Q. Coach mentioned that even with the ups and downs of the season, you're still a better player now than you were when you started the year. How do you feel that you've grown overall as a player this season?
TRE MANN: I agree with him. I do feel like I'm a better player this year than I was, and even more a better player now than the start of this year, just from going through a tough time and learning from it. I'm going to take all of that that I learned from this year and try to take it into next year and the summer.
Q. How challenging was this year for you? You kind of start as a big part of the rotation, then kind of fades a little bit. What was that like for you?
TRE MANN: It was tough. But it was easier to get through with the coaches and my teammates. They made it easier for me.
But it was definitely tough, a couple bad days. But I'm learning from it, and I'm going to continue to grow and get better.
Q. Mark always talks about you can't be just a one-trick pony guy. Is that as much mental as it is a physical part, or what's the toughest part of being -- all those aspects of your game?
TRE MANN: Yes, I think it is more mental because there's times where I've shown the other parts where I can do things on defense. It's just about being consistent with it. I feel like it's there, it's just more mental.
Q. What are some of the main things you want to work on this off-season?
TRE MANN: Just making sure I'm staying sharp. I talked to the coaches, what they want from me next year, so I'm just going into the summer like with the information that they just gave me, which is simple.
But yeah, just going in there, staying sharp, and then working on the things that they just talked about.
Q. Mentally how tough was it to be in and out of the lineup all year?
TRE MANN: This was probably the toughest year I had. I mean, I had a similar situation at Florida, but this was tougher on me.
But like I said, my teammates and my coaches made it easier for me to manage.
Q. How much are you turning that into fuel for this off-season to come back better?
TRE MANN: A lot, but I'd say it's more knowledge and learning from it than it is fuel. I'm not going to be mad about it or anything. I'm using it as a growing tool and something to learn from more than fuel.
Q. Are there one or two guys specifically that kind of helped you? You said your teammates kind of helped you through this year. Who are you close with or who are some of those guys you could kind of talk to through things?
TRE MANN: Yeah, I mean, Aaron is somebody I talk to a lot, but me and his conversations are more like happy, joking, like still having fun with it.
I feel like the learning part stuff was coming from Shai and K-Rich mainly.
Q. Even with just your inconsistent rotation and role this season, just seeing this group and how it came together and the way you guys were able to fight and compete this season, what was that like for you?
TRE MANN: It was fun to be a part of. It just showed like how dedicated, how together we were. Like I feel like we had a great bond and it was just fun coming to work every day, being around the same guys.
I wish we could have went farther, but I feel like we did really good this year and it was just fun coming to work every day.
Q. What made that bond so strong? Every guy we've talked to has mentioned how close and tight this team is and how special it is. What makes that bond so special for you guys?
TRE MANN: I don't know. I think people just being themselves, and we're all kind of like having the same interests, mindsets. I don't know what really made it special. I think we all just clicked, and we accepted everybody for who they were, and just tried to have as much fun as we could.
Q. Did that bond help when you had those high-intensity days coming in after flying in from a game and had to go to work?
TRE MANN: Yeah, for sure. It was fun.
Q. A little random, but going back to the Pelicans game, what was it that you saw with eight minutes left that made you say that it was over for them?
TRE MANN: I really saw it in the first couple of minutes. Just how connected we were, like everybody was on the same page those first couple of defensive possessions, and it just looked like it was no space for nobody, and I was just like, dang, we're locked in right now and I could see it in everybody's faces.
I just feel like that close at that time, like I just trust Shai, and we talked about it all year, and it was like, I just feel like it was another moment where he was going to do his thing, and that's all it really was.
The first couple possessions I saw how locked in we were.
Q. Speaking of Shai, his season is up there with some of the best seasons in NBA history. What was it like watching him just perform the way he did this year?
TRE MANN: I mean, it was crazy, but I saw the work that he put in a little bit this summer. I saw the mindset, the mentality was different this year than it was last year, so I knew it was going to be a big year for him.
But you know, it was cool. A lot to learn from him, it was great to see and witness firsthand.
Q. Who won the one-on-one battle between you and Kenrich?
TRE MANN: I did. Y'all met with him yet?
Q. Yeah, he said he won.
TRE MANN: K-Rich -- that's the only thing, K-Rich not going to keep it real. I'm going to keep it real. He beat me the first two games, and then after that it was over with. Then he tried to bring up different excuses and don't count this, that. I'm like -- I won like 4-2, though.
Q. Did you play anybody else or was it just Kenrich?
TRE MANN: We played -- it was just me and him at first and then guys started jumping in. Bazley jumped in, Ous jumped in a couple times, Mike was in there, Wigg got in one time. So it was really me and him every day, but other people jumped in sometimes.
Q. Did other people beat you?
TRE MANN: Bazley had a day where he won like most of the spots, but other than that, it was me.
Q. We've already talked about how this year didn't go as planned for you personally, but I believe that there's always a positive and a negative. What was your positive from this challenging year for yourself?
TRE MANN: Just showing how tough I am mentally. I know a situation like this can break people or it can make people. I feel like this one definitely made me, and like I said, I'm going to use this whole season, this whole experience going into this summer and then going into next year as like a learning process and ways that I could have did stuff different this year, I'll know that for next year in case I'm in a similar situation.
That's the positive. I feel like I learned a lot from this season. I definitely got better.
Q. Do you have any plans to link back up with Joe this summer?
TRE MANN: Yeah. I haven't like talked to him yet, but I've definitely got plans.
Q. Going back to those one-on-ones, when you and Kenrich were playing y'all would argue like you were brothers. Did it start off like that or build up to that?
TRE MANN: You're saying our relationship or just the one-on-ones?
Q. The arguing during the one-on-ones.
TRE MANN: K-Rich is very competitive. Nobody does nothing better than K-Rich. You can't do nothing, but Michael Phelps does not swim better than K-Rich. Like nothing. Every day it's a competition. Every day he comes in, oh, I dress better than you today or I eat better.
Like it's competition every day. When I first got here that was the first person the trainers was talking about, like yeah, K-Rich, he talk the most trash. He wins the most one-on-ones. So the first day I was like, let's play one-on-one. It was me, him, Poku, and Vit. From there it was just a competitive friendship, and that's how it's been since then.
Q. What do you think Shai's best Instagram caption was this season?
TRE MANN: That's a tough one. I'd have to say the Houston one, after the Houston game. Something he said about three quarters full, how he likes his drinks or something like that. But it was crazy. I really don't think that's all Shai, too.
Q. Someone is working behind the scenes?
TRE MANN: I think Drake sends him stuff. Me personally, I think it's Drake. I don't know, he said he's good at lyrics and stuff like that. Said he's going to get in the studio a little bit this summer, so we'll see.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports