Everybody's ready,
everybody's healthy everybody came
out of that last game clean so.
Had a nice practice and now we'll
head to Utah when you get to
the closeout game like this, it
is a message in a
different for you. Coming from the coaching
perspective, no, no, for me it's
in for our team is to continue.
The only thing we did
was force a game six up.
You know we go back to their
place and understand.
It's hard to win there and they're
very talented team and well
coached and we we got to hopefully
put ourselves in a position to
find a way to win on the road.
We haven't talked about last year.
We just saw it in the moment
talking about how we can get better
on both ends of the ball in
this series, and that's the only
thing we've really been focused on.
It's not easy, you know,
to to close out a series,
and so we got to be playing your best
basketball and you got to continue to
trust and and believe in one another.
And right now that's what we're doing.
What we talked about it,
I think before the game is
the journey we've been on.
We've been in different situations.
We've won games.
We've lost games and can we, you know,
learn from those and I thought again,
the character of this team is, you know, we.
We found a way to win it up there
in game three and put ourselves
in a position to win game four.
But we didn't.
We didn't get the W,
but we came back home and we still
believe that if we played the way
we have been playing here of late,
that it puts us in a position to win.
But you're never guaranteed the win and
we saw that with the last 40 seconds in.
In game four.
So again we gotta execute and trust
and and and keep playing hard.
They've been together,
they've they've seen the good,
and they've seen the bad.
And you know that pitcher mentality
after you give up a home run as you
got through the next pitch, and that.
And that's the way this team I
think goes about their businesses.
They they all understood what the
position that you know that we
were in and we just came up short.
There was nothing to you know,
linger in the sense of like.
Talk about our debate,
what we could have done different.
It's, you know.
Turn the page and and get ready for
game five and I thought that's what they did.
Well,
I think the big thing is rebounding.
The ball gobert.
Had you know offensive rebounds
that we we found?
And so again we we we got to try to
keep him off the free throw line we
got to keep their body on go bare
so he doesn't dominate the boards.
We've talked to defense from
the start and we continue to
talk defense and we rely on our
defense and that's pretty cool.
For the first year, and as we've gone,
hopefully we continue to get better at
understanding the different schemes,
but I I think the guys have really
bought into playing defense,
and our defense is going
to be tested in game six.
It's not just that that game,
but it's been all season.
The trust of understanding
what we're talking about,
and teaching his coaches they're
able to digest what we're saying
and and those guys are the
ones that have to do the work.
And those guys are doing it at a high level.
Just stay in character.
Just be yourself.
We're not asking anybody to do anything more,
we're just trying to put ourselves
in a position to to find a
way to win on the road.
And that means just staying character.
Is there a killer instinct to that, though?
So hey, you can sense we're right there.
We let's close it out now.
I've been around one of the greatest players
when he wanted something really bad.
He didn't shoot the ball very well
and that first half and we're lucky
to have Jason Terry a playing well.
So when you want something really bad,
it tends to go to opposite way.
So again, as I just said,
we just have to stay in character
and and play our game. We
know, you know, you need four
wins in order to advance,
so we got to take this game very
serious because we know they
come going to come out play the
hardest day probably ever played,
so we did a great job.
They prepare and cleaning up some mistakes
and stuff like that because you know,
obviously the last game was a little bit
different from the other ones before
because we won by a lot of points,
but that doesn't mean you know
they they missed open looks.
So we got to do our job in order to win
a game so you know no time to relax or
so it wasn't as perfect as it looked.
I think we did a lot of great
jobs and we forced misses,
but there were also a lot
of open looks that they had.
And you know, if they go in,
you know the game can go
completely different.
So in order to prevent it,
you know you got to still do your job.
And come out there and and
and work hard for you.
And I think everybody who experienced
it doesn't want this to happen again.
So that's why we have to like do
our job and take this very serious.
You know, there's no time to relax,
especially in the playoffs.
They are very talented team,
especially offensively.
You know, we did a good job last game.
But like I said they missed a
lot of open looks too.
And you know they were the number
one offense in the NBA for reasons.
So we have to keep playing the way we do.
And then you know.
But we also don't want to dwell
on the past we have.
I don't know.
I think some point experience
but at the same time.
You know we had this happen like last year.
This like left the market everybody
you know we just we wanna win
and we know we can win you know.
So I think the mindset is just that
we go in and wanna finish this.
I agree yeah I think we play with
a higher pace we got the ball over
the half court a lot quicker and
it helps us to to set up our fast
break points and our offense.
A lot of times we had open looks
before the defense was even set and
we have to continue doing that as
soon as we get the rebound which
is like a big part of finishing
place especially with Robert and
Whiteside in there.
We have to run and keep the pace up.
When,
when our other guards catch
the rebound here
and there to like Dodo, he just pushes
it and sees what's going on,
because a lot of times you know you,
you can't always expect the
same guy to push the pace.
That's just impossible.
So now that we have everybody crashing
in and helping rebound because
they are so good at rebounding,
go bear on Whiteside.
As I said, you know that gives
other people a chance to catch
the ball and just push it in.
And if it's another guy every possession,
everybody else has to run with them.
I think from our side we were better
in executing our defensive plan.
You know, we didn't give them as many.
Free throws,
we played with better pace on defense too,
not just on offense,
but whenever we had like we,
we read the situations good so they
didn't have like as many attacks to the
basket as before and not as many open looks.
Obviously they didn't make their shots,
but I think the biggest thing
that we did was clean up.
The big mistakes that we had and
they that lead to like you know,
open layups and foul trouble and stuff
like that. There's a whole lot of
things that we focus on in training
camp throughout the season and
throughout the series in terms of
preparing for games in terms of.
How we communicate on the floor and
our chemistry defensively so it's
hard to pick out one or two things,
but I think it's just been a major
focus for us as a team and on an
individual basis to have each other's
back and compelling that in the core.
That communication we followed the
scout very well understood their
tendencies and we we had each other's
back in the situations where we
were beat or had to make rotation
so and also we finished plays well,
which is good so.
But the biggest thing is having chemistry
in that in the floor and communicating.
I mean,
hopefully that's something that's consistent.
Through I mean that's that's effort
and focus following the game plan.
Obviously they're great players on that side,
and they're gonna make adjustments,
so we have to be prepared
for those things and.
Try to do our best to to be imaginative
and see what they may come at us with,
but it comes down to just focusing
on on us and and our scout and doing
the same thing as far as effort and
communication on that in the ball.
Right now we're focusing on this.
This one game we have and competing
to the highest possible level.
And that's every single possession.
So defensively it's going to be
huge for us going into their place.
We'd have to limit their possessions
and make sure we're finishing
plays and continue to communicate.
Where we've been communicating and
have each other's back and that
that's our focus one tomorrow.
I mean,
there's been a lot of experience
we've gone through as a team this
season that we've taken a lot
from and we're learning from.
And a lot of experience even in this series.
So like it's our biggest focus is
going to be going in there with the
defensive mindset and letting our offense
kind of feed off of that tomorrow.
And being prepared for whatever it
is that they have prepared for us,
it means just that staying in character.
We've done a lot of things to to get
to this point in all of our roles.
We've we've tried our best to be consistent,
and that's something we're going
to continue to do,
and the effort has always been there.
It's gonna continue to be there and
knowing where to be when to be there
and have each other's back is is
going to be key going into tomorrow.
That really comes down to the
full team getting stops.
I think we have skilled enough and athletic
enough guards to run off of makes,
but it's a lot easier.
And there's a lot more momentum
when you run off of the mist,
so if we can limit them to one shot
and we can crack down on their
bigs that have done a tremendous
job of creating problems
for us in that department.
If we can hold them back and
have a numbers advantage even
when they're down on that
lower side of the court, it's
it's a lot easier to get out and run.
You've put a lot of time in against Rudy,
wouldn't you think? When Spencer went
in and threw down on him like that?
Big play, big momentum play,
he's a great shot blocker.
So you got to pick your spots and
Spencer sign opportunity, and.
We felt bouncy, so we took advantage.
Yeah, that's not really.
We're not really playing with IFS since
we have a game for sure tomorrow that
we're gonna compete and we're gonna
do everything in our power to win.
And that's the focus.
And it's going to start with one possession.
And then they'll be one after that.
So that's kind of the mentality
that we're going in with is
competing every single possession,
carrying out our our game plan,
keeping our staying in character,
and doing things that we've done
to be successful and continue to
make the adjustments where needed.
I mean, there's no other option
we have to play the game.
I think we have to show up and
compete every single possession,
so that's what we're going to do.