People have heard about me, but they haven't heard about things my brother and my parents have gone through, and stories about growing up and living a dream come true.

It's tough at times to not play.

Everybody wants to be in the NBA. That's the whole goal. I'm no different than that.

Some people see ESPN. They see the long shots. They see me scoring the basketball, but they don't show often too many assists - and I've been doing that my whole career, being able to get the ball to the guy at the right time.

I was 15 when Hugo Chavez came to power in 1998. At the time, I lived in Vargas State, which borders the Caribbean. In 1999, torrential rains caused flash floods that left thousands of people dead. I lost several friends, and my school was buried in the mudslide. The importance of resilience has been etched into my soul ever since.

Many people get into a relationship as a way to compensate for something they lack or hate within themselves. This is a one-way ticket to a toxic relationship because it makes your love conditional - you will love your partner as long as they help you feel better about yourself.

I'd gone through life being obsessed about my sexuality. People would ask about relationships, girlfriends, you start referring to people as 'they' so there's no judgment and you can be ambiguous. People around me knew, but I still struggled with talking about it openly.

The world is more competitive and social media drives this. It’s woman against woman when it comes to appearance, possessions and friendship circles."