Read this DMo interview and found it pretty interesting. He talks about Houston, his career, Dwight, current Rockets... Thought I'd share some of the more relevant stuff (the whole interview is much longer than this)... Draft: Spoiler Q: On draft day, were you happy when you found out that you're going to Houston? DMo: I knew Luis Scola was a Rocket, so naturally I was really happy. He's my favorite player and I was really excited to become teammates with him. It was a big shock. Unfortunately, after a month or so his contract was bought out and I had a lot of mixed feelings. Texas/Houston: Spoiler Q: Houston is the 4th biggest city in the USA. Did you experience a culture shock when you got there? DMo: I think there's always a culture shock to some degree. I was 18 when first I left home to play in Italy. I think it's much harder for a young kid. After Italy/Poland, going to the states wasn't nearly as difficult. Of course, I needed to adapt to the climate. When I got drafted by Minnesota I was a bit stressed because it's even colder there than in Lithuania. But then I got to Houston during the summer and it was over 100 degrees. It was surreal. Q: There exists a stereotype that Texan people are very welcoming, wonderful people who are kind and open to foreigners. Was that true? DMo: I have a lot of friends there and they definitely fit that stereotype. If you come to their home they will give you everything they have. They aren't arrogant or anything like that. I was really surprised by how many good people I've met around Houston. Q: How often were you eating steaks while you were there? DMo: Very often! Houston is famous for its cousine, and very very large servings. There's a few very popular steakhouses there and I really enjoyed my time there. Q: Southern states have some negative stereotypes too. Did you experience any of them? DMo: Definitely not, never. The only problem that I've noticed is that in Texas everyone has a gun in their car. Cars are treated as private property therefore there's a gun in every one of them. Some of my friends told me stories about people getting taken over by road rage, getting out of their cars and starting to wave their guns at each other. You start thinking to yourself 'What's going to happen now'? Nothing, in the end they just turn around and drive away. Dwight: Spoiler Q: It's interesting that despite his charisma, Dwight is followed by this reputation of a locker room chemistry killer. Why is that? DMo: Not everyone likes people like him. He's just that kind of person who's the same whether we win the game or we lose it. And this is probably the quality that irritates other players. I myself am pretty sad after a loss, but Dwight isn't impacted by it at all. A lot of the players and coaches don't understand that it's just who he is as a person. After losses people want to see anger, disappointment, sadness, but Dwight doesn't show any of that. He was always a good teammate to me, I don't have anything against him. I think his conflict with Stan Van Gundy back in Orlando was a big blow to his reputation. But he's a much better person than the media likes to portray. Current Rockets: Spoiler Q: The Rockets were the only team who were able to challenge the Warriors this season, but they've already lost both Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute. They're trying to fill those holes with Tyler Ennis, as well as Carmelo Anthony. What are your thoughts of their offseason? DMo: Houston lost its two most valuable defenders. The next most important defenders are Capela and Tucker. All of these guys were hiding Harden's deficiencies on the defensive end. Everyone knows James isn't a top level player on that end. I can't say that it's Houston's fault, because the other team offered Trevor much more money, but Phoenix took away one of the best and most mature players that I have ever played with. Trevor is a wonderful person who's always helping everyone. After Carmelo comes, Houston will have another player who will need to be hidden on the defensive end. I have some worries about that. I hope they find a way to keep Capela - losing him would be a catastrophe.
Someone is still upset Harden did not eat with him. James & Carmelo will not be inviting Donatas to lunch or dinner.
After DMO didn’t list Chris Paul in the Rockets top 4 defenders, I couldn’t take him serious. I hope BJ Armstrong pays when they go out for lunch... he cost DMO tens of millions of dollars.
Wow, those were surprisingly good questions, and the Rockets answer was quite knowledgeable for an ex-Rocket to follow that closely. Fun read! He missed an opportunity to give a shout-out to Killen's BBQ, though. Love for Houston Some love for Dwight https://twitter.com/DonatasMot/status/992834201304039424 Some love for TJones his NOLA teammate https://twitter.com/DonatasMot/status/818492883598737409 Some love for @Jontro https://twitter.com/DonatasMot/status/831563758036086784
I had no idea what to expect, but his answers are great. They seem to be very genuine, pragmatic, and positive. I'm impressed.
Lulz at DMO thinking everyone carries a gun in their car. That's a product of who he was hanging out with here. The types that carry a gun to show off/look cool. Or the club owners who were out and about in empty parking lots at 3am. We obviously don't know how players act behind closed doors, but from what I've seen, not much difference between Embiid's demeanor vs Dwight's after a loss. One is a media darling, the other hated. Embiid is young though, so I suppose he gets a pass. DMO was surprisingly insightful on our offseason transactions. He must still follow us closely.
That interview was a good read. Thanks for posting. What happened to DMo? I mean, he had his injury and rehabbed and I guess is playing over seas? It seemed to me after the rehab he looked "thinner" and perhaps lost explosiveness (such as it was). ALSO... That bit in the interview on Dwight sounds familiar. Imagine seeing Dwight being "indifferent" after a loss and then remember the Rockets after the GSW loss. Gerald Green just DEVASTATED. Ariza on the verge of crying. CP3 punching that bench because he couldn't contribute.
Embiid gets pretty angry after losses and starts insulting/trolling his opponents via Twitter. Dwight gives he same generic answers to the media then keeps it moving. I don't think they are similar at all.
School-a is still one of my faves - The Ice cream man. Glad Dmo likes Dwert who never caught him in the woods. Wow, Dmo dun like Harden's improving D.
Seemed very honest in that interview. Good questions. Wish he never sustained that back injury, his post up game was becoming automatic.
He's going to continue playing for Shandong (CBA): [EuroHoops - June 14, 2018] Donatas Motiejunas reportedly signed new deal with Shandong Golden Stars Spoiler: DMo CBA highlight vids
