Malevy Leons: “keep sending guys to the glass”
[GSW-MEM videos/interviews/transcripts]
Don’t be too quick to discount the Warriors’ performance against a tanking team in Memphis, especially the way haters are excusing Jonathan Kuminga’s brilliant debut with Atlanta (I’ll discuss that in due time).
Malevy Leons and his long arms continually disrupted the likes of bonafide bucket-getters in Ty Jerome and GG Jackson. I’ve earmarked this game as something we know Leons can do: stay in front of an attacker. Those types of guys are hard to find.
Not to mention two intangible moments:
When the Grizzlies went on that late 15-5 run and things got really sloppy for Golden State — you know, that stretch in which Gary Payton II made a careless behind-the-back pass that the hit the scorer’s table 😂 and Terry Stotts, sitting next to Steve Kerr, said something to Kerr and shook his head — Malevy went over to Pat Spencer and Quinten Post and gave them each a high-five of encouragement before a sideline inbound following a Warriors foul.
Near the end of the game, when we fans were rooting for Leons to get a bucket so that all nine Dubs would end up in double-digit scoring, Malevy snuck to his usual area, the non-scoring baseline position, the rebounder’s spot where perhaps we are more familiar seeing 2025 Gui Santos sneak to.
Actually, Leons said it best on the podium, postgame.
“Keep going at it and keep sending guys to the glass and playing fast,” said Mallie (yes, that’s his nickname, according to Netherlands sports reporter Mark Devries, whom I met at Warriors practice a few months ago). “Wore them out in the end.”
You can also call Leons “Mal”, as shown here in post from his agent, Drew Kelso of One Motive Sports:
Devries joined us at the 3:56:00 mark of the Orlando watch party to talk all things Leons:
So not only am I impressed with Leons’ 1v1 defense and penchant for getting rebounds — super-important in this era of the NBA — but he is totally happy not having the ball in his hands.
Is there any way we can get him in more minutes with one Wardell Stephen Curry, when he comes back?
Granted, we had a whole slew of guys out, but maybe, just maybe, Leons can find more opportunities coming up because, now that Santos has established himself as a full-time wing, sure would be nice to have a dependable backup who basically just keeps doing what Gui does — with a little added bonus of wingspan and point-of-attack disruption.
And I know right now is a fun time for haters to want to get rid of Draymond Green. Sorry, we need Green for the Play-in Game and subsequent Playoffs, which means you can’t just mothball him — Kerr has already said on the podium and radio that Dray’s role may be reduced. I’ll try to report on this some more in due time, as well, because a lot of the discourse has gone a bit sideways.
But I won’t be doing that 200 characters at a time. That, in and of itself, is low-IQ. You can’t learn anything by thumb-typing back and forth. Think of how ridiculous that would be if lawyers had to do that in court. The best discourse is just quite simply done in person.
So I’m going to be trying something new, soon. A think-tank, of sorts. I’ll be seeking people who want more than the rabbit holes of social media. Let’s have real discussions on difficult Warriors topics, face-to-face on Zoom calls.
So, add figuring out how to get Leons more minutes to those future discussions.
Videos and transcripts including Steve, Malevy, Brandin Podziemski and Moses Moody, below…
00:00 What did you like most about the offense tonight?
00:02 STEVE KERR, POSTGAME GSW-MEM: Just the way, yeah, the way the ball moved, spread the floor. We really played through the post quite a bit. Al was fantastic, went to him early to establish the post and he created a lot of advantages for us. And then they started doubling him and we were able to move the ball really well. 37 assists, just a really good night for everybody who stepped on the floor, missing so many guys. I thought Malevy was awesome, just the energy, defending without fouling, creating some some problems for them at the defensive end of the floor and then making some nice plays on offense, too. It was fun to watch him play.
00:44 It seemed like pace, pretty purposeful from the jump. Just what kind of tone did that pace in the first quarter set for the rest of the game?
00:49 Yeah, it was important to — this team really should have beaten us a couple weeks ago. We got lucky to beat them at home. They played really well with basically the same group, missing a bunch of guys, and I think that game woke us up a little bit. I thought our spirit was right from the start and that pace that you mentioned was a big part of that.
01:12 Brandin, you’ve spoken a lot this season about the balance between playing on-ball (inaudible), another statistically big game for him. What have you seen from him trying to strike that balance?
01:24 Brandin’s been great, just the totality of his game, what he does on the glass, handling the ball, playing off the ball. Yeah, we’re trying to find that balance. I mean, he still at times gets himself in trouble, but it’s also he’s a young player who has the ability to do a lot and he is trying to do a lot, so it’s all with great intentions. It’s just finding that balance, like you said, and I think he’s doing a good job of that.
01:58 They got it down to about 12 in the third quarter, Gui comes in, he scores or helps you guys score six in a row real quick, called time out. Could you have imagined Gui developing like he has this year? I mean, last year it seemed like he could barely dribble.
02:13 Right.
02:14 And this year, he’s hitting pull-up threes.
02:17 He’s taken another step this year, Gui has. Last year he was a very important role player for us, number one on the team in plus-minus. After the Jimmy trade, he really solidified that role, but now he’s become more on-ball as a creator, post-up guy, the step through move that you saw, which was incredible. And he has the ability to play point guard when the other team is pressuring us. He’s really a versatile player and somebody we really value.
02:48 Tonight and Sunday against Denver, is that proof of concept that, hey, pace, ball movement, that’s the way you guys can compete and win games without — ?
02:56 Yeah, and the ball needs to go in. I mean, we made, I think, 21 threes against Denver, 19 tonight. Last night, the shots didn’t go in. We lost, but the process did feel better in both the Denver game and tonight in terms of creating advantages and ball movement and rhythm, so yeah, that’s the formula for sure. And we’ve gotta continue to plug away. I’m really enjoying coaching these guys. They’ve been great, just the energy, the enthusiasm, supporting each other. It’s a really fun group.
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03:32 (Inaudible) in the first half, what was your mentality when you got in the game?
03:36 MALEVY LEONS: Just play hard, trying to defend, trying to compete and rebound.
03:41 Seemed like, I mean, that was your first, first quarter run with this group?
03:46 Yeah.
03:46 Yeah, what — I mean, what did it feel like? Did you expect to play tonight, and just what was your expectation?
03:50 Yeah, I heard I was gonna go in, into first and, yeah, I was just excited, ready to go. Those chances don’t come around often and I definitely was gonna grab it.
03:58 Yeah, what kind of rhythm do you feel like you guys were able to find as a group? The ball seemed to be popping, you’re playing up tempo, just how did that affect the Grizzlies throughout the course of the game?
04:08 I just think the pressure and, like, keep going at it and, like, keep sending guys to the glass and, like, playing fast, like, wore them out in the end.
04:16 Last game you guys started with turnovers. How’d you guys kind of avoid that in this game?
04:22 Not necessarily true. I guess everyone looked at the film and, yeah, I didn’t know the turnovers were down, but yeah, I wouldn’t know.
04:31 Just how do you wanna build on this? You’re coming out, making the most out of your opportunity now. How do you wanna build on this moving forward?
04:36 Just sticking around to, like, every opportunity that comes. You just gotta be ready for it.
04:41 How do you stay ready for the opportunities? How was your process?
04:45 I don’t know, just enjoying the process. Like, I’m in the locker room with, like, great players who are doing, like, a lot of stuff and, like, enjoying it and, like, when the time comes, that’s when it’s time to hoop.
04:54 Is there a player in the locker room that’s kind of helped you as you came on the team and learned about what it’s about?
05:00 I mean, I think all the players, like, helped me out and, like, been supporting me, so that’s been really good.
05:05 How has Santa Cruz prepped you for playing for the Warriors?
05:09 Oh, really well. They played, like, exactly the same over there and Coach Lainn (Wilson) make sure that he, like, teaches us how to play, as well. Like, we don’t just go out there and, like, go ball. Like, he teaches us the right things, the right fundamentals that, like, translate to the next level and they’re really prepping us for that.
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05:26 Has anything shifted in your approach when you start at the point?
05:28 BRANDIN PODZIEMSKI: No. Same thing.
05:32 What kind of tone do you feel like that first group set in terms of just ball movement and pace and whatnot?
05:37 Yeah, I think we set it really on the defensive end to start the game, just set a tone, got some easy ones, and then you look at the third quarter, we really didn’t set a tone to start there, so just trying to start quarters, start halves with the tone set and just play off that.
05:55 Is this the best game you’ve ever played on your birthday?
05:58 No. High school, probably.
06:01 What did you do in high school? What was the stat line for that game?
06:05 I don’t know if it was good because of the stat line, but it was a playoff game in high school, so we won and advanced.
06:12 We looked down at the box score, you see eight double-figure scorers and just some of the efficiency. What does it tell you about the way you guys played tonight?
06:19 Seems like it’s been a theme when we’ve won against Grizzlies tonight, against Denver. We all collectively pitch in. It becomes a little bit easier for us.
06:32 Malevy had a nice game off the bench. He said he wanted to make most of his opportunities. Just what did you see with him tonight?
06:37 Yeah, I mean eight boards. I think he had seven in the first half in seven minutes, so really great player. Obviously, didn’t get his opportunity in Oklahoma City, but he’s been great. Great teammate, great dude and it’s cool to see those people kind of make the most of what they get.
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06:55 What was working with the offense tonight compared to last night?
07:03 MOSES MOODY: We just found a rhythm on the flow. Last night was a little stagnant, but it comes down to making shots. We made a lot more shots today.
07:12 (Inaudible) was getting up and down, the way you guys. It seemed like it was purposeful to play fast. What does that open up for you guys?
07:19 Yeah, it gives more opportunity for the defense to make mistakes, playing in transition. You might have numbers, then trying to — they’re in transition, too, so everybody’s not set and ready to rotate for another guy when, like, when action happens, so just getting the ball out, playing fast, and then even when you’re in half court, moving it, playing fast.
07:43 Got nine guys in double-figures, everybody hits a three. Like, what does that say about what the way you guys played tonight?
07:49 Yeah, that’s when we play our best games. They usually sound like that, so I think that says something, for sure.
07:57 Nine points, eight rebounds (for Leons), nice energy off the bench. What did you see from him tonight?
08:02 Oh, so you said eight out of nine. He was the only guy tonight — and he had nine? That’s crazy. And nine and, like, eight, I think, rebounds. Yeah, it was a great game for him. It’s cool to see, as he tries to make his print, make his footing in the league. You just — as I move on, like, coming into the NBA, it’s a journey. Everybody has their own story, so you’re always focused on what’s next, so it’s cool for me to also see somebody who is in a position that I was in, trying to figure it out, trying to get something and then for it to happen, for him to have a good game like that and the energy, to feel the love from everybody else supporting it, it’s cool to see and it makes you remember that this is, like, this is a journey and, yeah, you’re not where you were — you’re not where you were yesterday. Everybody’s moving.
09:01 Did you have some family here tonight?
09:02 Yeah. Yeah, my parents didn’t come down, but I got a lot of family, Arkansas, right across the water over there, West Memphis, so two hours away from Little Rock.
09:11 (Inaudible)
09:14 Yeah. I love it. I love it. I looked up and saw my uncle Ron Ron with my jersey on in the stands at the end of the game there. That’s just — you got, like I said, like, same thing. Being in the NBA, you got a different point that you’re in, in your journey. You don’t often look back. Same thing with family. It’s like seeing my uncle whose house I grew up going to while we all on Easter, everybody running around the house and to look up in the NBA game to see him in the stands, that’s cool.
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