Darius Bazley | San Antonio Spurs | Mar. 16, 2022
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00:00 I'm sure there's been many better examples than a couple folks
00:03 who gave you on defense there right at the very end.
00:06 So for him being such a young guy,
00:09 and still adjusting to NBA,
00:11 your thoughts on him sticking his nose in there on the dump?
00:14 And what's your response to that?
00:17 Well, that's what he's supposed to do.
00:19 You know, we're a young team,
00:25 so if we were to use the excuse that guys are young
00:31 and nothing will get done around here,
00:35 you know, I think it's good habits to build now.
00:40 That'll follow him the rest of the way.
00:42 But, I mean, that's what he's supposed to do.
00:48 Any guy, you're down there,
00:50 you know, someone coming down the lane,
00:52 especially in crunch time, you know,
00:55 put your body on the line, go try to make a play.
01:00 That's what all our guys are trying to do.
01:02 That's what, you know, coaches try to get us to do,
01:05 is try to make those plays with the room.
01:08 What did you think of the comeback
01:10 that you all were able to generate tonight?
01:13 Pretty much so many drive, kicks,
01:15 pressing feats, single-handedly.
01:19 I thought it was pretty good.
01:20 I thought we were able to just hang in there.
01:27 I sat on the bench to say, I'm like,
01:30 it seems like every time we, you know, throw a punch,
01:35 they're right back with two, three of their own.
01:38 And that can kind of be tough, you know,
01:41 when you're trying to get back into a game,
01:42 and it seems like they have the answer for everything,
01:45 you know, that you try to throw at them.
01:49 But, I mean, Shea was super big in the third quarter.
01:52 He, I don't know what got into him.
01:56 He was really big in the third quarter.
01:58 You know, really helped us.
01:59 We got some stops.
02:01 The second group came in, starting the fourth.
02:04 And, I mean, they were really good, too.
02:08 You know, just, I thought it was good.
02:11 I mean, the game, you've seen it came down to one possession.
02:14 Like, we were one possession away.
02:16 Game could have gone either way.
02:19 There were a lot of, like, mistakes in between.
02:21 But this basketball is going to be mistakes.
02:24 But, I mean, I thought the comeback was good,
02:26 and I thought it was really good on our part.
02:29 Because, like I said, it just seemed like
02:31 they had an answer for everything.
02:33 Like, they just kept, you know, going on runs.
02:38 If we went on a run, it would, you know,
02:40 hit a bucket to stop it, you know what I mean?
02:43 But...
02:46 You mentioned throwing punches like that.
02:47 You had a second man, like you had tonight,
02:50 who you think had a focus attitude.
02:53 What exactly was his -- How big is that?
02:55 How valuable is that, you know, for the moment?
02:59 Super big.
03:00 I mean, we need those guys to come in
03:02 and either keep the lead or chip into it, you know.
03:09 Whatever it is, just keep the pace or up the tempo.
03:13 That was really big.
03:14 Veet was super big.
03:16 He hit some big shots.
03:18 He got a steal on the right wing.
03:22 We got out in transition, tail went down, got fouled.
03:27 But, I mean, that second group was super big.
03:29 And, like I said, that is super important,
03:32 because, like you said,
03:34 when a team is just constantly throwing punches,
03:36 like, everybody's got to be rolling, you know what I mean?
03:39 Everyone's got to have the mindset, like,
03:41 "So what?" You know, like, "What else?"
03:44 You know what I mean?
03:45 Just keep it coming. What else?
03:46 Whatever. What else?
03:48 And then, you pointed out Shea.
03:50 When he's out there, when he's kind of in that moment,
03:52 you saw some extra fire from him in that third quarter
03:55 as well, just emotionally.
03:57 What did you feel when you were out there on the floor
03:59 with him, and he just went up to you?
04:02 I mean, it fired me up.
04:04 Like, that's why when I hit three to end the quarter,
04:06 I was, like, so hyped, because Shea was going crazy.
04:10 And, like, I don't know, man.
04:16 I know, like, when people watch the game,
04:18 they're probably like, "Dang, dude is nice."
04:20 But I'm having the same thoughts, like, in the game.
04:23 I'm like, "Wow."
04:24 And he, you know, he gets whatever he wants.
04:26 And, you know, it's, like, it's tough for the opposing team.
04:31 But he had it going, and it's, like,
04:35 I can't speak for everybody else,
04:36 but it got me going, you know,
04:38 and it just made me want to get stops, you know,
04:42 and offensively, it just made me want to,
04:45 you know, be aggressive and, you know,
04:49 knock down shots, whatever, make whatever play I have to.
04:52 But that's -- I mean, he was huge for us.
04:56 [Indistinct]
04:58 [Indistinct]
05:12 It has been a rough stretch, but I think everyone's just --
05:18 like, this is really good for us, you know,
05:20 to, like, have these experiences.
05:24 It's crazy to sound like to take these losses,
05:26 you know what I mean, like,
05:28 to have these moments, you know,
05:30 because, like, every time you step on the court,
05:34 every time, you know, the buzzer sounds,
05:36 like, that's an experience you just gained.
05:39 That was opportunity you just had,
05:41 and you get to learn and grow from it.
05:44 And then, you know, being in a close game like this,
05:46 like, I'm sure we'll definitely watch film tomorrow,
05:49 but just to be able to go back and go over these things.
05:52 And it showed up, you know, kind of earlier in the year
05:55 when we were closing out games.
05:56 I think someone had asked me a question.
05:59 You know, we were closing out games really well,
06:01 and they were asking, like, just about the poise,
06:04 but it's like, we go over that stuff in practice.
06:07 You know, we watch film and stuff like that.
06:09 And so when it does come in the game,
06:10 it's just like, you know, just do our stuff,
06:13 you know, just stick to our stuff.
06:16 And that's what we try to do tonight.
06:18 It can be tough sometimes when it's just
06:20 in the heat of the moment, but, I mean,
06:22 all you can do is grow from it and then,
06:25 you know, try to apply it and execute.
06:28 -Hmm. -Thank you, guys.
06:32 -Mm. -Yeah.
06:34 [BLANK_AUDIO]