[外電] Gomes Weighs in on NBA Finals
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MT: Hey Ryan, how was the workout?
Gomes: Everything went well, man. Today is a rainy day so really not too much
hitting the track but in the gym getting shots up today.
MT: OK. Obviously the talk of the NBA right now centers on the historic
Lakers-Celtics matchup. You played with most of the current crop of Celtics
for two years, played against them twice this year and also saw the Lakers
four times. What's your take on the matchup?
Gomes: Overall take ... It's going to be an interesting series. I think the
important game in this series is Thursay's game one. I think in the Lakers
pull it out; it puts a lot of pressure on Boston. I think in this series, the
stars will come out and they'll play well, the old ones and Gasol and Bryant
and Pierce, Allen and Garnett. I think it's going to be the other guys that
(determine) the team that's going to win the championship. I think, looking
at it right now, the makeup, even though the Celtics have a lot of veterans,
a lot of leadership on their team, I think that the Lakers will prevail. I
think that they will win this series due to the fact that their bench brings
a lot of energy and they all play so well with so much confidence.
MT: Can't disagree with you there, I've been on the Lakers for a while now. I
thought Boston would have more trouble with Detroit, but the Pistons only
play well every other game. So Boston didn't face the same caliber of teams
that L.A. did in beating Denver, Utah and San Antonio.
Gomes: Yeah you're right about that. I think the Celtics won the toughest one
of those games, game five. You look back, and that was the crucial game. That
was an important game in the series due to the fact that Detroit almost had
them at home. But, the reason they won that game also, is because (Antonio)
McDyess only had two points and two rebounds that game. You look back at the
series, and he was the main factor of them guys staying in some of the games
and be in some of those games. But Rasheed (Wallace) had a good game in game
five, but that's what they needed, they needed McDyess to step up and be
scoring force and a rebounding force, and that didn't happen that night and
that's why the Celtics prevailed. And then going back (to Detroit) they had
the upper hand, they had the confidence, if they win this game it's over. And
Detroit was a little bit tired, a little bit fatigued, Rip was banged up, so
a lot of those factors play in, but give the Celtics credit, they were able
to win the game when it counted.
MT: Ryan Gomes joining us on timberwolves.com. If you join one of these teams
and have an impact, where would it be?
Gomes: The player I am, I think I'd be one of those guys like the Lakers
(have off the bench) who come in and play with a lot of energy, they play
with a lot of hustle and I think, mostly that's what I'll bring. I mean, I
think I'm one of the guys that doesn't need the ball in his hands every play,
but I make the scrappy plays. I think grabbing loose balls, getting key
stops, getting key rebounds; that's what you need. Everybody on the court is
going to bring something to the table. And I think for myself, the player
that I am, knocking down the open shot, you know, causing a mismatch problem,
but also making the right plays. So I think I could fit in on either one of
those teams at either the small forward or power forward position. But they
have, you know the players that they have there, they got it done with, so
you know, I would only try and come in and bring a little bit of help.
MT: We're a little biased here, but I think you could go in and help either
team. But sitting back and watching these playoffs has to eat you up a bit
and make you work that much harder in the gym.
Gomes: Well yeah, it does. It often does because, you know, with the
Timberwolves organization and what we're trying to achieve is what these two
teams are doing right now. I think when you become a player, an athlete, at
any sport, the ultimate goal is to win a championship; to win a ring, to win
the finals, to win a Super Bowl, whatever, win the World Series, all that
stuff, that's what you want to achieve when you are an athlete. At least one
time in your career you want to be able to taste that and know what it feels
like to win that and then that makes you strive to continue and do better.
And for players like us, we know we have a young team, we are building, as
the Timberwolves organization we are in a different direction - start young,
build this core up, and see if we can be at this level one day. That's our
goal. You only play this game for 12, 13, 14 years, but some guys go in and
out of this league and don't have a championship, Hall of Famers go out
without having a championship,.I think as players that we are now, as this
organization that we are with, we have a nice young team, we have a good,
good young core of players, and I think we can be there one day. I think our
goal is to first get into the playoffs and then after that make the next step
and try to get into the finals.
MT: Most NBA players you talk to will quickly say that Kobe Bryant is the
best player in their league. What are your thoughts on him and what his
impact will be on this series.
Gomes: You have to give credit where credit is due. He's been the best player
in this league and he is the best player in this league. And I think the
impact he has this year is the fact that he's not only going to be doing all
the scoring, he has a lot of core, good players around him. Gasol passes the
ball well; Odom passes the ball well. So it's going to put a lot of attention
on him, but you know, think about what Kobe is doing differently than he has
in past years is that he is sharing the ball a lot more. So it's not all you
have to worry about where he can go for 50 points a night, no, he can go for
22 points and have 10 assists and have eight rebounds. He can do all that,
that's the capable player he is. But before (this season) he was doing a lot
more of just scoring, but this team passes the ball so well and shares the
ball so well that everyone is happy when they are out there playing, and they
are playing for a purpose, so he's going to have a big impact on this series,
not only the fact that he's an explosive scorer, but the fact that he can
make a lot of plays for other guys on the team and guys are finishing and
guys are not afraid to take shots and are happy that he is giving the ball up
and having confidence in them. You can see when these guys come off the court
- a turnover, a missed shot - he's still patting these guys on the back,
because he knows he can't do this by himself.
MT: I remember talking to you before the Lakers came to town and asking you
what you'd do with Bryant. So, what's your mindset if you're Ray Allen, who's
set to start out on Kobe?
Gomes: Well you have to give the Celtics credit, the reason they're where
they're at is their defense. So, you know, if you are Ray Allen ... You can't
shade a guy like that just to one side because he is a great player, he can
go either way. You can try to cut off one thing and he has a counter for
that, and he has a counter for the next counter. He's a guy that is capable
of hitting a lot of jump shots and he's a guy who can score. So you're going
to have to be able to live with some of that and say "Well, if you're going
to make shots over a challenged hand every time then this is what we are
going to have to deal with." You don't want to let him do both of them, get
to the basket and shoot jumpers, though. I think if you're Ray Allen, if
that's me, I'm going to make him shoot over my hand, shoot jumpers over me
all the time. And when he does get by you, you just need to make sure
someone, one of those other four guys, have to be help defenders. He has to
see bodies ... When he gets to the paint he has to see a lot of people. Make
him give up the next pass, and then hopefully your help is there for that
next pass also.
MT: Let's take a look at the point guard matchup. Some people are calling
this a push, but I think you have to give Fischer the advantage here. He's
been there before.
Gomes: I think Fisher gets the advantage also. He's the veteran, he's been in
this league, he's won championships, he already (knows) what it's like to get
to the Finals and win. Rondo is going to be exciting, I'm pretty sure he's
going to play well, but I think Fisher gets the upper hand because he's a
good defender also. He can't gamble on guys ... He's not an explosive scorer
like Billups, but he knows how to get his teams involved. He's played with
these guys before when Shaq and those guys were there, so he knows the
ins-and-outs of this offense. He's capable of putting up 15 points a game
also, so you have to play him honest. I'm sure they are going to play off
Rondo a little bit, and focus on Pierce, and focus on Ray Allen, and Rondo
has to step up to the challenge and make open shots and make the right plays.
But I do give the upper hand to Fisher because he has been in this series;
he's been in this situation before.
MT: You played with Paul Pierce in Boston. What can you tell us about
matching up with Pierce, who will draw Vladimir Radmonovic?
Gomes: I think he has the upper hand on this series. Radmanovic is going to
be guarding him up and you know, Paul's a three-man that can do everything.
He's an explosive scorer also and I'm sure he is going to be jazzed up when
he gets back home (Pierce is from Inglewood) and they play in L.A. Pierce can
hit tough shots on you and that's what you want to (make him) do. He can get
to the basket also, he has a strong upper body ... The last 10 years he has
been top 10 in free throws averaged per game, so he's going to find a way to,
if his shot isn't falling, to get to the basket and get fouled. But with
Paul, he likes to go left, he loves to go left, so I think that's what the
Lakers are going to try and shutoff his left hand. Make him go right, and
make him take a tough, challenged shot.
MT: So when you used to guard Pierce in practice, was your focus to keep him
from going left and try to make him take fade-away jumpers?
Gomes: Yeah, you have to because when he goes left, he likes to go to his
step back, and you watch the game, he'll try to spin off you also. When he
gets to the basket he is good at finishing with his body, so with him you
have to make him go to his right because now when he goes up, he's a little
bit slower when he goes to that pull up. I know it doesn't sound right but
it's how it is, he likes to go to his left and he gets to that pull-up pretty
quickly, rather than prefer to go to his right hand.
MT: We hear you. Now at the power forward spot, you have Lamar Odom vs.
Kevin Garnett. It would seem to be clear matchup advantage for Boston, but
when Lamar Odom plays like he can play, he's a whole different player.
Gomes: You're right about that. Garnett, what he has done in these playoffs
has been tremendous. He has been carrying these guys, for the most part. He's
had big games, rebounding, defense, blocked shot, assists, he's done
everything for these guys. But like you said, when Lamar is playing well,
it's hard to cover him. They are both about the same height ... Kevin likes
to post up. Lamar Odom is more of a perimeter guy but he doesn't shoot
jumpers, he likes to handle the ball out there. The problem I'm going to see
with this, is when Lamar is having those big rebounding games - 14, 15
rebounds - that fuels him on offense, and that puts the pressure on Boston
because if he gets rebounds, (Odom's) not looking to pass it to the point
guard like KG, looking for Paul or Ray Allen. When Lamar Odom get it, those
guys know - Kobe, Derrick Fisher, they are going to run the lane - because he
can handle the ball. That can put a lot of pressure on the defense, because
when you have a big man, a 6-10 guy that can get the rebound, that means the
other guys are pretty much close to him. The center is also in the paint, so
that means there are no bigs back to work in the transition. So Garnett gets
the advantage on the offensive end, but if the shots are not falling or Lamar
is getting his rebounds, Lamar has the advantage in the open court, because
he can push the ball and make plays.
MT: Hmm. Good point Ryan...
Gomes: It's just that I played against these guys and I'm a student of the
game also, you always watch the guys you play against so you can better your
game also. I watch Kevin Garnett, I watch Lamar Odom, picking out parts of
their games that I can add to mine.
MT: No question about it. When you matched up against Odom this year, I know
it was a key for you to stick a body on him and not let him get those long
arms over you.
Gomes: Yeah, and also, he likes to go left, he loves to go left too. It's
hard to stop when his strong hand is your opposite, it's pretty tough to
guard that also.
MT: The last matchup in terms of starters is Pau Gasol vs. Kendrick Perkins.
Gasol has been fantastic and fits perfectly into the triangle offense. On the
other side is Perkins, who has certainly picked up his game in the playoffs.
Gomes: He's had a lot of big games in the playoffs, I think mainly in the
Detroit series, where he's played very, very well. I think a lot of that has
to do with Detroit's having a motto of, "If we're going to lose and Perkins
scores 20, we're going to lose that way. But in terms of match-ups, Gasol is
not a back-you-down player, he's a guy who is going to be more at the elbow,
especially with how the Lakers run their triangle offense. He's going to be
more of a facilitator. They throw it into the post and he can make those
passes. He's a good player and a good passer and is going to give Perkins a
little bit of trouble due to the fact that Perkins is a better defender with
a guy who is trying to bang him being physical. I don't think Gasol is going
to be that kind of guy, Kobe's going to try and get him as many easy baskets
as he can. Gasol is longer and taller but Perk is more physical, so if he can
keep him off the block away from his sweet spot it'll be to his advantage.
MT: L.A. has a better bench in general, and has been better throughout the
year. How is Boston going to deal with Farmar, Vujacic and Co. especially in
the backcourt? I don't see it.
Gomes: That's what I think, that's going to be the key to the series. The
stars are going to come out and play, but (L.A.'s) bench is so powerful. The
way that second group of guys play it's like they don't even have Kobe
Bryant. They play with so much confidence, they play with their own chip on
their shoulder, like they're looking to go out and prove themselves. The
Celtics have veterans (off the bench), but the way the Lakers have been
playing I think they'll prevail in the series ... I'll be watching and I
think everyone will be watching ... It's going to be very, very interesting
... I'll be out there for games three and four and I'm sure (the Wolves) will
all watch it together.
MT: All right Ryan Gomes thanks a lot for the take. Get back to the weight
room.
Gomes: I'll be (in Minnesota) so come by and check me. If you want to come
holler at your boy I'll be downstairs in the gym.
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