Paul calls Thunder’s win ‘impressive’ as OKC moves one win away from a Title | NBA | SPEAK

Paul calls Thunder’s win ‘impressive’ as OKC moves one win away from a Title | NBA | SPEAK

quite the nights for the for the Thunder but Paul what was the most impressive thing about the Thunder the most impressive thing about the game last night see we’re enter we’re entering a territory of the series to where you’re going to learn about individuals and what your team is really all about especially when the series is tied two to two at this point you know everything about the other team their plays their tendencies everything you’ve you’ve watched countless tape of them you’ve slept dreaming about everything they’ve done i’m talking about playbooks film shower bathroom you know you know what kind of gum they like you know what type of food they eat at this point you like and for me to see how easy it was for him i mean just let’s from the beginning of the game they saying they know everything look at this they had layup dunk jaylen Will jdub we’re going to talk about JDub i was impressed like how easy it was for him like at the beginning of the game like no way listen this guy’s averaging 23 a game you supposed to know where he is and he comes out with a dunk it’s only one minute into the game he comes out another dunk layup but like like you see what I’m saying this is just easy when a point and what I’m saying at the point of the series where it should be hard to score because of everybody knowing your tendencies he’s coming out getting layups dunks and they both have one of their best games of the series so that’s impressive cuz I knew for me as the series got longer it was harder to score like we had a game like key in game seven the score was like the final game was like 67 to eight like wasn’t it Rick it was like a lowscoring game cuz nobody could score 90s and 80s like like it was just so hard so important to me to just see how easy it was for certain guys especially JDub and that was just impressive to just see that especially knowing that any Hannah is probably in a they’re in a must in now you know this is Oh they was they been they’ve been in a must-win yeah of course pacers and six i had Pacers at six now it’s Pacers and seven see I might Yeah then I move I might move it back to six for Okay am I the only person who has kept their prediction in place but you started off at seven well you can’t go to eight seven so you got you got I have I had OKC and seven yeah she had OKC and seven but she can’t go to eight you know she can’t go to eight what what does that mean we cuz we keep moving from five to six to seven nobody told you now I’m talking about going back short series i thought it was going to be a long series that’s why I predicted that what was the most impressive thing about the Thunder last night i they first of all they stayed the course and I’ve been talking about in these last five games the turnovers the turnovers the turnovers finally caught up to them where now you all of a sudden got OKC scoring 32 points off of the turnovers and their bench Caruso didn’t shoot the ball well he was one of eight bar only had two points but other than that the other guys kind of chimed in and chipped in put up another 30 points off the bench 30 you know 30 and some change off the bench so when you start to you start to look at that you say to yourself okay they knew that they were not going to lose this game at home they knew that because if anything they now can go back to a place in Indie that they just won at and win again to close it out although many uh NBA players or or even NFL guys would love to win in front of their home crowd they don’t want to mess around and have to go game seven so they going to go right back take care of business in game six and get it over with so I’m moving mine from seven back to six and then if I need to move it to seven I got the room to be able to do that okay okay rick what was the most impressive thing about the Thunder last night the same thing has been impressive about them throughout these playoffs and throughout the series their poise we forget we forget this is the youngest team in the league and a team that has prior to this never been past the second round they’ve never been here before and yet the way that they play look Indiana made their run they got it within two indiana was up 2-1 in the series right back up to 14 like Yeah for everything that’s happened i I’ve I’ve yet to see them flustered i’ve yet to see them where I feel like they’re unraveling i see that with Indiana all the time and then they kind of reel it back in okc simply has not done that and so that to me is the most impressive that they’ve just stayed the course and it’s also they don’t get too low when they’ve when they’ve fallen behind and they don’t get too high when they move ahead like they they have just been so businesslike in their approach here that they feel like I you you think it’s like they’ve been here before and they have not so making good on their 68 win season i’ve seen plenty of teams have great regular seasons and not live up to it in the postseason they are doing all of that and that is what’s impressive i think they made the Pacers look sloppy the ending with those four straight turnovers uh was was awful jaylen Williams obviously had the game of his life but you match that with a struggling performance from Hallebert and JDub shady does what he always does and then you add JDub’s performance that that’s that’s going to be a recipe for a loss they looked energetic they look like they had poise at the end of the game they look like they weren’t worn out they were playing unbelievable defense as they have the whole series but in this game you’ve now put the Pacers in a must-win situation or the series is over i I just really love how they executed down the stretch and that it feels like they’re maturing before our eyes because they were having trouble closing out games that were close you only you’re you’re front running only beating teams by blowouts and now you’re able to execute down the stretch put a lot of pressure on the on the on the Pacers and and you know you get breaks when you’re on championship runs nobody wants to see Hallebertton not at 100% we want to see the best against the best but things happen throughout the series and you’re taking advantage of what the pre what has been presented to you which is their leader is not 100% so let’s not play around and get this win the the the turnovers to me are just fascinating though like I I think the Thunder the Thunder are an unbelievably great defensive team but why are it just feels like mental errors more than more than just being a great defensive team yeah I think a big part of that is that the Pacers feel in order to win they have to play fast they have to push the tempo and uh because they struggle scoring once it slows down they don’t have guys who can break can break you down and so they’re trying to play fast at every opportunity which means whoever gets the ball is taking it and going and they’re just not making good decisions yeah they’re they’re they’re so eager to well we got to we we got to make it happen right away that uh that they they get turnovers and then last night it was just you know a big part of it to me was there were guys that were hesitant to be to take their shot when it was there and they would get stuck they pick it up they wouldn’t take the shot now they’re they’re making a pass and OKC is jumping on that and and OKC is a very handsy team though what I mean by that they just they they active yeah and they create those turnovers by being active being aggressive you know if the ball is swinging they swinging with the ball they not standing and looking you know what Keith they have they have the fre they have the off the ball freedom as much as I’ve seen with any team of if you’re not on the ball you can go and either trap or you can go and play that passing lane rather than I got to I got to stay with mine i I’ve I’ve I’ve never se seen teams that have as much freedom as they do to play the passing lane well if you’re confident in your ability to react and make up for and recover yeah but it it really does feel like the Pacers were not decisive down the stretch it didn’t look really like them at all in in those close games which it was from in the second half that’s when they keep it close and then have been going in for the kill they weren’t decisive down the stretch they looked tired they looked like they were unsure of themselves and I I just I don’t know that it was just how good they’ve been defensively it just it it feels like they’re that there’s a different um energy to it i wonder how much of that is Paul how much is that a carryover when when you lose a game the way they lost game four and and you you get to that that stretch and you know what happened the last time and either you’re trying not to make it happen or you’re afraid whatever it is like that’s playing in your head and it actually causes more problems well a number of these guys have been in the playoffs before you just went to the Eastern Conference plays you have an understanding of the emotional roller coaster that the playoffs is all about you got to understand all right it’s time to put that behind us it’s time to focus on that we can’t do nothing about what happened in game four it’s time to lock in the game five and understand listen this is why we win and that’s all we going to focus on but to me it’s mindboggling you continue to have these these terrible turnover these are preeason type numbers for turnovers like you know what I’m saying in the finals like I’m I’m not even sure and I haven’t looked this up how many times have a team had consecutive had multiple multiple games of 20 plus turnovers yeah like when you get to this point in the finals it’s everything should be down it shouldn’t be you should this this is a preseason they’ve been turning the ball over though all series crazy and they’ve been one of the best teams at protecting the ball all year long during the regular season that’s the mind-blowing thing about this and so I this is really like I I I can’t really put a finger on it because the statistics are the statistics and they are outplaying them the Thunder when you look at it they’re out shooting them from the field 45 they outrebounded them so those these is numbers I look like like usually when you do things like that you win those games when you outshoot them and you out rebound the team but then you you turn the ball doubled up the turnover yeah and the fast break discrepancy is the same so that’s even like like I’m trying to put my the free throws the same but the difference is the to me that the turn on the turnovers like he said now the Thunder are scoring over the turnovers yeah 32 points that stretch from in the fourth from 616 to 520 they had four straight turnovers on possessions bad pass by Nehard Hallebertton nehard and Pallebertton back to back to back to back on four straight possessions like right you can’t win like that and not just in their live ball turnovers where it’s like at the top of the key and it turns around and it’s an easy bucket going the other way emotionally that has to be draining that’s draining because you can’t even really recover on it like nobody no I just know in the locker room I know that’s at the top of the the the board don’t turn the ball over you can’t turn the ball over them because they turn it they’re going to turn it easy that h and so like me I’m thinking like that’s my whole focus so if it’s close I’m going to be like “No I got to go another way.” They just out here yep no but but what OKC is doing too though is they’re forcing them into the turnovers because of that a lot of these is unforced no no no but when I say forced I’m like “Okay got it here.” But because I decided I’m going here okay see all of a sudden somebody But you’re But you’re telegraphing that you’re getting it and then you’re passing it and the pass is not It’s like right to him like it’s not take it here you go you’re in a situation like that mid game where things are starting to get a little hectic like you have four straight turnovers time out yeah like obviously time out but is it one of those situations where it’s like okay we got to we got to clear the energy here like you’ve been tripping over stuff all day and knocking into things and you almost wrecked and like you just like we need to center ourselves for a second like what do you do in a situation like that mid game especially a game like this i mean you’re in the middle of it so it’s draining it’s like because you know this is all we talk about in practice on the film in the timeout but you we we it’s draining like so it’s like what more as a coach can I tell y’all like y’all rushing things and it’s a fine line between the way Indiana plays because they want to play fast but they got to play smart yeah and that’s one thing they not doing they not being smart with their play they’re playing hard they’re playing hard enough to win but they just not putting the smartness with us and that’s what’s costing them in this series what do you think is the biggest issue for them in game five Rick obviously the having as many turnovers as they had assists but the other part and it and it kind of led to the turnovers was that their their starting back court Tyresese Hallebertton and Andrew Nemhart were afraid to shoot the ball like they would get the spots where against an OK Oklahoma City defense against a team a defense as good as theirs when when you create a shot you have to take that shot because you’re probably not going to get another one and Andrew Nemhart almost every one of his turnovers was in a situation where he got the ball made a step and had a shot and didn’t take it and then picked up his dribble and was stuck and was throwing it looking for an outlet and it’s a turnover going the other way so not only did you not take the shot and you passed it up but then you created a bucket for them and I I don’t know where that came from like I’ve watched Nemhart since he was at Gonzaga and I always thought that he was a guy that would perform at this level on this stage and for the better part of these playoffs he has but over the last two games he looks afraid to shoot the ball he hasn’t been as effective defending Shay i I don’t know what happened to him but there’s been a crisis in confidence with him and then obviously Tyresese Hallebertton i mean if you’re going to go down you got to take more than six shots if you’re if you’re Tyrese Hallebertton I’d rather have you 0 for 12 0 for 15 show me that you were trying to get it done as opposed to I just abdicated responsibility for this and I’m hoping somebody else could do it yeah yeah and if and if that was the case though six assists I need more assists if you’re not going to take more shots because and that’ll come off of the aggression and getting to the paint and them stopping your shot but if you’re not even looking for your shot and the two you know you obviously Jaylen Williams is we well documented the 40 points was a that was just a dagger that was a killer but the better team won the better the better team won and I go back to game one if they don’t lose game one this thing might be over by now but game one for whatever reason put a little stoppage in OKC but once OKC got to the point of game four or better yet game two then they went to Indian then they wind up losing but getting game four they they realized to themselves we can beat them in consecutive games with no problem at all i capitalize on the turnovers they capitalized on the turnover something they were not doing those first two three games they just wasn’t is it Are they decidedly the better team they the better team let’s not Let’s not Or are the Pacers not playing to But I make you play that way i make you play that way yes but I don’t know i don’t think I don’t think the distinction is that great they’re a better team look the bottom line for me is is that Indiana as coming into this series I thought they could make it an interesting series i thought OKC was the better team and they they they made it an interesting series it’s over they did but but when you when you go up 2-1 and you have game four at home Yes and you have a lead yes going into the fourth quarter you have to close that out then and they played they did not play with the urgency at that point like we have to win this because if it’s 2-2 going back to Oklahoma City we are losing do you not think that OKC you think OKC was just sitting around and going oh well we going to let them go to 3-1 so we can just go home really no no but but Indiana like I can say that Oklahoma City is the is the better team and I can say that the we are where we are because Indiana hasn’t played to their their potential but you and they giving OKC any love by acting as though the reason they in this position is because Indie I need to give OKC the credit to put you in this position i I don’t think I don’t think they’re that clearcut that much better like what I saw yesterday the biggest issue for me yesterday was Rick Carlau not changing up his defensive scheme he’s not like he’s allowing Shay and Jay Dove to play to their strengths and what I mean by that yeah picking up full is good but sometimes you got to scale back because now this is what’s going this is what’s happening during the game and I said I was watching the game and I’m like why isn’t Rick I I mean yeah Rick Carile going under the picks that’s happening at half court so now when they turn the corner and then they’re giving like a hedge they’re not you know what I’m saying they’re hedging and not helping so now when Shay comes off the pick and roll the guy who’s setting the pick is not helping he’s kind of just backing up and now Shay and Jaylen has straight line drug going downhill and now what’s happened every time and then when you help from the low man from the corner you’re leaving the corner man open so the the other thing that Carile didn’t do he didn’t put TJ McConnell in for the fourth quarter until late like he had it going you supposed to play him the whole fourth like like it was little things he put Ben Shepard was his first sub off the bench when you had Ben uh Ben Mthorne who’s been your top bench player he should be the first one off the bench then you play Tony Bradley who hasn’t played I don’t even remember him you had Thomas Bry like he he played significant Thomas Brighton gave you a limp in some games so I’m looking like what’s going on over here was that that Benedict went crazy in three he he been playing well like he went crazy in game three right yeah game three but he should be your top sub off the bench and then he play 13 minutes in four exactly so I’m looking at these little things throughout the course of the g the series you make the greatest point but I’m saying like it’s Rick Carlile not changing the defense you supposed to take them from their strengths from going downhill when they come off that pick it should be a trap every time yep every single time why are you sliding over man you’re scaring me no cuz I got to get the angle for the camera i’m like this dude getting ready to get I’m trying to get the good angle he’s sliding i’m getting a good angle he’s moving his feet i got to get the good angle i’m saying to myself I hope Paul don’t Yeah cuz I ain’t going to be able Like I’m saying though a lot of this on Rick Carile for not making the necessary adjustment just in that part just that part so when Shay comes off he should feel stressed when Jaylen Brown comes off the pick he should feel stressed to have to get rid of the ball and all they’re doing is turning the corner going straight downhill get layup after layup or finding guys and if he don’t make that adjustment and go under the pick go under these picks because I haven’t seen Shay shoot 10 threes in a game yet that’s the defense you play for for for uh Steph Curry they playing Steph Curry D like you know what I’m saying so that’s the adjustment I would make if they don’t make that adjustment they going home you sound like the New York Knicks that’s why I tapped you i’m like you sound like a I’ve already turned down the Knicks job so don’t call me again you guys i’mma be at home taking care of my kids paul sound like you know what you’re talking about no you understand what I’m saying first of all like what what was the reason that we thought Indiana had a chance in this series especially when they were going up 2-1 it was all on Rick Carile it was his ability to pull the strings and do all that stuff and I I think the point that you made that I hadn’t really given a lot of thought about is the fact that you want to keep changing up looks on Sheay and Jayen they’re not doing that and they didn’t do that they found a formula early and it worked and then Mark Dagnal made an adjustment and I think we went into the next thing okay what’s Rick gonna do and Rick really didn’t do didn’t change nothing he didn’t do anything stop going over the picks at half court nift stop that go under like and if you’re going over the picks the big man or the other guy who’s man sending the pick come up into a soft trap so he can’t turn the corner it’s it’s basketball 101 it’s B I I can’t even watch it this is like it’s basketball 101 what are y’all looking at over there on the staff yeah coach Paul on three right everybody get up amen three one two three feel like we just had a timeout we’re in the huddle let’s go well Tyrese Halle went to the locker room with a calf injury in the first half he came back and played 34 minutes total in the game but was unable to make a field goal scoring just four points in the game all on free throws hallebertton updated his status after the loss well how concerning is Hallebertton’s injury you know it’s all about the mental makeup because I remember when I went down in in the in the finals that’s all I thought about like it’s the finals there’s no way I’m missing the finals if I can walk I can get back out there and I went back to that back in that wheelchair and I came back and I said I can walk came back out you make me say something i came back out there Keith Rick and Joy i came back out there cuz I could walk so he got to understand it’s two games left at maximum it’s time to Hey chest up chin out and shoulder shoulder how much How many points did you score uh when you came back i came back i know you hit a couple shots but Oh yeah i came out hit a couple shots you know I turned the tide you know i don’t You know I just turn No I just know I know the tide turned what did you score like 10 that second half inspirational for him to come and just turn the tide for them you can walk you can play that’s was my That was my thing wheelchair i got up i could walk i can play i’m back out there let’s go if you If you lose a bet you can walk from home i lost a bet i walked see but the thing for me with him it’s not concerning at all what did you say play 34 minutes 34 minutes after the injury ain’t nothing wrong with you your feelings is hurt that’s really all it is there’s nothing wrong with you if you can play 34 minutes after the calf injury and run up it it wasn’t like he was hobbled dribbling the ball he looked like the normal guy at the start of the game for whatever reason he just wasn’t aggressive maybe he felt a certain way and didn’t want to do certain things cuz he was scared you see what I’m saying but he was he was fine he played 34 more damn minutes so there’s nothing wrong with him he’ll be fine in game six fine what’s concerning for me is we got the news that he he suffered the injury in game two oh I didn’t know that yeah that’s even that was even he suffered it in game two he was one rebound short of a triple double in game three and now we’re in game five and he’s talking about it and I guess this was the thing for me in watching i’m like is he injured or he’s just having one of those games where he decided he’s gonna be passive because he’s had one of those at least one of those in every round for all of the heroic things that he’s done he’s had a game where we’re all going “What’s what’s going on with Tai?” He pulled the AAU basketball trick huh i believe in the Jaylen Brunson board of health approach which is if you’re on the floor you’re not injured no he if you’re on the floor you’re if you if you’re on the bench it’s because you’re injured if you’re on the floor you’re playing i mean how many times have we seen Jaylen Brunson obviously hobbled obviously hobbled and you would be asked about it he’s not talking about it i I That’s what bothers me the most is 34 minutes just point to that we’re going We’re going to talk about it after the game and yeah I’m hurt but you know if I can walk I can play dude I I I get it Paul this is the finals but you when you came back out you weren’t out there just walking you were playing wasn’t nothing wrong sprint meniscus oh god sprint meniscus was You had You had So meniscus you had to carry you off you can tear a meniscus no you cannot look at this what is a miniscus that’s what I’m saying i can walk i can hoop i’m walking let’s go let’s go hey this is was this was Yes let’s go okay yeah yeah all right it’s hurting it’s hurting all right let me Hold on let me see if I can walk now let me get up i can walk let’s go it’s a miracle yeah let’s go christmas miracle i really want to know what day it was some tequila you’re going to tell me what really happened that’s I’ll tell you what man being in the building the the the shift in energy yes i was sidelineed shift in energy i was sideline radio so you saw him skipping back in the whole thing and and it was like when he went down and out well that was when he came back out the building went nuts they were dead in the water right on the chalkboard paul this time doing the game fall down to the back i thought it was a trick man the script was there it was a trick it Well and it worked and it worked i thought I’m not going to take it away from you it worked don’t tell me you got four dudes carrying you locker room before they got me and Mark said before you going to go down go out come back tell him it’s a strange listen this is cuz he he at that time he would be the only one for the Celtics that could pull it off although KG and Ray was No but he because of who he was for the Celtics and his career had been there forever he was the only Paul has the personality to do they couldn’t possibly do Okay skip it back this is the craziest part subscribe here to get the latest from Speak and go watch a few segments from our other shows on FS1

Joy Taylor, Keyshawn Johnson, Paul Pierce and Ric Bucher react to the Oklahoma City Thunder’s dominant Game 5 win, break down what impressed them most about OKC, identify the biggest issue in the Indiana Pacers’ collapse, and discuss how concerned fans should be about Tyrese Haliburton’s lingering injury.

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Paul calls Thunder’s win ‘impressive’ as OKC moves one win away from a Title | NBA | SPEAK
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