Warriors 125, Wizards 112
Q. Jordan, what do you take out from this game team-wise, what you guys accomplished and what you guys are looking to work on?
JORDAN POOLE: Really proud of our team just for the way we played all the way until the end. A lot of small victories in the game, just competing, going up against a good team, sticking to coverages.
Really impressed with how Kyshawn just continued to be aggressive down the stretch. He missed a couple early, but just continued to build the confidence in him and told him to keep shooting.
Credit to the second unit late in the third to cut the game down to eight I think it was, after seeing a team go on runs. It's just small things like that that you always have to be aware of and give credit when it's due.
Q. Alex is the first player in a really long time to start his career with multiple-block games, six straight games. What have you thought about his rim protection so far?
JORDAN POOLE: Amazing, and he's only getting better. Credit to the coaching staff for continuing to put him in positions where he's learning, when to come over, when to help, when to trap the box, when to press up, when to switch up the coverages and just be a rim protector.
I think we're doing a really good job of kind of pressuring the guys on the outside, too, and if we do get beat, just kind of funneling them to our bigs. J.B. is a really good example for that, as well. Even if he's not blocking shots, he's contesting, and he's clearing the rebounds and we're getting out and running.
Credit to Alex; I think we all know how talented he is. It's very early in his rookie campaign just to see him doing things like that, and he's only going to get better.
Q. What does it say about Kyshawn to keep shooting after the cold start that he had shooting from three especially?
JORDAN POOLE: Shooters shoot. Shooters shoot. I think that, like I said, just continuing to build confidence in him and the rest of our guys because, like I mentioned earlier in the season, it's not about game 6 or game 10, it's about game 70. It's about being prepared for the moment when the Playoffs come, when you're in game 6 and no one can hit a three and we need you to continue to have the confidence in the fourth quarter.
It's just small details like that that you continue to put in their mind and really, really happy for him because I told him early in the third, Bro, it's coming, it's coming; we're going to keep finding you. We do a really good job of moving the ball. Guys are very unselfish. We're getting a lot of good looks. Same thing with CK. Just being able to have guys who can space the floor and continue to build confidence will go a long way down the line.
Q. You had four blocks today, a career high. You've had a really strong defensive season. What has gone into that?
JORDAN POOLE: Credit to BK. Credit to BK. We just talked a lot over the off-season about ways that I can just impact that side of the ball. He's allowed me to just play my game offensively, but also credit to the coaching staff for putting me in positions on defense where I can play to my strengths, whether it's off the ball, whether it's using my anticipation skills, but just also being active.
I think we have a young team, and our youthfulness allows us to get around, so even if we have breakdown coverages or guys get mismatched, you just compete. Everything else will take care of itself. It's really just a team effort, and I'm just going to try to continue to use my hands and be aggressive on that side, as well.
Q. You went back and forth with Draymond and some other players on the Warriors side a little bit today. What do these match-ups with your former team mean to you?
JORDAN POOLE: I'm on that every time. Every time we play them. Every time we play the team. It's just how I'm built. I've always been built like that. I don't think anything will change.
Q. What have you noticed about how teams are treating Bilal differently on defense after his hot start offensively?
JORDAN POOLE: Well, first of all, it's a sign of respect. It's a sign of respect, especially against a really good defensive team like that when they have multiple defenders.
I was just telling him today, this is what it's going to be like when games really matter and games are tough. It's not going to be easy. They're going to throw different coverages on you; they're going to throw different match-ups on you. But that's what comes with the territory.
It's a blessing in disguise that he's able to see it in game 6 of his second season as opposed to game 15 in his third. It just elevates and speeds up the learning process, and he did a really good job.
He handled it well. We've been putting him a lot on ball. He has a lot of on-ball responsibilities but he's also guarding the best player, and his potential is through the roof, and he's a really hard worker. If there's anybody that I'm in their corner, it's always B.
Q. What's the relationship between you and Bilal like, especially over the off-season what was it like?
JORDAN POOLE: That's my dog. That's my dog. I always want to see him do well. He's just a good, high-character guy. We both love the game. He has a really funny sense of humor, and we're just always around each other. I think we just really kind of created a bond since last year. It was his first year coming into the league, new experience coming from overseas, and I just wanted to be -- like I left it with him, if he needed anything, if he had any questions, he could always ask, and I think just the genuine authenticity that we have with each other has carried on to the court.
Last year with the makeup of our team, it was a little bit difficult. We didn't get to play that often and then he ended up getting hurt probably the last 20 games of the season I think it was, 15 games. So we just talked about ways that I could unlock him on the court playing with him and trying to find ways to speed up his process.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports