Tristan Thompson Quotes

You've got to learn the footwork, the positioning, how to box out, how to pass, how to shoot your free throws. All these things are necessary, not to be the No. 1 player in the world, but maybe you can play against him.

Your big has to be able to make 'em pay from the perimeter.

I'm working on everything, especially staying balanced when I shoot the ball. That's the biggest thing, as well as taking good shots within the offense.

I have an incredible amount of basketball knowledge, and I think a lot of that is derived from having a Hall of Fame college basketball coach who was very knowledgeable of the game and I had a great high school coach who was also very knowledgeable.

I really want to start playing basketball. I actually bought a new basketball.

The advent of so much dribbling has created a different kind of player, and it starts at a very early age. We have so many gifted ball handlers. Everything is pick-and-roll. Unless he's a catch-and-shoot guy, a player is going to put it on the floor and attack. Kevin Durant is a wonderful ball handler.

Kobe is one of the best scorers in NBA history, but I don't have as much trouble with him in the post as I do with Carmelo.

I say this every time I get interviewed, I just try to get my shots on target. If they go in, they go in.

I developed my game a lot and learned how to score off the dribble. I learned how to play team defense and one-on-one defense.

I've always been a high-percentage shooter, obviously because I'm dunking and laying the ball up.

I don't really differentiate from big-time college basketball to any other kind of basketball. It's basketball. It's fundamentals and defense and shooting - they're all the same.

Offensively, Lowry is a great catch-and-shoot player from deep, and he's very comfortable shooting the trey off the bounce in isolations and pick-and-roll.

My thing that I can do is score the basketball.

I think by me playing inside-out, it's really been opening up that 3-point shot for me.

A lot of guys go into the NBA not being able to shoot the ball well, but then they become great shooters.

It's important to strengthen my body while also improving my shot. Shooting and defense are how I'll make my living, so those are the areas I really have to work on.

Passing the basketball - I feel like I've gotten better with that.

I'm actually a better passer out of the post than I am in pick-and-rolls.

I do realize that it's important to be a threat at the 3-point line.

I sucked. It was my first time picking up a basketball. I watched it on TV, but I never knew what to really do with it. I mean, I needed help with everything.

Once I got to college, I didn't know defensive rotations; my footwork was sloppy. I used to travel every other play.

I'd just shoot until I got tired. I wanted to improve my outside shooting and my ball handling. I wanted to improve everything.

A lot of playcalls are for the corner 3. I thought that's something I should really work on.

I'm just really just continuing to work on back-to-the-basket stuff and working on getting better from the foul line.

The things I've worked on in the offseason have mostly been on my footwork and pick-and-roll - using my size and not just always trying to face up and go by a guy.