NBA TV analysts Grant Hill and Dennis Scott discussed the NBA’s Christmas Day showcase, the network’s first season of NBA Inside Stuff — co-hosted by Hill — and a variety of NBA storylines during today’s media conference call. NBA TV will feature seven games from Monday, Dec. 23, through Thursday, Jan. 2, including NBA Fan Night presented by Sprint on New Year’s Eve.
Conference call participants:
Grant Hill, NBA TV analyst & co-host of NBA Inside Stuff
Dennis Scott, NBA TV analyst
Hill on the atmosphere of playing on Christmas Day: “I was fortunate to play on Christmas a few times, especially the second half of my career during my time at Phoenix and Los Angeles. It’s fun. You know everyone is watching at home and there is an excitement in the arena. As a player, whether you are on the road or at home, you enjoy it and look forward to it. The NBA has done a great job of marketing the holiday games. We [analysts] talk about the games and break it down, but ultimately we’re fans. We love good matchups and good basketball. So to have that opportunity to watch and to really be a fan, it couldn’t be any better on Christmas Day. We all look forward to watching.”
Scott on what makes the Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve games so special: “As a player, you know the whole world is watching. The Christmas and New Year’s Eve [games] have the spirit of happiness. You just opened a bunch of gifts, the kids are running around, maybe they’ve gotten a jersey or two from their favorite player and everyone is watching. So [all the players] try and put on their best performance.”
Hill on being a part of such a nostalgic show as NBA Inside Stuff: “I remember watching Inside Stuff when it first came out and I was in high school and then college. Then I got to the league and I was fortunate enough to be on the show. It was a great highlight for me. What Ahmad Rashad did along with Willow Bay and the various co-hosts, he made it his own. He was a great host and really dove into the stories of the players in our league. I remember learning a lot about guys I played against. It was a great show. It’s been missed and to be a part of it as one of the hosts is fun. It’s a side of players we get to showcase that the public doesn’t necessarily get to see. Because it’s NBA TV and an NBA franchise, it’s safe. We want to show the positive, the humor and all the different dynamics the players have. I’m honored to be a part of it and I hope to do it justice. We have big shoes to fill but we’re excited to be bringing it back.”
Scott on NBA Inside Stuff: “It’s one of my favorites from back in the day. Now, [NBA TV has] brought it back with Grant and Kristen [Ledlow]. I think it’s been awesome. I say all the time that outside of being on NBA GameTime, sitting at the desk and breaking down games every night, one of my favorite things is going out and doing features and learning things like Paul George loves fishing and Tristan Thompson’s decision to switch shooting hands [which you will see on this week’s show].”
Scott on where the Thunder stand as a team at this point in the season: “Oklahoma City is still improving overall as a team. Obviously, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are playing lights out basketball, but slowly but surely Jeremy Lamb and Reggie Jackson are proving they can be the guys [the Thunder] can depend on. [Lamb and Jackson] have to play like this for the Thunder to get deep into the playoffs and possibly to The Finals. I like the development of what they’re doing. If they can continue to make shots and play with confidence, they have a chance to get back [to The Finals].”
Hill on Oklahoma City’s chances of getting back to the NBA Finals: “It’s great to see Russell Westbrook back healthy, playing at the elite level he was at prior to getting hurt last year. Certainly I think because of the injury and all the storylines that have happened since then, people tend to forget they were in The Finals two years ago were probably the favorite to come out of the West last year prior to Westbrook’s injury. We all know Kevin Durant and Westbrook are great players, but the complementary players have to play well. [If they do] their team has a real strong chance of coming out of the Western Conference when it’s all said and done.”
Hill on the showcase of young talent in the league and how they compete with talented veterans: “I have been very impressed over the last few years with the new crop of young players coming in. The talent level and how these young players can come in and contribute right away is very impressive and exciting. A lot of them will be on display Christmas Day. That’s what makes this such a great game. As players fade out, retire and move on, you have a new crop of young, great players coming in. That’s the beauty of the sport.”
Scott on the evolution of basketball: “The evolution of basketball is incredible. When you look at the old black-and-white footage of Hall of Famer Bob Cousy, you see he’s dribbling with one hand. Then you get to the 80s, 90s and the [contemporary] players, you see guys like [Sacramento’s DeMarcus] Cousins come in and they can grab the ball at the rim, go coast to coast with it, be a facilitator or pull up for a three. This lets you know that the game of basketball has evolved into a sport where you never know how good our athletes [actually] are. [This is evidenced by] the way LeBron James is playing right now as a small forward, with incredible numbers.”
Scott on the evolution of the three-point shot: “I remember my high school coach saying, ‘No, no, no…good shot.’ That’s when I was shooting the ball from 25 feet and there weren’t three-point lines in NBA or high school at the time. That was the beginning of the outside shot being incorporated into a coach’s fast break. Now you see a guy like [Hawks shooting guard] Kyle Korver with 94 straight games [with a three-pointer], but every scouting report says, ‘Do not give him a wide open look.’ He gets six or seven wide open looks every night. Being a shooter, it is fun watching guys like him take advantage of that shot.”
Hill on Scott’s shooting prowess: “We grew up in the same town. I used to watch him and he was a great shooter. You didn’t see long distance shooting like Dennis Scott. Before the three-point line, people were trying to get close to the basket. He stood out, because he was such a great shooter even back in ninth and tenth grade. Now, you have a new generation of players in the NBA who have grown up and all they’ve known at every level is the long ball. The quality of shooting overall is better in the league.”
Hill on the league’s biggest surprises so far this season: “There have been some amazing storylines this year. You can look at Brooklyn and New York, after all the activity and the excitement surrounding those two teams [at the start of the season]…I don’t think anybody expected them to be in the situation they’re in. Everybody probably picked Phoenix to be last in the NBA, but they’re playing great basketball. They brought Eric Bledsoe in, have a new coach and really seem to have a good spirit and energy about them. Portland is a big surprise. They were relatively average last season, and they made a few changes that certainly paid off in the offseason.”
Hill on the Celtics and Brad Stevens: “You have to applaud Brad Stevens on the effort he’s done. Certainly the expectations were low with all the changes in the offseason with players, having a whole new team, a whole new identity. Your leader, your best player from last few years, no longer healthy at the start of the season. To come out and play like they’ve played, I’m sure, whatever internally their expectations were, they’re thinking about playoffs now. They’re thinking we can win this Atlantic Division; we can get into the playoffs.”
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