Gordon Hayward | 2023-24 End-of-Season Interview | OKC Thunder

Gordon Hayward | 2023-24 End-of-Season Interview | OKC Thunder

Gordon you got a chance to be part of uh just a really special young group of guys going through so much of this for the first time um what was maybe uh the most rewarding part of this experience uh even though it obviously didn’t end the way that you guys wanted it to yeah I mean I think just seeing all these guys experience it for for some of them the first time is a cool experience to be a part of um you can just see them learning and growing and um certainly will use these moving forward um with a guy like Shay specifically who’s in a you know a spot where so much attention is on him a spot that you’ve been on as as a lead uh playmaker um how did you you know view the way that he attacked that responsibility had so much you know going on personally professionally and was able to um deliver the way that he did in this postseason yeah I mean he was Unreal um not only in the postseason obviously the entire year uh to lead the team to you know number one seed in the west um you know I know he puts a lot into it and um like I said a little bit ago he’ll only get better from these situations start to learn and figure out how teams will guard you and um I thought he handled it it all really well and you know obviously came up a little bit short but uh he was tremendous this is the first time in your career you’ve been given a smaller role on a team can you describe the ups and downs of that for you yeah I mean obviously uh disappointing with uh kind of how it all worked out um it’s not what I what I thought it would be um certainly frustrating um but um kind of it is what it is you know they have they have a great team here with great young players a great coach so uh the future is bright what did you think it would be what do you think it could be um I feel like I uh as a player have a lot to offer and uh you know just wasn’t really given much of an opportunity to do that um and I kind of thought I was going to get that opportunity um but you know like I said I get it I mean we we were rolling before I got here I’ve said that before and um it’s hard to bring somebody in middle of the season um I think especially a player you know like me who’s been who’s had you know responsibility and and and lots of it and been through a lot so uh is that in terms of like kinds of touches that you’re getting or out a minute like what is that what what would what does that look like for you like what would like the ideal like role look like for you um yeah I mean I mean I think uh the minutes were certainly down and sporadic and you know obviously to a point where it was non-existent um and uh you know then just when I was out there is uh limited touches I would say so um obviously going obviously like with that you kind of got fed out of the the second round like I guess would you expect that to look like come to PO season um did that look at all what you what you thought as you joined the team those bar T postseason uh yeah you know as I as I said I thought it would look differently um you know but it is what it is it was it was it was not that so there parts of the series you thought or you feel as you were watching you could have inserted yourself in sure um you know I still have ultimate confidence in myself and I absolutely believe that I that uh you know I could have helped um but that’s not to take away anything from you know the other players that we had I thought we did it we did a tremendous job fighting and gave ourselves a chance there um you know like I said earlier this this team has got great great players a great coach um so they’ll they’ll be good for years to come what’s the advantage like knowing you know as a player you still have juice left you want to you know assert yourself but also like I know Mark said you weren’t brought on as a sha room but like maybe lending some of that advice like what’s what’s that balance like knowing you’re you’re amid frustration uh yeah it’s it’s a tough balance um uh you know I think just from on my end was just was just kind of disappointing and frustrating how it worked out um but you know it it is what it is it’s I mean it’s kind of out of my control to be honest so did you ever at any point feel like yourself physically just like the yeah no I I uh you know after probably the first month or so when I was coming back from the the calf strain um after after probably like a month I felt completely fine yeah you check your timing back and everything probably yeah I would say after like a month or so um felt like I was starting to get a rhythm and timing back um you know it’s it’s difficult to find a rhythm though with with kind of how I was played and um the opportunities that I got but certainly physically I felt I felt fine this organization has been spoke really highly of in terms of the way that they treat their players did you get that same feeling when you were atom yeah no it’s a tremendously run organization from top to bottom um you know they they do a great job with with the uh stuff outside of basketball the basketball piece um you know they’re they’re definitely first tier the mental aspect of this whole process like how tough was that to deal with just mentally yeah like I said it’s frustrating man it’s um it’s a position I’ve never been in and uh like I said didn’t expect it going into it so um certainly certainly frustrating Gordon you played with one of the alltime rare protectors PR go there I know their body types are very very different but you see these similarities into just shot blocking Tendencies from ch yeah no the timing they both have great timing that was one thing Rudy even as a young player he had he had great timing and it took took Rudy a a lot a little bit longer I guess to get going I mean this is arguably Chad’s first year right so um I I thought he was tremendous protecting the rim for us he just has a knack for staying knowing when to stay down on the ground and use his length and then knowing when to you know come from a weak side and um certainly can see that the the uh natural like timing that they both have just going back to the level of frustration you had did you sense as the season went on that maybe this this role this situation maybe took away some of your love for the game or anything like that uh no I mean I think um certainly was taxing mentally um so I don’t know if it was would take away my love for the game uh basketball has you know been my life for the last 20 I guess I’m 34 now like 20 28 years 29 years so still love the game have you thought about what might be next for you uh not yet I I’m going to feel like it’s kind of been one long road trip for me here so I’m excited to get back to my family I know they’re excited to see me and you know take a take a deep breath and uh figure out what will be next your overall s your thought um I mean I think he’s you know a great young coach um extremely prepared uh hard worker um I think some of the stuff that he’s doing is is unique and kind of uh new and really smart um just little nuances that he kind of the game within the game things that he does and tricks and um to kind of win a possession back or win a you know get a quick bucket um you know the the jump ball from yesterday is a good example I mean that’s a designed play uh that he came up with him and his staff um I think the staff was tremendous too so in the minutes you did get what led to the low volume of shots and kind of low offensive impact you had when you were out there I think that’s credit to kind of the role that I was placed in and just lack of touches soord people who maybe external Spectators who would say that you know you wouldn’t look to shoot the ball like how much would you agree with that do you agree with that all um I mean I think it’s um I think with the minutes that I was given and um like I said the role that I was in you’re you’re uh I think there might have been some possessions where I probably could have been more aggressive but you know it’s hard when you just get in the game and you know it’s not like you’re giving an open shot you’re asked to like i’ I’ve never really been the type of player to kind of just go one-on-one first time I get it take a tough contested shot so I’m just trying to do what was best for the team and um you know like I said it’s with the opportunities I was given it was it was it was tough to do to make an impact have too much of an impact in the midst of all the winning I it’s probably tough situation CU you’re winning the team but you ever conversation with Coach about your Ro and yeah we had talked about it and uh you know it kind of uh you know it was what it was I I don’t know what else to say about it to be honest with y’all overall sense seems to be that you still feel like you have a lot left in the tank that how you feel yeah man I still like I said I’m still confident in the player that I am anybody else I got one more what is it with C injuries this year it seems like as a bunch of players in the league have calf injuries yeah I don’t know um I know they’re pretty difficult to deal with um I think the injuries thing you know for me is uh you know ever since my major injury has been pretty frustrating I I was extremely healthy until then so um all you talked about your role just touches and everything else as did you feel as soon as you got here that you were kind of forced to fit into this sort of tight space as a player per yeah man um I just think I was uh trying to help us in any way I could and the role that I was given I tried to do my best in it so thanks Gord thank you guys

Gordon Hayward speaks with media at end-of-season interviews.

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