Notes, quotes and video dump from Phoenix pregame on through this morning’s shootaround before the Miami Heat game. Most times during pregame pressers there’s a lot of Basketball 101 and NBA culture that’s shared from the coaches. Monty Williams admitting that players would never admit that playing their former team gets them up more (in reference to Damion Lee), even though Williams joked that he had been on so many teams, it really didn’t matter — that was a hugely fun moment in an innocuous pregame from the Suns’ basement. There were tons of YouTube comments about that setup, but the best one was our friend Bruce Maro saying that interview environment was like Shawshank Redemption 2 (see article pic above, upper left-hand corner).
There might even be one more video coming to update you on everything else that came through the content pipeline between Phoenix and tonight. So I’m trying to figure out how to bring some of the quick-hits to the forefront on this website because the learning experience from pregame interviews which are not clouded by the results of the immediate game (i.e., the negativity by casual Warriors fans after a loss), are really cool learning experiences. They make you have gratitude for the game and the spirit of competition.
Anyhoo, that’s buried at the bottom of the notes below, all in reverse chronological order, whereby we have Andre Iguodala’s most recent quotes first. There might also be good Miami pregame quips from Steve Kerr and Erik Spoelstra so idk if I’ll put those in a new article or tack them below this paragraph, we’ll see. Other podium visits and radio appearances: Bob Myers, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Jordan Poole.
STEPH WORKOUT TO BURNA BOY MUSIC
ANDRE MORNING SHOOTAROUND
• Andre Iguodala on his progress to return: “I’ll be there when I’ll be there…We got a target date…We’re on the right path…Soon.” (95.7 The Game, Kerith Burke, Dalton Johnson)
• Iguodala has not scrimmaged yet: “We’re not too far from there…I don’t think we’re that far from scrimmaging…I have an ‘analytical load’ that I’m looking for.” (95.7 The Game, Jason Dumas)
• Iguodala says he’s “shooting the ball better than I thought.” (Dalton Johnson)
• Iguodala on the Warriors jumping over the Lakers and Knicks in Forbes’ valuations: “Steph got a piece of that?” (Dalton Johnson)
• On Jonathan Kuminga: “The biggest thing with him is making sure he’s confident and staying in good spirits.” (Dalton Johnson)
• On Andrew Wiggins’ extension: “Him as a two-way guy with Steph, they’re a very, very great match…It looks like this organization is still gonna compete at a really high level for the next four years.” (Dalton Johnson, 95.7 The Game)
• Iguodala thinks some guys in the second unit have to sacrifice for each other a little more. In context, he was saying they are all itching to find a role and get going. On if he thinks the young Warriors growth has been stunted compared to draft picks who went to losing teams where they play a lot: No, it’s the opposite, they’re learning to win. Young players on losing teams may develop losing habits. (Jason Dumas, Kylen Mills)
BOB & STEVE ON 95.7 THE GAME
• Steve Kerr on 95.7 on the poor defense: “It’s tough to win games when you’re not defending well… It’s a long season. We’ll get there…We’re not really playing with a purpose. That can mean a lot of different things. What that means to me is we’re not connecting the game offensively an defensively.”
• On Klay and Devin Booker’s trash-talking: “He’s so competitive… I could see Klay’s frustration. A lot of it is because the slow start to the season… Sometimes as a competitor you just got to lose your mind and it happens…In a moment like that, it’s entirely appropriate. Two guys are talking trash. You got the ultimate counter. I won.”
• On Ty Jerome (in place of the injured Donte DiVincenzo): “One of the reasons I went to Ty Jerome last night, I thought the ball was just sticking. We needed some flow.”
• On what concerns him the most: “We’re dead last in transition points allowed. It just looks like a pickup game out there.”
• On the youngsters: “Development doesn’t equal playing time. It’s watching film, performing in practice…We got a championship team. We’re not just handing out minutes for the sake of handing them out. We’re actually trying to accomplish something here.”
• Bob Myers on 95.7: “I don’t know what this team is yet.”
• On Klay getting ejected: “Klay hates to lose and hates to not play well and that’s how it came out. It happens. I’m surprised he took that long to get kicked out of a game.”
STEPH POSTGAME PHX
• Stephen Curry is confident Klay will bounce back: “It’s gonna come. I have no doubts about it. Just try to stay patient, locked in and enjoy ourselves as much as possible.” (Alex Espinoza)
• On Klay’s ejection: “I actually thought it wasn’t ejection-worthy. There was 800 people on the court…It was a lot of chirping on both sides.” (Alex Espinoza)
DRAY POSTGAME PHX
• Draymond Green says the Warriors are a “decent” offensive team and a “bad” defensive team right now: “It’s just not there. The commitment to defense isn’t there. That’s something we have to be better at and it starts with me and I’m going to make sure we get there.” (KNBR, Alex Espinoza, CJ Holmes)
JP POSTGAME PHX
• Jordan Poole on Klay: “Klay’s a fiery player…it was a bit much ejecting him.” (me)
• On Klay wanting it so bad: “Klay has proven how great a player he is over and over and over again…he’s done it for countless years. Klay is capable of a huge game…it’s only a matter of time before he goes off for a crazy game.” (me)
• On what went wrong: “Foul calls…ball is stopped.” (me)
• On adjustments Suns made: “ball traps…if I’m getting doubled…throwing it backside.” (me)
STEVE POSTGAME PHX
• Steve Kerr says that some of the frustration Klay Thompson has been feeling with his minutes-restriction and status of his game came out tonight and played a role in his ejection: “I love the competitiveness. He took it too far with the ejection but I love his fire… it’s all going to work out for him.” (Kendra Andrews, Madeline Kenney)
• Kerr says their defensive issues start with transition D, and then later on they were late on rotations: “We’re nowhere close to where we need to be right now. We’re a very poor defense team.” (Kendra Andrews)
• Booker says Thompson kept telling him that Warriors have four rings: “He repeated it over and over.” Booker said postgame to TNT: “Man, I love Klay Thompson.” (Kendra Andrews, TNT)
STEVE PREGAME PHX
0:00 • Andre Iguodala and Donte DiVincenzo are in Phoenix but will not play: “Wiggs could come back in with that group. Ty will be active and ready to play.” (me, Jason Dumas)
• On Klay and Draymond’s minutes: same as last game (25-26 minutes per Klay at shootaround). (me)
1:44 • Kerr said good things about Ty Jerome.
2:00 • On Klay: “frustrated that he can’t play more…you get a little older as a player…be a little more patient…on top of everything all year long and be careful…he’ll be frustrated because he’s Klay…he always comes back around…great-hearted human being…kinda the way he makes the best of things.” (me)
• On when he thinks the team will start gelling: “Last year honestly we didn’t know until the playoffs…confidence going into the postseason (was due to veterans)…every team’s different…more a matter of developing our young players…might not be til Game 60.” (me)
• On what fixes transition defense: “always a combination of (offense and defense)…there has to be a good floor balance…(can’t leave) nobody behind (gives example of Jordan Poole’s layup)…34 fast break points against the Lakers/Sacramento…we’re getting more than doubled.” (me)
• On Wiseman vs Ayton: “good sense of getting position in the paint and he’s further along than James…every game James plays is just another experience that can help him get better.” (me)
• On Damion Lee bench role, asking the right questions: “Exactly that…how to prepare, how to recover (interrupted by online commercial)…just staying ready.” (me)
• On Wiggins: “playing with a ton of confidence.” (me)
• On importance of this game: “This game won’t mean anything come playoffs…find substitution patterns, consistency, improvement on certain details.” (me)
MONTY PREGAME PHX
1:00 • Monty Williams on guarding the Warriors: “Tough cover for everybody in the league…communication piece…they just have guys that move all day long, they just don’t stop moving.” (me)
3:00 • On Chris Paul being reluctant of late to shoot: “Getting him off the ball is something that we’ve wanted for years…but the first thing is, just take the shot…lights out when he does three-point shooting drills.” (me)
4:45 • On if there’s a temptation to run vs the Warriors: “Not many people can…(Sacramento) kept running. I’m not sure many teams can do that against Golden State…every part of the season…playoffs…late in the playoffs when you think everything’s gonna slow down…we’re probably not as fast as they are.” (me)
5:50 • On Suns’ success from three vs Clippers: “I don’t expect to shoot 40 (percent) tonight (from three).” (me)
6:45 • On Damion Lee facing his former team: “Shucks, man, I’ve been on so many teams…I was mad at a lot of teams. Tweet that (smiles).” (me)
7:50 • On being motivated early this season: “Because they’re the champs it does bring a different level of intensity…even if you didn’t want to admit it you probably think that to yourself.” (me)
8:45 • On when they can start thinking of success: “A ton of information…during that ten-game session…reports…we try to wait until 20 games…you still haven’t played everybody…start making that assessment around 20 games…trends…we don’t have a theory on it.” (me)
• Steve Kerr says he was texting back and forth with Damion Lee the other day and looks forward to seeing him tonight in Phoenix. (Jason Dumas)
• With Donte DiVincenzo out, Kerr mentioned we could see a change to the second unit rotation tonight — particularly Andrew Wiggins playing with them more. (Dalton Johnson)
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