Josh Giddey | Washington Wizards Post-Game | Jan. 11, 2022
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00:00 Josh, there were 16 lead changes and then five ties in this game.
00:04 Really back and forth, just from your perspective,
00:07 what was this game like when neither team
00:09 really had a full head throughout the night?
00:11 Yeah, I mean, it's one of those games you love to play.
00:14 The atmosphere is good.
00:15 It's back and forth all night.
00:16 There's no big leads.
00:18 It's close.
00:19 It comes down to the wire, and I think, you know,
00:22 neither team could really separate themselves
00:24 more than double digits, I think.
00:27 So a lot of the night it was back and forth,
00:29 and I think there's got to be a point where we kind of put our foot down,
00:32 get a little lead, and extend that out,
00:33 make it 10, 15, 20 points.
00:35 But, you know, they've got a lead, we pull back,
00:37 we've got a lead, they pull back.
00:38 So working on kind of keeping that foot on the gas
00:41 is something that we're going to have to get better at.
00:42 I wanted to ask you about a specific play.
00:44 I think it was out of a timeout,
00:46 but you threw that alley to train man,
00:48 and then you, you know, obviously dunked it home.
00:49 What was that play,
00:52 and was that a set piece that you guys have been working on?
00:54 Yeah, that was a set play.
00:57 We knew that their big was kind of staying up,
00:59 you know, really helping back up the ring.
01:00 So Mark threw it up,
01:03 we actually were the third,
01:04 Lee Trey was at the right spot at the right time,
01:06 and I just threw it up there.
01:07 We weren't getting, you know, drawn up like that.
01:10 What allowed you guys to be so successful
01:12 getting to the pink and finishing it in the room?
01:15 Yeah, they, you know, they stayed home a lot on our shoes.
01:18 They didn't really load up on the other team.
01:20 So the lane was pretty open tonight,
01:22 Shea was in there all night,
01:24 with it in there, they could get whatever they wanted.
01:26 So I think the more we get into paint,
01:27 the harder it is to keep the guys,
01:28 because, you know, Shea's one of the best players in the ring,
01:31 for a guard in the league, and causes so much damage.
01:33 So if teams want to stay home,
01:35 they don't have to load up so much,
01:36 but if they want to clog it up,
01:37 and we've got guys on the perimeter,
01:39 we're ready to drop down.
01:41 What is it that might be a good play with them,
01:43 and just like, see how crafty he is around the rim,
01:47 and just how he keeps the fingers off now?
01:50 Yeah, it's, you know, it's great to be a part of it,
01:53 because, you know, it's because,
01:55 so much the lack of load, you know,
01:56 he's, you know, shooting all the kids,
01:58 wherever he wants, whenever he wants.
02:00 There's not a lot of guys in the league,
02:01 one-on-one, that can stand in front of him.
02:03 So that's something I've got to get better at,
02:05 you know, load up the breakdown of the panda,
02:07 and really know him better in the league,
02:08 to load up on the check.
02:11 Josh, no Kenridge tonight in that second unit,
02:14 but you all still honed,
02:16 just what did you notice about the reserves,
02:19 and how they operated in this game?
02:21 They were great.
02:23 You know, Bates, Tye, Trey,
02:26 were awesome for us tonight.
02:28 You know, Kenridge is obviously a big piece
02:29 of our bench unit.
02:31 He brings that spark, brings that energy every night,
02:33 but I think tonight, the guys, you know,
02:35 picked up the slights that he left behind,
02:37 and I thought the bench was awesome for us.
02:40 You know, that second unit's been really strong for us.
02:41 You know, when the starters,
02:43 a lot of the time the starters have to go off to the bench,
02:44 but that second unit comes in and picks it up for us,
02:47 they're right away, so they're awesome for us.
02:50 I think they're like 45% shooter from three
02:52 since coming back from the health and safety protocols.
02:55 I know it's only been a handful of games,
02:57 but are you feeling any different on your shot?
03:00 Anything that, you know, you've worked on this season
03:03 that you feel like has come to fruition?
03:05 You know, I love this conference.
03:06 Starting the year, I was kind of worried
03:08 about what people would think and stuff like that,
03:10 but now it's just like down my head.
03:12 I'm the shooting bull, really, so make or miss,
03:14 you know, it's on to the next shot for me.
03:16 I don't know how much fun it is.
03:18 Did you have a similar experience last year
03:22 with the team, or was it exactly the same?
03:24 I started the season, I think, one to 20 or something.
03:27 Everyone was talking about Josh Cunningham,
03:28 that we're going under, maybe a derrick, a shooter.
03:30 I was just nervous and overthinking it the whole time,
03:32 but, you know, once I kind of sat down,
03:35 spoke to a coach, I spoke to someone about it,
03:37 I don't know, he kind of sat me down and said,
03:39 you know, a lot of it's pencil, and, you know,
03:41 from that point on, I go to the gym,
03:43 started working out every day, getting shots up,
03:45 before I went to practice, and, you know,
03:47 for the rest of the year, the shot was good.
03:49 Team started going over, respected it more,
03:51 and I had the confidence to play the rest of the year
03:54 and make sure people felt good.
03:56 Josh, on some of your night passes tonight,
03:58 like, the crowd reacted pretty loudly.
04:00 Like, even on the road, like, you're drawing back out of them.
04:03 Is that something you hear or, like, feel during the game
04:07 to where, like, you can almost beat up with that?
04:09 Yeah, you know, sometimes some of the passes I make,
04:11 you know, they're like that, and, you know,
04:15 I really enjoy it, but, yeah, I mean,
04:17 I was just trying to find the open guard.
04:19 Sometimes it looks pathetic, you know, one-hand whip,
04:21 but, you know, I could easily pick up two hands
04:23 and throw it that same pass, but, yeah,
04:25 just trying to find my guard in the right spots
04:27 and sometimes it's not going to work.
04:29 KCP banks in that three late in the game,
04:31 but where can you guys get better in late-game situations
04:35 and start playing so much quicker?
04:36 Yeah, well, you know, I was just deflating.
04:39 We played good defense for a long of the time,
04:41 and someone banks a three like that,
04:42 but, you know, late-game situation, you know,
04:45 I think we were good tonight.
04:46 I think we'll let it down probably our defense.
04:48 Offense, we got whatever we wanted.
04:50 We got in the paint, whatever we wanted,
04:51 but, you know, down the stretch,
04:54 we definitely think we could have executed.
04:55 I mean, you know, I had a bad run down the stretch.
04:58 Edwin was three, got blocked in the ring,
05:00 took a bad shot, you know, at the buzzer.
05:02 So there's a lot of things we can clean up
05:04 down the stretch, but I think tonight,
05:06 defensively, was kind of where we lacked a little bit,
05:09 but, as I said, offensively,
05:10 we got in the paint and got whatever we wanted.
05:12 Hey, Josh. Hope you're doing well.
05:20 What did you see on the way that your team reacted
05:24 in the last three and a half minutes of the game,
05:26 and what did you learn about that game-late execution?
05:30 Yeah, you know, as I said, there's a lot of things.
05:33 I mean, defensively, I think, you know,
05:35 when KCB banked that three, and it's deflating
05:37 because, you know, you play deep for such a long time
05:40 in the shot clock, and then for someone to bank
05:41 a three like that to go up three points
05:43 with 30 seconds left, you know, it's tough to swallow.
05:46 But, you know, credit to our guys.
05:49 We kind of -- we came out of the timeout.
05:50 We executed perfectly. We got a great, great look.
05:53 We didn't make it, but, you know,
05:54 the execution part in the late game
05:56 is something we've been working on.
05:58 Tonight, we got the shot we wanted to throw up.
06:00 We didn't make it, but, you know,
06:02 it's positive steps in the right direction
06:03 in terms of being able to execute late game
06:05 and get the shot we want.
06:08 -Thank you, Josh. -Thanks, Devon.
06:09 Thanks, Josh.
06:10 [BLANK_AUDIO]