For a guy like you, who is so sound on the defensive end, where have you been challenged the most in your growth on that side of the ball?

I'd probably say rotations, really.

I mean, rotations just being more physical on ball.

You know, I think times when I lose physicality, people start getting downhill or fighting over screens.

So I think definitely working through those things and then just continue to get better each and every day.

But I think I've pretty, did pretty good.

And I asked Dooley this, but when you are coming into things, you have an expectation, but maybe what was surprising to you about the reality of what camp is?

Honestly, I mean, I've heard from people that like, you know, like NBA practices are kinda like light.

What have you taken away from those guys' game a little bit more that you mentioned Lou and Dyson?

Just physicality.

I mean, Dyson, honestly, if he stopped playing basketball right now, he could be an NFL corner.

The way he reads passes off the ball is crazy.

I've seen it one time in the corner.

I've seen him reading the ball the whole time.

And then Lou, just physicality, coming off the screen.

And has CJ sort of given you maybe any tips about how that could help you or how the officiating might be a little bit different, especially as a rookie?

Where have you been challenged the most in your growth on that side of the ball?

I'd probably say rotations really.

I mean, rotations, just being more physical on the ball, you know? I think times when I lose physicality, people start getting downhill or fighting over screens.

So I think definitely working through those things and then just continue to get better every single day.

But I think I pretty, did pretty good.

Yeah.

Everyone's probably been down there for at least, like two weeks or so, so we've been having pretty good runs there.

But I mean, just again, you know, seeing them down here and seeing certain things that they do, like Lou and Dyson, how they defend, you know, how people cut and everything like that.

Wow.

I used to play with my, uh, my friend's dad, who was my coach growing up, Coach Cody.

We used to always, uh, 'cause he was a high school coach, so we would go up in the, in the summer and on his computers at, at, at my c- at my high school that I went to, we would draft on those computers, and then we would always play.

So, that's when we used to play back then.

But I just continued playing throughout the year.

I play with my friends, some of the team now, so I've been on it.

Yeah

...

I watched every game.

So I think, I mean, I saw someone, they were leading like 75% of the series.

It's really just the fourth quarters.

I think like in a 29 point loss, Knicks did start coming back, but I think the big thing was Castle without the game.

Late games, The refs kind of hold their whistle a little more, so it's harder for Wimby to get in the paint.

But Castle's a guy who really gets in the paint a lot.

So I think kind of slowing the game down, and they were really relying on a three.

Why is LeBron the GOAT?

How was your freshman year? How would you grade it?

I mean, I think it was good.

It was everything I expected.

I mean, I had goals definitely going into it.

I mean, I wasn't, like, under-recruited or anything like that, but I mean, I wasn't really known 'cause I didn't really play on any, uh, UIBL or Adidas, anything like that.

So just going into Houston with Coach Sam, just trying to prove the player I was every day in practice, just going out there and competing.

And then I knew...

Tell the team and the fan base of the organization what to expect if their team drafts you.

There's someone on the Spurs roster that Kingston here reminds you of.

Yeah.

When, when I watch your game, and I watched you throughout the course of the season, it's, uh, very reminiscent of a guy whose Spurs fans can resonate in, De'Aaron Fox.

And we talk about your game, right? That end-to-end speed, the, the vertical explosion of which you provide, I mean, you, you from one end to the other end is very reminiscent.

When you get downhill, you're hard to stop.

You get that momentum, the change of pace, the way you change directions in the blink of an eye.

I mean, what do you see, and what are the comparisons to you and De'Aaron Fox? Definitely.

Mm-hmm.

Which is, I think the process stuff

stuffUh, honestly, when I'm playing I don't really use data a lot.

I like looking at it after.

I know synergy, like, I was looking at it with my, uh, my trainer and everything like that, you know, looking back how Tyrese Maxey was in, in college, looking back how Fox was in college.

So, I mean, looking back, seeing how they played and how, you know, my game, like, relates to theirs.

But I don't use it too much, you know, in, like, every game.

I'm not gonna play a game and be like, "Oh, what were my synergy? Like, what were my stats for, for that game?" So definitely looking back at it and really seeing how different people are and how they play, it definitely helps mainly on defense, you know, knowing what tendencies players like to do.

What weaknesses do scouts get wrong about you?

[laughs]

It's 'cause I was playing good defense, it's 'cause I was getting deflections, it's 'cause I was playing like I had a long wingspan.

So just because measurements come out and I'm not as big as you thought I was, at the end of the day, I'm still doing what I can on the court.

So w- whatever I can do on the court, you know, just trying to lock in and I think obviously for me, I have, my, my talent is really athleticism.

So a lot of times where I lack in length, lack in size, I can use my IQ and athleticism to get to, get to spots like that, you know? Kind of knowing what the offense is gonna do, get deflections, and then reading the, reading the person I'm guarding.

So I mean, using a lot of things, 'cause it comes down to a lot of things.

Some people have more God-given talents.

Like, do you think that a lot of guards, especially a, like, high usage guards, like, they do overdo it at times? Not calling out other people, but.

Talk to us a little bit about that process, how rigorous it was for you to kind of adjust to that and to kind of get your body right for the season that you had.

Yeah, I think high school prepared me a lot for that.

I think just the running we did, it was just so continuous, you know, every day, you know, so you can't there's no days off.

The worst days were versa climbers.

Like if you if someone's got on versa climber, they done they had to go through one of the workouts we've done on those because it's crazy.

You can't even explain it really how it is.

It's a full body workout, but it's weird.

What's one aspect of your skill set that you feel like gets slept on a little bit?