NEW ORLEANS — Heading back through the curtain after delivering an impassioned speech at the 2014 WWE Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, Jake “The Snake” Roberts warmly embraced the man he credited moments earlier with saving his life: Diamond Dallas Page. Roberts had prepared some choice words to describe his remarkable friendship with Page — one that helped Roberts conquer addiction and create change in his life — but found he needed none of them once he stepped to the podium.

Photos of Roberts' emotional induction |  Watch 'The Snake' speak about his long road back

“I wrote some stuff down, and I did not follow any of it,” Roberts said with a grin. “I’ve always done that. It came from the heart.”

Indeed, a year and a half earlier, Roberts moved in with DDP, starting himself on a road to recovery paved with healthy eating, positive energy and no shortage of DDP Yoga.

“When I’d screw up, he’d sit me down, we’d have a talk and we’d work through it,” the WWE Hall of Famer said. “A year and a half he gave me, and he never complained about it. It blows me away, because it’s not only with me that he does that. He’s such a giving person and he wants everybody to do well. When you’re around that, it’s infectious.”

Beaming with pride as Roberts celebrated with friends and family — including several snapshots of the gleaming new hardware on his right ring finger — DDP recalled the origins of their transformative alliance, which had WWE Hall of Fame aspirations from the beginning.

“I wanted Jake to see that there was light at the end of the tunnel,” DDP explained. “At the beginning, I said, ‘Imagine. You’re at the Hall of Fame. You should have been inducted 10 years ago, but they’re not going to induct you. Not where your head’s at. Not where your life’s at.’”

With DDP’s guidance, Roberts would undergo a startling physical and mental metamorphosis over the next several months, returning to the WWE fold in January before becoming forever enshrined in the WWE Hall of Fame by the man who made it all possible. When asked Saturday night what he hopes people take away from his story, Roberts had few words, but these, too, came from the heart.

"Whatever they need, if there are pieces that fit."