December 14, 2007

With New Orleans visiting Dallas at 7:30 p.m. Friday, we chatted with former Hornet and current Mavericks reserve forward Brandon Bass at the Dec. 1 game in the Big Easy. The third-year NBA player is a Louisiana State product who was a second-round pick of New Orleans in 2005.

Hornets.com: Being that you grew up in Louisiana, describe how it feels getting to come home and play in front of a lot of friends and family.
Bass: It’s a good feeling, a little weird, getting to come home and play against your former team and in front of a lot of family and friends. It is pretty much the first time my family will get to see me actually play as an NBA player, so I’m going to enjoy it.

Hornets.com: What’s been behind your vast improvement in production this season with the Mavericks?
Bass: I think just sticking with it. Sometimes things don’t go as planned early on, but if you stick with it you can overcome some things, and that is what I did in this situation.

Hornets.com: What has it been like playing for head coach Avery Johnson, who is also a Louisiana native?
Bass: I think it’s great that I’m playing for him. We kind of understand each other coming from the same background kind of. Him being from New Orleans, me being from Baton Rouge, we’re Southern boys. It’s great playing for Coach, he tells it to me like it is and every day I’m in the gym I feel like I improve because everyday he tells me something I can improve on.

Hornets.com: I’ve read that you’ve given up red meat and dedicated yourself to eating very healthy. What led to that decision?
Bass: A couple years ago I kind of hurt my knee and I tried nutritional healing and I’ve been with it ever since. I don’t eat any red meat, no beef, no pork, mostly just chicken and fish. I still got to sneak away and eat some red beans, rice, and sausage though! [laughs] I grew up on that. That was my favorite food for a long time.

Hornets.com: Your teammates call you “The Animal.” Where did that come from?
Bass: Coach came up with that name. I guess because I’m so aggressive down low. It is a nickname coming from a Hall of Famer, I mean it doesn’t get too much better than that. People always have nicknames that they made up for themselves, but it’s better to have someone else call you a nickname. It’s a great nickname too; it’s great to be called an animal in the NBA.