Kerr will give Payton more minutes; Stephen Curry under the weather

+ more notes & quotes vs Charlotte

Steve Kerr on postgame Zoom call for credentialed media. (Photos: Getty)

Here are the postgame notes & quotes from the Golden State Warriors’ win over the Charlotte Hornets, organized by topic:

Gary Payton II’s impressive contributions

Kerr - GP: “dominated. He dominated the game…three steals but I think he had several more deflections…electric athlete…hard to stand out in an NBA floor…jumps off the page…how hard he’s worked to get to this point just clawing his way to a roster spot.”

Kerr - GP impact on others: “a few possession he kinda blew up on his own…grind our way…for about two and a half quarters…needed a spark…his teammates love him…so much energy…”

Kerr - GP nightly basis? “Yes”

Kerr - Playing GP not matchup-dependent: “nah he needs to play more.”

Kerr - When noticed GP? “It’s grown over time…he didn’t have much of an opportunity last year…new group…reinvigorated in many ways…we’re better now because of Gary, because of Andre Iguodala. This is a great spot…great lesson…you just have to keep fighting…”

Kerr - Subbed GP out for moment with crowd? “Yeah. Basically he was tired too…give the crowd a chance to applaud…Draymond…giving him a standing ovation…”

Kerr - What was it like waiving GP: “just fingers crossed. You just never know in this league. Things have just fallen into place for him and for us…he’s gotta be out there more often…”

Poole - GP: “Huge…last couple games.”

GP defender in practice: “…when you see Gary ask Gary. Gary can’t guard me.”

GP2 - Kerr saying more minutes: “…just go out there and make a play for my team…be ready…been doing that for about five years now…”

GP2 - Defensive minded: “that’s why I’m here…spark…our offense is, we can do anything, we have a lot of pieces…floor space…if we can get stops it’s gonna be pretty hard to stop us.”

GP2 - Fighting for spot: “…waiting to talk to them and see what the plan was.”

Damion x GP working out together

Damion - Appreciate GP2: “I love it. Funny story. We worked out together during pre-Draft…Merritt College…for three months…been knowing G for last five years, one of my brothers…all about opportunity…always puts his impact on the game…prove to himself that he belongs.”

Damion - When GP2 was waived, talked to him? “No not really. I’m kinda open book with that stuff…sounding board, voice of reason for anyone who’s been through that…mental fortitude…overcoming that injury…”

Damion - A mold with Juan, GP2: “guys that want to do whatever it takes to get a win…find whatever our role is…encouraging each other…smart plays…small recipe…”

GP2 - Working out with Damion: “me and DLee, we met actually that summer going into the Draft…with CFarr Chris Farr…been a journey…we were all in the G…just a great feeling you put the work in…”

Jordan Poole’s big scoring night

Kerr - JP: “…slow start…just a matter of time…Steph has been under the weather the last couple of days, clearly not himself, still almost came out of it with a triple double because he’s Steph…” 🚨

Kerr - JP scoring when Steph had off night: “…really rough first 24 minutes…having three days without a game, you can feel a little bit of rust…Steph being a little under the weather…we were off offensively…kicked into gear that third quarter…”

Kerr - JP having three days off helped? “Yeah, we’ll go with that. The three days were perfect for Jordan…starting to figure out our team…still have a lot of growth ahead of us…we’re starting to build an identity which is very much defensive-minded…fans…you could feel the excitement…”

Damion - Sense JP shot was coming: “…one thing about JP he’s not gun-shy…like they say it’s a make or miss league…letting it fly…defensive side he had four steals…a lot of things that show up that aren’t stats…”

Poole - Did you know you’d break out of slump? “Yeah definitely.”

Poole - When did you know? “Went to sleep a couple nights ago and I felt it.”

Poole - How did you know? “We have 82 games. It’s not like college…esp if you’re a shooter.”

Poole - Anything different tonight? “Tbh nothing…shot the same shots today…they just went in (laughs).”

Poole - Good session the other day? “Nothing. Sometimes they go in…shoot all the time…some nights they don’t go in. That’s what I have to learn as a shooter…get back to your regular scheduled program…”

Beckoning crowd: “I’ve been wanting to do that since my rookie years…huge huge part to our win tonight. They’re so loud…I’ve just kinda been holding that in for three years…let the whole Bay know that we’re here.”

Having depth on both offense and defense

Kerr - Having depth on both ends: “…we really like the roster but you never know…Otto hasn’t been healthy the last couple years…how many games was Andre gonna play?…these guys can play.”

Poole - Defensive identity: “feels really cohesive…trust your back line. We have a lot of vets too…the earlier that they’re able to tell us show us…”

Poole - Four steals, focus on defensive game: “just trying to get better every day on the offensive end, on the defensive end…they do a good job of lighting the fire under me…they know that the offense is gonna be there…”

Damion - Defense: “one of our staples…last year…looking to carry that over…”

Draymond Green talked to Steve Kerr

Kerr - fist pump (didn’t know it was for GP good play): “first quarter I was so disgusted, I was pouting and my body language was terrible and Draymond told me that…not my best moment as a coach. Great for Draymond to remind me they need my energy too…”

Klay Thompson’s interaction/influence

Poole - Talk to Klay and Steph about slumps: “…it’s not just this year…Klay told me before the game that before he made 14 threes he was shooting 15%…”

Damion - JP learned from Steph and Klay: “that’s the beauty of it when every single day you’re practicing, you’re in the aura of two of the best guys to ever (shoot the ball)…doesn’t matter if they go 1-for-15…next day they’re getting their work in…”

GP2 - Klay tweet: “I can watch Klay Thompson shoot the ball all day long and I can’t wait…” 🚨

Damion Lee’s contributions

Damion - How feel being a top scorer: “feeling great…competing and just having fun…every night is not gonna be your night…be a star in your role…the goal is to contribute to a win.”

Damion - Shoulder? “Solid.”

Damion - Forced to miss a game: “wasn’t the worst thing in the world but it also didn’t feel normal…”

Damion - Affect shot? “Ball went in tonight…thank God that I’m able to play…”

GP2 as a lob threat

GP2 - Offense: “yeah I’m a pretty good cutter…30, Dray, everybody draws a lot of attention…”

GP2 - Rank your dunk: “ahh, it’s just two points, you know? Just happy we got a few stops in there…get the crowd into it…”

GP2 - Lob threat: “…guys know I can jump and play above the rim…we’re a very unselfish team…I tell them throw it up, throw it to the roof.”

Gary Payton, Sr. coaching GP2’s brother

GP2 - Dad: “I have not talked to Gary but I’m sure I’ll talk to him in the next few hours.”

GP2 - Julian Payton at Lincoln: “…Gary seems like he’s on the right track…doing a good job with those kids.”

Andre Iguodala’s influence

GP2 - Keeled over, Andre came over: “catch my breath. Tweaked my ankle. Dre was just telling me to keep going…”

GP2 - Iguodala: “educational. He’s filled with so much knowledge…sacrificed what he does for teams…him, Draymond…Beli, good players to have on your team…pick their brains.”

Please check our YouTube channel for the forthcoming video versions of the above notes & quotes.

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