On Horford, Draymond’s respect from peers and building up Porzingis

[practice videos/interviews/transcripts]

Quick transcript dump before we welcome Noa Dalzell of CLNS onto our Watch Party live chat during the pregame of the game versus Boston…

First off, a lot of fans have recently been saying they want to trade Draymond Green. This happening during and after a strong showing against Victor Wembanyama has me scratching my head.

I do plan to look into how the Warriors can extend Green this off-season while taking a discount off of the $27 million player option coming up, and I’ll be inviting some colleagues like salary cap expert Yossi Gozlan of Third Apron, but I really want to save that brainpower for private “think tank cohort”.

Email me at rich@letsgowarriors.com should you find interest in exchanging these next-level concepts because, quite frankly, the proposal I have needs some feedback and I’d sure love to have some people to brainstorm these roster solutions with.

In any case, I’ve found that Draymond’s peers and teammates, such as Al Horford, seem to respect and, in Kristaps Porzingis’ case, “love” him way more than the casual fan. Isn’t that the point? Shouldn’t fans want to understand what it’s like to be behind-the-scenes? Incidentally, that’s the same approach Dalzell takes in her Celtics reporting.

Oh well 🤷🏻‍♂️ Those of you who think like Noa and me, give me a holler. Would love to share our passion for the game, for the structure of the current CBA, and see how Golden State can make the proper tweaks going forward.

Porzingis on Dray:

People can play basketball here, you know? Smart. Draymond’s super, super experienced, very vocal. I love Draymond, man. He’s — I could see how important he is for this group, for this team. And he has been important for this team, so cool to see him, like, close up. And a lot of guys that can play, a lot of younger guys, also. They can play and I haven’t seen a whole lot, but we’re gonna have time now and we’re gonna keep playing and getting a feel for each other, but I’m excited to be with this team… Just everything, yeah. Just his knowledge about the game, clearing things up when it’s, like, we doing this or that. Like, you know what I mean? He knows like what, like, he’s vocal. He’s vocal and clears things up good and, like, it’s just experience. And I would say, yeah, from what I’ve seen, really, really cool teammate.

Al on different systems and the fact that, well, Dray is a key cog to the Warriors’ brand of basketball:

…in Boston we ran a lot of pick-and-roll and then some isolations and then we got to moving the ball. And here, with the Warriors, we try to get the ball to Draymond or get the ball in the post and then play more in the perimeter, play splits and cut to the basket and things like that. And then when Steph is on the court, obviously all that ties in together, so there’s some pick-and-roll, but then there’s a lot of off-the-ball movement. So our guys do a really good job in cutting and getting to space and attacking the basket and playing that way.

Videos, interviews, captions and transcripts below. I didn’t have time to do the Steve Kerr podium from practice yesterday, but a good portion of it was on the injured knee of one Wardell Stephen Curry, to which there was an update pregame Celtics already, I’m sure you’ve already heard:

00:00 How did the scrimmage go today and how are you feeling?

00:03 KRISTAPS PORZINGIS, DAY BEFORE BOS-GSW: Feeling excellent. Scrimmage went well. We didn’t play too much, but just enough to get a little feel for the game and a little bit, like, feel for each other on the court and tomorrow, back at it.

00:16 In that limited kind of opportunity, what were you able to learn about your new teammates?

00:20 Mm, people can play basketball here, you know? Smart. Draymond’s super, super experienced, very vocal. I love Draymond, man. He’s — I could see how important he is for this group, for this team. And he has been important for this team, so cool to see him, like, close up. And a lot of guys that can play, a lot of younger guys, also. They can play and I haven’t seen a whole lot, but we’re gonna have time now and we’re gonna keep playing and getting a feel for each other, but I’m excited to be with this team.

00:55 You play next to Draymond today?

00:56 Yeah.

00:56 Like, on his team?

00:58 On his team, yeah.

00:59 What — you just mostly talking about, like, the way he’s barking out, I guess, defense and stuff like that?

01:03 Just everything, yeah. Just his knowledge about the game, clearing things up when it’s, like, we doing this or that. Like, you know what I mean? He knows like what, like, he’s vocal. He’s vocal and clears things up good and, like, it’s just experience. And I would say, yeah, from what I’ve seen, really, really cool teammate.

01:27 Do you — you sound like you’re — are you in tomorrow, for sure?

01:31 I don’t know how much I can say, but—

01:33 Sounds like that’s your plan.

01:35 I — yeah, questionable, but I’m feeling good, ready to go.

01:41 When you’ve been out for — anybody’s that been out for six weeks, there’s always, I guess, these little barriers you gotta clear, these little check marks along the way. How will you know when you’ve cleared all of those, physically, or do you already feel you already have?

01:55 Yeah, I don’t know if I have, but I feel good on the court and wasn’t — I did a bunch of work before the All-Star Break and then I had the Break, a couple days off, also, but I stayed active, wanted to not to, like, take some time off because I’ve barely played this season, you know? So, I want to get out there and feeling good and start building on top of this and finish the year really strong.

02:21 What’s your hope for these last 27 games of the season, for yourself? What do you wanna try and accomplish?

02:28 Just honestly, without putting crazy pressure and expectations on myself, just building with each game, just heading in the right direction. It’s been, ah, like, up-and-down season, not healthy and this and that and probably tougher than usual and also tougher after the good summer that I had, from all the perspectives, you know? So I’m looking forward, now that I’m finally feeling good, is to just take it one step at a time, build up with each game, more minutes, more this, more feeling better, better, better, and see where I end up.

03:07 Steve said if you were able, or if you are able to play, that it’ll probably be in short bursts. Do you feel like you’re a player who is able to do really well in short bursts or are you more of, like, a long burst guy?

03:17 I used to hate playing short spurts, especially coming back from something because it’s — when you’re out there for a little period of time, it’s almost hard to get in a rhythm. You don’t want to go up — go in and chuck for the first shot, but sometimes I do now because I know I’m playing short time, so I’m coming in, just have my opportunities, have to take them and find the rhythm that way. But yeah, again, not to put any crazy expectations of myself, just one day at a time, build up from the low minutes I’m gonna have. Build up slowly and I’ll be fine.

03:51 Were you hating that, coming back after a month off in Game 1 of the Finals?

03:55 Say that again?

03:56 Were you still hating that playing in short bursts on a minutes restriction, in Game 1 of the Finals?

04:00 Yes, but I made the best out of it, you know? I did what I could, but I’m not a big fan. But because I’ve been in and out throughout my career like that, I think I have the experience and I can just almost jump in and not be like, oh, I’m so rusty. I’ve done it, unfortunately, many times already, so I have the capability of, like being pretty not rusty.

04:23 Kristaps, yesterday Steve talked about how the team is kind of adjusting its spacing to kind of fit with you and help you fit in. Just how comfortable do you feel in the offense, from what you’ve seen so far?

04:34 Yeah, I think I like the offense. I like the simplicity in a way. I like the freedom and I think that’s the hardest to guard because we don’t even know what we’re doing exactly a lot of times and it’s just playing freely, but you have to have the talent to do that. And yeah, when we — especially when, if this whole team is back like this, it’s unbelievable talent on this group, you know? So, but now with what we have and what I’ve seen, like, I really like the style and us as players, we just have to take advantage of having this kind of offense and flow and things that we’re allowed to do.

05:12 Have you thought how it might feel with you and Al out there tomorrow against the Celtics?

05:17 Weird. Weird. Yeah, if somebody said that’s like, well, we’re in Boston, that this was gonna be the scenario and, like, who would believe this? But this is how it works out, you know? And obviously we expected to for that, for Boston to have some changes with the money stuff, but yeah, it’s gonna be weird, especially first game back against Boston, too. It’s gonna be cool seeing all the guys again and just going out there and playing, hooping and just, playing with, joy.

05:54 In your introductory press conference, I think you said, like, you were kind of surprised by how thorough the medical staff was. How have they kind of been working with you through the last couple weeks and days?

06:05 Everything’s been good, yeah, just to — I’m doing whatever they tell me and to get to the spot where I want to be and I have nothing but the great things to say about them, honestly. And even if I had not, I wouldn’t say it, obviously, but they’ve been awesome, honestly, and I feel like I’m in really good hands and that’s when I need to have a really good rest of the year.

06:36 Kristaps, we haven’t talked to you much and last year was rough on you. We didn’t get a chance. Can you describe what you went through over the last year and a half, like just physically willing yourself out there to play, not being able to play, just kind of all what you’ve gone through?

06:53 Yeah. Yeah, I don’t want to throw some, how is it called? Pity party, now for myself. Oh, you know? Like, I just wasn’t perfect, you know? I was, like, not feeling well in the playoffs and then summertime, I got back. I got back, I started to feel good, had a decent EuroBasket and just the beginning of the season again, wasn’t perfect and this and that. But I have to, like, roll with the punches and I’ve done it already in my career. I have the experience of this and now I feel like I’m in a good spot and didn’t work out perfectly in Atlanta, but I’m in a good place now, in good hands and looking forward to building back up from this point on.

07:36 Can you kind of sum or encapsulate, like, your two years in Boston, now you get a championship and you’re well liked there? I’m sure you’ll be a lot — good applause when you go back next month, but just your two years.

07:50 Yeah. No, I knew going back to Boston, not going back to Boston, going to Boston, it was gonna be like championship expectations. Obviously, it wasn’t gonna be like a walk in a park there, so immediately, as soon as I signed, I felt the responsibility of — like, even me and Al, we talked about it, like, just being on that stage, playing for such a historic franchise, you feel that pressure. You feel that expectations and especially how good the team was, like, we knew it. We had to get it done, otherwise it was gonna be a fiasco, you know? So, and to — it’s something, like, every player strives to be in that position, you know? And we had the chance and we did it once. The second year didn’t work out perfect, but yeah, we had our time and there and enjoyed every moment of it. And at the end, had the — how you say, the big — we accomplished the big objective, you know? And, yeah, you know how much I love playing there and then just everything, the organization, the front office, like, playing all in TD Garden, the floor, the colors, like, it’s an iconic franchise. So it was a — it’ll be always forever my memory, is a special time. Good. Thank you guys.

09:16 Thank you.

00:00 How was your Break and what did you — what did you do that you can tell us?

00:03 AL HORFORD, DAY BEFORE BOS-GSW: What did I do that I can tell you? Well, I hung out with my kids a lot and my wife and just a nice time to be able to get away and explore out here a little bit, so just a really good time for us.

00:21 You guys have played 55 games so far this season. Obviously, when Jimmy goes down, that changes the dynamic a little bit, but for you, what is it, these 55 games, how have they been for you? I mean, how have you sort of taken them in?

00:34 Yeah, a big, big learning experience for me, even though this is going into my 19th year and already in it I feel like every season comes with different challenges and situations and being in a new place, also trying to learn and understand how everything works and figure things out, so it is been a big learning experience for me.

00:59 And how do you look at these last 27 games for you in terms of what do you wanna try and accomplish?

01:04 Yeah. for us it’s to continue to try to get better and the biggest thing for our group is health, right? It’s just being able to get everybody available, who we have, and see what we can do.

01:17 Kristaps was able to participate today. How did he kind of look today?

01:27 Looked great. KP was really good. I thought his timing was good, just overall energy everything, so definitely looking forward to seeing him on the floor.

01:41 You, obviously, you played with him and won a championship with him. What do you sort of envision him for this team right now, especially with the big rotation and everything?

01:49 Well, I mean, his ability to score the ball offensively, I feel like he’s really gonna be able to help us with that and he can score at different levels and force a lot of problems, so I know that he’s capable of being able to score quite a bit.

02:11 How do you see him kind of fitting into this version, this team, compared to — obviously, you played with him in a different setting in Boston?

02:18 Yeah, I mean, that kind of remains to be seen, but it’s different, the things that are being asked of him. And then I know that here, he’ll probably have more opportunities on the offensive end, especially obviously with us missing Jimmy and everything, I think that there’s a great opportunity for him to step in and have a bigger role offensively.

02:49 Al, avoiding the playing tournament, being a Top Six seed was a preseason goal for you guys. Is it still something you look at or this part of the season, are you not even focusing on the standings?

02:59 No, you have to acknowledge it. Ideally for us, it would be to be a Top Six team but at the same time, we want to play good basketball and, like I said earlier, be healthy. So I think if we’re healthy and we’re playing good basketball, that’s what we need, but ideally, yes, it would be be a Top Six, yeah.

03:24 How are you doing, man?

03:25 What’s up, Gary (Washburn).

03:26 What kind of emotions are going through your mind when you’re thinking about facing that team tomorrow?

03:32 It’s exciting for me, just from a standpoint that that I get to see a lot of people that I care about and will compete on the court and that goes on. And then, after being able to catch up with a lot of people, they’re just very special to me, so for me it’s a lot of excitement and my son’s been — Ian’s been raving about seeing a lot of the guys and seeing a lot of the coaches. So, like, the whole thing is just, it’ll be cool. It’ll be cool to see everyone.

04:12 I mean, that’s a different element. Ian really got into, like, he was on the end of the bench. I mean, he was really able to soak in your second tenure in Boston, championship. What’s this move, like, been for him?

04:26 Yeah, I mean it’s obviously — it’s been different for us, but it’s been good. It’s been good for him. It’s been good for us as a family, so it’s good. It’s good.

04:45 And will you take your career year by year or will you — are you saying, hey, I’m definitely playing next year or I don’t know where, or — ?

04:52 Yeah. I mean, I think the last — and we’ve talked about this probably the last three years, I’ve been saying I’m taking it year by year and I think it will be the same coming after the season type thing. And I feel like that’s the best way for me to approach it. I don’t want to put something out there, but I feel good. I’m continuing to try to figure things out and see how I can impact winning. That’s always my mindset and kind of go from there.

05:25 And one more. Have you been surprised with how well the Celtics have done?

05:30 No, because of of Joe (Mazzulla) and the culture that has been established in Boston. I think that probably the most surprising part has been the growth of Neimas (Queta) and Jordan Walsh. They have really taken huge steps in their development and how they’re playing and how they’re impacting winning, but overall that’s — it is kind of expected, but I just think that Brad (Stevens) and Joe have done such a good job over there and it’s something that’s consistent, so I am not surprised.

06:15 Okay, so you’ve played in a lot of systems over your 19-year career. How has the Warriors’ read-and-react emphasis system compared to the other systems you’ve been in with Boston and Atlanta?

06:34 That’s a great question. Yeah, so I think that the difference is — in different places you look for different things, so in Boston we ran a lot of pick-and-roll and then some isolations and then we got to moving the ball. And here, with the Warriors, we try to get the ball to Draymond or get the ball in the post and then play more in the perimeter, play splits and cut to the basket and things like that. And then when Steph is on the court, obviously all that ties in together, so there’s some pick-and-roll, but then there’s a lot of off-the-ball movement. So our guys do a really good job in cutting and getting to space and attacking the basket and playing that way.

07:27 And second, how have you and your family adjusted to the Bay Area in general?

07:32 Mm-hmm. That’s a good question. So our transition has gone very well. My wife and my kids, everybody’s very happy and it’s been — that part of it has been very seamless for us, which is a really good thing and my kids are enjoying it. And I’m enjoying being here as well.

07:56 Thank you.

07:56 Mm-hmm.

08:00 Good? Alright. Thank you, guys.

08:03 Yeah.

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