Bulls 129, Wizards 127
Q. Big step this year, really found yourself as a three-level scorer. We know you score. Defensively what areas do you want to work on this off-season?
COREY KISPERT: It's a difficult question to answer. It's kind of easier to talk about offense that way. Defensively I worked really hard on knowing the scouting report and my close-outs and then my help spots defensively. You can ask any of the people in our organization; I got a lot better. I'm going to take the summer to guard players that are quicker, faster than me, play a lot of one-on-one, and then kind of go back to the drawing board next year to pick two or three more really attainable goals and make small steps, and if you make small steps, month after month, pretty soon it's one big one. A little bit of work left to do on that.
Q. It looked like -- you had a great finish. You clicked really well around the rim. What are some things you're looking to work in in between game, ball handling, step-backs? What are you looking to work on?
COREY KISPERT: Definitely off-the-dribble threes, trying to be more effective shooting off the dribble on pick-and-roll and hand-offs and things like that. Finishing was great. My floater has been great all year long. I want to make sure I keep on working on that and solidify that.
Again, it's a good defensive kind of question. Like it's not going to be a huge wholesale change. It's going to be really small details that get tweaked and get better this summer.
Q. Can you walk me through what was said in those final seconds of the game? You had less than five seconds. What was Kuz telling you guys in the huddle?
COREY KISPERT: Yeah, Tristan was supposed to screen down for a three if I had it, and then I caught the ball and Terry was right on my hip. I knew I didn't have a chance to get it off, so I just took off and went to the rim and got a pretty decent look at it. Pretty simple; we tried not to overcomplicate it, and it ended up working. We got a great look at the rim that normally goes down, and this time it didn't. That's all it really was.
Q. Deni started at the point and did pretty well. Seemed like every time Jared brought the ball up in the second half he knew what he was doing. What are your takes on both of their games?
COREY KISPERT: Yeah, both of them have -- I would say that Jared is definitely more of a true point guard than Deni is, but both of them filled the role great tonight. Jared, 10 assists and no turnovers, so that's an outstanding line. He took care of the ball. He knows what he's doing. The more minutes he plays in the NBA, the more he is going to learn, just like anybody else. I'm really happy but not surprised at the growth that he's made throughout this year. We've watched him work his ass off all year long.
To see him get paid, or pay off in these NBA games, especially these big ones down the stretch that we need to practice in, he's been great.
Then Deni, Deni has been great for us all year long handling the ball, as well. He had eight assists, as well. He's aggressive. He's a physical force. He's hard to match up with, especially at the point guard position.
Q. What are you most proud of that your game has -- what about your game are you most proud of in terms of taking a step forward this year?
COREY KISPERT: I would just say the consistency, through everything that's happened this year, through the highs, through the lows, playing a lot, not playing a lot, coaching changes, roster changes, injuries. You name it, we've been through it. I've stayed consistent throughout, with my attitude and with my play.
We can get more into it on Monday, but we'll leave it there for now.
Q. Tonight we had fan appreciation night. What have the fans meant to you all year?
COREY KISPERT: They're the reason why we kind of get up for every game. It's really fun to go out and play in NBA arenas and NBA atmospheres. D.C. is no different. Like Kuz said earlier, we want to put together a much more competitive season next year for the entirety of it, but I hope that fans understand what we're trying to do and understand and see the growth that we've made throughout this year. That's something they can cling to and get really excited about because when this thing starts to move and move fast, it's going to be a lot more fun.
I hope they latch on to the growth.
Q. Johnny and Pat have both had two good back-to-back games. What's it been like seeing them seemingly finish the season strong here?
COREY KISPERT: Yeah, that's the whole point of this thing is to get these guys experience, and these guys are taking advantage of it, especially Patrick. He had a great game in Minnesota, another great one tonight. Another double-double tonight. I've been surprised, pleasantly surprised at how well he rebounds the ball this year, and now he's shooting it with a lot more confidence, and seeing some of those threes go down, it's really good. Patrick is really, really good. He's special. He's a gifted player. Hopefully these games kind of build on his confidence level going forward.
Q. We talked about how the team has been through a lot. How has being the top of the scouting report every night helped push your game forward?
COREY KISPERT: Well, well, first of all, as the third longest tenured Wizard, I think I want to qualify myself as a vet. We'll start there.
Second of all, it's what I want. It's what I've always wanted. That's how I get better, when other teams' best players are guarding me and are clearly kind of more focused on me than if we had our whole roster together. You want to be able to test your game against the best and test your game against the best that the other team has to offer.
These last, I don't know, two, three weeks, I've really gotten to kind of put my game to the test, and I've been pleased with what I've gotten so far. Looking forward to more challenges like that to come.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports