Why did you decide to pose?

KF: I'm comfortable in my own skin, and I love my body. I feel that this is the year for people to feel free to express themselves. This is the year Jason Collins came out and said 'I'm an NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay.' I'm the first NBA player member to join Athlete Ally, so I wanted to show I'm happy with who I am and support people who are gay, lesbian, transgender, transsexual and so on.

How did you get the nickname "Manimal?"

KF: A guy at my agency said people were calling saying, "Kenneth Faried is a man. He's a beast. He's an animal." So he said, "We're going to call you Manimal." At first I was like "No, that's kind of weird." But then 10 minutes later: "Manimal! Rrrrr!"

How did your mother and father toughen you up?

KF: The first time I ever got dunked on in my life was by my father. I was in seventh grade. He said, "You want to play this game?" "Yes." And he grabbed the ball and dunked on me. "If you want to play this sport, don't ever in your life let this happen to you again."

When I was younger, I wanted to shoot instead of rebounding because nobody wants to do the little things, but my parents told me, "If you want to shoot the ball, go get it and rebound it." "If you want to shoot in the park with the big kids, rebound the ball." I took that advice and ran with it. From that point on, it was always about rebounding and blocks for me.

What did you learn from your mother about toughness?

KF: My mother battled lupus my whole life -- and still is. She keeps fighting and fighting just to stay alive. So no matter my obstacles, no matter who it is or what it is, I know I can fight through it and overcome it.

What do you like about your body?

KF: My abs. Weirdly enough, I was a skinny kid, but I've always had abs. But I've toned them a lot as I've developed my body. My favorite exercise: I balance on a big rubber ball, and a partner throws me a medicine ball. I catch it from each side -- right, left, middle, and at the top of my head. You have to focus on balance and control. It works your brain and muscles at the same time.