Gabby Williams, Skylar Diggins-Smith and Noelle Quinn on Storm BEATING Sparks [POSTGAME]

and I just just do something everyone and then good you get grab this good J okay let me and then you get and then okay let me this is the best breakdown we've gotten all night uh we go ahead and get started here here with Gabby and with Skyler uh Percy go ahead and start us off then we'll go to Jeff Brown per go ahead like Gabby um I'm sure you played against her before but can you describe the things that you're seeing post Olympic break and especially in these last three games from your teammate Skyler there you know and just the things that you saw from her uh in this game tonight uh yeah when she gets into takeover mode I mean there's it's it's fun to watch it's fun to watch and it's kind of like reassuring as her teammate like when she gets into that zone like all right we got someone who's carrying us and so especially in that second half I was just trying to take the point guard responsibility a bit more so we can get her going maybe get a weaker defender on her just trying to find ways because no one was stopping her going downhill is it um and now again um is it a look that she gives is it a vibe that she gives off how do you know that she gets into that takeover mode uh when she she just starts getting she starts being aggressive uh really cuz uh it doesn't take much I feel like she's always in that mode like she's always going but um when she starts to look for herself that really changes everything for us it opens everything CU she attracts so many people when she drives to the Lane so then she can create for others but then she's finishing so well around the room as well so uh I think it's just when you just start seeing her go downhill you know that she's in her her Zone there you go thank you guys and then Jeff Brown and we'll go to Bella Jeff go ahead yeah first uh for Skyler um early on in the second period can you hear me yeah I can hear you okay uh early on in the second period you guys are down 13 uh but then you finish that second quarter on a 24 to 11 run tie it up at halftime kind of what was happening when you got down and and then how did you correct things yeah I mean this is a team um regardless of the record this is a team that it plays well at home um we know they they beat New York um Vegas um you know competed with Connecticut so this is like a team that you know they play well at home we understand that and so we didn't get the start that we hoped for um in the first quarter and like you said we got down double digits and we just we didn't Panic we talked about it came together and said okay we can we can do some things in this game but we have to change right now and um I thought we we stepped it up defensively um and to go on that run like you alluded to we stepped up defensively and were able to get out and transition kind of play in flow a little bit and and that's that's how we like to play and then just just trying to be more aggressive in the second half on our schemes we felt like we were being kind of tentative okay go under okay Switching maybe when we didn't have to but we started doing the the the more aggressive uh thing uh on the schemes ball screen wise was our adjustment there and just being more physical and then one more for uh Skyler before I ask Abby um you guys with the win uh guarantee you finish no worse than Fifth and you still have a chance to be fourth are you guys scoreboard watching and how important is it to close the the season out strong I think um personally I we're just focusing on what we can do uh as far as Seattle goes and and just trying to execute our game plan from game to game you know trying to win and just control we can control um haven't been doing a ton of scoreboard watching to be honest but just trying to prep and um you know bottle up some good things that we've been doing so we could try to have a carryover and um just continue to improve from game to game but I think at this point of the season um you know the chips are going to fall where they may and we just have to do our part and try to win games and um get better and for Gabby um just obviously another strong performance on offense for you what what were you seeing out there and then also um just what did you see out of Ria Jackson on the other end um yeah I mean uh we were moving the ball really well so that gave me a lot of pretty wide open shots and let me get into my rhythm there um also I think the way we were being aggressive on their switches helped me to get going too because I like to get downhill as well and create for others so when I'm able to play with someone who's switching I can I have the shot myself or I have the the assist so that that help me to get going too and ra she was tough I mean I felt like I was she made some tough shots like I felt like I was defending her well and that's something as a Defender you just have to say it's like good defense but better offense um but the the most we can do is just make it difficult for her but uh she's got a bright future I mean she she did a lot of great things tonight so definitely looking out for her awesome thank you ladies let's go to Bella and then Christian hey guys thanks for the time um first a quick followup to Jeff's earlier question um he had mentioned the second quarter comeback and I was just wondering more specifically if coach Quinn said or changed anything um before that run or if it sort of came from the players we can't say it on camera um yeah she was Spirited um but but it was as much of us before she got into the Huddle you know discussing things we didn't Panic you know we just kind of talked some things out what we what we saw we all AG that that's not the effort we want to continue to play with and um you know we made that decision to turn it up um but we we acknowledge that the first unit and I've said this before we have to have a better start I mean that first quarter um it was lethargic them coming off a back to back you know we didn't take advantage of that and we finally started um you know getting up and down and trying to get some fast break points in I think we still got terribly outrebounded which is that that's something we just have to take uh care of in these next games and really that needs to be a point of emphasis for us being on the boards and and so they look we looked like we were on the back toback to start it but I think the second quarter we talked about it there once we were able to to break even at at the half we made some adjustments there that we were able to kind of keep the game in under control from that point on but like I said this is a team that they're young you know they they play with a lot of energy they play with a edge of bottom they're great at getting to the free throw line um and they're not going to back down and so we we understood that coming in and I was just happy um you know that we were able to finish it out in the fourth quarter knock some free throws down and uh close the game out um and then a question I'd love to hear from both of you on um eie had four blocks tonight broke the single season franchise record for blocks um generally you know a defensive player of the year candidate on you know one of the League's best defensive teams um but besides the blocks which we obviously see on the stat sheet um how important is she to this team's defense in the ways that maybe won't show up on the stat sheet I think it's her her energy and her aggressiveness especially on the ball I mean we saw in a couple in a couple traps today and just her her defensive activity the way she has her hands uh it changes everything it makes things so difficult when you have someone like that who's equally tall equally athletic equally smart defensively who's hounding you on the ball she made a huge difference for us in the third fourth quarter when we started trapping um because I mean you can't do anything when when a traps you so not only just her Presence at The Rim but her ball pressure I think uh and also when you if she's not blocking shots you're scared to drive because you know that you have a shot blocker behind her so just her presence uh makes it a lot easier for us DP DP DP I've been here for like days DP thank you let's go to Christian and then we'll finish in the room Skyler and Gabby my first questions for Gabby uh throughout this season whether it be Skyler NECA or juwel they said that the flow of the offense we we just feed the hot hand and tonight especially these last three games you've had 17 points on 60% shooting in the last uh two out of these last three how does that kind of help you and adjust to the flow of the game and you know being with the team now post lmic break well it's it's really easy to do here because I mean we we flow we don't really run like plays for a specific person we run actions we run things that you can't necessarily Scout and so it's whoever whoever's open Whoever has the mismatch or whoever's hot we try to feed um like I said when Sky started getting hot you know I was looking for her trying to bring the ball up as much as I can sometimes NE it got hot too in the beginning so trying to duck and get it into her um and to to defend that for 40 minutes is is really really hard and I think that's what makes this team so special it's why I came back here because I like playing this kind in this kind of system there's some games where I'm going to maybe have a couple shots there's some games where they're going to need more from me but no matter what I think we're all on the same page and Skyler you know you've been consistent All Season like the second half push especially tonight there were several um kind of stretches throughout the game but the one and the lad had it for the fourth quarter uh you scored or assisted on three two out of those three possessions and that kind of catap to the team into those free throws that kind of won the game know what kind of goes into you just being turning on and like we were just talk about earlier in the press conference yeah uh definitely being aggressive I think um we did a good job no noi and the staff did a great job of um finding our mismatches who we wanted and what actions where on the floor we wanted these actions to happen and we kind of simplified everything in the third and fourth quarter and then like G said you know when we were able to lock in defensively um holding them under 20 in the second and third but when we were able to lock in defensively then we were able to kind of play that style basketball that we liked and we didn't have to do a whole bunch of play calling and we were just able to get out into a flow and not to be redundant but that's the way we want to play our basketball we want to let the defense kind of dictate that and really set the tone there defensively and um yeah just trying to be aggressive you know that's that's definitely my mindset is coming off everything aggressive looking for me first and and like gab said that that just opens it up and we're all like that and not just me specific when when gab comes off them screens downhill she creates it's hard to guard that and same with NECA eie juel whoever's out there you know we have an equal opportunity offense all of us are capable and we all just encourage each other to you know be aggressive and then everybody else be ready to to make plays or be ready to shoot the basketball and last question great win um this question is for Skyler um you play with a lot of tenacity can you talk about troter and your drive that makes you go out there and play like that yeah I mean coming into this league you know I used to my rookie year was like a pinball machine you know what I'm saying just bouncing off everybody and you really don't get to last a long time in this league with this Frame and um you know with this talent and so just trying to find my Edge there and so yeah I have my special ways and tactics to to to make that happen but it's really just a competitive nature I love to compete out here I didn't I didn't play last year and so I have a sense of urgency there this the best team I've been on and so um you know I'm inspired I play inspired basketball here and um I'm I'm comfy I'm comfy now I'm finally feel like I got my feet under me I feel like I'm in a shape and um I felt like I always had that mindset skill set but that's my mindset is just coming in being a competitor and and playing with some Moxy thank you so much all right thanks everybody thank you guys coaching here just a minute and I just just do something everyone and then good job you get gra good job then okay let me answer and then you get and then you get okay let me this is the best breakdown we've gotten all night uh we go ahead and get started here with Percy Percy go ahead and then we'll go to Jeff Brown after that let me that's so awesome awesome hey coach I just want to get your thoughts on your point guard uh who was is uh What uh 10 for 10 for 13 26 points uh a few minutes early uh with Gabby she says that Skyla gets into this like takeover mode just for you what does that look like when she gets into that this is my G um it's very elite you know um it's she definitely works on the shots um you know there is a different different uh look in her eye you can write right here um you know she's it's not just the playmaking ability is the defense like I I'm I'm super impressed with the four Steals and the three blocks you know uh a guard you know with her strength at the point guard position able to do those things um but to me when I see it you know it's it's it's new for me because I've coached against it or played against it but to see it and it be on our team it's very impressive um the things that she's able to do on the floor how she's able to make the team better make the team go with her intensity um and just be very efficient and this is why she's Elite this is what why she's one of the best in the league you know and then uh just how important was this game um uh it it it it just seemed sort of like what what what you said kind of earlier that progress isn't kind of always linear that you know there's that there may be sideways and that first quarter it just felt like what was going on in that first quarter but then you guys turned things around definitely I mean I said that early on in Chicago I believe to the team um early on in the season growth is not near uh this is something that U one of my former principles in high school said to me I mean you have to roll with the punches sometimes and yeah we want things to go well and sometimes it doesn't that's life though um and you know you have to just stay the course and even you know today in this game yeah we started off a certain way but to to tie it back up to have like La has played tough um played teams tough up until the fourth quarter so it's no shame and understanding that yes we understand where their record is but they have very good players who are capable they're Pros um but it shows a lot for us to weather the storm especially on the road um to get our defense back clicking um to get some some offense is good to see 90 on the board again um but you know a win is a win on the road uh every team in this league is pretty tough there you go thank you coach Jeff BR and then we'll go to um Christian yeah to kind of go right off of that um what were you seeing from your team when you went down uh trailed by 13 and then how were you able to kind of overcome that what were the positive adjustments I believe that at that point they had 22 points in the paint um they were out rebounding us and I just saw a team who had more energy than us and so again it can't be the intangibles like a team playing harder than us and us not being physical or um not you know punching first so to speak um I felt that we a little bit laxed with our coverages um and so we changed our coverages to be more physical more aggressive um and I thought that helped a ton um you know you try to play Scout and you try to play the averages but sometimes um physicality outweighs that because it gives us some momentum and that's what happened today we we we we switched up our physicality and it helped us a ton nice and what did you see from um out of Ria Jackson in this game and what did you think out of of her coming out of college uh if can I say this if we were to keep our pick I would have Lov to have her on our team um she's in college um she's she was very versatile um and in college I would say that her handle wasn't that sharp but to see what she's doing at this level she's really worked on our game and she's been very effective whether it's playing the three or forward um this the three ball wasn't as consistent in college but it's been very consistent in the pros her ability to shoot over um anybody in the paint that's always been a thing because of our size um but you know she's a pro like we saw that in college that she was a pro and um it's showing you know with uh her efficiency on the floor and her ability to really attack any matchup um she's really progressing and with uh with Indiana's loss tonight and your guys's wi you clinch no worse than fifth seed um but you still have the potential to move up to fourth seed um kind of are you scoreboard watching at this point and how important is it to finish strong um as as coaches we have to um but I don't uh mention it to our players as much because I think we have to worry about ourselves um we're in a position that we can control our own destiny so we have to control our controllables and take one game at a time um we can't worry about what other teams are doing uh we can definitely worry about what we're doing um and so that's just our focus our next opponent is Dallas so we have to lock into that um knowing that you know they have a lot of Firepower and they're they're playing with some pride so um no game is going to be uh easy um going down a stretch but our preparation matters and our mindset matters as well awesome thank you coach welome Christian and then Bella hey coach you got around 20 points from the free throw line and I believe it's 14 points off those 13 turnovers and tonight you did get around like nine points from the three-point line so when you pair all that together and then the defensive adjustments that you made in the second half is this kind of like what you would want to see as consistency now that you guys want to two straight uh now in the second half yeah definitely I think um I mentioned it you know throughout the year if we're in that six to 10 make range in the three-pointers and cons can St consistent with our points in the paint um and get into the free throw line and and like you're saying the points off turnovers these things offset those threes but when we add the threes we see 90 a lot so um efficiency matters uh with what we do whether it's scoring whether it's how we play defense and just being on the floor how we're taking care of the basketball um six turnovers to me is is amazing um in a 40 40 minute game 22 22 assists so you'll be quiet no you'll be quiet so these are the things that um we're doing um if we can continue to do this consistently um I think the things will continue to happen and without giving out too much not trying to get in trouble nothing but you know going into the second half there a couple of atos I was thinking you know or team got exactly where they needed and I think it was Gabby that said you don't coach plays you coach actions and I was kind of wondering what goes into that and when the team needs it and how do you decipher what you need uh defensively she was talking about uh offensively I believe I don't coach plays I coach actions um huh a couple of things that um just defensively for us just trying to break it down for our group like you know instead of trying to say hey each team runs X play X play X play and and have them remember the plays breaking it down to plays are actions and so if we're able to defend actions then we're able to defend plays um whether it's a dho ball screen a pin down we know what our coverages are we know what um how we want to defend and so when we understand how we want to um defend those actions then we're concentrated we're more effective we're comfortable and then we're aggressive it's no hesitancy it's no um you know what do I do we know whatever action that we're going to defend for that day this is how we're going to defend it and we just execute it offensively I'm not sure that means I had to yeah maybe I got a mix of I'm sorry okay okay Bella and then we'll go to the room coach thanks for the time um just one from me eie had um four blocks tonight and broke the single season franchise record for blocks um obviously anytime you can break a 20-year-old record from Lauren Jackson it's pretty impressive um but you know besides the blocks and the things that we sort of very obviously see see on the stat she can you just sort of speak to um how important she is is to the entire team's defensive performance um in those ways that that aren't as obvious uh I number one role is to be our defensive anchor you want to go see Jeff want to sit by Jeff St right here um and so you know anytime uh e is mentioned amongst you know the greats as if and Lauren Jackson you know that she is a very good basketball player she's very she's very committed to her role to this team um the thing that I see growth in is her communication level and understanding of our system and how to play um she's very instinctual with the blocks so sometimes she has Ed defense and I let her rock like that um but for her to be able to clean up um for her to be able to defend multiple positions um it is a sight to see it is amazing to see her growth um and she looks up to Lauren Jackson a lot so just imagine you know the confidence that that builds knowing that you broke her record or you're mentioned among you know you're mentioning the same breath this 's amazing uh defensive player of the year we need to take a hard look at that she needs to make a defensive team period um and we have to we have to just and give her her flowers um she's done an amazing job and she should be honored for it and in terms of that um just a quick followup the that de Defensive Player of the Year sort of obviously everyone on the team seems to think that she deserves that award understandably so what what sort of things do you look at that say she is the best defender in the League this season uh you know I think you have to look at who she's guarding um from the post standpoint but also you you you got to know that our our defense is very versatile She's Not Just guarding post players she's guarding wings and guards and her ability to alter shots block shots um she's in you know I don't know the the the statistics I'm not um that not an expert in that area but when she's on the floor we're better defensively um and she's cleaning up a lot um uh you know helps side defense getting her hands on ball sometimes you know this the how many Stills do she had she's not really getting the Stills number-wise but she's in areas she's creating Stills because of her length her versatility um her athleticism um so that would be that would be what I point point not just the block shots but the fact that when she's on the floor we're better defensively thank you welcome and we wrap up bre coach thank you sorry don't worry about it bre coach um can you speak to your team's tenacity it seems that you guys came out in playoff mode I know we don't like to talk playoffs but can you tell me a little bit about Skyler and her motor and her um determination and tenacity that you play yeah I did I I did I thought we came out a little flat um but it was good to see we picked it up from the defensive end and I think that helped generate um easier baskets on the offensive end it's I mean sky is the head of snake as it relates to uh the point of attack of our defense so when she is able to get into bodies and use her her um quick hands to get deflections and stills it really ignites what we do offensively um she's Elite um and and again she's she scored at a high level in this league throughout her entire career and she's assisting and she's playmaking but she's also playing defense so we need her to do everything and she's committed to that and she wants to be great for her teammates so it's good to see her in this pocket thank you so yeah of course all right thanks coach you're welcome all right say bye to everybody we survive say see you soon yes say goh storm let's go good job bro survive thanks J