Aleksej Pokusevski | San Antonio Spurs | Mar. 16, 2022
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00I remember the guy was coming down the hill pretty fast, so I was just, you know, we needed
00:18to stop at that point.
00:19And I was just, I just got up there and tried to block him.
00:23The second one was, I don't remember who had the ball, I just tried to play the best defense
00:29I can, and contest him, and then we had an easy five break.
00:35I think, you know, we handled it in the right way, in the end, they got lucky to get a shot.
00:43I think we did a pretty good job playing for the inmates, even though we didn't play our
00:48best at the beginning.
00:49This plays, you guys call it, moments of truth.
00:50Is there anything going through your head, or at this point, are you, or was it purely
00:51instinctive?
00:52I mean, it was like, we need to stop, so I'm going to do whatever I can to just get stuff.
01:04That was it.
01:05What do you think about the ball movement tonight?
01:06I think, again, the point forward, is that just a really nice, good, good offense, of
01:07you all being able to move the ball and carry it?
01:19I think, you know, since the off-start break,
01:22I think we're moving the ball pretty well,
01:24and we just got to keep doing that.
01:27I think tonight was great.
01:29We had open shots.
01:31We handled, you know, the game right away.
01:33We just got to keep doing that.
01:35Speaking of teams, what's the best team
01:36you've seen play off that game this season?
01:42What was the team that would have been...
01:46I think, yeah, I think the beginning of the fourth quarter,
01:51the five guys that were on the court did a great job.
01:54They played with great energy.
01:56They made shots, and they got us back into the game.
02:01I think those guys are doing a great job
02:03playing their minutes like pretty good,
02:05and I'm happy for them.
02:07And then you guys did a good job
02:09of kind of setting up free throws in the second half.
02:12They got to keep on a lot in that first half.
02:14How were you guys able to kind of get those cut off
02:17but also keep playing pretty good?
02:21They're a team that is, I don't know,
02:23they're one of the best teams that is stealing the ball.
02:29In defense, we just got to, you know,
02:31keep our hands up and do our job,
02:35and I think we did that in the second half.
02:37You know, they gave us some calls in the second half.
02:40We made free throws.
02:41We made important shots.
02:44So, late game pressure,
02:46whether it's the defense, whether it's the free throws
02:48in the middle, whether it's the second half,
02:50the first half, how does plays like that help you out?
02:54It's pretty, you know, it helps a lot.
02:57Boosts my confidence up, but I think that comes from the team
03:01and from the energy that we all bring to each other.
03:05Like I said at the beginning of the fourth quarter,
03:08the group that was out on the court,
03:09they had a great energy, and we on the bench felt that.
03:13So, I think that's something that is, you know,
03:15bringing us, you know, the best of us.
03:19Coach, you've been with Trent for close calls for a very long time.
03:23You've been with him for a couple of years now.
03:25You started him in the summer season.
03:27Being in one of those tonight and feeling that pressure,
03:30what did it do to you?
03:33It was a new experience for him.
03:35I just think, you know, we got to look at the game
03:39and just learn from it.
03:41I think, like I said, I think we did a great job.
03:44I'm sure there were some things we could have done better,
03:47each of us, but, like I said, you know,
03:50we just got to keep going.
03:55Alexander, you can speak. Go ahead.
04:01Hello, Alexi.
04:02I'm from Chicago.
04:04Your game was excellent, 16 points,
04:06six assists, and in the end it was worth it.
04:10And now, as I said, it's a great pity that it could have been a win,
04:14as they say, for the pressure.
04:15How did you experience the game?
04:18I think we played well.
04:20We weren't the best from the beginning,
04:23but I think we played 48 minutes in the game
04:26and that we tried to push to the end and win the game.
04:29They gave that project to the end.
04:31I think we improved a lot and this is a new experience for me.
04:35It's a good feeling to be in the last minutes of the game.
04:40I would say you play better.
04:44Do you feel that way?
04:45Did you praise your coach for showing improvement
04:47after every game?
04:49Well, I feel improvement, of course.
04:52I don't think I'm a good player yet.
04:55I think I just improved and I have to improve a lot more.
04:57And that's what I do every day.
05:01I have to praise my coach, who works with me in the club and in the team.
05:06He helps me a lot every day.
05:08What are the elements of the game that you work on?
05:12Well, there's nothing specific.
05:15It's a shot for three points.
05:17Strength, I contributed a lot to that.
05:20Strength, finishing in the racket.
05:23I watch a lot of my matches
05:27so I can read better in the game.
05:30You have two games in Florida, Miami and Orlando.
05:33What do you expect from those matches?
05:36Very good teams will come.
05:37I don't know what will happen.
05:38We have to prepare for tomorrow's training.
05:41We have to be well prepared for those teams.