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Great interview w/Hood about Utah

Dominos... don't forget the dominos man. Friday nights, get a group together, get a little crazy.

Even if they went out and partied with fake names a la Deron, it's smart not to mention it in the article.

Meh. Dominoes get waaay boring, waay quickly for me. I prefer spades 10x out of 10.
 
We should have a jazzfanz spades night. I haven't played competitively for a long time but I can play some spades.
 
Some of my favorite parts:

AS: Had you ever been to Utah before the draft?

Hood: Nope. My first time was the day after the draft. You hear about the mountains, how good the people are. That pretty much met my standards. The beautiful scenery, and how great the people are out here. It's been fun so far.

AS: People always talk about the Jazz culture. What does that mean? In what ways is that a real thing?

Hood: We're just a close-knit group. We're always joking. Laughing, having fun. But I think the thing that's unique about us, we'll hold each other accountable. When we're in shootarounds, or we're in practice, we always lock in and try to make each other better. So I think that's kinda different. It's a unique atmosphere in Utah, that I don't think a lot of other teams have around the league.

AS: So when you're talking to friends from elsewhere, what are you selling them on when they ask about Utah?

Hood: I just tell them it's a cool place to come. A lot of the fun things that people do here, basketball players can't really do. Like skiing, snowboarding, those type of things. But it's a cool place. It's different than any place in the country you'll ever go. The mountains, the valley, everything.
 
Spades is pretty tame. You want violence, play Michigan Rummy with old women. My mother and he friends used to play with pennies and I would dread them being one short. I have a scar I got for reaching out to claim my 8,9,10 of hearts pot. Apparently the woman brought a wooden spoon from home.
 
Thx to Jazzfever for the insightful thread about one of my favorite Jazzmen. Got to know his dad Ricky a bit and besides also playing a bit in the NBA back when, he's a wonderful person in his own right - great family man and Head Administrator for one of The Boys and Girls Club locations. So it's no surprise that Rodney turned out like he did. Besides being a great character guy that fits in with this team, you won't convince me that the big names, Wiggins or Parker are any better or have a higher ceiling than Hood does.

My favorite part was his respect for Snyder:

AS: On TV, during games, Quin Snyder can look extremely intense. Does that carry over day-to-day?

Hood: Oh yeah, definitely. [laughs] He's never had an off-day, when it comes to intensity. But he's not a rah-rah guy that's gonna yell at you all the time. He's one of the brightest minds I've ever been around. We all trust him and his staff. He's been great.

And his level headedness and gratitude:

Hood: At first I was a little mad, because I didn't know why I dropped. But once you get a little older, you just see... It's a match made in heaven. Being a young player coming into the league, all you really want is an opportunity. Dennis Lindsey and Coach Snyder gave me an opportunity to really show what I can do, and progress into the player I am now, and the player I'll be in the future. I'm forever grateful.
 
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