Q&A With Rickey Paulding
11/26/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 26, 2001
Columbia, Mo. - Q: If you weren't playing basketball, what sport would you be playing? RP: Maybe football, but probably not anything else. I follow football the most of any other sport, so I could maybe see myself doing that.
Q: What's in your CD player right now? RP: I've been listening to Eric Thurman, also the Jackson 5.
Q: Should Michael Jordan have come back? RP: Yes, I like Michael Jordan. I think he's done pretty well.
Q: When was the first time you heard about Mizzou? RP: Back when Albert White was here was when I really heard about it. He transferred from Michigan, and he was from Inkster (Mich.), so that's probably the first I heard about Missouri.
Q: When did you start playing basketball? RP: I was about eight. I used to go to the recreation center, and I started playing in three on three tournaments. Then I kind of liked it from there, and I kept playing. A lot of my friends were playing, but really it was the person who ran the recreation center who asked me if I wanted to play. I said yes, and it went from there.
Q: What's your favorite class? RP: Right now my favorite class is a psychology I'm taking. It's interesting to learn about how your body acts and how different things affect you.
Q: What's the last movie you saw? RP: "The One" with Jet Li. There was a lot of good action, but the plot wasn't very good.
Q: Do you have a favorite movie? RP: Not really, but right now I like Meet the Parents a lot. That's pretty funny.
Q: What's the hardest thing about being a student-athlete? RP: Managing your time. You want to do stuff as a regular student, but you also have basketball as a priority and you just have to get yourself going on the basketball court and also in school. It's basically just making sure you get everything done. I try to keep a planner and rely on the people who are here to help us.
Q: You talk a lot with the media. What question do you get tired of answering the most? RP: I don't really get tired of it, but when I first got here, there were a lot of comparisons between me and Kareem. The most recent question I get is do I feel like I should be starting. It's a tough question to answer. They're trying to make it seem like I don't like playing behind Kareem, but I also don't want to say that I'm satisfied with myself.
Q: What's it like going away to school far away from home like you are? RP: When I first got here, it didn't bother me. After awhile, like around the holidays, you miss your family, and you want them to see you play. That's the toughest thing about it for me.
Q: Do you have any superstitions or routines that you go through before games? RP: During the starting lineups, I have a little prayer that I say, and after the game, I make sure I say the same thing again.
Q: What celebrity would you most like to hang out with for a day? RP: Probably Kobe Bryant. I'd really just like to see how his days go. I know he works really hard at basketball, I'm interested to see what he does off the court.
Q: What do you like to do in your downtime, when you don't have school or basketball pressing you? RP: Just hang out with the guys. Watch TV or listen to music, just relax.
Q: Give us a scouting report on Rickey Paulding. RP: I'd say I attack a lot, that I'm pretty solid defensively. I would say a weakness right now is probably my ball handling, but I'm shooting the ball pretty well now, so you have to guard me for the drive and the shot now.
Q: How hard did you work over the summer on your shot? RP: I just shot the ball a lot. The main thing right now is just being comfortable on offense. Last year, when I caught the ball, I wasn't really ready to shoot, and now I feel I'm comfortable with the shots I take. That was the main thing, just getting the repetition in and getting comfortable.
Q: What basketball player do you most admire? RP: It's a toss-up between Kobe Byrant and Ray Allen. I just like Ray Allen because his game is really smooth, and he has a good jump shot.
Q: What other schools did you seriously consider other than Missouri? RP: Ohio State and Miami.
Q: What separated Missouri from them? RP: At Ohio State, the campus was just too big. At Miami, I don't think I would have got too much accomplished, there's a lot going on there. I liked Missouri because it seemed kind of close to home, and everybody gave me a good feeling here, it seemed like a good place to come.
Q: What's one thing people don't know about you that might surprise them? RP: Probably that I talk more than people realize. I like to joke around and stuff, but not really until I get comfortable around people.
Q: Describe yourself in three words. RP: Hardworking, loyal and friendly.
Q: Do people come up to you in public when you're out on the town or at a restaurant? RP: Sometimes. Usually when I'm with Wesley, they have to recognize the other person first before they figure out who I am. I still get people thinking I'm Kareem sometimes.
Q: When they know it's you, what do they say to you? RP: I get autograph requests, and they usually want to talk about dunking, and how I work on that.
Q: What's your favorite moment at MU individually? RP: Probably that shot the other day against Iowa, that's probably the biggest moment I've had so far.
Q: How about a favorite team moment? RP: The game against Georgia when Clarence hit that shot. That was a big shot, and the team really enjoyed that game.
Q: Do you like the jump ball, or the alternating possession? RP: I like the jump ball. It's more fun to play that way.
Q: What's the best place to play aside from the Hearnes Center? RP: I really like playing at Kemper, that's a pretty cool place.
Q: Do you get nervous before games? RP: Not really when I'm warming up, but just when I'm at the table checking in I get a little nervous. I just try to remember everything I'm supposed to do. But once I'm in the game, it's no problem.
Q: Tell us about your routine at the foul line when you squat down and touch the court before you get the ball. RP: It's something I picked up from my high school coach. I was getting to the point where I wasn't using my legs enough on free throws, and my coach got me to do that to remember to relax and get my legs into the shot.
Q: Why do you wear number 23? RP: Well, one reason is Michael Jordan, my high school coach gave me that. But also, my sister's birthday is on October 23rd, my birthday is on October 23rd, I have a cousin who has a birthday on December 23rd, and my mom's birthday is on the 23rd.
Q: How about the play that you made at KU when you got an offensive rebound and went right back up for a monster jam? RP: That was something that just went with the flow of the game. I just saw the ball and saw the rim. I didn't even think I was going to jump, but I was pretty excited when it happened.
Q: Probably 99 percent of the population can't do things like you do on the court. What does it feel like to you when you're soaring through the air to throw down a dunk? RP: It feels great, I just think of it as an easy two points. Also, I think plays like that get my team involved, it gets the bench excited, and it gets the crowd into the game. I just feel like sometimes that's just the boost the team needs, and I'm happy to provide it.
Q: Does it hurt to dunk so hard? RP: Sometimes if you catch the rim a certain way it hurts a little, but you don't really even think about it.
Q: When was the first time you dunked? RP: I think it was in the eighth grade. I had to start out with a real small ball, because I couldn't palm a regular ball right then. In AAU, in one game we were up big, and my coaches told me to cherry pick late in the game, and they threw the ball and I dunked it. It was a fun moment.
Q: If you had a shot to win a game, would you rather do it with a three-pointer or a monster dunk? RP: Monster dunk!
Q: How tough was it last year when you had a hard time from three-point range to start the season? RP: It was tough at first, because I didn't want people to think I was just a driver or a dunker. I knew I could hit the three pointer, but they just weren't falling. The main thing I was thinking about was wanting to prove everyone that I could do that.
Q: Take us through the sequence against Iowa when DJ got the jump ball, and then on offense, the ball swung around to you and you tied it up with the three pointer. RP: The previous play, I was wide open in the corner and I didn't take the shot, and Coach Q told me to stick it, so from that point on I just knew that if I would get the ball again and if I was open, I would take the shot. When Najeeb got me the ball, I wasn't thinking about the score or anything, I just knew we needed a basket, and I got it and shot it and it when in.
Q: When your basketball playing days are done, what do you see yourself doing? RP: I've thought about that a little. I think I'd like to be a youth counselor, helping kids out in some way.
Q: Who's the most famous person you've ever met? RP: Probably Barry Sanders.
Q: Did you enjoy the recruiting process? RP: I enjoyed the personal meetings more than the phone calls, those got a little old after awhile. Once you narrowed it down, it was pretty cool. I enjoyed the home visits and the official visits though.
