NBA star David West pays visit to Mount Olive

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on July 5, 2014 11:07 PM

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GNA: What message do you hope the students take from you today?

West: More than anything, define sucess for themselves. Find whatever it is that they feel like they do well and the direction they want to go in college, then don't let anyone define for them what the end game is. They make the decision when they've gone far enough. It's about not confining yourself to what other peoples' expectations of you may be. You'll be mature in the fact that you can set those goals for yourself, set the parameters and again, set the end result to what you desire. Chase success, go after it hard.

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GNA: In wake of the Donald Sterling case, how do we deal with the closeted racism you spoke about ... at the very least, reduce it and hopefully get rid of it?

West: Obviously, I think a lot of it is information, but you can't be naive about the condition that life puts in front of you. To be naive that Donald Sterling couldn't think like that, especially from my perspective, I thought guys were a little bit too emotional in terms of their response to it as opposed to understanding that people like that exist. (You) can't let that affect who you are, tear away from you. I don't think it's prevalent in our league, but it's naive to think that it doesn't exist. I think he's more in a minority in terms of his stance, but again, it's naive of anybody to flat out think it doesn't exist.

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GNA: Commissioner Silva stepped in and made an immediate impact on the league regarding Sterling. What do you guys think of him?

West: Guys are warm to him. He's been very open in terms of communication. This is his first run-through, so obviously he has to show his leadership at any opportunity where we he can make an attempt to demonstrate his leadership. I think he's done a good job at this point. I was at the draft last week. There's a kid, Isaiah Austin, whose career got cut short because they found a heart issue. The Commissioner brought up him up as a symbolic gesture to let him cross the stage and live out his dream. He's doing what's asked of him. He's made some classy decisions and some high-level moves.

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GNA: Do you think the "Big 3" -- James, Bosh and Wade -- will stay in Miami?

West: I think so. I think what they're trying to do is make some adjustments to get them some help. They're finding different paths to win championships. It's a matter of getting someone in there to help their team.

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GNA: LeBron James says you're "strong as Zeus." Who is the toughest player you've had to play against in the NBA during your 11-year career?

West: Probably the toughest guy is Dirk Nowitski, just because of his ability. He's seven-foot tall. He shoots the ball so high and offensively, he's prolific ... probably been the toughest (to defend) because of his physical dynamic and obviously his skill. He is difficult to account for when he's on the floor.

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GNA: Who would be your NBA "Dream Team"?

West: When I was younger, we always played this game where we would match our top five with someone else's top five. My top five was always Shaquille O'Neal, Tim Duncan, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson. I don't care what combination of players you put on the floor opposite them, I don't think they'd ever lose a basketball game.

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GNA: What's been the biggest challenge you've faced as a player in the NBA?

West: It's just growth, experience. The NBA is an environment where you've got to be solid in terms of who you are as an individual, not get consumed. You have to deal with the maturity that comes along with it, the grind, the travel, playing the equivalent of three college seasons a year. You have to get used to managing your body, the ups and downs your body presents over the course of a six- to eight-month season.

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GNA: You're a player, a father, a husband, a son, a friend. How do you juggle all that?

West: That's a part of that growth I mentioned earlier. Obviously, your family and your responsibilities to your family trumps all of that so it doesn't matter what type of success you're having. If you put it in that perspective, you can deal with your family. Of course, the family has to be somewhat understanding that you're traveling six to 10 days at a time. It just comes from maturity and prioritizing.

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GNA: Your contract with the Pacers ends in two seasons. Will you continue to play or hang up your shoes?

West: You know, I don't know. I've always said that I will try to play out the end of this (current) deal and then after that it would come down to whether or not I want to keep playing. I've been playing competitively since I was six years old ... almost 28 years of my life. It's been a very long time. As long as I still have the desire, that "itch" to play, I'll keep on playing.

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GNA: You elected to stay at Xavier for four years. Should college freshman be allowed to enter the NBA Draft?

West: Here is my take on that. I've always felt like guys should have the opportunity to work at 18. If you're going to go to college, I'd rather (see) guys stay in college two years to get the benefit, just like football does where you have to be out of high school three years. I think the college guys would benefit being on their own, learning how to make decisions, grow up some before coming into the NBA that's an absolute man's league. The reason some of those rules are created is because there are too many young kids that make that jump and appear mentally not ready to handle the responsibility of being an adult -- having a high-profile job that requires you to perform at a certain level every night or you're gone and they're looking for another guy in the following year's draft.

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GNA: Tell me about the tattoo, "My life, My way."

West: I was younger, but I think obviously, it goes back to not letting people define where you are going ... define what it is you can and cannot do. It's your life, you have to figure it (out) your way. I always tell young people that you've never lived a day in your life where someone else has taken a breath for you. You have to take every single breath for yourself, no matter who you are, what you want, it's on you. Ultimately, your success and the things that happen to you ... your own improvement, your own development ... everything has to start with you. You have to participate in that.

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GNA: Why did you start making mixtapes for your teammates?

West: That's just for music. Everything that you do, people expect you to be doing it for fame, glory and money. It's all right to do things just because you like to do things. It's all right to have things you're not looking to get any notoriety from, look to not be celebrated for (doing it). That's how music is to me. It's always been something that's been part of my life. I don't look to share it with the world and become famous for it, but it's something I like doing.

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GNA: If you could have either lunch or dinner with three people, dead or alive, who would be they be and why?

West: Oh. One person would be Bill Gates, definitely. He's the richest man in the world and I believe he'd had some valuable piece of information that he could share with me. He's achieved an unbelievable amount of success, so I would like to take something from him. The last two, I'd probably want to sit down with Marcus Garvey and Dr. King. Some of the strength Dr. King displayed in terms of standing so far out ahead of everybody, I don't think everybody possesses. Ultimately knowing that every day you're risking your life for people you don't know, and knowing your destiny -- even the end of your life -- serves a greater purpose. I would definitely want to figure out where that strength, that courage comes from. Garvey, the same thing. His passion for the people, passion for the improvement of African-Americans and African people throughout the world. (Learning) where that courage comes from, that strength to go out and say 'I know this is not popular, but I'm going to go out and stand alone.' I've always looked to identify strength characteristics of people. I feel like people that I study and research through history are people that I find inspiration in (and) great strength. We don't talk about weak people. We're usually referencing the knowledge, and strength and courage of people. When you see that, you identify and want to figure out how you can add some of that to your life.