Ja Morant Talks "I'm Fine In The West" Comments After Being Eliminated

S INCREDIBLE. LET’S SEND IT BACK OUT THERE. HEAR FROM JOHN MORAN THREE FOR 16 TONIGHT FROM THE FIELD ONLY TEN POINTS. JOE, WHAT DO YOU THINK IS NEXT FOR THIS TEAM AFTER A SEASON LIKE THIS? AND TAYLOR WAS IN HERE TALKING ABOUT YOU, DES, AND JAREN AND REALLY LEADING THIS TEAM THROUGH THE OFF SEASON. I GUESS WHEN YOU LOOK AHEAD, WHAT DO YOU SEE? I FEEL LIKE IT STARTS WITH US PRETTY MUCH GETTING HEALTHY. YOU KNOW, THAT’S THE NUMBER ONE THING FOR US. SECONDLY, YOU KNOW, JUST GETTING BACK TO WORK PRETTY MUCH FEEL LIKE, YOU

KNOW, IT’S THAT SIMPLE. YOU. YOU FEEL LIKE A HEALTHY TEAM COULD HAVE DONE MORE 100%. WHY SO? I MEAN, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE STEVO COMING BACK, WHICH, YOU KNOW, A PROBLEM IN THIS SERIES WAS REBOUNDING AND, YOU KNOW, BEFORE HE WENT OUT, HE WAS PRETTY MUCH THE BEST REBOUNDER IN THE LEAGUE. YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY. BC WITH, YOU KNOW WHAT HE BRINGS FOR US OFF THE BENCH, YOU KNOW THAT’S ANOTHER BIG BODY. YOU KNOW WE HAVE OUT THERE AND SOMEBODY YOU KNOW WHO HELPS US, YOU KNOW, ON THE BOARDS AND SCORING WISE. LUKE AND SPACING THE

FLOOR, YOU KNOW, BEING ABLE TO SHOOT EVEN, YOU KNOW, WITH ME, YOU KNOW, I WAS OUT THERE BATTLING, BUT I WASN’T 100%. SO OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW,

HEALTH IS IMPORTANT AND WE PLAYED WITH WHAT WE GOT. SO, YOU KNOW, NOT EVEN TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, USE THAT AS AN EXCUSE RIGHT NOW. BUT, YOU KNOW, EVEN WITH, YOU KNOW, THE GUYS WE HAD, YOU KNOW, WE GOT TO BE BETTER AFTER HOW COMPETITIVE THE TEAM WAS THE PAST TWO GAMES. WHAT DO YOU HOW DO YOU ACCOUNT FOR HOW QUICKLY THIS ONE GOT AWAY FROM YOU? UM, I FELT

LIKE EVEN THOUGH, YOU KNOW, IT GOT AWAY EARLY, I FELT LIKE, YOU KNOW, WE WERE STILL BATTLING FOR THE MOST PART. YOU KNOW, THEY, YOU KNOW, STARTED KNOCKING DOWN SOME SHOTS. I FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, THEY WAS, YOU KNOW, PRETTY MUCH JUST GETTING TO THE PAINT TOO EASY FOR US. AND THAT WAS, YOU KNOW, PRETTY MUCH HURT US, YOU KNOW, IN RECENT GAMES. IT WASN’T, YOU KNOW, AS EASY FOR HIM. YOU KNOW, WE WAS MAKING THEM WORK, YOU KNOW, FORCING TOUGH SHOTS AND, YOU KNOW, THAT PRETTY MUCH ALLOWED US TO, YOU KNOW, REBOUND AND RUN.

OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, OUR BIGS TONIGHT WAS IN FOUL TROUBLE, WHICH WE LACKED, YOU KNOW, PRETTY MUCH RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, WITH DUE TO INJURIES. YEAH, I JUST FELT LIKE IT WAS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE JUST GOT TO BE, YOU KNOW, MORE LOCKED IN ON THE DEFENSIVE END AND, YOU KNOW, KEEP GUYS IN FRONT AND IF YOUR MAN GET BEAT, YOU KNOW HOW YOUR BROTHER’S BACK GEORGE HILL YOU KNOW THE I’M FINE IN THE WEST COMMENTS GOING TO GET THROWN BACK IN YOUR FACE AT THIS POINT. YEAH I DON’T MIND. I DON’T CARE. I SAID IT.

YOU KNOW I DEAL WITH IT. AND THE OTHER THING I WANT TO ASK YOU, HOW DO YOU EVALUATE YOURSELF AS THE LEADER OF THIS TEAM THIS YEAR AND HOW DO YOU THINK YOU CAN GROW IN THAT AREA? I JUST GOT TO BE BETTER, YOU KNOW, WITH MY DECISION MAKING, IT’S PRETTY MUCH IT. YOU KNOW, OFF THE COURT ISSUES, YOU KNOW, AFFECTED US AS A, YOU KNOW, A ORGANIZATION PRETTY MUCH. SO, YEAH, JUST MORE DISCIPLINE ON KIND OF ALONG THOSE LINES. BUT IT’S SOMETHING WE’VE BEEN TALKING TO EVERYBODY ELSE ABOUT. THERE HAVE BEEN SOME THEMES ABOUT

TAKING THINGS FOR GRANTED, NOT ENJOYING EVERY MOMENT, YOU KNOW, MAYBE EVEN A LITTLE ENTITLEMENT FOR THE TEAM. HOW DO YOU SEE THAT THOSE ISSUES AND IF THEY RELATED TO THIS TEAM, MY ISSUES NO. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOUR TEAM AT LARGE TOOK THINGS FOR GRANTED THIS YEAR THAT YOU HADN’T TAKEN FOR GRANTED IN THE PAST? NO. OKAY. DES AND TAYLOR HAD TALKED ABOUT THAT. THEY THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS THE CASE, THAT MAYBE, YOU KNOW, LAST YEAR EVERYBODY WAS A LITTLE MORE LOCKED IN TO THE TO THE MOMENT. AND THIS YEAR THAT JUST SOME THINGS WERE

EXPECTED. AND, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE HAVE DIFFERENT OPINIONS. OKAY. OKAY. I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU WANT ME TO SAY. LIKE YOU ASKED ME. I SAID NO. YOU KNOW, THEY FELT LIKE THAT THEN, YOU KNOW, THAT’S, YOU KNOW, THEIR OPINIONS. BUT I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WE HERE DEFINITELY GOT TO BE BETTER, THOUGH. SO LOCKED IN IS, YOU KNOW, A KEY IN THE PLAYOFFS. I DON’T KNOW IF YOU SAW WHAT GIANNIS SAID THE OTHER NIGHT ABOUT LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE. YEAH I WANT TO BE THAT BIG OF A DEAL LIKE HE WAS. SO I JUST WANTED TO KNOW WHAT

YOU’RE TAKING OUT OF THE SUM TOTAL OF THIS YEAR AND IF EACH YEAR IN THE NBA IS A STEP, WHAT DID YOU TAKE FROM THIS STEP? OH, YOU KNOW, LIKE I, YOU KNOW, RECENTLY JUST SAID BEFORE, I FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, MINE IS MORE, YOU KNOW, OFF THE COURT AND ON ON THE COURT, YOU KNOW, JUST BEING DISCIPLINED ON BOTH SIDES, YOU KNOW, OFF THE COURT, YOU KNOW, MAKING BETTER DECISIONS, YOU KNOW, ON THE COURT, YOU KNOW, BEING LOCKED IN, YOU KNOW, EVEN MORE BEING, YOU KNOW, A LEADER OF THIS TEAM, YOU KNOW, PRETTY MUCH,

YOU KNOW, START WITH ME. SO, YOU KNOW, HOWEVER YOU KNOW, I ATTACK, YOU KNOW, ANY