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Michael Porter Jr.: I never lost consistently my whole career until I got to Brooklyn. We were losing a lot. We were young. We were building something, but we’re not there yet. So it was definitely hard, bro. It definitely was hard. But I see the future with the team. I see what we’ve got in the young dudes. I see we have the most money to spend. I think we’ve got the most. We’re the youngest team. Kind of like Oklahoma City — it took them a while to get good. I think that’ll be how it is here. But I’m with it. I want to stay in Brooklyn.
But, after shooting just 3-for-16 and coughing up a team-high four turnovers as the Los Angeles Lakers dropped Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals to the defending champs, Reaves admitted that context is meaningless at this point of the postseason. "I mean, nobody cares about that," Reaves said when asked about the challenge of ramping back to form after missing so much time. "I got to go out there and play better."
On Tuesday, he was 0-for-5 from 3, failing to connect from deep for the third time in 29 career postseason games, according to ESPN Research. Two of those games have come this postseason. "He was out a month," LeBron James said when asked about Reaves' struggles. "We know he's going to make shots and make plays, but that's tough. ... Obviously we're trying to fast-track him, getting back on the floor and doing the things that he was doing before the injury. But he was out a month, so rightfully so, if he has some games where he's missing shots or whatever the case may be. "His presence alone helps us no matter what."
At this point, the Lakers will take every win they can get, as they simply have found the Thunder to be the puzzle they cannot solve no matter what. And after the game, head coach JJ Redick lauded his team for getting up good enough looks to the point of winning “expected score”. “We won expected score so it was good enough to win,” Redick said, via Oh No He Didn't on X (formerly Twitter).
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BronMuse: Chet was asked if he ever imagined being in a playoff series against LeBron: "Maybe with him coaching or something... It's fun to go at it with great players and he's one of them." 😂🤝
Justin Martinez: Asked Shai Gilgeous-Alexander when he first realized Chet Holmgren had a strong work ethic: “The first day, like when he walked in the doors. You could just tell how much he cares about the game and his game. He really wants to maximize his potential, and that’s all it comes down to, really and truly. A guy who wants to be the best version of himself gives himself the best chance to get there. Usually, it works out for guys like that. He just wants it really bad.”
Brandon Rahbar: Egregiously out of context quote. Zora Stephenson: "I know that you say you have all the answers. How much did you have to think during the test tonight?" SGA: "Tonight was very simple. Multiple bodies, that means multiple people are open and just trust my teammates from there."
Omari Sankofa II: Tobias: “Teams that go to Game 7 usually are lax in this type of game. We said before the game, don’t let that be our team. For us, just coming out with that type of energy, that type of fuel to keep us going, embrace the crowd, embrace this moment and just find our rhythm.”
Michael Porter Jr.: If I would have been on the Nuggets, I think we wouldn’t have lost to the Wolves. We would have had too many matchup problems. They were able to put Jaden McDaniels on Jamal Murray, but then who were you going to put on me? When we played them last year, they put Nickeil Alexander-Walker on Jamal. They put Jaden on me. Two really good defenders. If I was out there, I think it would have been a little bit different. But I think it’s weird. I was talking to her earlier. I kind of feel like a hater a little bit, because I’m watching the series and those are my guys on the team. I want them to do well, but I couldn’t fully cheer for them because they traded me. It’s a weird feeling, kind of, because I felt kind of like a hater, low-key.
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“It’s just unacceptable. Especially with the talent we have on this roster,” Braun said. “I think when we come here every single year, we talk about championships. That’s our mindset and our goal. And obviously, we fell short. A first-round exit’s not acceptable. We’ve gotta bounce back. We’ve gotta get to work. … You can kind of put it on my shoulders. I think this team wasn’t resilient enough in the playoffs.” When asked to elaborate, he said the lack of resilience was a reflection of him. “I just think I’m the leader of this team,” Braun said. “I’m the vocal leader of this team. And when we don’t play well as a whole, you can blame whatever you want … You can blame anything. But I didn’t play well enough as an individual, and I didn’t have this team ready enough to play in a tough series. So we’ll be better. I’ll be better. I’m looking forward to next year, when we can respond.”
The 56-year-old tactician emphasized the mathematical impact of those missed calls, noting that even a few errors carry massive weight. “So, let’s just say they were four. That’s eight points. The value of eight points in an NBA game is massive, right? That’s also 33% of his blocks were goaltending, uncalled,” he added. “We are going to keep coming. We got to make some better decisions on how we attack the rim, but all credit to the guys for not being discouraged, because we should have walked away with another eight points.” French starting center Rudy Gobert echoed his coach’s sentiments, albeit with a lighter tone. When asked how many of Wemby’s blocks should have been whistled, he estimated, “He fouled me on the first one, but if you look at them, probably three or four.” He later mentioned with a laugh, “I wished I had that kind of treatment too.”
Los Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt sustained a full dislocation of his right pinkie during Tuesday's 108-90 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals series, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania. Vanderbilt was injured when he attempted to block a dunk by Thunder center Chet Holmgren. Vanderbilt swiped at Holmgren behind the play and hit his finger on the corner of the backboard. Holmgren made the dunk to put the Thunder up 48-39 with 5:57 left in the second quarter.
Vanderbilt needed stitches postgame because the bone in his dislocated pinkie finger broke skin, sources said. Lakers assistant athletic trainer Octavio Marquez Montoya and coach JJ Redick walked the length of the court to attend to Vanderbilt, who was on the opposite baseline.