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 Jason Collins |
Steve Siders (Stanford, CA)
Jason, are you surprised at the success Stanford has achieved this yeardespite the loss of Arthur, the Peters, Tim, Mark and Kris? Obviously,having you and Mendy back full time has been a bonus.
Jason Collins: No, I am not surprised by our team's success because I know that we learned a lot by practicing against last year's seniors. We used to always compete and play well against them.
Tim Orogood (Pacific Palisades, CA)
Jason - great to see you are doing so well. I know it must have beendifficult battling the injuries. What helped you get through it and whatadvice would you give to kids and fellow collegiate players who have to gothrough the same thing? Best of luck for the remainder of the season andagain, congrats on your perseverance!
Jason Collins: My family, friends, and teammates were always encouraging me to staypositive, and that was a tremendous lift. I would advise kids and others toalways stay positive, and know that God has a plan for us all. Somethingwill always challenge you, and you have to learn and become stronger fromyour adversities.
David Telleen-Lawton (San Marino, CA)
Jason, I'm glad you are on the court this year. Keep up the good work andtake care of yourself! As a fan, especially a Stanford fan where we are notused to double-digit wins, the most frustrating thing for me is to watch usget fouled and then miss the free throw. You guys do such amazing thingswith the ball. Why isn't EVERYONE a 90% free-throw shooter...especially theguys who are doing everything they can to break into the starting line-up?(I stopped playing scholastic basketball in 9th grade, my question isserious!) Thanks for the great entertainment. Two hours and the Cal gamestarts. Good luck...and swish.
Jason Collins: Free throw shooting can be difficult for people that don't practice it,don't concentrate on the shot, or get distracted by crowd noise (etc). Itry to focus on my "ritual" which is spin the ball, take two dribbles, bendmy knees, and follow through on the shot.
Mat Beale (Stanford, CA)
A lot of us fans are really enjoying seeing your inside strength this yearafter missing it the past two. There's little doubt that you will be one ofthe top college centers in the next couple of years. Considering your kneeproblems and the current state of the NBA draft, do you think you'll beable to complete all four years of your eligibility here? A couple ofMaster's degrees would look good on your resume! Also, with Jarrongraduating next year, how do you feel about the end to your 20-plus yearsof playing together? Do you hope someday to play for the same NBA team?
Jason Collins: I am concentrating on getting my degree, (my major is Economics), and I amtrying not to think about the end of playing with Jarron. We really don'ttalk about it that much because it is going to be very difficult once westop playing togehter.
Eric Levien (Oakland, CA)
If you could pick an NBA team to play for, who would it be? What do youwant to do when your NBA career is over?
Jason Collins: I don't care which NBA team I play for, but hopefully I will play on a teamthat is able to compete for a championship. I have always enjoyed playingon teams that have high standards and large goals, while having a realisticchance of achieving those expectations.
Thank you for asking me these questions, and I hope that I have answeredsome of your questions....thank you -jason
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