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NBA DRAFTJune 27, 2013Anthony BennettBROOKLYN, NEW YORK ANTHONY BENNETT Q. Anthony, congratulations. So much to talk about. So congratulations on this moment for you. I remember you mentioned about being a fan of a fellow No. 1 pick out of UNLV by the name of Larry Johnson. Talk about how you're looking forward to follow in his footsteps. ANTHONY BENNETT: At the same time, I'm really trying to create my own path. But I feel like throughout the whole year Coach Rice at UNLV, Stacey Augmon and Heath Schroyer, basically all said like our game is similar. So I went back ‑‑ it was like an off‑day. I watched UNLV play Duke and beat them by 30 in the final. It was pretty much similar. I kind of see where the comparisons are coming from. Q. Congratulations, Anthony. Can you talk about, are you surprised or did you see this coming after your interview in Cleveland? ANTHONY BENNETT: I'm just as surprised as everybody else. I didn't really have any idea who's going No. 1 or who was going No. 2. I heard everything was up for grabs. But I'm just real happy, glad that I have this opportunity, and I just got to thank God for everything. Q. Anthony, can you describe just the emotions of just being a kid from Toronto to now being the first Canadian to go first overall? What are your emotions and the thoughts about Canadian basketball? Because there might be another one next year. ANTHONY BENNETT: Yeah. It's just crazy. Made history. I can't really complain about that. It's just like a long‑time dream that I had since I first started playing basketball, even though it was six or seven years ago. It's just crazy. Next year with (Andrew) Wiggins, hopefully he does well at Kansas. I'm rooting for him. I'm pretty sure he'll get that No. 1 spot. Q. Anthony, where do you see yourself right now fitting with the Cavs right away? ANTHONY BENNETT: I can contribute at the four, at the three. You know, there's things I still need to work on, but I feel like I'm a great teammate, unselfish. I think I can just fit in right away. Q. How exciting is that you're going to be playing and getting lobs and dishes in the paint from Kyrie Irving? ANTHONY BENNETT: It's cool seeing him throughout the whole year. He's putting up numbers. He's doing his thing. Now I can officially say he's my teammate. Q. Anthony, first of all, congratulations. Yesterday we talked about this a little bit, scouts had said maybe you're the most pro‑ready player. You're No. 1. Do you feel you're pro‑ready? ANTHONY BENNETT: I would say I'm pro‑ready, but at the same time there's a lot of things I need to work on. I made it, but I just need to keep working, trying to get a second contract, trying to do well for myself and the team. Just got to keep grinding from here. Q. Anthony, you said you were surprised. At what point in today were you maybe told this might happen, and when did you know it was going to happen? ANTHONY BENNETT: When they said my name. That's when I knew when it happened. I had no idea before, but like I said, all in God's work. Q. Have you got a congratulatory call from Prime Minister Steven Harper? Is it only fair that Seth Jones be the No. 1 NHL draft on Sunday? ANTHONY BENNETT: I'm not a big fan of hockey, but I support the Maple Leafs. Hopefully he does get picked No. 1. It's crazy. Great feeling, man. Q. Anthony, you and Tristan took the same path out of Toronto to Findlay Prep in Nevada. I know he's watched you very close. I assume he looks at you as a kind of younger brother. Now you're in effect competing for playing time, but a teammate. How much have you guys talked about this day and possibly playing together? ANTHONY BENNETT: I don't really talk to Tristan. If I see him in person, we'll take 20 minutes out of our day just to chat it up. But other than that, he's just a great guy. He seems real cool. Both from the same area. I'm going to be seeing him a lot, basically. Q. Anthony, congratulations. Back to what it means to you as a Canadian to be here like this, like you were saying, you're especially tight with Tristan, what's it's like to be on the same team from the same place? ANTHONY BENNETT: That Canadian connection. Basically I had that throughout my whole basketball career, at UNLV with Khem Birch, Findlay Prep with Myck Kabongo. It goes all around. I'm really happy, I'm really excited and ready to take on this opportunity. Q. I know that some of the guys met with Harrison Barnes and his mom? ANTHONY BENNETT: I think that was the family meeting. Harrison Barnes and Iguodala came this morning to talk to us about things in the league. Q. Did you give any advice about what's going to happen now? Everything changes. ANTHONY BENNETT: They just said like you're on the bigger stage. A lot of things are going to come your way. Just stay level‑headed. Stay humble. Take care of your body, and everything should be fine. Q. How familiar are you with Mike Brown and his coaching staff? And do you think you'll have any trouble acclimating to the Cavs in the pro game? ANTHONY BENNETT: You know, when I went to Cleveland I think it was like last week, if not the week before, I really had a chance to meet with everybody. And they seemed like a real great group of guys, just wants the best for me. I just feel like my personality I can open up to anybody. I can play with anybody. It's just‑‑ there's no agendas for me. I just want to be successful, win championships, and you know, just win games. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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