Q. You have a full NBA season under your belt. How do you reflect back?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: It was a great season. There was a lot of individual aspects that went great. I think as a team we grew over the course of an 82-game season, and I think it was a lot of fun. It was a lot of ebbs and flows, it was a roller coaster, but just kind of getting that year under my belt I feel like will help for the seasons to come.
Q. A lot of guys have been talking about it's a fun, well-connected group. There's a lot of chemistry. What has been your perspective and your experience?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, I think the youth aspect can add to that. We're a really young team, but we can all relate to each other, so I think that showed off the court and just kind of helped us on the court to have that type of chemistry to trust one another.
Q. I want to ask you about the environment as a whole. Obviously this is your first year with the organization, but it seemed like there's just been an environment that's fostered really good player development. How has that helped you in your first year?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, I give a lot of props to player development, just putting me in a position where I start a lot of games but helping me to add little new things to my game so I can be at my best for the team and best for this organization moving forward.
Q. Is there anything that happened this season that was unexpected or something you didn't think about when you came in as a rookie and then after experiencing it this season?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I would say beginning of the year I didn't necessarily think I was going to start as many games as I did, and just being in a position to grow from a development aspect of being able to learn through experience, so I think that was a great, great opportunity to be in, and I feel like I just tried to take advantage of every opportunity of that.
Q. I know this was touched on in your last game against Utah, but you started your season against Utah in Utah and then you ended it there, as well. Kind of getting the overarching view of your whole season, what was that like?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, like I said earlier, it was just a roller coaster. I had no idea what to expect. I didn't have any experience, and we were a really young team, so a lot of us were learning together, so I think you can give a lot of props to the coaching staff, to the front office, to the player development, just helping us, guide us into the right direction.
Q. Heading into the summer what is the thing you're focusing on the most in improving?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I would say just trusting my instincts and just kind of being a better offensive player, defensive player, whatever they need me to work on to become the best player I can be.
Q. You talked about wanting to become like a PJ Tucker, Draymond Green type of player for this team. After playing a season, do you have a feel for what you need to do to get there?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I would say just keep remaining versatile so I can be in different types of positions on the court, not just being stuck, oh, I only can do this. I like the versatility of those guys on both the offensive and defensive end. Just being able to hone in on that versatility offensively and defensively, just being able to guard bigger guys, being able to guard quicker guys, just kind of being that main block on the defensive end.
Q. Your plan as far as the summer, spending time here or at home, and do you plan to play in Vegas?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I'm just taking one day at a time. Whatever they tell me to do, that'll happen. I'm not quite sure what I'm doing yet, but whatever plan they have going on for me will be the best.
Q. Every player has raved about playing for Mark and talk about how he's a player coach. I wanted to get your opinion on that. But you also got to play for a Hall-of-Fame coach in Jay Wright. Are there any similarities between those two?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, actually I told even people at Villanova and just people in the basketball world that I'm close to that this kind of organization is very like -- it's not like you're in college but it has that kind of environment of family, close environment, just everybody having your best interest and not just looking past that. So I think it's a really good environment to be in to become a really good player, and they have good people around us.
Q. What stands out about Shai as a teammate?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I think he's a leader just by example, even by communication, as well. He's kind of one of our more veteran guys, but he's still really young. But he's a really fun player to play with and he's very unique and dynamic and it's fun being able to go against him, and on the court and then off the court he's a really cool guy, as well, so it's a lot of fun having him on the team.
Q. Darius was saying he's never really seen Shai in a bad mood. What is he like off the court?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Well, we're also youthful so he has a lot of energy, he's got jokes, he has fashion, obviously. I've never seen him in a bad mood, like Darius said. But he's a really cool guy. He helps you on and off the court. He just has your best interest.
Q. Who's the best dresser?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I would say myself. Real versatile, like on the court, off the court, I can be comfortable, I can dress up a little if I need to.
Q. I think Shai might fight you on that.
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: No, he has the main title. I'm No. 1, he's the champion.
Q. What are your thoughts on being in Oklahoma City just in general?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I mean, it's a great city. It's the closest NBA city from where I'm from. I'm from Kansas City, so it's kind of cool just being in the Midwest still, being that close to home and just having family come out to games.
I came to a game down here when the Hornets were playing here during Hurricane Katrina and they played the Cavs and I remember that game, but it's kind of crazy how things all come back around in some way and form.
Q. Jeremiah, one area where you guys were really strong this season was on the defensive end and especially earlier this season; you guys were top 10 at one point. You played a big part in that. You started in a lot of games. What was it like being a part of that and what did you feel on that end of the floor that you guys were building in terms of identity?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, I mean, I think that's really important for us going into seasons to come, kind of having that defensive mentality because I feel we're all very talented offensively and we're still going to get that together as a team, but defensively that kept us in a lot of games this year and helped us win a lot of games.
I would say just having that identity for us is really important going on. I took a lot of pride in defense in college and just even my years before that, but I think defensively it's really important for us going ahead.
Q. Coach always talks about building a sustainable playing style that can last through years. What are some of the things you feel like you guys have to establish offensively in terms of playing style that you guys can carry over?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, I think through the whole year -- beginning of the year it was kind of a brand new group. We never played a game with each other, a lot of young guys, but I think through the course of the season we trusted each other more than we did at the beginning of the year, and obviously we weren't the best shooting team in the league, but we had a lot of really good possessions and a lot of really good shots that just didn't go in, so I think we're moving in the right direction in that way, and we've just got to keep trusting each other and trusting ourselves.
Q. This season you played a lot in the beginning and then you got hurt and had to sit out for a little while. Was it beneficial to you to sit out and slow down and be able to watch the team and things unfold and see how other NBA teams are functioning? What was that process like?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: Yeah, for sure. It definitely added a new aspect to my hard view of the game because I didn't think coming into the season I was going to play a lot of games and get hurt, miss about 20 games or so, then be able to finish the season. I think it just added a new aspect of just every opportunity you get, if it's practice, if it's a workout, if it's a game, to just give it your all because you never know what's going to happen. Only God knows what's going to happen. Just being able to add that new aspect and me sit back and see what's going on on the court and going on in practices and how elite players approach the game and how other guys approach things, it was really important to me kind of that stretch of when I wasn't playing to kind of have that aspect.
Q. Jeremiah, after that season, how much more mature do you feel as a player and as a person?
JEREMIAH ROBINSON-EARL: I feel way more mature than I did at the beginning. Coming into the season, wasn't experienced at all. We had a lot of young guys that were playing their first NBA games, first NBA minutes for the first time, but I feel like through the season I think learning from experience was really important. I feel like sometimes when you just learn from maybe veteran guys just telling you what to do but you're not getting that experience, it's a different kind of feel than actually being out there, learning through failure, learning through trials and tribulations, so I was really grateful for the opportunity to be able to start a lot of games, play a lot of minutes and kind of learn through those experiences.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports