crap matters. So everyone has a role to play and you see the most experienced teams end up winning the championship because they all buy in and sacrifice. It's usually the oldest teams in the league that make it there every single year because they don't have to deal with the same youthful expectations that are unrealistic for players that really have to earn different things in this league to be at that level. So, including myself. Kari, Ian Begley from SNY. Once you decided that you were gonna leave Boston, I mean, at what point was the plan in place for you and for Kevin and for DeAndre to come somewhere together? Was that always a thought or when did that come to fruition? Well, no, I think that the reality of it didn't set in until probably mid June or late June just because everything was just being tossed out for where I could go free agency, where he could go free agency, where DJ was in his contract, what Garrett was doing. There are different players that came into this whole team of being. So we just had to be honest with each other. And like I said, 416 in the morning, the night of free agency or the day in that morning of free agency, we still had no idea what we were doing because we didn't know the rules. We didn't know, okay, what are the things that we have to do going forward to make this thing happen? You know, it just was, we just want to care for one another in a way where we can build for the next four years and on like we wanna end our careers together. We wanna do this as a team. And then what better place to do it than Brooklyn with all these guys that have worked their tails off to be where they are now to even be in position here in Brooklyn. They've developed the Joe Harris. Joe Harris got drafted by Cleveland. I knew Joe was going to be special enough to be a great piece for a team right when I saw him. But like I said, roles in Cleveland, we were a championship team in Cleveland at that time. Joe couldn't play on our team at that time. That was just a reality. So Brooklyn gave him a chance and opportunity and now he's performing. So it all meshed well together. But we talked in detail just that morning and then later on that day, we just decided, hey, we're just gonna break this. Like we're doing this together and then we'll formulate a plan around that. So basically it just happened in the spur of the moment on that day. All right, one last question. Hey, Gary, Christian Winfield, New York Daily News. What was it, I guess, about the way the Nets play basketball on the court that sold you and how do you feel that you can, A, elevate it, elevate what they did last year and B, I guess, meshed with what they were running with last year as well. Well, I think that the primary goal is to have the guards have the ball in their hands as we watched D. Russ last year. Have a career year playing under Kenny and as well as playing with Spencer and playing with Karris. You know, obviously those guys dealt with their individual injuries and a lot of the work came on D. Russ. His watch and he really elevated himself and carried this team in a way which really from an observative standpoint, I was really happy. I was like, okay, this guy is, he's really showing who he is. And then as we got along, I just started to imagine different lineups who would be implemented this way. How can Kenny teach us in a way that gives us freedom out there on the floor and we're not so structured, but we have an expectation for who we are as a team day in and day out. And he's gonna tell you like it is. Kenny's no telling it like it is, which I appreciate. So it just very, it meshed very well at the time and like I said, I wanted to show an appreciation for the journey that I've had watching the Nets over in Jersey, over in continental airlines at that time being a kid, being at the finals and that being an inspirational piece of the last person that although it was the ABA championship, but I pay attention to things like this is the last time was Julius Irving being here as well. So for me, it's just about the history and then also the transition that it's made now being in Brooklyn also being from Jersey. It was like, okay, let me bring this New York, New Jersey style to the court. I don't think we've seen a player from around here be on the team as just this example now of in the community as well as on the floor. I grew up playing in some of these parks. I popped up at a Brooklyn parks the other day not realizing that I'm still not normal. So when I go outside and I see all these kids leaving a bunch of courts, I'm like, I just came here to shoot my dad because that's where I grew up is outside playing basketball having that attitude to really prove people right that I'm the next one and meant to take over this league for the next few years. Sorry.