Indazone
11-25-2008, 01:34 AM
A Conversation With Josh Childress
By PETE THAMEL (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/t/pete_thamel/index.html?inline=nyt-per)
Published: October 11, 2008
Josh Childress, a former Stanford star and Atlanta Hawks sixth man, left the creature comforts of the N.B.A. (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/n/national_basketball_association/index.html?inline=nyt-org) to become the highest-paid basketball player outside the N.B.A. Childress is making $20 million over three years to play for Olympiacos in Athens, a move viewed by some as a watershed signing in terms of opening the door for more prominent players to give Europe a shot. Childress said he was essentially making double what he would have made in the N.B.A. this season.
Although his move shows his adventurous spirit, his food tastes haven’t caught up. For dinner in Glyfada, an Athens suburb, he ordered a club sandwich, no ham.
In a recent interview, Childress, 25, shared some of his thoughts on life in Greece, the differences between basketball there and in the United States, and the Greek news media.
WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF THE DIFFERENCES ?
The way that athletes are treated here is similar to how movie stars are treated back home. Everything that you do is in the paper. I went to a club one night and the next day it was in the paper. It’s something that you have to get used to. They try and tell you not to go to a club, unless it’s after a game or stuff like that. They’d rather you not go out every night, but I’m not the kind of guy who goes out every night.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST REALIZE IT WAS DIFFERENT?
I realized it was different here the very first time that I came. When I came for that visit to see if I’d enjoy it here. For three days I was on the front page of every sports magazine. And they have 10 daily sports magazines. They had big spreads in the middle, detailing what I did throughout the day. I went to look at houses and this and that. That’s when I realized it was a different level. You get the picture and autograph thing back home. Here, guys yell, “Olympiacos,” and they have a tattoo of the team logo on their arm. It’s a different level of fan support.
OLYMPIACOS HAS A RIVAL HERE, PANATHINAIKOS, THAT’S SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THE RED SOX VERUS THE YANKEES. WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT IT?
It’s 10 times worse, 100 times worse probably. It’s to the point where if we have a home game, their fans can’t come. The same thing goes for our fans if we play there. I don’t know how long ago it was, but they were shooting flares to the other side and throwing firecrackers. After the games, they would organize places to meet and they would go brawl. When I say its 10 times worse, it’s like the true meaning of die-hard. We play them twice in the regular season and in the Greek Cup, which I think is another game, and once we hit the playoffs it’s a best-of-five. I think we played them six times last year.
WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST FROM BACK HOME?
Really, I’m a big breakfast guy. Turkey bacon. I have a chef here, but she hasn’t started yet because my mom is coming soon, and she’s going to cook for me. Hopefully she’ll make pancakes. I’m a simple guy; I just miss my breakfast. And obviously I miss my family. But that’s about it.
YOUR AGENT, JIM TANNER, TOLD ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW THIS WORKED OUT. COULD YOU WALK ME THROUGH IT?
We were on the phone. We had a conference call about who had called and what the offers were. At the end, Jim Tanner said, “And we got a call from Greece.” I heard it and I laughed. Like, what the heck? Where did that come from? Then he told me the offer. I said: “Let’s keep that one in play. Let’s see how everything else is going to play out.”
There was Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Phoenix, Cleveland and I can’t even remember. Jim went through the list. Little by little, some things were attractive and some weren’t. I wanted to get my situation squared away early, and I told the ownership that in Atlanta. Like the first week. Free agency starts July 1. From the first, it dragged out three weeks.
In the papers and in the media, Atlanta made it clear that signing myself and Josh Smith was a priority. Here we are, supposedly a priority, and weeks go by. I didn’t want to get stuck and I felt like as a person, I could adjust to living somewhere else. I don’t have a problem living here. I know a lot of guys would; it’s different. It’s no problem for me.
Once I came and saw the type of housing and the people, and saw who I’d be playing with and things like that, I realized that this isn’t so bad. And one of the things was very alluring was that I truly loved college. I loved the camaraderie and the team aspect of it. You get away from that in the N.B.A. a little bit. Everything is a little more individual. Even something like team meal. Yes, it’s something kind of silly. But I missed the team aspect of it and being close with all your teammates and having that family-type atmosphere.
DO YOU KEEP IN TOUCH WITH ANYONE FROM STANFORD?
I’m closest with the guys in my class. Rob Little, he’s in New York and works for Goldman Sachs. Chris Hernandez, who actually plays in Spain. Justin Davis played here. I got a lot of advice from him. He encouraged me. And Carlton Weatherby.
YOU GO ON A TRIP EVERY SUMMER WITH YOUR FRIENDS FROM GROWING UP, INCLUDING JAMAL SAMPSON, THE FORMER CAL STAR WHO PLAYS FOR THE TORONTO RAPTORS (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/sports/probasketball/nationalbasketballassociation/torontoraptors/index.html?inline=nyt-org). YOU’VE GONE TO PLACES LIKE BRAZIL AND SPAIN, HOW DOES IT WORK?
Jamal has been my best friend since sixth or seventh grade. Layveon Rider, a friend from growing up. And those are the three mainstays. Everyone else rotates in and out, whoever can afford it.
BACK TO YOUR COURTSHIP IN GREECE.
It got more and more serious as time went on. It’s very early, like July 3 when we had the conference call. Then we went out to Vegas during the summer pro league and met with the [Olympiacos] G.M. and assistant coach. We sat down and it was a nice meeting.
They sat me down and told me the vision for me and the team. They told me that they’d watched 50 games of mine last year. That was a surprise. I was shocked. You don’t think that you’re being scouted around the world. They thought I was a good fit for their team. He told me where I could help them and what I could do for the team and what my role was going to be. It’s a good feeling. I felt wanted. I felt important. No matter who you are, you always like to feel important. That kind of put this option a lot higher after that meeting.
TO PUT IT IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL-SPEAK, IT’S LIKE THAT MEETING IN VEGAS SECURED AN “OFFICIAL VISIT.”
Yeah, they did. [Laughs.] They convinced me to come out and once I came, that was it. When they took me out house hunting, I had some other nice ones that I really liked. There would be an issue somehow. That was the first couple weeks that I was here. I was getting a little bit discouraged. It’s not working out the way I wanted it to. Then I found this one and that’s it.
HOW MUCH IS THE RENT AT YOUR PLACE?
I don’t even know. I want to say roughly probably between 5,000 and 8,000 euros a month. [About $7,000 to $10,500 a month.] It might be less. The cap he gave me was 9,000 euro. I’m 25 minutes from the facility. I don’t mind the commute. In the morning, there’s traffic and there’s only two main roads to get you down there. So I’m going to try something new tomorrow. I’m going to take the tram. They say it’s a consistent 25 minutes no matter what. And it costs one euro, and I’ll see if I like it. It drops you off right at the arena and starts right here.
I IMAGINE THAT EVERYTHING ON YOUR VISIT WAS FIRST-CLASS.
It’s not like they just did it for that time. They take care of me pretty well. Pretty much anything I need. I don’t want to be a high-maintenance guy. It’s almost like they get mad at me if they don’t ask. I told one of the people who works for the team that I spent too much time drying my clothes. They don’t really have dryers over here. And he got mad. “You’ve got to tell us that you need a dryer.” They want to make sure that everything is taken care of so I’m comfortable and happy. It’s not like that with only me. It’s like that with everyone on the team.
IT’S ALMOST LIKE THEY’RE TAKING CARE (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/c/care/index.html?inline=nyt-org) OF YOU BECAUSE THEY KNOW YOU’RE GOING TO BE CHATTING WITH GUYS BACK HOME ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE.
I realize that. A lot of guys are asking. I think it’s going to be interesting this next free-agency period to see what happens. I’ve spoken to some of the other guys over here. Carlos Arroyo is in Tel Aviv. Earl Boykins is in Italy. They love it too. They’re treated like royalty. I’m pretty sure us three, in the N.B.A., we’re role players. So it’s nice.
Right now, I’ll make about $6 million after taxes. So I’m basically making double what I would have made. You throw in the house, car, chef and everything else. I’m basically making double.
WHAT’S YOUR CONTRACTUAL SITUATION WITH THE HAWKS?
The interesting thing is that I’m on their books for like $10 million. It makes it tough on them to keep my rights. Even though they’re not paying me, I’m on their cap.
If I stay all three years, I don’t think I’d be Hawks property. But by then, they would probably have to waive me or trade my rights. They have a lot of guys that they have to sign. They have to sign Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, Al Horford, Acie Law. They’re going to need that money; they’re going to have to trade me or waive me. And once that happens, it makes the process so much easier.
DO YOU FEEL YOU OUTSMARTED THE SYSTEM?
[Laughs.] I wouldn’t say I outsmarted the system, but I found a little loophole. I can’t take all the credit. Olympiacos made the initial contact. I think it’s something that’s going to force a change in the collective bargaining agreement. It’s going to be difficult for some teams to match teams in Europe.
I KNOW THAT SOME OF THE CREATURE COMFORTS OF THE N.B.A. AREN’T HERE. WHAT HAS THAT BEEN LIKE?
We don’t fly charters to all the games. But once again, that’s something that’s not a huge deal to me. Today’s flight from Israel at 6 a.m., that was rough. But we got the day off. I don’t have to fly a private jet. They fly us business class and it’s comfortable. Some of the games, I think a lot of the Euroleague games, we fly private.
YOU PLAY WITH THE BABY SHAQ, RIGHT?
Big Sofo[/COLOR] (http://www.bigsofo.gr/site/index.php), who was drafted by the Clippers (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/sports/probasketball/nationalbasketballassociation/losangelesclippers/index.html?inline=nyt-org) in 2003.] He’s a monster. He got drafted. I don’t know why he never went over. Coach brings him in as a guy off the bench. I think his thing is that he brings him in to do damage and sits him, and brings him back in to do a little damage. Our coach emphasizes playing at a high level throughout the game. And you don’t see guys playing a lot of minutes.
In the N.B.A., your top guys like LeBron and Kobe average 40-plus minutes a game. Here, I might average 27. That’s how he operates. The games here are 40 minutes. I think people get things a little skewed when they see the numbers and how guys are scoring.
It’s tougher to score here. There’s no defensive three seconds. They play zone. There’s all kinds of ways that make it tougher to score; the game is a lot more physical. It’s more of a team game. It’s a little more evenly spread. Like you said, 15 points in 27 minutes is a good number.
But that’s not important. The guys that score big numbers here are on bad teams. The M.V.P. of the Euroleague last year, Theodoros Papaloukas, he’s on our team now. He may average 10 points and 5, 6, 7 assists. They really look at who changes the game, who is the most valuable for their team. Not just who puts up 30. So it’s a different mind-set.
Last game against Tel Aviv, after the game I was a little down. I had some missed opportunities. We still won, but as a competitor I want to do my best. Papaloukas comes up to me and says” “Hey man, relax. You put your body in there and got a steal and we won the game.” It’s more of a thing where they appreciate the little things that you do to win games. If I had scored 30 and we lost, they probably would have been mad. I think I had 15 and I got a good steal, and it’s like, “Good game.”
MIKE MONTGOMERY, YOUR COLLEGE COACH, TOLD ME THAT YOU WERE PLEASED THAT THEY DIDN’T WANT YOU TO COME OVER HERE AND SCORE 40 EVERY NIGHT.
That’s one thing that I enjoy and I like about playing here. There is no pressure for me to change my game. Granted, some nights I may have to be more aggressive offensively or defensively or whatever. I’m not expected to come in and drop 30. They don’t want that. Me coming in and taking 20 shots a game is something that they really don’t want. It’s good, because it’s something that I don’t want to do. I’ve never been a volume shooter, I’d rather take the good shot than shoot to shoot.
HAVE YOU TALKED TO MANY PLAYERS BACK HOME ABOUT WHAT IT’S LIKE HERE?
Maybe roughly 10 or 15 guys. I’ve made it clear that it’s not for everyone. The flights and hotels, its not N.B.A. style. It’s not the Four Seasons, but it’s not bad. I think for a lot of guys, including myself, living like this helps you for after your career. It’s a simpler life. Bigger isn’t always better. Obviously I make good money and I want nice things. You learn that I don’t have to stay at the Ritz-Carlton. I can stay at the Westin. It’s still a nice hotel.
DO YOU THINK YOU’LL EVER PLAY FOR ATLANTA AGAIN?
You never know. I never say never, but I don’t know. I really don’t know.
WHAT WAS ATLANTA’S REACTION?
I talked to one of the owners, and he gave me his feeling that it wasn’t a good idea. For the reason that he thought that it could be a situation where I wouldn’t get paid.
WHAT DID NIKE THINK?
They welcomed it. I’m going to be a little more of a spokesman for them in Europe. I didn’t do anything for them in Atlanta.
DO YOU ENJOY BEING A TRAILBLAZER OF SORTS?
I enjoy that. It’s kind of good to be considered to be that guy. That isn’t why I did it. I did it because it was a better situation for me. Regardless of what people say. A lot of people said “he’s not a competitor” or “he’s going to the J.V. league.” I read it all over the place. I think it was a lot of chat room stuff and in a few papers.
To those guys I would say, “I’m in situation where I get paid double, my role increases, I have no expenses and I move to a nice city.” How many guys wouldn’t do that, regardless if you’re a lawyer or a doctor? In a business sense, if I were to tell people that I passed on that deal, I would be stupid. That would be the next headline: Josh Childress Shouldn’t Have Gone to Stanford. He’s an Idiot. [Laughs.]
THIS HAS TO BE MORE PRESSURE ON THE FLOOR THAN YOU’VE HAD ON YOU IN A WHILE.
It’s something that I’ve had to get accustomed to again, but it’s something that I don’t mind. It’s something that I’ve worked for my whole life. Now I’m put in a position where I can have the opportunity to be a better player and showcase myself a little more. I welcome the pressure. It’s something that drives me.
DID YOU EVER FIND YOURSELF FIGHTING COMPLACENCY A BIT?
It gets back to what I was saying earlier. As a player, as a competitor, you always want to be better. You always want to have a bigger role. There are a lot of guys who would be happy being a sixth man. I embraced my role. I didn’t have a problem with it. That’s what my coaches and teammates felt was best.
As a competitor, I want to have a bigger role. I bust my butt all summer and all season. To be typecast into a specific role — “You’re a sixth man, that’s you” — it’s tough mentally because it’s kind of like I don’t want to sit back and be comfortable with that. There’s nothing wrong with being a sixth man, obviously. But you always want to be better. You want to be the best.
HOW’S YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE OWNER?
It’s not like he’s the owner and you can’t talk to him. He calls and text-messages me. The other day he texted me a Greek Web site that’s a little blog about me. We’ll be in the car when I was looking for houses with guys who work for the team. Nobody like the coach or the G.M., no one big time. He’s calling them and calling them back and calling them back again. There’s no, “I’m a multibillionaire guy and you have no access to me.” There’s still that connection. All the guys went to one of the brothers’ wedding reception. It’s more of a family atmosphere.
DO YOU THINK THE N.B.A. WILL CHANGE THE RULE TO PREVENT GUYS FROM COMING OVER?
I don’t know. They might not care. Regardless if he cares or not, players are going to look at what’s best for them. As a person, I’m sure David Stern (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/david_stern/index.html?inline=nyt-per) can understand if a player is trying to go and better himself.
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT [B]KOBE BRYANT (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/kobe_bryant/index.html?inline=nyt-per) OR SOMEONE LIKE THAT COMING HERE SOMEDAY?
There is a chance. If it did happen, that’s a big-time earth shaker. I see Kobe as a guy who likes control. If they allow him the power to build his own team, I could see him doing it. If he had a chance to build his own team, I could see him doing it easily.
I don’t know him. I’ve met him a few times. In my interactions with him and hearing about him, if he got a chance to do his own thing and build his own team and go from the ground up, I think he would do it. It seems like his personality.
YOUR BROTHER JAMAL TOLD ME THAT YOU WERE THE ADVENTURER IN THE FAMILY, THE GUY WHO DANCES AT WEDDINGS AND SUCH. WHERE DO YOU THINK THAT COMES FROM?
I think it comes from me wanting to be different. I’ve always been a little different from people. I’ve tried to set myself apart in one way or another. This is another way of showing that. You could say my hair is something like that. Just little things, I try to be different.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/sports/basketball/12childressqa.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
By PETE THAMEL (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/t/pete_thamel/index.html?inline=nyt-per)
Published: October 11, 2008
Josh Childress, a former Stanford star and Atlanta Hawks sixth man, left the creature comforts of the N.B.A. (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/n/national_basketball_association/index.html?inline=nyt-org) to become the highest-paid basketball player outside the N.B.A. Childress is making $20 million over three years to play for Olympiacos in Athens, a move viewed by some as a watershed signing in terms of opening the door for more prominent players to give Europe a shot. Childress said he was essentially making double what he would have made in the N.B.A. this season.
Although his move shows his adventurous spirit, his food tastes haven’t caught up. For dinner in Glyfada, an Athens suburb, he ordered a club sandwich, no ham.
In a recent interview, Childress, 25, shared some of his thoughts on life in Greece, the differences between basketball there and in the United States, and the Greek news media.
WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF THE DIFFERENCES ?
The way that athletes are treated here is similar to how movie stars are treated back home. Everything that you do is in the paper. I went to a club one night and the next day it was in the paper. It’s something that you have to get used to. They try and tell you not to go to a club, unless it’s after a game or stuff like that. They’d rather you not go out every night, but I’m not the kind of guy who goes out every night.
WHEN DID YOU FIRST REALIZE IT WAS DIFFERENT?
I realized it was different here the very first time that I came. When I came for that visit to see if I’d enjoy it here. For three days I was on the front page of every sports magazine. And they have 10 daily sports magazines. They had big spreads in the middle, detailing what I did throughout the day. I went to look at houses and this and that. That’s when I realized it was a different level. You get the picture and autograph thing back home. Here, guys yell, “Olympiacos,” and they have a tattoo of the team logo on their arm. It’s a different level of fan support.
OLYMPIACOS HAS A RIVAL HERE, PANATHINAIKOS, THAT’S SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THE RED SOX VERUS THE YANKEES. WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT IT?
It’s 10 times worse, 100 times worse probably. It’s to the point where if we have a home game, their fans can’t come. The same thing goes for our fans if we play there. I don’t know how long ago it was, but they were shooting flares to the other side and throwing firecrackers. After the games, they would organize places to meet and they would go brawl. When I say its 10 times worse, it’s like the true meaning of die-hard. We play them twice in the regular season and in the Greek Cup, which I think is another game, and once we hit the playoffs it’s a best-of-five. I think we played them six times last year.
WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST FROM BACK HOME?
Really, I’m a big breakfast guy. Turkey bacon. I have a chef here, but she hasn’t started yet because my mom is coming soon, and she’s going to cook for me. Hopefully she’ll make pancakes. I’m a simple guy; I just miss my breakfast. And obviously I miss my family. But that’s about it.
YOUR AGENT, JIM TANNER, TOLD ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW THIS WORKED OUT. COULD YOU WALK ME THROUGH IT?
We were on the phone. We had a conference call about who had called and what the offers were. At the end, Jim Tanner said, “And we got a call from Greece.” I heard it and I laughed. Like, what the heck? Where did that come from? Then he told me the offer. I said: “Let’s keep that one in play. Let’s see how everything else is going to play out.”
There was Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Phoenix, Cleveland and I can’t even remember. Jim went through the list. Little by little, some things were attractive and some weren’t. I wanted to get my situation squared away early, and I told the ownership that in Atlanta. Like the first week. Free agency starts July 1. From the first, it dragged out three weeks.
In the papers and in the media, Atlanta made it clear that signing myself and Josh Smith was a priority. Here we are, supposedly a priority, and weeks go by. I didn’t want to get stuck and I felt like as a person, I could adjust to living somewhere else. I don’t have a problem living here. I know a lot of guys would; it’s different. It’s no problem for me.
Once I came and saw the type of housing and the people, and saw who I’d be playing with and things like that, I realized that this isn’t so bad. And one of the things was very alluring was that I truly loved college. I loved the camaraderie and the team aspect of it. You get away from that in the N.B.A. a little bit. Everything is a little more individual. Even something like team meal. Yes, it’s something kind of silly. But I missed the team aspect of it and being close with all your teammates and having that family-type atmosphere.
DO YOU KEEP IN TOUCH WITH ANYONE FROM STANFORD?
I’m closest with the guys in my class. Rob Little, he’s in New York and works for Goldman Sachs. Chris Hernandez, who actually plays in Spain. Justin Davis played here. I got a lot of advice from him. He encouraged me. And Carlton Weatherby.
YOU GO ON A TRIP EVERY SUMMER WITH YOUR FRIENDS FROM GROWING UP, INCLUDING JAMAL SAMPSON, THE FORMER CAL STAR WHO PLAYS FOR THE TORONTO RAPTORS (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/sports/probasketball/nationalbasketballassociation/torontoraptors/index.html?inline=nyt-org). YOU’VE GONE TO PLACES LIKE BRAZIL AND SPAIN, HOW DOES IT WORK?
Jamal has been my best friend since sixth or seventh grade. Layveon Rider, a friend from growing up. And those are the three mainstays. Everyone else rotates in and out, whoever can afford it.
BACK TO YOUR COURTSHIP IN GREECE.
It got more and more serious as time went on. It’s very early, like July 3 when we had the conference call. Then we went out to Vegas during the summer pro league and met with the [Olympiacos] G.M. and assistant coach. We sat down and it was a nice meeting.
They sat me down and told me the vision for me and the team. They told me that they’d watched 50 games of mine last year. That was a surprise. I was shocked. You don’t think that you’re being scouted around the world. They thought I was a good fit for their team. He told me where I could help them and what I could do for the team and what my role was going to be. It’s a good feeling. I felt wanted. I felt important. No matter who you are, you always like to feel important. That kind of put this option a lot higher after that meeting.
TO PUT IT IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL-SPEAK, IT’S LIKE THAT MEETING IN VEGAS SECURED AN “OFFICIAL VISIT.”
Yeah, they did. [Laughs.] They convinced me to come out and once I came, that was it. When they took me out house hunting, I had some other nice ones that I really liked. There would be an issue somehow. That was the first couple weeks that I was here. I was getting a little bit discouraged. It’s not working out the way I wanted it to. Then I found this one and that’s it.
HOW MUCH IS THE RENT AT YOUR PLACE?
I don’t even know. I want to say roughly probably between 5,000 and 8,000 euros a month. [About $7,000 to $10,500 a month.] It might be less. The cap he gave me was 9,000 euro. I’m 25 minutes from the facility. I don’t mind the commute. In the morning, there’s traffic and there’s only two main roads to get you down there. So I’m going to try something new tomorrow. I’m going to take the tram. They say it’s a consistent 25 minutes no matter what. And it costs one euro, and I’ll see if I like it. It drops you off right at the arena and starts right here.
I IMAGINE THAT EVERYTHING ON YOUR VISIT WAS FIRST-CLASS.
It’s not like they just did it for that time. They take care of me pretty well. Pretty much anything I need. I don’t want to be a high-maintenance guy. It’s almost like they get mad at me if they don’t ask. I told one of the people who works for the team that I spent too much time drying my clothes. They don’t really have dryers over here. And he got mad. “You’ve got to tell us that you need a dryer.” They want to make sure that everything is taken care of so I’m comfortable and happy. It’s not like that with only me. It’s like that with everyone on the team.
IT’S ALMOST LIKE THEY’RE TAKING CARE (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/c/care/index.html?inline=nyt-org) OF YOU BECAUSE THEY KNOW YOU’RE GOING TO BE CHATTING WITH GUYS BACK HOME ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE.
I realize that. A lot of guys are asking. I think it’s going to be interesting this next free-agency period to see what happens. I’ve spoken to some of the other guys over here. Carlos Arroyo is in Tel Aviv. Earl Boykins is in Italy. They love it too. They’re treated like royalty. I’m pretty sure us three, in the N.B.A., we’re role players. So it’s nice.
Right now, I’ll make about $6 million after taxes. So I’m basically making double what I would have made. You throw in the house, car, chef and everything else. I’m basically making double.
WHAT’S YOUR CONTRACTUAL SITUATION WITH THE HAWKS?
The interesting thing is that I’m on their books for like $10 million. It makes it tough on them to keep my rights. Even though they’re not paying me, I’m on their cap.
If I stay all three years, I don’t think I’d be Hawks property. But by then, they would probably have to waive me or trade my rights. They have a lot of guys that they have to sign. They have to sign Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, Al Horford, Acie Law. They’re going to need that money; they’re going to have to trade me or waive me. And once that happens, it makes the process so much easier.
DO YOU FEEL YOU OUTSMARTED THE SYSTEM?
[Laughs.] I wouldn’t say I outsmarted the system, but I found a little loophole. I can’t take all the credit. Olympiacos made the initial contact. I think it’s something that’s going to force a change in the collective bargaining agreement. It’s going to be difficult for some teams to match teams in Europe.
I KNOW THAT SOME OF THE CREATURE COMFORTS OF THE N.B.A. AREN’T HERE. WHAT HAS THAT BEEN LIKE?
We don’t fly charters to all the games. But once again, that’s something that’s not a huge deal to me. Today’s flight from Israel at 6 a.m., that was rough. But we got the day off. I don’t have to fly a private jet. They fly us business class and it’s comfortable. Some of the games, I think a lot of the Euroleague games, we fly private.
YOU PLAY WITH THE BABY SHAQ, RIGHT?
Big Sofo[/COLOR] (http://www.bigsofo.gr/site/index.php), who was drafted by the Clippers (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/sports/probasketball/nationalbasketballassociation/losangelesclippers/index.html?inline=nyt-org) in 2003.] He’s a monster. He got drafted. I don’t know why he never went over. Coach brings him in as a guy off the bench. I think his thing is that he brings him in to do damage and sits him, and brings him back in to do a little damage. Our coach emphasizes playing at a high level throughout the game. And you don’t see guys playing a lot of minutes.
In the N.B.A., your top guys like LeBron and Kobe average 40-plus minutes a game. Here, I might average 27. That’s how he operates. The games here are 40 minutes. I think people get things a little skewed when they see the numbers and how guys are scoring.
It’s tougher to score here. There’s no defensive three seconds. They play zone. There’s all kinds of ways that make it tougher to score; the game is a lot more physical. It’s more of a team game. It’s a little more evenly spread. Like you said, 15 points in 27 minutes is a good number.
But that’s not important. The guys that score big numbers here are on bad teams. The M.V.P. of the Euroleague last year, Theodoros Papaloukas, he’s on our team now. He may average 10 points and 5, 6, 7 assists. They really look at who changes the game, who is the most valuable for their team. Not just who puts up 30. So it’s a different mind-set.
Last game against Tel Aviv, after the game I was a little down. I had some missed opportunities. We still won, but as a competitor I want to do my best. Papaloukas comes up to me and says” “Hey man, relax. You put your body in there and got a steal and we won the game.” It’s more of a thing where they appreciate the little things that you do to win games. If I had scored 30 and we lost, they probably would have been mad. I think I had 15 and I got a good steal, and it’s like, “Good game.”
MIKE MONTGOMERY, YOUR COLLEGE COACH, TOLD ME THAT YOU WERE PLEASED THAT THEY DIDN’T WANT YOU TO COME OVER HERE AND SCORE 40 EVERY NIGHT.
That’s one thing that I enjoy and I like about playing here. There is no pressure for me to change my game. Granted, some nights I may have to be more aggressive offensively or defensively or whatever. I’m not expected to come in and drop 30. They don’t want that. Me coming in and taking 20 shots a game is something that they really don’t want. It’s good, because it’s something that I don’t want to do. I’ve never been a volume shooter, I’d rather take the good shot than shoot to shoot.
HAVE YOU TALKED TO MANY PLAYERS BACK HOME ABOUT WHAT IT’S LIKE HERE?
Maybe roughly 10 or 15 guys. I’ve made it clear that it’s not for everyone. The flights and hotels, its not N.B.A. style. It’s not the Four Seasons, but it’s not bad. I think for a lot of guys, including myself, living like this helps you for after your career. It’s a simpler life. Bigger isn’t always better. Obviously I make good money and I want nice things. You learn that I don’t have to stay at the Ritz-Carlton. I can stay at the Westin. It’s still a nice hotel.
DO YOU THINK YOU’LL EVER PLAY FOR ATLANTA AGAIN?
You never know. I never say never, but I don’t know. I really don’t know.
WHAT WAS ATLANTA’S REACTION?
I talked to one of the owners, and he gave me his feeling that it wasn’t a good idea. For the reason that he thought that it could be a situation where I wouldn’t get paid.
WHAT DID NIKE THINK?
They welcomed it. I’m going to be a little more of a spokesman for them in Europe. I didn’t do anything for them in Atlanta.
DO YOU ENJOY BEING A TRAILBLAZER OF SORTS?
I enjoy that. It’s kind of good to be considered to be that guy. That isn’t why I did it. I did it because it was a better situation for me. Regardless of what people say. A lot of people said “he’s not a competitor” or “he’s going to the J.V. league.” I read it all over the place. I think it was a lot of chat room stuff and in a few papers.
To those guys I would say, “I’m in situation where I get paid double, my role increases, I have no expenses and I move to a nice city.” How many guys wouldn’t do that, regardless if you’re a lawyer or a doctor? In a business sense, if I were to tell people that I passed on that deal, I would be stupid. That would be the next headline: Josh Childress Shouldn’t Have Gone to Stanford. He’s an Idiot. [Laughs.]
THIS HAS TO BE MORE PRESSURE ON THE FLOOR THAN YOU’VE HAD ON YOU IN A WHILE.
It’s something that I’ve had to get accustomed to again, but it’s something that I don’t mind. It’s something that I’ve worked for my whole life. Now I’m put in a position where I can have the opportunity to be a better player and showcase myself a little more. I welcome the pressure. It’s something that drives me.
DID YOU EVER FIND YOURSELF FIGHTING COMPLACENCY A BIT?
It gets back to what I was saying earlier. As a player, as a competitor, you always want to be better. You always want to have a bigger role. There are a lot of guys who would be happy being a sixth man. I embraced my role. I didn’t have a problem with it. That’s what my coaches and teammates felt was best.
As a competitor, I want to have a bigger role. I bust my butt all summer and all season. To be typecast into a specific role — “You’re a sixth man, that’s you” — it’s tough mentally because it’s kind of like I don’t want to sit back and be comfortable with that. There’s nothing wrong with being a sixth man, obviously. But you always want to be better. You want to be the best.
HOW’S YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE OWNER?
It’s not like he’s the owner and you can’t talk to him. He calls and text-messages me. The other day he texted me a Greek Web site that’s a little blog about me. We’ll be in the car when I was looking for houses with guys who work for the team. Nobody like the coach or the G.M., no one big time. He’s calling them and calling them back and calling them back again. There’s no, “I’m a multibillionaire guy and you have no access to me.” There’s still that connection. All the guys went to one of the brothers’ wedding reception. It’s more of a family atmosphere.
DO YOU THINK THE N.B.A. WILL CHANGE THE RULE TO PREVENT GUYS FROM COMING OVER?
I don’t know. They might not care. Regardless if he cares or not, players are going to look at what’s best for them. As a person, I’m sure David Stern (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/david_stern/index.html?inline=nyt-per) can understand if a player is trying to go and better himself.
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT [B]KOBE BRYANT (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/kobe_bryant/index.html?inline=nyt-per) OR SOMEONE LIKE THAT COMING HERE SOMEDAY?
There is a chance. If it did happen, that’s a big-time earth shaker. I see Kobe as a guy who likes control. If they allow him the power to build his own team, I could see him doing it. If he had a chance to build his own team, I could see him doing it easily.
I don’t know him. I’ve met him a few times. In my interactions with him and hearing about him, if he got a chance to do his own thing and build his own team and go from the ground up, I think he would do it. It seems like his personality.
YOUR BROTHER JAMAL TOLD ME THAT YOU WERE THE ADVENTURER IN THE FAMILY, THE GUY WHO DANCES AT WEDDINGS AND SUCH. WHERE DO YOU THINK THAT COMES FROM?
I think it comes from me wanting to be different. I’ve always been a little different from people. I’ve tried to set myself apart in one way or another. This is another way of showing that. You could say my hair is something like that. Just little things, I try to be different.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/sports/basketball/12childressqa.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1