Jeremy Lamb’s Thoughts After Being Taken by The Rockets

Some quotes from Jeremy Lamb following his selection by Houston with the 12th pick of the draft. Shoutout to the folks at ASAP Sports for their transcripts.

Lamb’s opening statement:

“First of all, I just want to thank God.  During the workout process, I sprained my ankle and God blessed me to come back with a speedy recovery, and be able to work out.
Went up to Houston, really started a relationship with them.  It’s a really good program and a good coach, and they seem like they are really in order, and it’s a great honor.”

What he brings to the Rockets:

“I think shooting, I can stretch the floor.  You know, I can add scoring, and also on the defensive ends, on the rebound, get deflection and get the break; find a couple of guys that I can look up to; ask questions; learn from them. So being able to go to a good organization is huge. ”

On Kevin McHale:

“I’ve met him plenty of times, and a great guy.  So being able to learn from, like you said, a Hall of Fame coach and just be able to, my first year, be coached by a great coach like that is just?? is a blessing.”

On waiting out the picks:

“It was tough.  I was just waiting.  I was like, man, you know, I was just waiting.  But you know, you see people go in front of you, and you’re happy for them, as well, but as time goes on, it was only the?? it was still in the lottery and I was sweating.  That was just me being anxious and nervous, but once I heard my name called, it was one of the greatest feelings.”

On UConn, Jim Calhoun’s influence:

“Coach [Jim] Calhoun was a tough coach to play for, but a great coach to play for.  I was struggling, and Coach always believed in me.  You know, he was always in my head.  He got me mentally tough.  He pushed me to the limit.  When I thought I was working hard, he showed me that I wasn’t.  He always told me that I wasn’t.
My freshman year, got to play with Kemba Walker, great point guard, and I learned a lot from him.  So my whole time at UConn was a huge learning experience and a time for me to get tougher.”