A biography for Fred VanVleethasn’t been written yet.
“I don't always love everything that comes with it, but I really love the game.”
“Money? We didn't have it. We had a big family with four boys so that's a lot of mouths and clothes and basketball tournaments to pay for.”
“They're always telling us, 'Rockford is a miserable place to live. There's not a lot of talent coming out of Rockford.' Blah, blah, blah. You know the rest of the story. I look at it like there's only two things you can do about it. You can live up to it and make it worse or you can change it and make it better.”
“I want to win all the awards. I want to be All-Defensive Those are all goals that I have.”
“I've always been a coach's player in terms of I am trying to do what they want us to do. I just kind of do what they want us to do. I am buying in, I believe in what they are preaching and what they are selling and he gives me the freedom and reign to kind of create and do my own thing.”
“As long as I'm out there on the court fighting with my teammates and I get open shots, I'm going to shoot it regardless of what happened before. It's short-term memory and having the confidence to knock them down.”
“I hate wearing mouthpieces.”
“The playoffs are just about performing - each game, each night.”
“I never sought out to be a fan favourite, certainly respect and admire the passion and obviously the fans are a large part of what we do in this business, but I always sought out to be respected by my peers first and foremost and the coaches right after that.”
“I'm very ambitious and I'm not shy about it.”
“I could play anywhere.”
“All of the individual accolades that you could ever think of - though I don't really share those publicly because that's not what I'm into - but I've got a lot on the table that I want to get done.”
“You know, we have to focus on the next generation and one way to do that is to reach back out, pull them along, and give opportunities to people that are very deserving and worthy, but maybe won't get this chance due to their background or their age.”
“I was in my share of fights whether I'd be outside or in the house with my brothers, so I've always had quick hands.”
“My hands are pretty sore after each game.”
“I just try to work hard, be humble, go out there, lay it on the line every night for the team and, you know, whatever comes my way after that, I'll take it. But I definitely think very highly of myself, in my own head.”
“We have people who work in regular jobs that come up to us and tell us that they hate their job and they have this passion and they want to pursue this passion. Those types of things mean the most to me.”
“I'm trying to get paid, man. I'm not shy about that.”
“I come from one of those communities that's forgotten about and not paid attention to. Growing up, there were a lot of times where I wished my community had certain things or people to come back and just shine a light on it or put money or time or resources into it, because it can change somebody's life.”
“There's a lot of runs in a game and different things throughout the season and you've got to be able to just stay even keeled throughout.”