Practice Media Availability | NBA Finals Interview Room | June 7, 2025 | OKC Thunder

Practice Media Availability | NBA Finals Interview Room | June 7, 2025 | OKC Thunder

[Music] first question on the second row Uh Scott Campell with the score Um hey Shay Um you know before game one you talked about um you know playing with the other Canadian guys and how you’ve been doing that over the years Uh you know what was it like to share the floor with um Andrew in game one yeah it was it was fun The stage the moment what’s at stake It’s all things you you dream about as a kid and it was everything I imagined it to be Just a follow up on that a little bit You guys kind of exchanged a little shove back and forth I think in the fourth quarter third quarter I mean you’re both very chill guys What was going on in that moment and what does it say about what’s at stake here yeah nothing more than two guys wanting to win Um no malicious intent behind it Just wanting to win Uh are are do people kind of underestimate the maybe the competitive fire that Andrew has just given his demeanor and how he carries himself yeah he’s a he’s a competitor He’s a winner Plays the game the right way on both ends of the floor Um really good player but yeah he um he’s he’s a winner for sure No no doubt Tim fourth row on your right Shay Tim Reynolds with the AP Um Mark just said that after a loss nothing really changes with you guys And I’m I’m not asking you to contradict him but it it does seem like in those times where you guys are coming off one there is a little bit more fire there the next time out for whatever reason Does anything change coming off a loss or whether it’s a win or a loss do you guys find a way to kind of go into every game the same way or is there something extra yeah it does feel like that Um now we we like daytoday interactions like our moods I think he’s talking more so like those don’t really change We um the losses are a little bit louder obviously like they hurt more and you try to like you you try to get better through them and it’s it’s a lot easier to to learn from a loss than it is from a win just off of like the emotional aspect of it and I think that that’s probably why it looks the way it does Um but yeah not nothing like coach is right like nothing really changes We just the losses hurt a little bit more I would say second row here on the right Hey Jesus from from Spain The other day we saw a video comparing your moves with Kobe Bryant moves and they were pretty similar I mean the the palm fakes the mid-range shots they were very similar I wonder how much you studied Kobe’s games to become the MVP that you are right now and if you have the chance to meet him and maybe get some advice from him Yeah he he’s probably my favorite player of all time Um never got the chance to meet him to answer your question Uh but yeah he not only me like kids all across the world His influence has gone through the roof and his legacy will be remembered forever because of the the competitor and and the basketball player that he was Um yeah hopefully I’m somewhere close to that real basketball player one day But yeah he was a special talent special person and uh God rest his soul You’re in the left second row Uh Hi Mahake Jr NBA correspondent My question to you is going into game one um I felt as if you were ultraaggressive Um and going into game two I want to know how you balance being aggressive while also obviously trying to get the team your teammates involved obviously being the focal point of the offense So how do you have that balance um and does it change game by game I I always I always try to be aggressive and I never like predetermined I always like just let the game tell me what to do So I guess last game I felt more often than not I had a shot or a play that I could attack on um more than in the past and that’s just the way it went Um so like this the same thing will happen in game two I’ll read the defense and I’ll play off my feel and my instincts and if it’s calling for me to to shoot or if it’s calling for me to pass is is what I’ll decide to do Marcus back right i’m curious Shay do you after you miss a shot that you know you make and you’ve made a million times is it easy to put those away or do they do they stick with you and did this one maybe stick more because it was Drew they’re Yeah they’re they’re easy to put away now Um there was a time in my career where it wasn’t and you get to grow and learn through that But yeah I mean like I’ve just grown to learn Like you control what you can control Like I shot the ball I missed it It’s written in history There’s nothing I can do now That is a miss shot and all I can do is try to be better in the next shot That that’s what I focused on That’s my mindset And um at this point it’s like second nature Like I shot the ball I try to make it Every shot I shoot I try to make and sometimes it just doesn’t go in on your right Mark Spears Sh Uh Mark Spears ESPN on kind of on the same wave At at what point do you let it go was it that have you let it go to game one and then also as a leader of this team do you come in the next day trying to get everybody else right mentally Yeah Um I I let it I let like I let the You talking about the whole game yeah I let the game go as soon as I like learn the lessons from it As soon as I watch film take what I need to take from it and we do as a group After that I let it go cuz the lessons are learned There’s nothing else you can do Um and then honestly the team has the same demeanor So there’s no like this team makes it easy you don’t have to r guys up or lock guys in Like we all have the same goal in mind and we all know what it takes um to win games And we we just that’s what’s what’s on the focus of our mind and and that’s what we that’s what we are focused on the next day like the being better and trying to win the next one Thank you Shane Jaylen will be up next All right we’ll take questions for Jaylen Please raise your hand We’ve got the mics around the room First question back right in the red my patent OKC sports Uh Jaylen um after you looked at the film and everything else did uh did you take anything away in terms of what you can take in a game too like for instance like shot selection things of that nature just uh defensively at the uh they went on a 12-2 run Anything you take away from that game you that you wish you would have done is it just they made shots they made plays probably a little bit of the they made shots and made plays to a certain extent You know you never want to overlook the fact that a team like made shots and you try and like look back at the film and see why they did that like what kind of defensive breakdowns we had to allow them to get the looks that they got And then I think looking back at our offensive process I thought we were pretty good throughout the whole entire game Um so trying to find the balance of improving on offense and also finding just little small things that beat you um late game you know what I mean like it’s not These games really come down to like one or two possessions So it’s like the more we can find throughout the game little things to like lock in on and tighten up the better we’ll be Joe second row on the right Joe in the athletic Couple minutes ago Mark was up there talking about you and Chad being third-year players and thirdyear players aren’t typically counted on at a moment like this in the in the finals Do you feel that I guess that sort of responsibility and and how have you managed it knowing that you are just in your third year and you know typically like like what Mark said like this isn’t something that um that someone like you or Chad would would find yourself in so early in your career Uh I just try and think of myself as somebody that’s very uncommon I don’t really think that I don’t ever think that I’m in my third year cuz then that allows me to make excuses So I usually just go out there and play Pressure is a privilege So I enjoy being counted on and doing that And I just think I’ve been counted on since I feel like last year to be totally honest just in regards to like being being there for two and the rest of the guys And now we’re here in the finals So I don’t really see it that much different But I never really look and I’m like “Oh it’s only my third year.” I just think there’s so the only time I really think about that is just like there’s so much more I can do and how much stuff I can get better at but I never really try and use it as this is my third year and try and use it as an excuse You know what I mean next row back Dan uh Dan Devanyahu Sports Um along those lines sort of it was one of Sha’s highest usage games of the season Um highest shot totals of the season We saw a lot of that in the Minnesota series as well And I think a lot of that is like they’re loading up so much to him When you know that that’s there and you’re the release valve for a lot of that like does that impact at all the way you think about those possessions does it ball feel a little bit heavier did you feel you have to press more when you know that you’re sort of the release valve option there does that impact the way that you think not really Um it’s not really like any different of a position that I’ve been in since I’ve been here Um but no the ball doesn’t the ball only feels pretty heavy when you get like a grenade or something from anybody And I feel like I’ve thrown my teammates plenty of those in the years that I’ve been here So but a lot of it is just like more staying ready to be the release valve or like be ready to make a play And that’s kind of the mindset that everybody on the team carries out Um and that doesn’t always mean that I have to like go jack up a shot but just trying to create for others or even like get the possession moving in a different direction Like there’s a lot of things that I can do on the court offensively that don’t involve like obviously scoring for that possession but I try and think of it that way and just trying to make the right play Second row over here Hey Jaylen draft from Spain We just asked Shay about the video that we saw of Kobe and him like plays were very similar the pump fakes the stopping the mid-range the turnaround jumpers Uh I was wondering if you have seen that and if what you think about that and also uh now that we’re one game in in the series you guys have talked a lot about winning the days in between I was wondering if you could take us uh through what that means and if you feel like you’ve won the day in between Yeah Uh for sure question Yeah there are a lot of similarities there Um I feel like if you are really paying attention to basketball and and watch the way he plays it’s a lot of similarities Uh it’s cool that he can pick certain aspects of his game to like kind of mimic that a little bit and then add his own add his own like touch to it So that’s that kind of shows the kind of player that he is to be able to steal bits and p pieces from his play from his favorite players and be able to like put it into a game and work on it There’s a lot of work behind the scenes that goes into him being able to do that And then uh yeah winning the days in between I mean you never really know if you want them until you play your next game but all you can do is try and have the same routine that you’ve had throughout the season throughout the playoffs and and try and mimic that as close as possible Eliminate distractions not focus on what the series is at Focus on how you can get better Um like I said earlier for the first question like you try and figure out small things to get better at during the during like the playoff run during the finals and basically whatever team can like figure out how to get better each and every game each and every series usually ends up winning So that’s what we try and do and that’s that’s what we focus on Michael last question up front Uh Michael Grange from Sportsnet in Toronto I I I know these matchups are never really one-on-one but you’ve had a fair bit of uh Pas had a fair bit of covering Pascal Zakum in game one Um how do you feel about that kind of matchup against a guy who’s just a little bit bigger and you know has kind of a a three-level game in a way uh it’s fun this you know you can’t really ask for more than a guard elite player in the finals So obviously he’s definitely battle tested Um I’m pretty he won with Toronto correct yeah So you know he’s he’s done this He’s this isn’t like his first time going through it So I try and take that into account And like I said like you’re trying like for me I’m trying to get better every time we play And then obviously him going at me the way he is like unconsciously is making me better So I try and relish in that opportunity and um just just compete You know there’s going to be mishaps going to be mistakes he’s going to score He’s a good player but you know you just try and make it as hard as you can and you know they do the same thing on the other end Thank you Jaylen Pacers will be in uh probably about 1:15 or so All right we’ll take questions around the room Please raise your hand on two in the back center in the maroon towards the back Raise your hand Yep Hi Mark Uh Gileiam from ESPN Brazil Uh you guys already uh have been a situation like that in the series against Denver and you bounce back very well Uh how do uh maybe the next game is not going to be the blowout that was against Denver how to control the anxious of your team uh if the the situation is close in game two uh I mean we have confidence and wisdom uh because of the situations we’ve been in over time Uh there’s no team I’m more confident in being ready to play really in any situation than ours I’m biased obviously but um you also have to go make it happen You know those experiences don’t guarantee you anything Uh they certainly don’t carry over into the next experience And so we’ve got the wisdom from them We got the confidence from them but when the ball goes up in the air tomorrow the better team’s going to win And we want to do everything we can to be that team Jeff fourth row on your right Jeff Zilate USA Today Um Mark you’re just saying make it happen What the benefit now of having some time to watch the game What didn’t happen for you guys that you know you take away from that game and we’ll apply to game two it’s always tricky you know cuz onepoint losses are emotional Uh and you got to be able to strip away the emotion from that Understand uh there was a lot of things we did well in the game to build a 15-point lead There’s a lot of things we did well in the game that we certainly don’t want to throw out Um and there’s a lot of things that we can improve on We have a lot of runway here to improve Um and Indiana does too I’m sure they don’t um come out of that game feeling like they played perfectly either And so that becomes the challenge after a game one of a series is um you’ve now felt the opponent a little bit Um you’ve thrown some things out there learned some things from the game Uh and now we just got to improve at some tangible things that we think we can improve at Indiana’s going to try to do the same thing and then the better team will win Next seat over Tim Mark you guys have been obviously very good after wins this season too but against after losses it just seems like it goes up a notch What if anything changes about this group when it is coming off a loss i think nothing I think that’s that’s the trick is um you don’t want to be reactive to the last game because then you can be too high after wins you can be too low after losses Um we just get ourselves to neutral Understand every game’s different Every game is unwritten you know and you go out there the ball goes up in the air and the the team that competes better on that night wins Um that’s been kind of a mental habit for us over time and we try to carry that over to every situation and um it’s it’s obviously very important in this situation So um but I I couldn’t explain it beyond that They just do a great job of getting themselves to zero uh and getting ready to compete in the next moment Jenny over here Hey Mark Jenny Carlson with the Oklahoma And you said on Thursday you wanted to go back and watch the defense in the second half I’m curious what you saw You mentioned at one point that disruption was the goal Were you guys disruptive enough defensively in the second half not as disruptive as we were in the first half but that was obviously probably an outlier as well Um you know there’s certainly things we could have done better in the second half I thought we got a little loose on different things but I’m also careful in these settings especially not to take away from what Indiana did I mean there’s two teams out there playing and um they did a really good job in the second half of that game certainly in the the back half of the fourth quarter uh to put themselves in position to to get a win the way they did Um and so they deserve credit for that Uh but certainly you know when the door shuts and we’re watching film we’re looking at it through our lens through the things we can control We thought we left some stuff on the table in that game Like I said I’m sure they they feel that way too Uh but now we have to start the process of improving and growing in the series On your right Dan third row Dan Dean Yahoo Sports Mark it was one of Sha’s highest usage you know highest shot attempt lowest pass out games of the season Just wondering what you saw from his offensive process and sort of what Indiana’s doing to load up on him Yeah they’re high up the floor on him you know both on the ball and with the initial coverage Um I don’t think that’s necessarily specific to him They’ve done that you know quite a bit here in these playoffs but um that’s how they they showed the other night in game one Um we got to the paint collectively as a team a lot You know we got in there a lot We did not convert uh enough on those plays obviously You know I thought um there was just a lot of plays we just didn’t finish We didn’t get um the juice out of that squeeze Some of that again is a credit to Indiana You know I’m not trying to take anything away from the way they played Um but we can be better in those situations him and everybody else I mean he wasn’t the only one in the paint in that game So we have to continue to try to get there Um and when we get there we have to continue to try to find the most efficient shot I thought you know we could have improved that from last game Front right Tim Tim McMahon ESPN Mark uh when you went back and looked at it what stood out to you about Chad’s offensive performance and what can he do or what can you guys do to you know get him going on that end yeah I I don’t think anybody played um their best game Um so I don’t want to certainly he didn’t play his best game but I don’t think any of us did Um that wasn’t our best game flat out with anybody Um what I will say is like he and Dub specifically obviously Um they’ve carved out huge roles on our team Uh they’re a huge reason why we’re here Um they’re in an uncommon position for third-year players These are guys that are in their third year usually um delivering in the finals is not on the curriculum for third-year players you know and they’ve thrust themselves into that situation which is a credit to them Uh and now that they’re here um they have to continue to do what they’ve done all the way through the playoffs which is go out there fully compete learn the lessons uh and apply it forward And they’ve done a great job of that You know I think you’ve seen that over the course of the playoffs They haven’t always played their best game um but they always get themselves ready to play the next one The last guy I’m worried about with that is Chad Joe Next roll back Joe Vardarden the athletic I know you spoke about this uh immediately after game one but the lineup change you made with Wallace for Hartinstein Did you get what you wanted out of that change and is it something you’re going to stick with in the series i I I usually don’t uh address you know plans for lineups and rotations in these settings Uh what I’ll say is we have a lot of optionality uh that we draw on uh almost nightly You know if you’ve followed our team throughout the season I think uh you know that flexibility and adaptability um is is the only constant You know we’re we’re never staying the same I know we’ve started the same lineup in the playoffs but our rotation night to in these series has been incredibly variant We think that’s a strength of our team Um I liked how we started the game and I liked really everything we did to build a 15-point lead and then you know we didn’t uh deliver down the stretch collectively Um but we’re always trying to learn from it I mean at the end of the day uh when you have options like that you’re allowed to you know move in and out of those options as you see fit We understand the trade-offs of every lineup we put on the court And we’ll continue to try to do make every decision we can to give ourselves the best chance to win That’s what we did in game one didn’t turn out uh in our favor but that’s what we’ll do in game two and and moving forward Jaler Martine of RMO people harp on the youth of your team but they play like 28 to 30 year olds They play old Yeah To what extent is it this self-screening whoever comes in the door has to have a certain profile and to what extent do you overload them to prepare them for the finals for games like they’ve had it’s hard to you know it’s a very abstract uh thing to understand but um we do have an uncommon approach You know there’s no place we’d rather be uh than in the finals You know even with a young team you know these guys uh have an uncommon mentality with that As I’ve mentioned many different times I think Sam does a great job of um understanding the person that we’re bringing in the door and then we do the best we can to put them in a great environment and help them grow Um and how that all comes together you know to equal this I think the guys deserve a lot of credit for it The vision they have for themselves um but it’s hard to understand you know exactly why that is but I I do know I have great confidence in the mentality of the team the poise of the team confidence of the team maturity of the team Thank you coach Yep Thank you

Hear from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Head Coach Mark Daigneault as they speak with the media in Oklahoma City at the 2025 NBA ahead of game two of the NBA Finals.

0:00 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
06:42 Jalen Williams
13:46 Coach Daigneault

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