Nekias Duncan and Steve Jones Jr. highlight the many ways both Chet Holmgren and Ajay Mitchell have put their fingerprints on this series. Check out the full conversation on “The Dunker Spot” and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen.
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Video Transcript
What a series this has been.
What a shot-making series this has been for Chet Holmgren so far.
Averaging 23.
He is blazing from three right now, but there’s just a general comfort that he seems to be playing with.
A.J.
Mitchell has been probably my favorite player in this series so far.
He just does not care at all about what Shay got going on.
It’s like, oh, y’all committing to him.
That means I get to go one-on-one.
Here’s a drive.
Here’s an eight-foot jumper.
Here’s another drive.
Here’s another drive.
Here’s a six-foot jumper.
Shout out T.J. McConnell.
Here’s another drive.
He’s been insane through these first two games, and I want to give him the salute on that.
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And again, just overall to the defense, they’ve been able to turn the Lakers over in these second halves and just effectively end games.
And the Lakers just have to find a way to protect the field in this matchup.
Well, one, I think OKC has continued to look to problem solve and deliver answers.
And that’s where it’s like, okay, this group is a different team from the playoff run we saw last year.
Like they’re a machine to a degree.
They have been for two years, but there’s a decisiveness, you know, even when things get tough that I don’t think we saw last year from this group.
To the Chet portion, he’s been huge.
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And like for me, bald-headed person talking to a mic, yeah, let’s make it tough on Chet and Isaiah Hartenstein.
And Chet’s consistently been like, “Well, actually it– that’s harder than you think.”
And yeah, it is.
He’s really good at basketball.
So, you know, salute to him.
To the A.J.
Mitchell portion, the, the journey for him as far as did you see Mark Dagnault be asked, “Hey, how’s it feel to watch A.J.
grow ’cause you put him in game one of the finals and that didn’t go so great?”
He was like, “Boy, I just felt like I made a mistake then.”
He’s like, oh.
But, but he, but he continued to empower A.J.
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throughout this year.
And now you have a A.J.
Mitchell who is like, and this is the funny part, because OKC, you know, we have quote unquote dogs.
We attack, we work to move the ball, we defend.
But A.J.
Mitchell is very much a, I’m gonna get this shot off, and that’s not always what we’ve seen in OKC, but it works for this team ’cause it’s like, no- Yeah I’m gonna go to work.
So like I’m gonna hunt this shot.
I’m gonna, I’m gonna attack and pick and roll.
I’ll work my tail off defensively so I can do these things offensively.
So we’re good, right?
Like we’re good.
Like this is an agreement.
We’re fine.
Like it’s been fun to kinda watch him.
Like I feel like OKC has a perceived player archetype, but no, they have a bunch of people who can operate within the system.
And so it’s fun to watch them prosper.