LA CLIPPERS MEDIA CONFERENCE

April 11, 2023

Bones Hyland

Press Conference

Q. You played 17 minutes a night in the Playoffs last year; you had that experience. What did that teach you about this next level of basketball?

BONES HYLAND: It's a different level of intensity. It's do-or-die. You go out there, you lay it all out on the floor, and it's either people are made for it or people are not. That's where the stars shine bright and the stars come out.

Q. Is it an adjustment period when you go out there, getting used to that level of intensity?

BONES HYLAND: No, not really. I feel like if you approach every game the same way, it's a playoff game, you should have the same approach, go out there and give it your all. I feel like you shouldn't have to try to overthink things or anything, just go out there and trust your game plan, trust your work, and everything else will take care of itself.

Q. How much do you think the confidence you naturally play with helps in an environment like that?

BONES HYLAND: It's big, man, because it's also like contagious. If I come out with that confidence, that energy, my teammates feed off of that. If I set the tone with that, I feel like my teammates can pick up off that.

Q. How do you look at this Phoenix team? You got a chance to see them without KD in your second game as a Clipper. What did you get a feel from that game, and what do you think of them with Kevin Durant?

BONES HYLAND: They're a well-coached team. The sets that they run is pretty good sets. But we've just got to come out and be who we are, no matter who's on the other team. We've got to be the Clippers and we've got to focus on what we've got to focus on and lock in on what we've got to lock in, and we've just got to handle business no matter who's on the other side.

Q. What's your advantage in this series?

BONES HYLAND: Just us going out there and just being ourselves. I feel like we've got a lot of guys who can contribute to winning. Our depth on the bench and in the starting five, I feel like we've got a really good team and a lot of guys who can contribute to winning, so I feel like that's our advantage.

Q. As an individual player, what do you feel like you personally -- what's your advantage in this matchup?

BONES HYLAND: Just my playmaking and my scoring ability. A play break down or the guys on the other team, sets are coming down to whether you can make a play or you can score, so I feel like I have that attribute. I feel like I can do that for this team, and I've showed that. I feel like that's a great attribute of mine.

Q. You and Kawhi played about 80 minutes together so far this year, but during that time you guys' offensive rating together is like 130. Why do you think you two specifically complement each other so well?

BONES HYLAND: Just knowing how to play off each other. If they're doubling 'Whi, I know how to make myself available, make myself open and knock down the shot and make a play. Just spacing the floor for Kawhi. I feel like I'm a shooter, I'm a threat on the floor. I can shoot the ball from four-point range, so they can't help off too much of me, so they've got to pick or choose. It's either Kawhi or leave me open for the three. I feel like it's a very good thing when me and Kawhi are out there.

Q. Since you came here from Denver, your assist-to-turnover ratio has gotten a little bit better. I think it's like 3-to-1. Why is that?

BONES HYLAND: I just feel like, man, it's more -- I think I'm much more comfortable. T-Lu is running sets that I feel like has helped me create open shots for my teammates, so I feel like just comfortability thing with me over here.

Q. It seems like you're in a position to play some playoff rotation minutes. Several weeks you were out of the rotation. How do you get to a point where you stayed ready enough, the mental side and the physical side to be in a place where when you were called upon you were ready?

BONES HYLAND: It's a tribute to myself, man. Staying ready, not letting little things bother me or knock me off of my mental, or just coming here, and you can come here and you can mope around or you can come here and work. At the end of the day, I always choose coming here and working, being a professional athlete, just handle what I got to handle. If my number is called, just go out there and contribute to winning.

I feel like that's a tribute to myself, going out there and just staying ready, so now it's playoff basketball, and we've just got to make it happen.

Q. I know you expressed some frustration in Denver when your role seemed to fluctuate. How is this different this time?

BONES HYLAND: Yeah, man, for me, I'm just big on communication. Just tell me what it is. I feel like that's been big over here. Communication has been at a high level. Whether I've been in and out of the rotation, it's always been at a high level, so that's something that I tip my hat off to the coaching staff, front office, just them telling me to stay ready, the time will open up for me, so it's something that I tip my head off to the organization.

Q. What was that plane ride like after Sunday's game like knowing that you had clinched a top six, you knew you were going to be right back in Phoenix and knowing that now, forget regular season? What was that like for you all?

BONES HYLAND: Man, that game, we knew we won it, but it was like, man, we've got to lock in on what's up next and what's coming. We've got to come right back here. We wanted to stay the night and stay out there in Phoenix, but players were like, they've got to get back to their kids and stuff like that. Be we wanted to stay up there and practice stuff up there, just to get that warm welcome up there, like we're coming in here, we're trying to win game.

Q. Ty said that this is I think the third year with having a play-in tournament. Usually it's end of season, two days off, playoff. Having a week to prepare for this kind of team, what is that difference like where you have five, six, seven days to prepare for a team that you're going to see? Ty said he can prepare for more than just one in two or three days.

BONES HYLAND: I feel like it's big for us because we can just lock in on just the one team, and we'll lock in on the sets that they run, lock in on the plays, lock in on what tendencies guys like to do and stuff like that, so it's big for us, man. It's going to be a great week for us to lock in, film, practice, and it's got to be a different level of focus for us.

Q. T-Lu has kept on saying throughout the year he doesn't want you to worry about one position, be a point guard, be a hooper, which you are anyway. What's that connection been like with him over this last weekend, especially over the last couple days as you prepare for this matchup?

BONES HYLAND: It's almost been coming off like a player-player thing. It's like a player-player, but he also just teaches me and coaches me at the same time. He can relate to me because he has played, as well, too, so he's telling me the first game, first two games, he called me over, he's like Bones, man, come here. He's like, don't go out there and try to make a play every time; just go out there and just hoop; be the hooper that you are, that we know you are.

That's something that as for me, I love to hear a coach that believes in me and he's installing that confidence in me just to go out there and just hoop, and I can make the plays happen with just me hooping. Definitely tip my hat off to Coach Lue just for installing that confidence in me.

Q. What have you heard about "Playoff Kawhi"?

BONES HYLAND: A lot, man. I watched numerous series of Kawhi turning it up another notch. He's been turning it up another notch in the last half of the season since All-Star break. He's been taking it to another level. Just getting comfortable out there, and just you'll see he's got like three points, and you look back up and it's 27, so he's just ramping it up. "Playoff Kawhi" is definitely different for sure. I've seen it.

Q. When you look at the entire team, they've had a long time -- you've been here a few months, but as far as building relationship, building camaraderie, knowing that you can have honest conversations, and with Mason, that was kind of blowing up. But I'm curious, is that just competitive nature? Are you at a point where you can just be honest with yourselves in that moment?

BONES HYLAND: Yeah, it's just competitive nature. It's heat of the moment. We want to win the game so bad; it was a miscommunication thing. It happens. You argue, you fuss and fight your teammates, be seeing each other every day. It happens, bro; it ain't nothing big. Me and him talked on the plane. It's nothing. It's quashed. People create their own narratives of what's going on, but me and Mason know what's going on, the team knows what's going on. We deaded it literally in Phoenix. It's nothing to worry about. We're focused on Phoenix right now and trying to win the series.

Q. There's not many guys picking you right now with PG being out, with them getting KD. Is that something you talk about? Does it add a level of motivation that you're the underdogs?

BONES HYLAND: Yeah, that's something that we thrive on right now, just being the underdogs, knowing that PG down right now, but we've got to come in and handle what we've got to handle with the guys that we've got. Like I talked about, our depth on the bench, throughout the team is huge. Everybody can contribute to winning. We've just got to handle what we got to handle no matter who's on the other side. We got what we got, and it's Clips.