Rookie Taylor Hendricks on adjust to NBA life 📈 | UTAH JAZZ
You have the best seat in the house welcome in the front row for the Utah Jazz I’m your host Holly row and today Taylor Hendrick and we specifically requested you Taylor because I feel like this is your time you know you have been really grinding in the g-league and
Putting in all this development work what has changed for you right now in the Jazz organization that you’re really excited about uh I would just say mostly my role you know um you know obviously not being able to be with the main team you know for most of the start of the season
And then you know now you know started my first game last game so you know it’s just a lot of shift and roll right now how fast is that coming at you because it’s it feels like you’ve been grinding for a long time we’ve talked about it
You’ve been putting in the work and grinding but now it’s like oh okay here you go be be ready let’s go yeah definitely man I’ve been you know working really hard for it so you know for for it all to be coming so fast right now it’s just it’s a blessing you
Had some good success in the G league and I know you you worked hard there scoring 15 points a game and your shooting was good what have you been able to take I know it’s a different level but what confidence have you been able to take now to your new role um
Just being able to find my shots in offense you know the g-league runs a lot of like the similar plays and um similar actions so just trying to find where I can get my shots through there and then you know translate it we were just talking to Chris Dunn and he said he’s
Been kind of hyping you up because he sees something special in you defensively what does he say to you what does he see in you that you’re kind of like oh that’s cool that he believes in me yeah I mean Chris Dunn like he’s been a very helpful you know him he’s known
As a Defender so you know I get a lot of things from him like even like little things in practice like he might see me you know mess up a little bit and he’ll like you know critique it a little bit and you know I appreciate it so much
Coming from a great defender like him so I remember talking with Will Hardy earlier and he he really feels like you can come in and have an immediate impact defensively cuz you’re long and I do feel like you have good instincts is that something you are like no I can
Count on this night in and night out or how do you approach that yeah for sure you know um defense is a little bit different than offense you know like offense you got to C on your shot going in and defense is just I feel like it’s mostly effort and that’s something I
Could bring to the table every game you had a few looks earlier in the season and you had some blocks and you really win it guys how do you think you’ve been as far as your confidence level playing on this level uh it’s definitely continuously gone up you know um
Spending time in G League definitely helped with that and then you know now being with the main team and being um getting a lot of reps is definitely helped my confidence a lot was there a moment so far that you were like that was nice like I know you had a recent
Good block tell me tell me about that was that a standout moment for you oh yeah yeah the block and K for sure yes you know in the moment I’m like you know trying to get a get a bucket on the other end but like after like the
Timeout like I was thinking about like dang I really just black KD you know so have you had any other cool cool moments of like welcome to the league that you’re like wow that’s cool cool I mean probably like just last game you know just seeing my name um I’m in the
Starting lineup so I would say that for sure when did you find out you were going to be starting uh that morning what did you do did you call Mom what’ you do no I texted her after but like in the moment I just like you know played
It cool but you know in my head I’m like yo is that my is that my face up there you know so yeah how did you think you did uh I think I did pretty well from my first start um you know definitely looking to build it wasn’t perfect you
Know not not trying to make it perfect but you know just trying to build off of it you know we keep using these phrases like Development building you know gaining confidence all this stuff where are you right now where do you think you are uh I feel like I’m very far from the
Player I want to be you know um I feel like I’m you know improving every game and you know making jumps and um I feel like to the level I want to be I’m pretty far right now you know people I remember reading about you before the
Draft and a lot of people use the word potential CU you know you kind of shot up quick from high school and all of a sudden you’re this top prospect it’s been fast what do you see in yourself like what is this potential that you think people see and that you feel you
Do have I feel like a lot of it has to do with you know my talent and my my um my hustle you know my ability to go get it um you know how hard I play and you know the the the different um instruments God gave me kind of natural
Natural Talent right yeah size length bounce athleticism um tell me about offense so I know defense is easier to get into the system and understand how you can impact a game where do you think you can impact a game offensively right now uh right now just uh spacing out um you know uh
Getting getting the ball and then driving when I can and you know trying to line up the load a little bit for guys like lri and JC so yeah space is important in this offense you do shoot the the three well has that I I know you
Don’t want to live and die on every three-point shot but I um right before Allstar break you had a game where they weren’t falling and then you finally hit one like how have you been patient with yourself as your three kind of comes around I feel like it’s kind of easy to
Be patient with it cuz you know I feel like I put in a lot of work you know on my shot and you know if some games doesn’t fall like you know what can you do you know you’re putting in the work so you know eventually it’ll it’ll it’ll
Fall and it will tell me what a typical development day looks like for like what are the coaches having you do for a workout and what what are you working on uh I’m pretty much working on every facet of my game you know a little bit of defense ball handling obviously my
Shot um you know coming into practice before and staying a little bit after you know just tightening up little things and then watching a lot of film like watching other guys how they play you know a GU similar to me and watching different teams how they play and you
Know just trying to imitate that a little bit who are some of the guys you’re watching uh Jaden McDaniels we have like a similar type of body type so you know and he’s a great defender and you know I want to be an elite Defender
Like that he is a good one I do feel like you’re built very similar yeah I I feel like there’s this um gosh I don’t know how to say this the right way but like I I feel this talent in you that you’re just kind of like navigating it
But it’s there and it’s just like the moment’s going to happen where you finally feel it does that sound right yeah definitely you know um like I said I feel like I’m getting better every game and you know it’s only going to keep Building from here putting the ball
On the deck feel like you can be a slasher is that part of your game you feel good about or is that still in development uh that definitely is a part I’m um I feel good about you know I feel like you know I could shoot the ball but
Shooting is just like a weapon for me um I feel like you know I’m a pretty big body so you know I can get to the rim and finish pretty easily tell me a little bit about um I I know your mom is a big part of your life and I’ve seen
Her here in the stands and she seems like a big Dynamic personality how has your mom helped get you where you are right now I mean she’s been huge man like I wouldn’t even be wearing this jersey right now if it wasn’t for her so you know like she just been like my
Number one my Superwoman in my whole life so I’m I’m just blessed to have her for sure um did you get to go see your brother play recently yeah they had came tell me about that yeah it was nice cuz they had played BYU so I was at the game
And you know it was nice to to watch them play for sure okay what did you think about the BYU crowd uh it’s crazy that that student section is is one of the craziest I’ve ever seen for sure I just think it’s so fun down there I just
Always have thought the Marriott Center was so good um how did your brother do how did the game go uh it went it went well I mean we lost but you know we put up a good fight for sure what was it like for him to see you that like now
You’re this NBA player were people like getting pictures with you or was he like oh dude you’re like a celebrity here now yeah I mean you know I feel like it definitely inspires him a little bit you know to see his older brother um you
Know go for the for our dream so you know he’s next so it’ll be nice to you know see him on the court um I used to cover the Marcus Marie and Marcus Morris when they were at Kansas for a long time and they had a hard time
Being a part like twins are innately connected how has it been to be apart from your twin uh at first it was a little rough but uh it started like you know during my pre-draft process I wasn’t really with him so you know I
Kind of got used to it and you know now it’s fine you know we talk every day so you know you do talk every day yeah every day do you FaceTime or just talk on the phone uh sometimes we FaceTime but we’re at least in contact every day
Cuz you need that connection right like it’s so it’s so natural um are you able to pass along things to him like yo they’re having me work on this this and this and I can see you being able to do that too are you helping him right now
Yeah definitely you know um just the things I’m learning up here and then we’re kind of like in a similar role like trying to earn our spot a little bit so you know a lot of things I’m going through you know I can um you know
Give him advice we talked about this a little bit earlier when you first started playing earlier in the season and you said it had been hard to to not compare your rookie season with other guys in your rookie class and see like oh this guy’s playing more than me or
This guy how have you kind of come to peace with like this is my journey this is my process I feel like just getting closer to God right now like um just um you know the Bible says um you know good things come to those who wait so you
Know not to be too urgent for something to happen you know and not be you know upset if it’s not happening at the time you want so you know just me coming to peace with that and um you know realizing like my time will come yeah
It’s really cool because I think you you know your Ascension to being an NBA Prospect has been so quick it’s like no I want to stay here like I I’m going to be really patient because my Journey’s is is new does that make sense yeah for
Sure and and how can you allow yourself to be P like you said you you pray a lot you’re in the Bible a lot we’ve talked about that um patience is hard yeah it is it’s not easy for sure you know um you know like I said before you know
Seeing other other your peers I’m doing really well and like you want to be on that level too but you know everybody’s journey is different you know you see it all over the NBA with guys like yic gilis Alexander like everybody has different paths to being Superstars so I
Was listening to a podcast that I like and and one of the guys said year three is when guys really when you really know how they’re going to be like yeah there’s some outliers but year three so like that’s got to be your patient approach right like right of course we
All want it now we want to see you be great right now but that’s got to be part of the approach okay what are you doing the best right now on on the court like when we watch you play the next couple of days the next couple of weeks
What are we going to see from Taylor uh someone who’s hungry on defense for sure you know I’m going to be I’m going try to fly around and be everywhere and try to cause problems for the other team I like that I know that they’re spacing you sometimes you’re kind of in the
Corner but how can you still make your presence felt offensively uh just crashing the boards you know when a when the shot goes up trying to get my hands on it and you know add another couple possessions for our team yeah putback right like you can get shots off
Putbacks if if you can be athletic and rebound like I think you’re capable of yes for sure okay cool anything else that you’re like um really proud of that maybe we don’t know has developed for you but you’re like man people need to see I’ve really been putting in work on
This uh I would say definitely defensive side of the ball you know um feel like in college like my role defensively was a little bit different like in college I was more of like a Rover and now it’s like I’m guarding like some of the best players in the NBA so it’s
Like it’s it’s a different kind of transition you have to you have to do for sure so has there been anybody yet that you were like whoa I’m guarding so and so this is crazy probably Kevin Durant yeah Kev for sure and you blocked him yeah I mean did he say anything to
You after that moment yeah he he told me it was a good block yeah okay there we go that’s pretty cool all right before I let you get out of here um anything that has stood out to you about just being in Utah saw getting more comfortable with
Being here in Salt Lake City and just kind of how your life is going here uh I would say the fans like they’ve been pretty supportive throughout my you know up and downs um throughout my journey a little bit so just thankful for them for sure yeah I do think people are pouring
Into you like we’re excited for him they see the vision of what you’re going to to bring do you feel that yeah for sure I appreciate it well thank you for joining us Taylor Hendrick thanks for being with us on front row
Rookie Taylor Hendrick joins the Front Rowe podcast to talk about his first season in the NBA.
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