BillMc
04-16-2016, 05:05 PM
http://espn.go.com/blog/san-antonio-spurs/post/_/id/762/tim-duncan-expects-wounded-grizzlies-to-be-very-scrappy-very-physical
SAN ANTONIO -- As the San Antonio Spurs (http://espn.go.com/nba/team/_/name/sa/san-antonio-spurs) prepare to host the Memphis Grizzlies (http://espn.go.com/nba/team/_/name/mem/memphis-grizzlies) on Sunday for the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, we caught up with forward Tim Duncan (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/215/tim-duncan) to get his thoughts on the upcoming matchup:
Are you excited the playoffs are finally here?
Tim Duncan: Yeah, absolutely. Ready for the playoffs to start. It’s been a long year, a very good year to get our team acclimated for this point. Now we’re ready to do it for real. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
What makes the playoffs different for you? What makes it special?
TD: Just the intensity. The focus is more there, you’re more prepared. You’re not jumping from team to team and having a day to prepare. You have an extended period of time and multiple games against these guys, and you have to make adjustments on the fly. There’s a lot less secrets and a lot more going out there and just executing.
How important is it for Danny Green (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/3988/danny-green) to shoot the ball better in the postseason?
TD: It’s always important for him to shoot better. He’s been up and down this year. I think it’s just about building his confidence and getting some good looks early. We’re going to need him to make shots through the playoffs. Good place to start here.
Do you feel like the team is playing its best basketball going into the playoffs?
TD: Yeah, for the most part. Defensively we’re a lot more solid than anything else. We’ve had some ups and downs. Obviously some guys dinged up here and there, with lineup changes and people playing and not playing. All that stuff factors in, but we have a full squad here. We’ll have everybody ready to go and see what happens.
What do you expect in the postseason from younger players such asBoban Marjanovic (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/4376/boban-marjanovic) and Jonathon Simmons (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/2579466/jonathon-simmons)?
TD: I don’t know what to expect from anyone. We’re going to show up and figure it out. [Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is] going to do what he does in making lineup changes to adjust to who we’re playing. We’ll see who plays and how much.
It’s a great experience time for those two guys. They both had very good seasons and got some experience, but this is a whole different ballgame and hopefully they can come in here and really continue it.
Did anything surprise you about LaMarcus Aldridge (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/2983/lamarcus-aldridge) coming in here and adjusting to this team?
TD: It took him a while. I think it took him longer to adjust to us than it did for us to get used to him. That was the biggest thing. He continued to try to defer to us for a long time while we were trying to push him all along to take over. It took him longer to get comfortable with that.
The Grizzlies have endured lots of injuries this season. What are you expecting from them?
TD: Same thing they always bring: very scrappy, very physical. They’ve got a lot of guys that are going to try to turn up the intensity and make plays with their energy, their steals, their physicality. They’re going to bring it in that respect, and they’ve got a lot of vets out there who have been in the playoffs enough, and they know what it takes to get over that hump.
Psychologically, do you do anything differently as the playoffs approach?
TD: No. It’s the playoffs. At this point I don’t do anything different. Mentally, you kind of know where you are and what it’s going to take. You lock in and, hopefully, have the run to those 16 wins.
As you’ve aged, has each playoff run taken on more urgency and intensity than for you than in the past?
TD: Not really. You feel it along the way and as it ramps up and it gets later into the rounds. It gets more exciting and you get more locked in as it goes. But to get overly excited early, you just burn yourself out. This is a long process, another whole season, so we’ll just be ready for the long haul.
SAN ANTONIO -- As the San Antonio Spurs (http://espn.go.com/nba/team/_/name/sa/san-antonio-spurs) prepare to host the Memphis Grizzlies (http://espn.go.com/nba/team/_/name/mem/memphis-grizzlies) on Sunday for the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, we caught up with forward Tim Duncan (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/215/tim-duncan) to get his thoughts on the upcoming matchup:
Are you excited the playoffs are finally here?
Tim Duncan: Yeah, absolutely. Ready for the playoffs to start. It’s been a long year, a very good year to get our team acclimated for this point. Now we’re ready to do it for real. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
What makes the playoffs different for you? What makes it special?
TD: Just the intensity. The focus is more there, you’re more prepared. You’re not jumping from team to team and having a day to prepare. You have an extended period of time and multiple games against these guys, and you have to make adjustments on the fly. There’s a lot less secrets and a lot more going out there and just executing.
How important is it for Danny Green (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/3988/danny-green) to shoot the ball better in the postseason?
TD: It’s always important for him to shoot better. He’s been up and down this year. I think it’s just about building his confidence and getting some good looks early. We’re going to need him to make shots through the playoffs. Good place to start here.
Do you feel like the team is playing its best basketball going into the playoffs?
TD: Yeah, for the most part. Defensively we’re a lot more solid than anything else. We’ve had some ups and downs. Obviously some guys dinged up here and there, with lineup changes and people playing and not playing. All that stuff factors in, but we have a full squad here. We’ll have everybody ready to go and see what happens.
What do you expect in the postseason from younger players such asBoban Marjanovic (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/4376/boban-marjanovic) and Jonathon Simmons (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/2579466/jonathon-simmons)?
TD: I don’t know what to expect from anyone. We’re going to show up and figure it out. [Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is] going to do what he does in making lineup changes to adjust to who we’re playing. We’ll see who plays and how much.
It’s a great experience time for those two guys. They both had very good seasons and got some experience, but this is a whole different ballgame and hopefully they can come in here and really continue it.
Did anything surprise you about LaMarcus Aldridge (http://espn.go.com/nba/player/_/id/2983/lamarcus-aldridge) coming in here and adjusting to this team?
TD: It took him a while. I think it took him longer to adjust to us than it did for us to get used to him. That was the biggest thing. He continued to try to defer to us for a long time while we were trying to push him all along to take over. It took him longer to get comfortable with that.
The Grizzlies have endured lots of injuries this season. What are you expecting from them?
TD: Same thing they always bring: very scrappy, very physical. They’ve got a lot of guys that are going to try to turn up the intensity and make plays with their energy, their steals, their physicality. They’re going to bring it in that respect, and they’ve got a lot of vets out there who have been in the playoffs enough, and they know what it takes to get over that hump.
Psychologically, do you do anything differently as the playoffs approach?
TD: No. It’s the playoffs. At this point I don’t do anything different. Mentally, you kind of know where you are and what it’s going to take. You lock in and, hopefully, have the run to those 16 wins.
As you’ve aged, has each playoff run taken on more urgency and intensity than for you than in the past?
TD: Not really. You feel it along the way and as it ramps up and it gets later into the rounds. It gets more exciting and you get more locked in as it goes. But to get overly excited early, you just burn yourself out. This is a long process, another whole season, so we’ll just be ready for the long haul.