6-foot-10 power forward Ivan Rabb has been rated at or near the top of the Class of 2015 for the past three years. Hailing from Oaklan,d California, he recently committed to his hometown California Bears. We got the chance to sit down with him at the Nike Hoop Summit to discuss his past, present and future. He came accross as a very confident, ambitious, and well spoken kid.
NBADraft.net: How’s the event (Hoop Summit) been so far?
Ivan Rabb: Oh the event so far, it’s been great. Having a lot of fun playing with these guys. It’s been really competitive, that’s the main thing that I love about it. I’m just doing anything I can to separate myself from the rest of the guys. I look at it as a challenge every day.
NBADraft.net: I was out in Dubai (in July) and got the chance to see you guys win gold out there. Talk a little bit about that experience.
Ivan Rabb: That experience was great. It felt good to go out there. I mean they took me even though I was hurt. I didn’t play much after the first game, the second I think I played like 2 minutes but, I progressed throughout the whole thing. It was a great time. And I was just happy that the coaching staff decided to take me. I think one of the reasons they took me is because they viewed me as such a good teammate.
NBADraft.net: Talk a little bit about your season, you got healthy after that, had a really good year.
Ivan Rabb: I had a really good year. Went to a bunch of national tournaments and I played well pretty much every game. Throughout the double teams and what not, I mean my teammates did a great job. Scoring wise, defensively wise, getting me the ball when I’m open. I was really proud of my guys the way we finished the year off was great.
NBADraft.net: Do you take more out of USA basketball or AAU?
Ivan Rabb: USA basketball. I mean normally the games weren’t so competitive but the practices are really competitive. In AAU the games are competitive but it was less structured. So I think I take more out of USA basketball just because of the teamwork involved.
NBADraft.net: How important is it to get the win in this game?
Ivan Rabb: It’s really important because we need to show that the USA is still producing the best players and I know it’s going to be a tough game. They definitely have some great guys, potential pros, but so do we so, we just want to show that we’re the best team and we’ll do whatever it takes to win the game.
NBADraft.net: Do you embrace the role of being a leader?
Ivan Rabb: I do embrace the role of being a leader. I’m not always the vocal guy, but I got better at that throught this season. Just being a vocal guy off the court but also on defense. And that’s just something I take pride in. Like Kevin Garnett, that’s what he does. He’s loud, he never stops talking, and that’s something I’d like to take from his game. I think that that will help me in the long run.
NBADraft.net: What’s the most important factor in the college choice you make?
Ivan Rabb: Just a place where I have a really big role on the team. I think everybody knows that I grew up scoring, rebounding and blocking shots but how do you become the biggest asset on the team? Who’s going to challenge me every day, who’s going to push me to be a pro? And just sharpen everything else in my arsenal.
NBADraft.net: Talk a little bit about how you envision yourself with the team.
Ivan Rabb: I envision myself being an inside guy and an outside guy. Inside, scoring with jumphooks and turn around jumpshots. Outside, I want to be able to pick and pop and knock down the shot, consistently. Defensively, I want to be one of the anchor guys. Rebounding. I want to do the small things to separate myself.
NBADraft.net: At what point did you realize you could potentially have a career in basketball?
Ivan Rabb: That is a great question. I’ll say probably… I don’t want to say 9th grade. But I was starting to get serious about it. I would probably say 10th grade. That’s when people started telling you that. I didn’t want it to get to my head. But at the same time, I started to realize my potential. I want to do everything I can to fulfill it, to be a pro, not only to be a pro, but to be a really good player.
NBADraft.net: Have you made any changes to your diet to improve your body and conditioning?
Ivan Rabb: I wouldn’t say I have, just eating a lot more (laughs). It’s tough for me to gain weight. I think I’m doing a good job with it, getting bigger. My upper body, legs are getting stronger. It’s not something I can rush. Over the years I notice that my body is just going to chnage just like a lot of other guys, so I take my time with it. When I do add that weight, I feel like I’ll be a totally different player.
NBADraft.net: Ok so besides adding strength, what do you need to work on the most to become a better player?
Ivan Rabb: As far as my game? I mean you can never be a good enough shooter, so I always want to be one of those guys that knock down shots consistently, like I said earlier. I want to continue to be able to score on the block. I think those are the two main things that I need to focus on.
NBADraft.net: Going back to the diet question, do you drink soda?
Ivan Rabb: No I don’t drink soda. Not at all. I really don’t like to drink Gatorade either. I drink a lot of water.
NBADraft.net: Talk about your interests outside of basketball.
Ivan Rabb: I love to hang out with friends. Just get away from basketball. That’s a good thing. You don’t always wan’t to talk about basketball all day, so I’ll tell friends don’t ask me anything about basketball. Go to movies. Hang out with family and have a family dinner. Just stuff like that I’m more of a family oriented guy. I get out with friends and family and have a good time.
NBA Draft.net: I appreciate it Ivan. Best of luck to you!
Ivan Rabb: Thank you.
