1. Most money you've ever lost gambling?
``Shooting dice with my friends -- $25,000-$30,000. That's cash. My friends left happy that night.''
2. The thing in your home you'd show off if trying to impress a stranger?
``The bowling alley. It's not just because of the bowling alley, but all my NBA memorabilia is there. Got a lot of championship stuff going up right now.''
3. You are almost by consensus considered the greatest trash-talker in the history of the NBA. How would you teach the art of it?
``It's instinct. When I first got in the league, a lot of people talked -- Reggie Miller, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird. They say something, and you say something about their mom to get their attention and distract them and get them in foul trouble. I cuss a lot on the court. Jordan would talk a lot. I just kept going at him. It's got to be in the heat of the moment. I'm going to come back hard and harsh, try to hurt him. Nobody in your family is off limits.''
4. Angriest you've ever gotten someone with it?
``Joe Wolf. He was a dirty player. He tried to set an illegal pick on me, and I went after him the whole night. I was talking about his parents and everything, a stream of family stuff. I was searching for the nerve all game, and I finally found it. Then I head-butted him. He's a lot taller than me, so I tried to knock his teeth out.''
5. Five words you'd use to describe yourself to a stranger?
``[Unleashes a torrent of curse words] How's that? Nah, feisty. Heart. Guts. Determined. Leader.''
6. You are one of the oldest guys in the league at 38. Something that happens every day to remind you of your age?
'Everyone who comes on the court calls me `Old Head.' All the little youngsters do it, which is fine. But now I've got veterans who have been in the league 10 years doing it.''
7. You have to make any strict diet changes because of your age?
``No. I eat two cheeseburgers, fries and a milkshake right before the game.''
8. Last time basketball made you cry?
``Just recently. My mother and father called me after the championship. We finally did it. They were crying, shedding tears, really emotional. We finally did. We. That got me.''
9. Your favorite basketball-related photograph?
``The jump shot in Game 3 of The Finals. Saved us. We were almost down 3-0. I've got it in my house in Vegas. Makes me smile every time. It's half the wall. I stand up to it, and it dwarfs me.''
10. Wimpiest basketball fight you've seen in two decades?
``Seen a lot. When [Carmelo Anthony] hit the Knicks guy recently, he was trying to run for cover, but he ran too far. I think that one made everyone laugh. I wouldn't call it a wimpy thing. He was just running for cover. He just ran toward his bench, so he knew he wouldn't get hit by anybody else.''
11. Who is the toughest guy in the league for you to guard?
``Two of them. Allen Iverson. He runs around so much, and he gets so many calls. And Kobe Bryant. They're going to take any shot at any time. Hard to guard with all the rule changes. You know they're going to get 40 or 50 looks.''
12. Washington Wizard Gilbert Arenas shouts ''Hibachi'' when he makes shots because the hibachi is hot. You inclined to shout anything?
``No. These young guys nowadays are so into themselves. I didn't shout anything. When I got it going, I just kept it going. But I went on the other end of the floor and defended someone and ripped someone up. You don't see any of these scorers playing any kind of defense. Just humiliate the guy you are guarding, will you? This game has changed.''
13. Milwaukee Buck Michael Redd has admitted there have been times the player across from him smells like booze. Have you had a lot of instances like that?
``Everybody smells like booze in the NBA to me. You can't call out one person. There have been a lot of victims on that. You can't tell who it was, probably the whole team was on booze from the night before. Maybe the whole team and some of the coaches, too. Everybody in the NBA drinks. I don't think they would be drunk on the court, but it lingers with them after they've had a drink or two. Mascots are probably all drunk, too. You couldn't see them under the mascot suits.''
14. How many messages did you leave the Karl Malones of the world after you won the championship?
'I didn't do Karl Malone. We're tight. I wish he had been part of it. I got Charles Barkley, though. He was talking all year about how we were nothing, we weren't any good. As soon it was over, I called him and said, `We weren't good, but we sure got that ring.' It was, 'You can bleep, bleep, bleep.' That's what I told him. That message was about four or five minutes. I kept going on.''
15. The low point last season when you thought to yourself that it wasn't going to work and you weren't going to win a championship here?
'Beginning of the year. We were 10-10. Nothing going right. Up and down. People were hurt. I thought, `The critics are right. We are not a good team. This is not going to work.' As soon as Pat Riley took over, he made our thinking process different and made us work a little harder.''
16. How do you stay motivated now that you've won?
``I have fun playing this game. Once you start making it business, you should let it go. Being together, staying together, that's fun. I'm motivated more now because we've got to defend our championship. There's a target on our chest. Teams have better nights against us because we're the champs.''
17. Where would you place yourself in the discussion of best point guards?
``All-time? There have been a couple who have been better than me. John Stockton, Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas. I think I'd be in the top 10, maybe top six. But those three stand out. You can put Walt Frazier in there with me.''
18. You've played with Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. Who is better?
``I can't tell you, but I can tell you this: Dwyane Wade is going to be a Hall of Famer. The way he strives is amazing. Kobe is groomed. I can't put Dwyane in three-championship situation, but they have the same amount of talent. Gun to my head? I've got to take Dwyane because I'm with him right now.''
19. When you played with Shaq and Kobe, it short-circuited. If you had to divvy up blame, Shaq gets what percentage and Kobe gets what percentage?
``No blame for either of them. I give the organization the blame because the organization didn't deal with it the right way. Everyone doesn't have to like each other. The organization has to fix that.''
20. You go out of your way to be charitable with kids. Why?
``I came from Oakland. I've seen a lot of bad things, a lot of kids struggling in my neighborhood. It really hurts me. I got out of that and made it. Some of these kids need a boost, kids like me.
``I want them to understand that, wherever they came from, there are people out there interested in their success. Help them, and they help each other. It's easy to help. Fun. And I love to see kids react.''
``Shooting dice with my friends -- $25,000-$30,000. That's cash. My friends left happy that night.''
2. The thing in your home you'd show off if trying to impress a stranger?
``The bowling alley. It's not just because of the bowling alley, but all my NBA memorabilia is there. Got a lot of championship stuff going up right now.''
3. You are almost by consensus considered the greatest trash-talker in the history of the NBA. How would you teach the art of it?
``It's instinct. When I first got in the league, a lot of people talked -- Reggie Miller, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird. They say something, and you say something about their mom to get their attention and distract them and get them in foul trouble. I cuss a lot on the court. Jordan would talk a lot. I just kept going at him. It's got to be in the heat of the moment. I'm going to come back hard and harsh, try to hurt him. Nobody in your family is off limits.''
4. Angriest you've ever gotten someone with it?
``Joe Wolf. He was a dirty player. He tried to set an illegal pick on me, and I went after him the whole night. I was talking about his parents and everything, a stream of family stuff. I was searching for the nerve all game, and I finally found it. Then I head-butted him. He's a lot taller than me, so I tried to knock his teeth out.''
5. Five words you'd use to describe yourself to a stranger?
``[Unleashes a torrent of curse words] How's that? Nah, feisty. Heart. Guts. Determined. Leader.''
6. You are one of the oldest guys in the league at 38. Something that happens every day to remind you of your age?
'Everyone who comes on the court calls me `Old Head.' All the little youngsters do it, which is fine. But now I've got veterans who have been in the league 10 years doing it.''
7. You have to make any strict diet changes because of your age?
``No. I eat two cheeseburgers, fries and a milkshake right before the game.''
8. Last time basketball made you cry?
``Just recently. My mother and father called me after the championship. We finally did it. They were crying, shedding tears, really emotional. We finally did. We. That got me.''
9. Your favorite basketball-related photograph?
``The jump shot in Game 3 of The Finals. Saved us. We were almost down 3-0. I've got it in my house in Vegas. Makes me smile every time. It's half the wall. I stand up to it, and it dwarfs me.''
10. Wimpiest basketball fight you've seen in two decades?
``Seen a lot. When [Carmelo Anthony] hit the Knicks guy recently, he was trying to run for cover, but he ran too far. I think that one made everyone laugh. I wouldn't call it a wimpy thing. He was just running for cover. He just ran toward his bench, so he knew he wouldn't get hit by anybody else.''
11. Who is the toughest guy in the league for you to guard?
``Two of them. Allen Iverson. He runs around so much, and he gets so many calls. And Kobe Bryant. They're going to take any shot at any time. Hard to guard with all the rule changes. You know they're going to get 40 or 50 looks.''
12. Washington Wizard Gilbert Arenas shouts ''Hibachi'' when he makes shots because the hibachi is hot. You inclined to shout anything?
``No. These young guys nowadays are so into themselves. I didn't shout anything. When I got it going, I just kept it going. But I went on the other end of the floor and defended someone and ripped someone up. You don't see any of these scorers playing any kind of defense. Just humiliate the guy you are guarding, will you? This game has changed.''
13. Milwaukee Buck Michael Redd has admitted there have been times the player across from him smells like booze. Have you had a lot of instances like that?
``Everybody smells like booze in the NBA to me. You can't call out one person. There have been a lot of victims on that. You can't tell who it was, probably the whole team was on booze from the night before. Maybe the whole team and some of the coaches, too. Everybody in the NBA drinks. I don't think they would be drunk on the court, but it lingers with them after they've had a drink or two. Mascots are probably all drunk, too. You couldn't see them under the mascot suits.''
14. How many messages did you leave the Karl Malones of the world after you won the championship?
'I didn't do Karl Malone. We're tight. I wish he had been part of it. I got Charles Barkley, though. He was talking all year about how we were nothing, we weren't any good. As soon it was over, I called him and said, `We weren't good, but we sure got that ring.' It was, 'You can bleep, bleep, bleep.' That's what I told him. That message was about four or five minutes. I kept going on.''
15. The low point last season when you thought to yourself that it wasn't going to work and you weren't going to win a championship here?
'Beginning of the year. We were 10-10. Nothing going right. Up and down. People were hurt. I thought, `The critics are right. We are not a good team. This is not going to work.' As soon as Pat Riley took over, he made our thinking process different and made us work a little harder.''
16. How do you stay motivated now that you've won?
``I have fun playing this game. Once you start making it business, you should let it go. Being together, staying together, that's fun. I'm motivated more now because we've got to defend our championship. There's a target on our chest. Teams have better nights against us because we're the champs.''
17. Where would you place yourself in the discussion of best point guards?
``All-time? There have been a couple who have been better than me. John Stockton, Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas. I think I'd be in the top 10, maybe top six. But those three stand out. You can put Walt Frazier in there with me.''
18. You've played with Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. Who is better?
``I can't tell you, but I can tell you this: Dwyane Wade is going to be a Hall of Famer. The way he strives is amazing. Kobe is groomed. I can't put Dwyane in three-championship situation, but they have the same amount of talent. Gun to my head? I've got to take Dwyane because I'm with him right now.''
19. When you played with Shaq and Kobe, it short-circuited. If you had to divvy up blame, Shaq gets what percentage and Kobe gets what percentage?
``No blame for either of them. I give the organization the blame because the organization didn't deal with it the right way. Everyone doesn't have to like each other. The organization has to fix that.''
20. You go out of your way to be charitable with kids. Why?
``I came from Oakland. I've seen a lot of bad things, a lot of kids struggling in my neighborhood. It really hurts me. I got out of that and made it. Some of these kids need a boost, kids like me.
``I want them to understand that, wherever they came from, there are people out there interested in their success. Help them, and they help each other. It's easy to help. Fun. And I love to see kids react.''
