Thunder 136, Wizards 128
Q. Pretty large advantage in points in the paint. What do you attribute that to?
WES UNSELD JR.: A handful of that was transition. I think we had a little issue keeping the ball in front at times, and I thought early too many coverage mistakes. Just simple things that are preventible, controllable, and whether it's a lack of communication or late to communicate, but I think that kind of created some of those opportunities.
Q. The last three games you guys had averaged somewhere around 100 points. You broke out tonight for 128 against a good defense. What was different tonight on offense?
WES UNSELD JR.: I just thought we had a pretty good tempo, ball movement, I think we were spacing a little bit better, making quicker decisions, attacking, and as soon as we come into the body, get off the ball. We were well-organized, so I thought there was a lot of progress there offensively.
There were some good stretches defensively but just not quite -- those stretches weren't quite long enough.
Q. You talked about the shooting pregame. How much of that contributes to --
WES UNSELD JR.: It does.
Q. They were never in double digits --
WES UNSELD JR.: Hang in there. Now you know how it feels.
Q. The margin was never in double digits for that long. Their lead wasn't that long of a stretch. Can they live in those margins when they're shooting that well? Is it harder --
WES UNSELD JR.: Yeah, it's just much harder. That's just the game, though. Sometimes teams will make great shots versus great defense. Can you weather that storm and get over that hump. You've got to keep pace obviously offensively, make enough plays to stay within striking distance, and then get stops, finish possessions with rebounds when you can.
Q. Something we talked about a lot in Cleveland, too, but what did you make of that disposition tonight?
WES UNSELD JR.: It was pretty good. I thought we were ready to go and had the energy, and I thought we played well enough. Like I said, we cut down on some of those other marginal areas, I think we'd be okay.
Q. In the moments when Bilal was guarding SGA, how did Bilal do?
WES UNSELD JR.: At times well, and I think that's a lesson -- difficult lesson to guard a guy like that who's high usage. He's going to be in a ton of isos, a ton of pick-and-rolls, very crafty, is able to use his body and create contact, get fouls. Just trying to be in the right spot and be disciplined with technique just to minimize the fouling. That's a tough lesson for anyone, and he's a handful to guard.
Q. Jordan was rolling in the third with 15 points. What prompted you to sit him or not go with him in the first eight minutes of the fourth quarter?
WES UNSELD JR.: Well, I didn't want to run him too long. I think he was going and played him a little longer than a normal stretch. I knew I was going to go back to him, and that group I had out there made a little bit of a push, so I liked that group. That's why I brought them back late.
Then you're kind of playing offense-defense, mix and match, get him in, Deni out, BC in. He had time to play offense-defense with the free throws, but that's just more game flow than anything. It was good to see him get it going during that stretch.
Q. Following up on Josh's first question about the defense on SGA, he finished with 32 points but that's right at his season average. Not just for Bilal specifically, but how do you think the defense did on him in general and then especially Deni who got the starting out on him?
WES UNSELD JR.: At times good. It could have been better. I think it goes back to the point it's difficult to guard him. He's got a little bit of a burst. He's got craftiness. He's a little shifty. A guy with size, and he's strong enough to create angles and get downhill. The difficulty with that is the amount of shooting that they surround him with. You commit to the ball, it opens up the three. Those guys shoot it, of course, at such a high clip, I think that does kind of get you stretched at times. Just committing to showing strengths and presenting yourself behind the ball I think would help, but it does oftentimes open up the three.
Q. After the first quarter especially you guys kind of went in and out of the zone quite a bit. What did you see from the zone defense that you liked?
WES UNSELD JR.: It started off really well, and I think they figured it out a little bit, found some of the holes, and then I think they brought in another small, I think eye say is Joe came in, another guy that can stretch the defense, put pressure on you that way, it's tougher to stay in the zone. But overall I think the zone was decent.
Q. I think this is your first time seeing Holmgren in a regular season game. What are your impressions --
WES UNSELD JR.: It's very unique. Very unique skill set for a guy with his length and size, and still obviously he can shoot, shooting just under 40 on the year from three, but his ability to put it on the floor, that's a tough guard for anybody. Obviously try to post switches, and he'll get more comfortable as he gets a little stronger, but just his versatility. Length and size, of course, at the rim defensively, moves his feet better than I actually thought, but he's got a really good feel for that pick-and-roll, playing the two-man game, in drop coverage. It's very difficult with a guy that size who of course can block shots late.
Q. You guys fought hard, six guys in double figures. How important is performances like this, trying to build a winning culture going forward?
WES UNSELD JR.: I think it's one of those things you can look at. Those are some of those stackable moments. You can pick out certain things about the game and really celebrate those. Obviously there's a lot to teach from, too, and that's kind of been the process all season. We're not going to get too high or too low, but that balance of holding guys to a standard, setting a level of accountability, coaching, teaching, cleaning up, at the same time when you're not getting results, it can't be doomsday after every loss. So we're not going to lose our enthusiasm just by results. We want to celebrate process, and of course once we get to where it needs to be, I think it'll turn.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports