Andre Roberson opines on Dame defense, diet, and return in OKC Thunder exit interview

It was a season that never began for OKC Thunder guard Andre Roberson. During his exit interview, Dre shared some positive news and revealed a new diet craze.

When Andre Roberson went down against the Pistons nobody fathomed the defensive starlet out of Colorado would miss not only the remainder of the 2017-18 season but the entire duration of the 2018-19 campaign as well.

After multiple setbacks, the Thunder officially ruled Dre out for the season until April 4, 2019. However, it was suspected for sometime before the official announcement that Roberson would not play.

Despite his absence from the hardwood, Dre remained an integral part of the Thunder, he could be seen on the sidelines, helped the young bloods in film sessions, and his brother, Anthony Roberson joined the Thunder’s G-League affiliate the Oklahoma City Blue.

The 2018-19 campaign is in the past now, let’s look to the future and take a look at some of Dre’s best comments:

Injury update and exactly how the avulsion fracture occurred:

"Well, you guys kind of seen me a little bit, running, jumping. I would say about 85, 90 percent. I was about back, and then, you know, unfortunate things happened, went up for a dunk, heard a crunch, and got some imaging and there was a crack. So that’s it."

Revealing what was already known:

"Well, they kind of work hand in hand. By me rupturing my patellar tendon it kind of shut off the blood supply to the patellar bone, which causes it to be weaker, and then when I was coming back I was working harder than the revascularizing of the tendon was happening, so you kind of see where the problem was there, and we did not know that at the time, unfortunately.But kind of got everything — nipped everything in the bud and we’re in a great place right now. I’m on a bone diet, tendon diet, so should be good.The tendon was a hundred percent healthy.  For sure, my tendon was healthy, looking great. Just the bone. That’s about it."

This particular exchange had a lot of layers within it. Foremost, T.I. brought this information to light, back in December that Roberson’s Patellar Tendon was completely healed at the time of the Avulsion Fracture. That is how the injury occurs, in layman’s terms; the tendon was so strong it broke off a piece of his bone. The media member Dre shared this back-and-forth with, seemed a little perplexed his patellar tendon was completely healed.

Secondly, did a massive error transpire because of the OKC Thunder medical staff? How could they have overlooked the fact his bone was not receiving adequate blood supply? Was this an extremely rare medical phenomenon? Could this not be picked up on imaging? These are all valid questions that someone should address, that onus should fall on OKC Thunder GM Sam Presti.

Everybody cries sometimes

"I was kind of upset, sad, cried a little bit. But I told you once before, I believe everything happens for a reason, and it kind of helped me grow and learn different aspects of the game, not only the game but myself and grow from that and take it and use it on the rest of my life."

When watching NBA players perform on the court, for some people it can be hard to remember these phenomenal athletes are humans, not robots. Roberson’s quote describing his reaction to his setback in December is perfect and demonstrates how quickly any player can go from super to pedestrian in an instant.

Rudy Gobert took a lot of heat for crying when he was not selected for the All-Star team, and Roberson will probably take heat from some trolls as well. But, crying does not make anyone weak, male or female, it makes you human. Shedding a few tears deserves respect, not criticism.

On how he would have guarded Damian Lillard:

"Me personally, I don’t know, it’s kind of over and done with. You guys will have to find out next year. But no, he likes to go to the left, and he likes to shoot off his left a lot, so I wouldn’t let him get that way. When he’s on his right hand he likes to drive more. So kind of got to take that into account. Whenever he used the double drag he would split the first one every time. It’s harder to kind of analyze when you’re out there."

Forget about the Keto Diet, the Bone and Tendon Diet is here!

"Yeah, you know, more calcium, dairy products, and tendon, obviously I take collagen, Vitamin C, magnesium pills, just things that have a little more of that kind of stuff in it. I don’t drink milk. I take calcium pills and I’ll take shots. Kind of more than milk."

While Dennis Schroder provided the best quote of the day, Dre provided the most memorable remark when he discussed his current diet regimen. At some point, I would like to learn more about his strong dislike for milk, it seems rather intriguing, and could possibly have a solid backstory.

What needs to change for the OKC Thunder?

"Full quote:  I think each and every one of us has to look ourselves in the mirror and hold each other accountable. Enough pointing fingers, we’ve got to look at ourselves, what could I have done better, what could I have brought extra, what could I have done more, and next year come back hungrier and stronger. We do that, then we put ourselves in great position to go out there and be a top-tier team."

It was refreshing to see numerous Thunder players take a stand, and publicly state they were underwhelmed with the way the team performed. They were honestly genuine with the emotions. Hopefully, that will be translated into the drive when September and October roll around.

Nerves Can Get the Best of Us

"More from Thunderous IntentionsStealing one player from every Southwest Division team for the OKC ThunderShould the OKC Thunder chase after a disgruntled hometown hero?3 OKC Thunder players who can step up in Aleksej Pokusevski’s absenceAleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injuryDamian Lillard does not fit with the OKC ThunderWell, for one, I was kind of nervous coming back anyways, just kind of seeing how soft the game is being called now. Just me being a physical defender, I was like, oh, s—, I’m going to be rusty, timing is going to be off and they’re calling it soft, I was like, hmm, odds are kind of stacked up against me. But the game changes every year.Something is always new, and you’ve either got to adapt or you don’t, or get lost. Only way I’m going to have to find out is by playing, going back out there preseason, getting used to the refs again and kind of the speed of the game. It’s definitely going to be a little bit faster so I’ve got to be in great shape. So I’ll be working on all that this summer."

While answering this question, it was fun to see Dre take a free shot at the officiating. I am almost positive he will not be fined for his comments about the referee’s during his exit interview, but as Dre stated the refs are soft.

Roberson also touched on how he would feel about coming off the bench. He said he’s willing to do whatever his coach tells him to do. If it involves relinquishing the starting spot, so be it. That’s it for the Dre edition of exit interview coverage. Check out some of T.I.’s other OKC Thunder exit interview coverage and have good weekend Thunder Nation.