Daniel Gafford On Adjusting To Dallas, Growing His Game, Kyrie’s Game Winner | K&C Masterpiece

Daniel Gafford On Adjusting To Dallas, Growing His Game, Kyrie’s Game Winner | K&C Masterpiece

With the man as Mark followell said that cannot miss it is Daniel Gafford good morning sir good morning how y’all doing this morning we are doing fantastic thanks in large part to you and I very much appreciate that Y and I want to talk about the win and I want to talk about

The dunks and everything like that but what I was curious about is this Victory also for the time being moves y’all into the six spot moves you away from the playin is that something that gets discussed at all or are you like just stack keep stacking up W’s and it’ll take care of

Itself I think the mentality behind that is to just keep moving forward in all honesty we having fun with our success right now so we’re just trying to keep the keep the dice rolling I would say you know so at the end of the day the conversation about it is not really had

You know we know that at the end of the day we moved up but you know the work paid off for it so we really just kind of I would say give ourselves a pat on the back and take that next step forward to go get next one too what’s the what’s

Been that difference between this stretch you guys look like y’all are completely in sync defensively uh on the offensive end it looks like something we haven’t seen in quite some time what’s been the difference in this stretch from whenever you all had that kind of bad

Spell I mean in all honesty it’s what Jason kid says that before every game chemistry and trust you know we’re out there we’re building something and we’re just having fun playing basketball together in all honesty and at the end of the day we trust each other on

Defense the well on the defensive end and just in all honesty on the offensive end as well you know we got guys that gain a lot of attention with Kyrie and Luca and those guys find each other and put trust in us to make sure we make the

Plays on the back end whenever you know they can’t really do anything with two guys on them at the end of the day I I know obviously if y’all make the playoffs this is something that everyone is used to and you’ll eventually see I was curious are there any kind of

Particular challenges that come along with playing the same team back to back in the regular season I mean I know it’s a different Arena and I know you still got a few days but your next game is against Utah again are there any challenges with seeing the same team on back-to-back

Days uh they always say in this league is hard to beat the same team twice in all honesty that’s what kind of like I’ve been taught ever since I’ve gotten into the league so with that being said we just have to come in and make sure we

Pay attention to detail like we did in the first game and kind of facilitate and do the things that we did for the win that we had here at home because I know for a fact that they’re going to be in a position to where they had just

They make the game plan different and they try to throw different things at us down the stretch to where it’s going to be something different that we see on the floor come Monday so we just have to I would say pay attention to detail lock

Into our game plan and just be ready for anything in all honesty Daniel you and PJ Washington getting traded at the deadline I’m sure that throughout the history of the NBA it can be tough to go to a new team in the middle of a season with limited practice but you two guys

Have seemed to fit in very well can you talk talk about how it’s been uh it looks like an easy transition to a new team yeah no I mean the transition for both of us has been great you know from what I’ve talked about with him he just

You know just just another day taking it one step at a time and not really trying to rush anything when it comes with getting traded you really can’t rush anything because you know you you get here the same day you get traded and you’re you’re in a hotel you can’t

Really do anything and now you have to get used to a whole different scheme a whole different flow a whole different like would say uh change the scenery in all honesty which I mean it worked out for both of us you know given the situation that we both were in though

Just you know taking it one step at a time is just kind of like what I always just think on with just getting traded having just like that new I would say atmosphere that you would have to be around and getting used to new getting used to new faces and stuff just being

At certain teams for it’s so long that we have been now you know all three of us were really excited Daniel when you traded here we were in Vegas for a Super Bowl week and we’re all talking about it we kind of had some ideas of what you would

Look like with us we stopped talking about football Super Bowl we did and but I even tweeted out I tweeted out last night I didn’t expect this version I didn’t expect like this type of ceiling with you and it looks like we might even have to as I said remodel that ceiling

Because it looks like there’s even more to add to this did that expectation should we have expected it or is that is there something different working with this team that’s allowing you to be this version of you I mean just kind of like what I said off

The first question you know it’s just that chemistry that I built here in all honesty you know I try to make sure that in the past I’ve always been that one guy that’s always eye man out because I’m more of a quiet guy I’m an introverted guy and I stay to myself

Most of the time but I’m kind of actually like branching out trying to reach out to guys be able to just be that guy on the team that’s like willing to make the sacrifice of just like you know the awkward moments the uncomfortable moments coming out of my

Comfort zone is just kind of like being the teammate that I want to be so that’s kind of like something that I’ve always just wanted to work on throughout just my years of just being in the league and I’ve gotten better over the years but getting here it’s like it was a little

Bit more easier I would say because everybody came to me everybody was like oh if you need anything let me know um I always say di was one of the first guys he came up to me he gave me pointers he told me just gave pretty much just gave

Me the ropes you know doing that at the young age that was kind of like one of the first signs to see just like oh yeah this is this is going to be good for sure because you know you got guys actually just like taking that step in

That leadership Ro I would say on in each aspect of the team not necessarily just one person it’s more than just one person on this team that I would say took a step in that role do they also tell you off the court things to do for

Example have they told you to go to Nick and Sam’s oh yeah of course that was like one of the first restaurants they told me to go to all right okay yeah we were there one night so we we were there doing a charity function the night that

We thought we saw you but that’s your person person time didn’t want to invade but I did want to get a breakdown what what did you order and how delicious was it I think it was my first time there so I kind of I kind of kept it light I

Would say um I can’t even remember I think I got a New York trip at the time CU I wanted to kind of get in and get out quick I think I had a a meeting with my financial advisor and we kind of ordered a bunch

Of it we kind of ordered a bunch of everything too we ordered a bunch of appetizers we ordered the steaks um they came and showed us the crazy Stakes that they named after Durk and they named after Luca I was like yeah I’m not going

To be able to play the next day if IAT did they put the flashlight on it like that yeah they gave me the they gave us the whole just like little display and whole layout of everything that they had back there it at the time it was dope for sure like when family

Comes in or anything like that that’s the spot that we’re going to go to most definitely but other than that with just two people I don’t think neither of us were going to make it out that night yeah it was I I think yall played Phoenix the next night cuz I remember

Seeing Eric bledo there too but you you walked in and my co-host Mike he goes That’s a tall guy and I said that’s Daniel Gafford and you were wearing like this gold uh suit uh track suit kind of thing and I was like I can wear that in

This restaurant and they said no he can wear that in this restaurant how would you describe that suit by the way uh it’s just it’s a um it’s a jump shoot that I got from um the Chicago spot when I was in Chicago I still work

With those guys a lot they give me a lot of stuff too it’s called pillars and I I love their tracksuits because I mean it’s one of the tracksuits that I found um at the time well jumpsuits at the time that fit me fully so I mean you I

Really can’t complain you know they always take care of me and I always make sure I take care of them on the back end Daniel Gafford joining us right now on 1053 The Fan Daniel obviously the NCA tournament started yesterday you had a a good career at Arkansas Derek Lively

Played one year last year at Duke I want to know the difference from col basketball to pro basketball cuz it seems like to me especially recently that Centers do better in the NBA than they do in their college career and I know you had a very good college career

Uh with your accomplishments but Derrik Lively seems to be better in the NBA than he was at Duke and and and I think there’s guys like that can you explain kind of the difference of being a big guy in college versus being a big guy in the

NBA I would say in all honesty I think it depends on just like the situation at the college at the time because you got you know multiple guys that are at certain colleges I’m pretty sure Duke was stacked when D was there so not necessarily just like how it was with me

At Arkansas like we were stacked but they were trying to push The Narrative of just kind of like me being the face of the program at the time my second year um so it was just it was just kind of like I would say more of that in all

Honesty like you can have ways to I would say make an impact and just be legit in college and be legit the same way you did in college as you can do in the NBA but I would say just like I say it would just be kind of like

Situational if that makes sense but I don’t know you know with me in my career you know I just kind of like did the same thing that I did in college as I’m doing now you know set screens get to the basket rebound half high energy and

Just be you know that guy out there that does all the dirty work you know it doesn’t matter anymore you’re in a great situation you’re making good money in the NBA were you surprised with what you were able to do in 2019 that you weren’t a first round pick

Um I never really even thought about it at the end of the day like I was just I was just grateful to be in a position that I was in you know my work got me to where I needed to be of course it felt

You know I could have came out my first year in all honesty but you know I I took what I I took what I could get at the time and I you know took that and ran with it of course it’s like my first

Year and a half I felt like I took that for granted in Chicago and there was a lot of adversity that hit throughout those you know that season and a half that I had with them so once I got to Washington is just something that I had

To just take I had to put my next step forward in all honesty and just kind of lock in just you know the different things that I had to do to be able to kind of be successful in this league now last night was a blast Daniel like it

Was watching that game was just so much fun and I’m just kind I I want to try and get a description of what it’s like when you’re seeing so many of your teammates dunk over and over and also like that that that that you know on

This radio show we know how to talk to each other without talking to each other going up for an alley are you always expecting the ball’s about to be in my hands how do you know when to go like what explain all that for me if you

Can um it’s just being in the right spot at the right time in all honesty you know I’m a big man so I got to run the floor so being in that position it’s always just a rim run situation so if a guy sees you and you you don’t really

Have too many people around you they’re going to find you and really just you know just picking and choose in just like my spots whenever Luke and Kyrie is doing their thing on the floor any one of our guards on the floor in all honesty and just staying down low and

Just being ready for anything to be honest you know I I can’t I can’t go up and handle the ball you know for the time that I’m in so I just kind of just get into the seams I try to wedge rebound I just try to do all the little

Things that you know are not really paying attention to when it comes to the game um in the league and all honesty just you know being down there putting my hard hat on and just going to work yeah and and obvious I mean I’d love to see the seven-footer dribble up the

Court and everything I would obviously love to see that but I I we do have to we do have to work on something though we we need the other guys to stop hitting you in the pelvic area dude cuz this is starting to get the last two games now you’ve gotten

You’ve gotten some some shots what’s going on there how do we get this to stop what do we need to do to help you out uh really I think it would just be me having to down but I I don’t think that’s going to happen no time

Soon you know it’s a physical game I know what comes with it and at the end of the day just like I take it as a sign of respect when it comes to guys not NE kicking me in you know the private areas but just in general that’s a weird sign

Of respect that’s a weird sign of respect yeah that’s a weird that’s that’s one of the weird ones but um in all honesty the one last night is just you know he was just trying to keep me off the glass so I mean I can’t really

Fault him for doing what he was assigned to do you know and he did his job you know to an extent and I was like running full speed and it just happened so I really can’t hold it against him because like I said I take it as a sign of

Respect because they’re trying to keep me off the offensive glass or just in general just trying to run through me when trying to get a defensive rebound too so at the end of the day I just have to like I said put my hard hat on be

Ready to you know always get hit by at least you know two box outs a game at the same time down the stretch and I just have to keep having fun with just playing ball you know I just when whenever it comes to me getting hit you

Know I take that lick and I keep going after Kyrie made that unbelievable shot over joic the left-hander did you practice that at PR where you like I got to try this just to see if there’s any chance I can do this and then also watching Kyrie and Luca at practice is

It fun watching them come up with creative shots oh yeah of course it’s fun just watching them see just like the things that they do on a day-to-day basis I mean Kyrie he works on all his stuff every day and you see Luca every day uh throwing a bullet on at the backboard

Making a backboard shot it’s just something that you know it just amazes me on a day-to-day basis because it’s so consistent you never see them like Miss more than maybe like five in a row at the end of the day and then no I didn’t really I didn’t I didn’t practice the

Left hand floater at all because you know my left hand’s terrible you know you see me most of the time I’m either dunk it with my right or dunk it with two hands so every now and then I may shoot a left hand lay up and stare at it

But that’s it pretty much you know I I leave that to Kyrie and Luca well in the last 21 games 15- six third in offensive rating 12th in defensive rating and that’s been moving on up we appreciate how well this team has been playing we appreciate you for

Jumping on with us and hope we can have you on again soon yes sir thank you guys for having me On

Dallas Mavericks starting center and dunking machine Daniel Gafford joined the K&C Masterpiece to talk about how welcoming the Mavs have been since he arrived in February, how he’s leaving the lefty hook shots to Kyrie Irving, and more!

Download the Audacy app to never miss any of your favorite 105.3 The Fan content:
https://go.audacy.com/y-listen-live-1053thefan

If you love 105.3 The Fan’s video content, leave us a Super Thanks to support the station directly!

WATCH: https://www.audacy.com/1053thefan/fan-cam or https://twitch.tv/dallasfancam
WEBSITE: https://1053thefan.com/
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/1053thefan
TWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/1053thefan

Thumbnail images courtesy of Getty Images/USA Today Network.

#DallasMavericks #DanielGafford #NBA