Ja Morant, Desmond Bane x Coach Jenkins React To Memphis GM6 vs Lakers | April 28, 2023

He's done a phenomenal job. So, you know, you know, congrats to the Lakers. But for us, missed opportunities is the biggest thing to me. I mean, we didn't play our best basketball at all, in my opinion. You know, in these six games, you know, obviously we got two wins in it in the series, but, you know, we were far from where we needed to play, you know, discipline, execution, defensively, the urgency and then just production on offense. I mean, you know, 15 block shots tonight, you know, our willingness to move the ball, you know, and then when we're open and not making shots, it makes it really tough on you. So I just got to find ways to get better. This is, as I told the group afterwards, this is, you know, a feeling that we got to remember. It's got to motivate us. It's got to, you know, be understood that this is part of our evolution as a team. You know, nothing's ever given to you. You've got to earn everything. So how is this going to motivate us into the offseason? I've got tons of belief in this group that as disappointing as a finish this is to the end of the season. You know, we're going to get better and we're going to learn from this and we're going to take advantage of the next couple of months. You know, heading into the next season. But a lot of good stuff that happened this season. A lot of learning opportunities throughout the season that we got to take full advantage of. You know, just wasn't good enough in this series. And, you know, obviously, you know, again, congrats to the Lakers. You've talked about trying to reach your best basketball for a while now. Is there a certain reason you think you weren't able to get to that or something that hindered you guys from getting to getting to that? You know, there's probably a lot of things involved. I mean, I'm going to spend a lot of time over the summer to kind of figure that out. I'm going to challenge all of us individually and as a team to kind of, you know, figure that out. I think, you know, you got to you got to be preparing at the end of the season to play your best basketball. I know we weren't whole and that's no excuse. You know, we had a lot of guys that were capable of playing high level basketball and, you know, just coming coming into the playoffs against, you know, the Lakers. You know, an unbelievable team with tons of depth, a lot of physicality. You know, I said a moment ago, just missed opportunities. I mean, we still had tons of chances, even despite our offense really struggling. It's, you know, continuing to trust the work. That's all you can control at the end of the day is the work and the belief in what you put in from the start of the season at the end of the season. You know, the margin for error for us this season was pretty small, in my opinion. And we try to grow through that, you know, over the course of the regular season and all those months and then coming in, it gets truly tested. And when we embraced it, you know, we got good results. But, you know, it was heavily weighed where, you know, we just didn't do enough. Taylor, we could list them all, but I don't think we need to. What I just want to ask is, were there too many distractions in the end for this team to overcome? I don't think so. I mean, we we faced our, you know, moments of growth, you know, as a team together. I think that question was asked a couple of games ago. You know, obviously we came in, you know, we we closed out a really nice regular season. I think our guys were motivated to go out there and and play the best basketball. We just couldn't find it. You know, I'm not going to use distractions or anything like that as an excuse. You know, we just didn't play our best basketball. You know, we didn't execute like we needed to. Our guys were locked in in the practices in the film. But when it came to game time, we just, you know, we just couldn't get it done. Taylor, what do you think needs to change about this team's culture, specifically in the locker room, to give yourselves a chance to reach the goals that you have? Truly embracing what these moments in time in your evolution are going to provide for you. You're either going to seize them or you're not. You're going to take them lightly and take them for granted, or you're going to truly embrace them and understand where you're going to look at yourself in the mirror. I'm going to be the first one to do it. I'm going to look in the mirror and understand how I can coach better, coach harder, you know, get this team organized better, whatever it is. I'm going to just, you know, turn over every opportunity to figure out how I'm going to be the best coach. I'm going to challenge everyone, players, staff, medical team, everything. I think we're building something really special in Memphis. I think we got a great group of people. I think we have great culture, you know, and your culture is going to get tested. I mean, there's going to be opportunities that are going to, you know, see how strong you are, how together you are, how resilient you are, how disciplined you are. And then are you really building, you know, something day in and day out to ultimately try to win a championship? It doesn't happen overnight. Nothing, you know, is going to be straight line. We've had a lot of success in our first three years. And, you know, in my opinion, this is probably, you know, that moment in time that's going to be the ultimate wake up call that are we going to really, you know, understand it's the preparation in the offseason, the preparation in the season, it's what you do at work, off the court, clearly, you know, things that we've got to control and just embrace it together. How are we going to support each other throughout all this stuff? I mean, this is a journey that you go through from the start of the season, the end of the season, and it's not supposed to be easy, any of it. So are we going to take it lightly and take it for granted or are we going to take a real hard look at the mirror and just say, hey, this is what we learned. You know, here are the things that we've done well. Here are the things that we haven't done well. And we've got to come together and figure out together how we're going to embrace this growth opportunity. I think this is one of the more pivotal ones that we've had in our timeline. And, you know, I challenge the group and I've got the ultimate faith that we will. Ted, I know you're not going to blame this on injuries, but just, you know, looking back from the perspective of something like rebounding, being one of your biggest strengths for most of the season and then the latter part of the season, you know, if you be in middle of the pack in the league, what's it like as a coach to kind of have to like, I guess, shuffle some things, you know, at this point of the season and try to, you know, turn that around in a playoff series against a real good rebounding team? Yeah, I mean, it's part of the NBA journey. I mean, injuries are part of it. It's unfortunate, you know, but, you know, you can't use that as an excuse. Of course, we miss Stevo. Of course, we miss BC. Of course, we missed, you know, Luke tonight as well. You know, but, you know, guys got to rise up. And I thought our guys did a phenomenal job. Obviously, when Stevo went down, what was it? Back in January, BC at the beginning of March, guys stepped up. You know, we have to get creative as a team, as a coaching staff, lineups, embrace our system even stronger. We realize where you've got to do better in a lot of different areas. And obviously, we, you know, suffered in some of the strengths of what, you know, Stevo does and BC does. And but that's no excuse. You know, we know we've got to find better ways. We got to stay true to who we are offensively, defensively. But we always talk about next man up mentality. And that's been a strength of ours for four seasons since I've been here. And again, of course, you wish those guys were out there. They mean so much to you. But our group that, you know, was here at the finish line was very capable. We just didn't do enough. Along those lines, Taylor, your three best players, the guys you're building around are 24, 23 and 23. They're still you mentioned the timeline. They're still pretty early on their timeline. For those three specifically, Jadez and Jaron, what do you want them to grow? How do you want them to grow from this experience? I want them to be the leaders in this growth opportunity, for sure. Obviously, I have a huge responsibility in that. It's been awesome to work with, you know, those three guys with our entire group, but especially those three guys in individually and collectively, you know, the leadership that they can provide us moving forward. The leadership, I've seen them grow in so many different areas over the course of the season. We're far from where we need to be. You know, that's a that's an encouraging thing because we're going to put in the work. And I know these guys are going to be the guys I'm going to lean on the most to continue, you know, setting examples for their teammates coming in hungry every single day, you know, being the competitors and the guys that, you know, embrace togetherness the most, you know, so nothing's going to just happen without the work. And those are the guys I'm going to challenge the most. They love being challenged. You know, I expect them to just embrace this and be the guys are going to carry us through this offseason to help us get ready for, you know, our next campaign next year, which I know is a ways away. But I'm going to challenge these guys to really embrace this opportunity and, you know, be the leaders throughout that. Taylor, I know it's early and you've talked about growth this summer. Do you think that this will also be a pivotal summer for building this team and building around these guys that Mark mentioned, Jaron, Dez and Joe? Yeah, I mean, just like we have what we've done every summer. You know, it's the next opportunity is the best opportunity to get better for this group. I think, you know, partnering with Zach, it's been amazing how we've built this team. You know, we understand, you know, our core who we're building with the depth of our team. We've got a lot of great competitors, great players on this team. You know, we'll we'll we'll cross that bridge when we get there. You know, I'm going to obviously sit back and take some time to really think about the season. You know, Zach and I have dialogue all all throughout the season, understand how we're building this. And it's not just going to be one summer, one move. It's going to be a collection of everything that we do. It's how we draft. It's how we develop. It's other decisions that we make to to add to this roster. And I think we've done a phenomenal job in getting the right people in here. It's the it's the character. It's the competitiveness. It's the willingness to get better. You know, the skill development these guys want to embrace. We're building something special. I've got so much faith in the leadership of this group. My partnership with Zach, the core that we have here. It's going to be a great summer. You know, every summer that I've been here has been the most pivotal. This will be another one to say how we take the next step as an organization to represent our city, represent our fans, represent, you know, basketball in our region to be the best that we can be and ultimately bring a championship to Memphis. Great. Thanks, everybody. What do you think you guys learned about yourselves from this series? I mean, we need to get better. We need to get better. We need to be healthy. I mean, I think it's pretty much as simple as that. You were really aggressive, looking for your shine games, four and five, had a lot of success with that. Lakers put a lot of focus clearly on you from the jump tonight. What happened with you that sort of kept you from getting to your spots and getting in the rhythm with it? Yeah, I mean, give them credit. You know, they blitz in every time I come off a pick and roll. And, you know, obviously, Luke is a big part of what we do, spacing the floor. And, you know, it's easier for defenses to key in on guys. But, you know, I thought I had some good looks. Just didn't fall. You said y'all need to get better. Y'all need to get healthy. A lot of impact for players, you know, out this game, out this series. How do you think that impacted things? I mean, it would be dumb to say that it didn't, you know what I'm saying, play a part in it. Steve-O was a big part of what we did all season long. Obviously, BC was too. You know, but hats off to X. I mean, he was tremendous, stepped in and gave us a lot. You know, I'm super proud of him. He's been through so much this season. You know, in the rotation, out of the rotation, starting, playing in the G League, you name it. You know, and to give us great minutes in the playoffs just says a lot about him and who he is and his work ethic. So, you know, obviously, we missed guys, but we had guys step up as well. I asked Taylor this, but I want to get your thoughts as one of the leaders of this team. How do you think the culture in this team and in the locker room needs to change? I just think that we have to appreciate everything, whether it's the training room, the extra shots, the wins at home, the wins on the road. You know, the entire process. You know, and staying even keel through it all. You know, no highs, no lows. You know, and just keep pushing and focusing on getting better one day at a time. Dez, if you just, I guess you had to sum up, what happened out there, man, that made the game just get out of hand like it did? Yeah, I mean, hats off to them. You know, they out-rebounded us. We turned the ball over. They got out in transition. Obviously, we didn't shoot the ball well from the floor, so they're getting out and pushing. D'Angelo Russell had a night. You know, we knew they were going to come out with some force playing in front of their home crowd, game six, you know, and we didn't match it. Hey, Dez, kind of following up on what Tim asked, Taylor said something similar, too, in response to that question about not taking for granted. You said appreciate. Was there kind of like a sense of entitlement or maybe taking some things for granted that you shouldn't have? I mean, I think so a little bit. You know, last year, we were kind of the surprise team, you know, in the league and was able to work our way to the two seed, and it just seemed like, you know, we were celebrating every moment. You know, wins on the road, and it's everybody's, training staff, coaching staff, players. You know, everybody was really into it, you know, because we didn't know how good we were, you know, and we were just, you know, trying to win games and play to the Grizzlies standard, and this year, we came in with some different expectations, and, you know, I don't want to say that we overlooked the process or, you know, the daily things just because coach is always preaching, you know, take care of today, do the best you can today with whatever that task is, but, you know, we got to be better, and that's where our player development, you know, comes in, and we'll shine bright on a stage like this. Your team had such a great emotional win in game five. You're coming in here all hyped up with confidence and ready to roll, and then you have a result like tonight. How much of a shocker is this? How surprised are you by what happened tonight? Well, I mean, it sucks, you know, to end our season the way that we did, you know, but something that, you know, I'm not going to forget, and I think a lot of guys in the locker room won't forget, and it will be good for us moving forward for this offseason and for the years to come. I guess you could say when we came in the locker room, it looked like, you know, it was a little bit loose, not really like the last game of the season, but before we came in, how would you describe, you know, the locker room, I guess, after the game? I mean, we got a lot of young guys. We got a few guys that have been here before, and, you know, just first and foremost, telling everybody congratulations on, you know, getting through an NBA season. You know, I think that's something that everybody should appreciate, regardless of what your role is on the team, and, you know, I had some conversations with some young guys, kind of one-on-one, just talking about the jumps that, you know, they need to take, and we all need to take. You know, I got to be better. Jaren's got to be better. Jai's got to be better. You know, one through 15. You know, everybody's got to be better, so just kind of putting that bug in guys' ears, you know, heading into the offseason. How are you left to mark the offseason? Obviously, you and Jaren and Jai are still pretty early on, and your careers, when we asked Taylor this, and I asked him, how do you three need to grow, ultimately, this offseason together, and he mentioned, you know, you guys becoming the leaders in terms of what you guys do this offseason. How do you see that? Do you see that, like, you three together need to, you know, push this team forward? No doubt. I mean, we've been here. We've been under Coach Jenkins. We know what he expects. We know what the Grizzlies standard is. You know, we're the guys that everybody's going to turn to on the team, so, you know, we got three years of playoff experience now, so I think that, you know, we need to lead the charge and lead these guys. You know, you guys have become a team that's known for trash talk, right, and comments like, I'm fine in the West, and, you know, I poke bears. Obviously, those put a target on you. Do you think that the cockiness of this team, that that swagger has gotten too far, has backfired on you? I mean, it's easy to say that, you know, after we lose a series and end the season the way we did, but, you know, that's us. You know, I mean, I think if we're not out there talking trash and competing and playing with that fire inside of us, that we're not going to be the same team, so I don't think that that should go, you know, anywhere. You know, obviously pick your spots and be smart, but say whatever's on your heart, and, you know, we're going to do our best to back it up with our play. Thanks, guys. John, what do you think is next for this team after a season like this, and Taylor was in here talking about you, Dez, and Jaron really leading this team through the offseason. I guess when you look ahead, what do you see? I feel like it starts with us, you know, pretty much getting healthy, and, you know, that's the number one thing for us. Secondly, you know, just getting back to work. Pretty much feel like, you know, it's that simple. You feel like a healthy team could have done more? 100%. Why so? I mean, you know, you have Steve-O coming back, which, you know, a problem this series was rebounding, and, you know, before he went out, he was pretty much the best rebounder in the league. You know, obviously, B.C. with, you know, what he bring for us off the bench, you know, that's another big body, you know, we have out there and somebody, you know, who helps us, you know, on the boards and scoring-wise. Luke spacing the floor, you know, being able to shoot. Even, you know, with me, you know, I was out there battling, but I wasn't, you know, 100%. So, obviously, you know, health is important. We play with what we got. So, you know, not even trying to, you know, use that, you know, as an excuse right now. But, you know, even with, you know, the guys we had, you know, we got to be better. After how competitive the team was the past two games, what do you, how do you account for how quickly this one got away from you? I felt like even though, you know, it got away early, I felt like, you know, we were still battling for the most part. You know, they, you know, started knocking down some shots. Felt like, you know, they was, you know, pretty much just getting to the paint too easy for us. And that was, you know, pretty much hurt us. You know, in recent games, it wasn't, you know, as easy for them, you know, we was making them work, you know, forcing tough shots. And, you know, that pretty much allowed us to, you know, rebound and run. Obviously, you know, our bigs tonight was in foul trouble, which we lack, you know, pretty much right now, you know, with due to injuries. Yeah, I just felt like it was that. You know, we just got to be, you know, more locked in on the defensive end and, you know, keep guys in front. And if your man get beat, you know how your brother's back. John, you know, the I'm fine in the West comments going to get thrown back in your face at this point. Yeah, I don't mind. I don't care. I said it, you know, I deal with it. And the other thing I want to ask you, how do you evaluate yourself as the leader of this team this year? And how do you think you can grow in that area? I just got to be better, you know, with my decision-making. It's pretty much it, you know, off the court issues, you know, affected us as a, you know, organization pretty much. So yeah, just more discipline. Kind of along those lines, but it's something we've been talking to everybody else about. There's been some themes about taking things for granted, not enjoying every moment, you know, maybe even a little entitlement for the team. How do you see that, those issues, and if they related to this team? My issues? No. Do you feel like your team at large took things for granted this year that you hadn't taken for granted in the past? No. Okay. Des and Taylor had talked about, they thought that that was the case that maybe, you know, last year, everybody was a little more locked into the moment. And this year that just some things were expected and. Yeah, people have different opinions. Okay. I don't know what you want me to say. Like, you asked me, I said no. You know, they felt like that, then, you know, that's, you know, their opinions. But, I mean, you know, we here, definitely got to be better though. So, locked in is, you know, a key in the playoffs. John, I don't know if you saw what Yanis said the other night about learning from experience. Yeah, I don't want to be that big of a deal like he was, so. I just wanted to know what you're taking out of the sum total of this year and if each year in the NBA is a step. What did you take from this step? You know, like I, you know, recently just said before, I feel like, you know, mine is more, you know, off the court and on the court, you know. Just being disciplined on both sides, you know, off the court, you know, making better decisions, you know, on the court, you know. Being locked in, you know, even more. Being, you know, a leader of this team, you know, it pretty much, you know, start with me. So, you know, however, you know, I attack, you know, any situation, you know, I know, you know, my guys will follow. So, you know, I just got to be better, you know, in that area. Ooh, I thought I was about to be here for 15 more minutes.