WEBVTT - 76ers GC's Jeff Terrell, Steez Preview 2K League Finals 0:00:00.440 --> 0:00:03.880 There is a championship at stake this weekend and the 0:00:03.960 --> 0:00:06.840 seventy six ers franchise is involved. You run through all 0:00:06.840 --> 0:00:08.440 these scenarios in your head of like what the stage 0:00:08.520 --> 0:00:09.960 is going to be like, like that time when you 0:00:10.000 --> 0:00:12.680 walk out. Because the regular season game, the tournament games, 0:00:12.680 --> 0:00:15.360 those are all great, they're fun, but that moment when 0:00:15.360 --> 0:00:17.200 we're walking down the stairs and you know you see 0:00:17.239 --> 0:00:19.200 like the first finals logo and you know it's he 0:00:19.280 --> 0:00:21.160 gonna really set the mood and set the tone if 0:00:21.160 --> 0:00:23.680 we're ready for that. From the NBA two K League, 0:00:24.040 --> 0:00:26.799 seventy six Ers GC has a chance for a band 0:00:26.920 --> 0:00:29.880 here the story behind the team season on this episode 0:00:30.240 --> 0:00:37.440 of the broadcast, what's going on everyone? How are you doing? 0:00:37.760 --> 0:00:40.640 Brian Seltzer great through with you for another episode of 0:00:40.680 --> 0:00:46.839 the podcast. It's August Man craziness that you could actually 0:00:46.880 --> 0:00:51.000 say we're kind of in some ways heading into the 0:00:51.040 --> 0:00:55.520 backstretch of the offseason. I don't think that would be 0:00:55.520 --> 0:00:59.200 an untrue statement. A team that will have one more 0:00:59.240 --> 0:01:03.360 game before it's offseason win to lose, seventy Sixers GC 0:01:03.640 --> 0:01:06.240 out of the NBA two K League. They are taking 0:01:06.280 --> 0:01:10.400 on t Wolves Gaming on Saturday at three o'clock in 0:01:10.440 --> 0:01:15.400 a best of five game two K League Finals championship series, 0:01:15.800 --> 0:01:18.479 and I'm looking forward to chatting with their head coach, 0:01:18.640 --> 0:01:22.119 Jeff Terrell and one of the mainstays on the roster, 0:01:22.400 --> 0:01:27.360 Alex Steves Bernstein coming up in just a few moments. First, 0:01:27.640 --> 0:01:31.119 per usual, a reminder a call to action that if 0:01:31.120 --> 0:01:34.039 you're not yet a subscriber to our podcast, please go 0:01:34.120 --> 0:01:38.840 your favorite podcasting platform type in Sixers podcast Network that'll 0:01:38.880 --> 0:01:42.440 take you to our feed, subscribe and get fresh episodes 0:01:42.480 --> 0:01:45.039 on the regular about once a week, maybe once every 0:01:45.040 --> 0:01:48.000 ten days in the offseason, and then we'll ramp things 0:01:48.080 --> 0:01:50.480 up once again in the fall when the guys are 0:01:50.680 --> 0:01:53.560 back in Camden and getting ready for the preseason and 0:01:53.880 --> 0:01:57.240 training cap All right, this is a great story, I 0:01:57.280 --> 0:02:00.960 think seventy sixers GC second year of the NBA two 0:02:01.080 --> 0:02:04.240 K League. They are in the finals, which will take 0:02:04.240 --> 0:02:08.360 place this weekend in Long Island City. Great group of guys. 0:02:08.400 --> 0:02:11.960 They have their headquarters here at the seventy Sixers training complex. 0:02:12.000 --> 0:02:14.120 We see them around a lot. They also have a 0:02:14.160 --> 0:02:17.360 house that they all live in in South Jersey, just 0:02:17.400 --> 0:02:20.359 a few miles down the road from the training complex. 0:02:20.880 --> 0:02:24.360 And it's been a great run this season. Not a 0:02:24.480 --> 0:02:28.600 linear progression for seventy six ers GC. They started off strong, 0:02:28.800 --> 0:02:30.639 went through a little bit of a dip, they've been 0:02:30.680 --> 0:02:35.119 on the rebound and they have surged into the two 0:02:35.200 --> 0:02:37.840 K League Finals where on Saturday at three o'clock they 0:02:37.840 --> 0:02:41.160 will face t Wolves Gaming, the team they began at 0:02:41.200 --> 0:02:43.760 this season against. So I wanted to sit down with 0:02:43.840 --> 0:02:48.959 two vital members of the seventy sixers GC program. That 0:02:49.000 --> 0:02:51.600 would be NBA two K League Coach of the Year 0:02:51.680 --> 0:02:54.200 Jeff Terrell and his second year with seventy six Ers 0:02:54.280 --> 0:02:58.400 GC and stez Alex Bernstein, his second go round with 0:02:58.480 --> 0:03:02.400 seventy sixers GC as well, a key fixture on the roster, 0:03:02.840 --> 0:03:05.720 and we looked ahead to what could be a momentous 0:03:06.080 --> 0:03:09.440 moment for seventy six Ers GC this weekend. Hope you 0:03:09.520 --> 0:03:13.760 enjoy the chat. What's up guys? Great? Great? I feel 0:03:13.800 --> 0:03:18.080 a very calm, composed and mellow vibe from you guys, 0:03:18.080 --> 0:03:21.280 and we're about forty eight hours out from just a 0:03:21.360 --> 0:03:24.760 huge opportunity for you guys. So take me inside seventy 0:03:24.760 --> 0:03:27.280 six ers GC right now and what the mood's like. 0:03:28.360 --> 0:03:30.800 It's been a long week ever since we made the finals. 0:03:31.440 --> 0:03:33.240 I remember the next day we kind of woke up 0:03:33.240 --> 0:03:35.560 and we were like, damn, I just want to play already, 0:03:36.440 --> 0:03:38.680 you know, making the finals and you have a whole 0:03:38.680 --> 0:03:41.160 week to prepare. But the problem is that a lot 0:03:41.200 --> 0:03:44.000 of the teams are already knocked out, so some of 0:03:44.040 --> 0:03:46.320 them are back home in the offseason already, so there's 0:03:46.440 --> 0:03:49.480 not a lot of opportunities to practice, to scrimmage. A 0:03:49.520 --> 0:03:51.800 lot of it is more of like independent stuff, watching film, 0:03:51.800 --> 0:03:55.040 getting shots up on your own than just mentally preparing 0:03:55.400 --> 0:03:58.720 for the first Saturday. But yeah, like I said, just 0:03:58.720 --> 0:04:00.560 just a long week, long strust a week, a lot 0:04:00.600 --> 0:04:02.840 of emotions running through your mind the whole time. You know, 0:04:02.880 --> 0:04:07.640 you're nervous, you're anxious, you're excited. You you run through 0:04:07.680 --> 0:04:09.080 all these scenarios in your head of like what the 0:04:09.120 --> 0:04:10.800 stage is going to be like, like that time when 0:04:10.800 --> 0:04:13.280 you walk out, because every other time is going to 0:04:13.360 --> 0:04:15.880 be different. You know, the regulations in game, the tournament games, 0:04:15.880 --> 0:04:18.360 those are all great and they're fun. But that moment 0:04:18.400 --> 0:04:20.120 when we're walking down the stairs and you know you 0:04:20.160 --> 0:04:23.159 see like the first finals logo, the first trophy, whatever 0:04:23.240 --> 0:04:24.720 it is you see, You're going to see something that's 0:04:24.720 --> 0:04:27.160 different because of a finals appearance, and you know you're 0:04:27.160 --> 0:04:28.680 gonna really set the mood and set the tone. So 0:04:28.800 --> 0:04:31.080 I think we're ready for that. It's interesting too because 0:04:31.080 --> 0:04:33.039 you guys are playing in the same venue where you 0:04:33.080 --> 0:04:36.040 were the previous weekend. But yeah, I gotta imagine once 0:04:36.080 --> 0:04:39.719 you see the brand, Yeah, yeah, and all the different decorations, 0:04:39.760 --> 0:04:41.680 it does have to be a different feel though it is. 0:04:42.279 --> 0:04:45.320 So from the coaching standpoint, Jeff, how do you try 0:04:45.400 --> 0:04:49.280 and manage some of the emotions the moods that Steves 0:04:49.360 --> 0:04:51.680 was just talking about. Yeah, we're just going into it 0:04:51.720 --> 0:04:56.719 like it's another game. Preparing and preparation leading up. We've 0:04:56.760 --> 0:04:59.360 watched a lot of game film. We feel very confident 0:04:59.400 --> 0:05:02.000 and we're going to go in and do so. We 0:05:02.120 --> 0:05:04.480 treated as just a regular season game, just any game 0:05:04.480 --> 0:05:06.440 we've ever played, and we've done that for two years 0:05:06.440 --> 0:05:08.920 straight now, so we're not going to deviate from what 0:05:08.960 --> 0:05:12.800 we do as for preparation and stuff like that. A 0:05:12.880 --> 0:05:14.960 lot of people have asked, like, or what are we 0:05:14.960 --> 0:05:16.800 going to change? It's the best of five series, what 0:05:16.839 --> 0:05:18.839 are you gonna do? And we're just gonna stick to 0:05:18.880 --> 0:05:21.839 who we are and make them change to how we 0:05:21.960 --> 0:05:25.240 play for some of them uninitiated. I'll fill this out 0:05:25.279 --> 0:05:28.120 there to both of you because we'll have a crossover 0:05:28.240 --> 0:05:31.760 audience hopefully on this episode of the pod. What is 0:05:32.000 --> 0:05:34.919 seventy six ers GC? Jeff, what have you tried to 0:05:35.160 --> 0:05:38.760 instill on this team? From a holistic standpoint, what do 0:05:38.800 --> 0:05:42.440 you strive to have the program represent? Yeah, for us, 0:05:42.920 --> 0:05:46.640 especially coming from coaching traditional basketball and crossing over to 0:05:46.680 --> 0:05:49.680 E sports, I try to tie a lot of similarities. 0:05:50.200 --> 0:05:52.600 So our guys playing together as one of the biggest ones. 0:05:52.640 --> 0:05:55.440 We have guys that are coming in and they're probably 0:05:55.480 --> 0:05:59.080 the best players from their pro am teams and having 0:05:59.120 --> 0:06:02.760 them buy into how we play. So playing as a team, 0:06:02.800 --> 0:06:06.960 moving the ball, talking every single possession, and just having 0:06:07.279 --> 0:06:09.960 more of a family atmosphere is something that we really 0:06:10.000 --> 0:06:12.599 strive for, and it's something that we've been very good 0:06:12.600 --> 0:06:17.839 at doing for two straight years now. Yeah, to piggyback 0:06:17.880 --> 0:06:21.440 on that, when we uh when I first got here 0:06:21.960 --> 0:06:23.920 to when I got drafted to Philly. I remember one 0:06:23.920 --> 0:06:26.320 of my very first times talking with Jeff and and 0:06:26.520 --> 0:06:28.120 I went, I went into I went to his room 0:06:28.200 --> 0:06:31.640 just to introduce myself, and I knew right away that 0:06:31.720 --> 0:06:33.320 someone like Radiant was going to be definitely one of 0:06:33.360 --> 0:06:34.720 the best players on the team, which he is. He's 0:06:34.800 --> 0:06:36.960 arguably the best player in the world. And um, but 0:06:37.000 --> 0:06:38.680 I told Jeff, I remember, I told him that, like 0:06:39.800 --> 0:06:41.839 when we needed like somebody to like step up, be 0:06:41.839 --> 0:06:43.440 a leader, like be the vocal leader, I was like, 0:06:43.440 --> 0:06:45.440 I'm I'm gonna be that guy for us because I 0:06:45.480 --> 0:06:47.800 want seventi six ers GC. I want this team to 0:06:48.000 --> 0:06:49.840 have something different than every other team in the league. 0:06:50.160 --> 0:06:52.640 And I think that all of us with obviously helped 0:06:52.640 --> 0:06:57.520 from from Jeff Radiant New Deini Zds. We're a very 0:06:57.520 --> 0:07:00.080 disciplined team and we're a very fun team to the 0:07:00.120 --> 0:07:02.039 same time, though, but like Jeff said, we're a family 0:07:02.400 --> 0:07:06.520 and nobody's playing for their independent self. We're not going 0:07:06.600 --> 0:07:08.880 for accolades, we're not going for stats. We don't care 0:07:08.880 --> 0:07:11.360 about MVP, DPOY, none of that kind of stuff. We 0:07:11.400 --> 0:07:16.080 care to win the game. And if we're if we're 0:07:16.120 --> 0:07:18.160 losing the game, if we end up losing the game, 0:07:18.200 --> 0:07:20.040 but we did it, you know, with one hundred percent, 0:07:20.160 --> 0:07:21.880 leaving it all in the court and playing for each other. 0:07:22.120 --> 0:07:23.600 I could live with that at the end of the day. 0:07:23.800 --> 0:07:25.520 What I can't live with is, you know, is if 0:07:25.520 --> 0:07:27.160 we go in there and try to play selfish ball 0:07:27.240 --> 0:07:30.280 like that, that's something that we've never stood for. And 0:07:30.280 --> 0:07:34.240 we've taken losses like that, like last year against the 0:07:34.240 --> 0:07:36.120 Heat and the Semis. We lost, but we left it 0:07:36.200 --> 0:07:37.760 all on the court. We played for each other the 0:07:37.760 --> 0:07:39.600 whole time. Some things didn't go our away, but not 0:07:39.720 --> 0:07:41.880 one second did we give up. I could take that 0:07:41.960 --> 0:07:43.720 loss at the end of the day. I can't take 0:07:43.760 --> 0:07:46.400 a loss where it wasn't our game plan, it wasn't 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:49.320 our system, it wasn't seventy six ers uc basketball. And 0:07:49.360 --> 0:07:51.160 I think that's something that our guys really get and 0:07:51.240 --> 0:07:53.640 then they understand that when you come here, you know, 0:07:53.640 --> 0:07:55.480 you're coming into a brotherhood, you're coming into a family. 0:07:55.480 --> 0:07:58.120 You're coming into an organization that will do anything to 0:07:58.120 --> 0:07:59.600 have your back as on as you know you represent 0:07:59.680 --> 0:08:03.280 them the way. And I think that's why like ninety 0:08:03.280 --> 0:08:06.040 percent of the league wants to be in Philly. Every offseason, 0:08:06.280 --> 0:08:08.000 my dms are filled with people that are saying, Hey, 0:08:08.000 --> 0:08:09.760 bring me to Philly, like get me drafted to Philly, 0:08:09.800 --> 0:08:12.880 you know, trade me to Philly, whatever it is. And 0:08:13.160 --> 0:08:14.360 I think that's really awesome. At the end of the 0:08:14.400 --> 0:08:15.480 day to like think about it while you're just like 0:08:15.520 --> 0:08:17.320 sitting there looking at the mirror and being like, I've 0:08:17.320 --> 0:08:20.680 helped create like a dynasty a culture over here in Philly, 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:23.800 even though like the actually seventy six of the traditional 0:08:23.840 --> 0:08:26.640 seventi six ers have always had a very impressive like 0:08:26.680 --> 0:08:28.480 resume with everything like just being able to add on 0:08:28.480 --> 0:08:30.440 to that was seving six ers. G see basketball. I 0:08:30.480 --> 0:08:32.400 think it is tremendous and I'd love to be able 0:08:32.440 --> 0:08:34.199 to say that I'm a part of it. I think 0:08:34.200 --> 0:08:36.280 it's easy for someone on the outside, and this is 0:08:36.320 --> 0:08:40.240 regardless of what sports team you follow, whatever the league is, 0:08:40.800 --> 0:08:43.680 to be dismissive of sayings like well, we play for 0:08:43.720 --> 0:08:45.720 each other and it's all a bad family. Like a 0:08:45.760 --> 0:08:48.240 lot of teams say that. But Jeff, where do you 0:08:48.320 --> 0:08:52.120 see as the season goes along and the team continues 0:08:52.160 --> 0:08:55.480 to have more and more success and advancing like it 0:08:55.520 --> 0:08:59.160 did to this championship round, Like that stuff has got 0:08:59.160 --> 0:09:01.520 to show up, right, This is probably where I would 0:09:01.559 --> 0:09:04.360 think it truly does leave its mark and make the 0:09:04.400 --> 0:09:07.720 most difference, Right, Yeah, I think that's what sets us apart. 0:09:08.559 --> 0:09:11.080 A lot of people probably do think it's cliche and 0:09:11.120 --> 0:09:13.680 stuff like that, but it's it's something that we really 0:09:13.760 --> 0:09:17.679 stand by. A crazy stat came out the other day. 0:09:17.720 --> 0:09:22.400 I saw and uh, we're the all time winning as team. 0:09:22.520 --> 0:09:24.160 I know it's here two, but we're the all time 0:09:24.240 --> 0:09:27.360 winning as team in the league. So we're forty two 0:09:27.360 --> 0:09:30.280 and sixteen. I think that we win seventy one percent 0:09:30.320 --> 0:09:35.040 of our games, and our guys treating every game like it. 0:09:35.559 --> 0:09:37.640 We don't go into every game like it's a championship, 0:09:37.679 --> 0:09:41.239 but we treat every game the same. So being consistent 0:09:41.280 --> 0:09:43.720 with how we are, how we talk to each other, 0:09:43.960 --> 0:09:46.920 how we act all during the game and then off 0:09:47.000 --> 0:09:49.839 the court, it's something that I mean, it shows. I mean, 0:09:49.920 --> 0:09:53.679 consistency is a key for us. Steeves. How would you 0:09:53.760 --> 0:09:57.240 describe seventy six ers GC style of play? What type 0:09:57.280 --> 0:10:00.920 of team are you? Guys? I remember last year and 0:10:01.000 --> 0:10:03.480 this year, a lot of the twitch viewers, which is 0:10:03.520 --> 0:10:05.440 our stream right now, we're also streaming on YouTube, but 0:10:05.720 --> 0:10:07.679 everybody in the chat love seeing seventy six or GC 0:10:07.880 --> 0:10:12.079 basketball because we're we're not unorthodox, but we're different, meaning that, 0:10:12.160 --> 0:10:14.199 like a lot of teams, struggle sometimes to put the 0:10:14.200 --> 0:10:15.640 ball in the net, and that's one thing we're very 0:10:15.679 --> 0:10:18.160 good at because obviously we brought four guys back from 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:19.880 the year one, so the chemistry is always there on 0:10:19.880 --> 0:10:21.720 the court, and it's fun and it's fast paced, and 0:10:22.120 --> 0:10:24.800 you know, we love shooting threes. We're a Debrange team, 0:10:24.840 --> 0:10:28.040 so like Radiant Sharpshooter, he's like another like Steph Curry 0:10:28.080 --> 0:10:30.640 out there. And then ZDS, who's our actual sharpshooter. I'm 0:10:30.640 --> 0:10:32.679 always trying to set off balls for him. Always were 0:10:32.760 --> 0:10:35.280 like I said, we're always playing unselfish ball, so I 0:10:35.360 --> 0:10:37.240 don't care about my stats. As long as I can 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:39.800 get somebody open, I can get Radio open, ZDS Breadwinner, 0:10:39.920 --> 0:10:42.080 anybody like that. That's what we're trying to do. And 0:10:42.120 --> 0:10:43.959 I think that you know, with the plays that we 0:10:43.960 --> 0:10:45.959 were running a lot last year, not so much this year, 0:10:46.000 --> 0:10:48.920 but people bought into seventy six year GC basketball because 0:10:49.280 --> 0:10:51.440 it was just so different than everybody else. Usually people 0:10:51.440 --> 0:10:53.120 were just more like pick and roll or like trying 0:10:53.120 --> 0:10:54.360 to get it to their center and the paint and 0:10:54.360 --> 0:10:55.560 then they'd go up with it. Both. With us, it 0:10:55.640 --> 0:10:57.760 was like we were always moving around, always coming up 0:10:57.760 --> 0:11:00.200 with like interesting plays that would throw teams off hard. 0:11:01.280 --> 0:11:03.280 And there were momentum swingers. At times. There would be 0:11:03.320 --> 0:11:04.839 times where we'd be tied or we'd be down in 0:11:04.880 --> 0:11:06.240 the game and we'd hit them with a play that 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:08.920 they've never seen before, and you know, I'd go back 0:11:08.920 --> 0:11:10.880 and rewatching the twitch. Cha would be going crazy because 0:11:10.880 --> 0:11:12.480 it'd be something that they didn't think would work in 0:11:12.480 --> 0:11:14.679 two K. They thought they would only work in traditional basketball. 0:11:14.720 --> 0:11:17.560 But having someone like Jeff who's a traditional basketball coach, 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:20.040 you know, in him bringing that element to the two 0:11:20.080 --> 0:11:21.720 K side of it, you know, we have a good 0:11:21.720 --> 0:11:24.640 collaboration of both. So would when we brought that twist 0:11:24.640 --> 0:11:27.040 season one and into season two, people fell in love 0:11:27.040 --> 0:11:29.640 with seventy six year GC. So we just you know, 0:11:29.679 --> 0:11:31.680 we try to keep that same energy all every year. 0:11:32.720 --> 0:11:34.240 Jeff for there are a lot of other coaches who 0:11:34.280 --> 0:11:38.400 come from a traditional backupketball background in the two K League. 0:11:38.840 --> 0:11:41.480 I think this year there's there's two others that are 0:11:41.520 --> 0:11:44.120 actually from the G League. So the Warriors have a 0:11:44.160 --> 0:11:47.360 G League coach and the Cavaliers have a G League coach. 0:11:47.360 --> 0:11:51.040 Other than that, I don't think so um. I think 0:11:51.080 --> 0:11:54.240 a lot of it is just esports guys, but it 0:11:54.679 --> 0:11:58.120 shows that it makes a difference. The Calves. We're pretty 0:11:58.160 --> 0:12:00.720 decent last year, but bringing the coach and this year 0:12:00.760 --> 0:12:05.960 they definitely got better. Warriors beat us on the turn 0:12:06.040 --> 0:12:09.079 Championship and they won the Ticket Championship and they have 0:12:09.120 --> 0:12:11.439 a G League coach. They're a very good team. I 0:12:11.520 --> 0:12:14.280 think they won four games last year. This year they 0:12:14.280 --> 0:12:16.959 went in and I mean they won two tournaments. So 0:12:17.280 --> 0:12:19.719 I think it makes a big difference having a basketball 0:12:19.760 --> 0:12:23.439 mind out there. But it also helps knowing both landscapes. 0:12:23.920 --> 0:12:27.079 So I think that's what sets us apart a little bit, 0:12:27.240 --> 0:12:30.440 is because we all know both landscapes of it as 0:12:30.440 --> 0:12:34.000 well as coaching and playing college basketball. I also played 0:12:34.000 --> 0:12:36.360 two k for four years, so it helps out as town. 0:12:36.760 --> 0:12:41.400 It's awesome, it's there. How would you describe Stee's the 0:12:42.480 --> 0:12:45.320 arc of this season? What was this season like for 0:12:45.360 --> 0:12:48.120 you guys? Getting things rolling, great success at the beginning 0:12:48.120 --> 0:12:50.760 with a tip off torn and then from there. Yeah, 0:12:50.880 --> 0:12:53.200 this year was It was interesting. Losing two players, so 0:12:53.240 --> 0:12:55.960 that means you bring two new guys on from the draft, 0:12:56.559 --> 0:12:59.760 but it's scary because the one thing, like all the 0:12:59.760 --> 0:13:01.480 guy in the pool that you can draft from they're 0:13:01.480 --> 0:13:03.920 all good at two KUM, so you're not really worried 0:13:03.960 --> 0:13:06.040 about that, but you're worried about finding a good person, 0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:08.480 a good teammate, um, somebody you could live with. Obviously, 0:13:08.640 --> 0:13:11.720 somebody can just be around. And that was my biggest concern. 0:13:11.880 --> 0:13:13.720 Every time Jeff and I would talk about names of 0:13:13.800 --> 0:13:17.240 potential candidates to be drafted to Philly, we were always like, 0:13:17.880 --> 0:13:20.280 can you know, can we vibe with them? Can you 0:13:20.320 --> 0:13:21.640 just like hang out with them, go to a movie 0:13:21.679 --> 0:13:23.440 with him, like have dinner with them, whatever it is, 0:13:24.960 --> 0:13:28.000 And so in that aspect, you know, we obviously drafted 0:13:28.000 --> 0:13:30.160 to the most perfect guys for our team to fill 0:13:30.200 --> 0:13:33.959 in those spots. Breadwinner at first, I think he was 0:13:34.080 --> 0:13:36.280 very timid about our team, didn't know how to how 0:13:36.320 --> 0:13:38.120 to act, what he needed to do. And then he 0:13:38.160 --> 0:13:40.200 figured out really quick, like what his role is on 0:13:40.240 --> 0:13:43.679 the team, which has been tremendous defensively for us, helped 0:13:43.720 --> 0:13:45.320 us out someone which we probably wouldn't be where we 0:13:45.520 --> 0:13:48.400 where we are now without him on defense. And then 0:13:48.480 --> 0:13:50.760 casting a great six man, always just just happy to 0:13:50.800 --> 0:13:52.560 be here no matter what it is, always giving us 0:13:52.559 --> 0:13:55.679 his input on things, especially during games at halftimes. But 0:13:55.720 --> 0:13:57.960 that's been that's been one of the hardest parts. And 0:13:57.960 --> 0:14:01.360 then once you mesh like middle of the season, once 0:14:01.440 --> 0:14:03.880 you feel that chemistry is like strong. I knew we 0:14:03.880 --> 0:14:05.520 were gonna be okay. We we went through a little 0:14:05.520 --> 0:14:06.960 bit of a slump, but you know, just talking to 0:14:07.000 --> 0:14:09.079 the team and stuff and where everybody's mindset at, nobody 0:14:09.160 --> 0:14:11.640 was really that worried. Maybe Jeff a little bit, but 0:14:11.679 --> 0:14:13.840 besides him, like we we all knew where we were 0:14:14.320 --> 0:14:16.599 planning to be and that was in the playoffs. M 0:14:17.120 --> 0:14:19.720 But that's that's just the biggest thing I could teach. 0:14:19.840 --> 0:14:21.520 I could teach you how to play two K, but 0:14:21.600 --> 0:14:22.960 I can't teach you how to be a good person. 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:27.520 And I think that no, no, but that's the biggest thing. 0:14:27.560 --> 0:14:29.200 Especially these guys have been playing took for so long. 0:14:29.240 --> 0:14:30.760 They know how to play two K. That's not hard. 0:14:31.040 --> 0:14:33.640 But you know, some people are raised differently than others. 0:14:33.680 --> 0:14:35.160 That's and that's how it's always going to be, and 0:14:35.200 --> 0:14:37.880 so meshing the right people together is tough. Um. We 0:14:37.880 --> 0:14:39.680 we've gotten lucky the past two years of having really 0:14:39.680 --> 0:14:42.000 good guys on our teams. Give us a sense of 0:14:42.080 --> 0:14:45.560 just how much time you guys spend with each other. 0:14:45.600 --> 0:14:48.920 Because we're here at the seventy six ers training complex. 0:14:49.280 --> 0:14:52.360 How big would you say? The room we're in right 0:14:52.400 --> 0:14:55.920 now is where six seventy six ers GC headquarters is, 0:14:56.680 --> 0:15:02.680 well maybe like fifteen vibe fifteen, I don't know, yeah 0:15:02.760 --> 0:15:04.600 or something like that. It's a decent size, I mean. 0:15:04.920 --> 0:15:07.040 But the good news is that we have this facility 0:15:07.040 --> 0:15:09.080 here in Camden with at the seventy six years facility, 0:15:09.240 --> 0:15:10.760 so we could practice here and then when we go 0:15:10.840 --> 0:15:12.440 home at like eight o'clock, nine o'clock at night, if 0:15:12.440 --> 0:15:14.000 we want to scrim we have a facility there. So 0:15:14.000 --> 0:15:16.080 we have all these computers there at our home as 0:15:16.080 --> 0:15:18.240 well at our team house, so we're always together to 0:15:18.240 --> 0:15:21.120 answer a question. But and that's what's tough, because like 0:15:21.120 --> 0:15:23.000 when the season's over, like you're only with each other 0:15:23.040 --> 0:15:24.440 for six months, so you think like, oh, it's not 0:15:24.480 --> 0:15:27.000 that long, like, but once you leave. I remember last 0:15:27.080 --> 0:15:28.880 year when I left and went back home to California, 0:15:29.000 --> 0:15:30.680 I was like, damn, Like that sucks, Like I don't 0:15:30.680 --> 0:15:32.080 get to like see these guys for a while now, 0:15:32.120 --> 0:15:34.400 and like I FaceTime, you know, Jeff all the time's 0:15:34.520 --> 0:15:37.600 ds um and and that's tough, you know, I see 0:15:37.600 --> 0:15:39.640 when I see ZDS on the phone, like I want 0:15:39.640 --> 0:15:41.120 to like I like living with him. I like being 0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:43.120 around him, even though like he's little kids sometimes and 0:15:43.120 --> 0:15:45.840 he bugs when he like, um, you just that's that's 0:15:45.840 --> 0:15:47.120 why it's part of the family, and that's why it's 0:15:47.160 --> 0:15:49.800 different for us, like other teams may say it, but 0:15:49.880 --> 0:15:51.920 like that, that's truly what we are and it's tough, 0:15:51.960 --> 0:15:53.360 like leaving each other at the end of the season. 0:15:53.560 --> 0:15:55.480 Maybe the better question, Jeff is how much time do 0:15:55.480 --> 0:15:59.240 you guys not spend with each other season? That might 0:15:59.280 --> 0:16:02.120 be easier to answer because it's it's not like Steves 0:16:02.120 --> 0:16:04.200 was saying, it's not just here at the training complex. 0:16:04.240 --> 0:16:05.920 It's the house that you guys have in the South 0:16:06.040 --> 0:16:09.400 Jersey suburbs. You lived in an apartment building in Philly 0:16:09.600 --> 0:16:14.400 last year. It's constant proximity and continuity. Definitely. So last 0:16:14.440 --> 0:16:17.520 year I would say we weren't together as much because 0:16:17.760 --> 0:16:20.360 we weren't in a team house. This year, I think 0:16:21.240 --> 0:16:24.400 we're not probably not together when we're sleeping, I mean 0:16:24.480 --> 0:16:27.600 just but I mean that's what we wanted. Like we 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:29.480 were at the Franklin last year and we were our 0:16:29.600 --> 0:16:31.560 season one team was really close. Like don't get me wrong, 0:16:31.600 --> 0:16:34.920 we were um, but it wasn't like that that that 0:16:35.000 --> 0:16:36.840 full thing that I feel like we needed. So like 0:16:36.920 --> 0:16:38.840 Jeff and I in like Radium, we're saying, like we 0:16:38.920 --> 0:16:42.840 need a team house. Like there wasn't a specific reason why, 0:16:42.920 --> 0:16:44.360 but I guess like if I had to just put it, 0:16:44.440 --> 0:16:46.880 like my thumb on it, I just say, like to 0:16:47.000 --> 0:16:49.600 get that full potential of like your chemistry and just 0:16:49.640 --> 0:16:52.480 like being a team and being cohesive, like living together 0:16:52.560 --> 0:16:55.120 is like the best thing to do. Um. And that's 0:16:55.120 --> 0:16:56.680 what's funny. It's like when we get off the game 0:16:56.720 --> 0:16:59.400 of two K at home, there's never really any time 0:16:59.440 --> 0:17:01.280 where we're like I need to get away from these guys, 0:17:01.280 --> 0:17:02.800 like I need to do my own thing. Like it's 0:17:02.800 --> 0:17:04.679 never like that, Like even if we're yelling at each 0:17:04.720 --> 0:17:06.360 other during the game, like say, you know we're having 0:17:06.400 --> 0:17:08.440 a two kay conflict, Like once we get off the game, 0:17:08.640 --> 0:17:10.960 we keep everything two kay. So once we're off, it's fine, 0:17:11.000 --> 0:17:12.399 we're like, hey, you want to get somebody, let's go. 0:17:12.440 --> 0:17:15.600 Like and I think whether you see it or not 0:17:15.720 --> 0:17:17.880 or you don't get it, like that's what helped us 0:17:17.880 --> 0:17:20.200 like reach where we are right now going to the finals, 0:17:20.520 --> 0:17:23.000 is you know, just being together and just like buying 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:26.439 and buying in as a family. It feels like your 0:17:26.480 --> 0:17:28.800 family extends beyond just the guys on the team. It 0:17:28.880 --> 0:17:33.119 was amazing watching last weekend during the playoffs, just the 0:17:33.200 --> 0:17:37.320 turnout that you guys had, and the fan support got 0:17:37.400 --> 0:17:40.080 so intense that at some point there was a tech 0:17:40.520 --> 0:17:45.080 involving Celtics. I mean, it was crazy. That had to 0:17:45.160 --> 0:17:48.800 be a tremendous boost. Yeah, the fans, it was amazing 0:17:48.920 --> 0:17:52.280 having them out there. We haven't had that. We've had 0:17:52.320 --> 0:17:54.639 support throughout the two years, but we haven't had that 0:17:54.680 --> 0:17:57.720 many people show up and it played a huge role 0:17:57.800 --> 0:18:01.320 in us moving through both rounds. To be honest with you, 0:18:02.960 --> 0:18:06.440 they were engaged. They showed up. I want to say 0:18:06.480 --> 0:18:10.080 the second quarter of both games. In both games. One 0:18:10.160 --> 0:18:12.159 game we were tied twenty three twenty three, and one 0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:15.399 we were down twenty seven twenty three, and instantly our 0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:18.760 guys just locked in and we started taking off. And 0:18:19.920 --> 0:18:22.520 can't thank them enough for supporting us, can't thank them 0:18:22.600 --> 0:18:25.080 enough for for being there, and we can't wait to 0:18:25.080 --> 0:18:27.959 see them there Saturday as well. Yeah, it's um just 0:18:28.040 --> 0:18:31.720 to back up off that, like we know, like he said, 0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:33.960 there's at one point we didn't obviously have like that crowd. 0:18:33.960 --> 0:18:36.000 They're not there every week, um, and we don't expect 0:18:36.040 --> 0:18:38.800 them to be. But season one it was tough because 0:18:38.800 --> 0:18:40.920