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NBA ALL-STAR 2018February 16, 2018Lauri MarkkanenLos Angeles, California Q. Do you have any observations about your first experience here in Los Angeles, first practice? Are you worn out yet? LAURI MARKKANEN: Definitely better weather than Chicago, so that's the first observation. It's been a lot. Even though it's been only for a day, it's been a lot. Just non-stop going on. Q. Have you had a look back at all from the sense that where you came from from such a short time to here you are, All-Star weekend, before you finish your first year in the NBA? LAURI MARKKANEN: No, everything has gone so fast. I still haven't had time to actually sit down and think on what's going on. So I'm just going day by day. Just going with the schedule. Hopefully at some point I realize that. Q. Anything you're looking forward to for this weekend that you want to do now that you're here? LAURI MARKKANEN: Looking for a win tonight. Get the bragging rights over Kris [Dunn]. Q. Did you expect you could be so good so soon in the NBA? LAURI MARKKANEN: I wasn't surprised. I expect big things from myself. So I kind of saw it coming, but, like I said, everything has gone so fast. Q. You didn't realize you are the fastest player in history to 100 three-pointers? LAURI MARKKANEN: No, not really. I'm just doing my thing every day. I didn't even know the record, so it wasn't like I was going for it. I've got to give a lot to my teammates and my coach, just finding me the open spots so I'm able to do my job. Q. Is the NBA like you expected it to be? LAURI MARKKANEN: Some of it. Just you kind of know what's going on, but then once you're actually in there, it's totally different. I know that travel is going to be tough, but it's even more than I expected. Q. What do you like about playing in Chicago? LAURI MARKKANEN: The fans. Just every night, a packed house at the United Center. Q. What is your first memory of the NBA? How you learned about the NBA? LAURI MARKKANEN: I wasn't able to watch too much NBA growing up because of the time difference in Finland. The Lakers-Magic [2009 Finals] series is probably the first that I can remember. Of course I know certain single plays and stuff. But that's when I really started watching it. Q. Were you a Kobe guy or a Dwight [Howard] guy? LAURI MARKKANEN: From that series? Definitely Kobe. I was a guard growing up. Q. What does it mean to be compared to Dirk Nowitzki? LAURI MARKKANEN: It's an honor for me to even be compared to a Hall of Famer. So it's great. I think we're our own players, but I see where the comparison is coming from. Q. Is he mentoring you? Did you get a chance to talk to him? LAURI MARKKANEN: I've met him a couple times off the court. Hopefully I get a chance like this offseason to actually learn more from him, maybe work out. Q. We come from Greece. A few years ago I believe the games between Finland and Greece were not exactly really strong for both of the teams. But right now it's really hard for us to beat you. How do you think that that happened? LAURI MARKKANEN: I think World Cup in 2014 sort of like proved in Finland we got a lot better better and have a lot more people playing basketball. I think we've got a good system and a lot of hard-working guys. So I think this summer we showed that to you guys. Q. Those things changed because your country was known for ski jumpers, rally drivers, stuff like that, but there is still plenty of future in basketball? LAURI MARKKANEN: More of a hockey country too. Q. Yes, but now they're having an upcoming superstar in the NBA? LAURI MARKKANEN: Hopefully. For now, I'm the only one here. Hopefully we'll get a lot more in the future. But take a lot of pride in that. Just trying to build Finnish basketball. Q. Chicago is not a winning team right now. Do you just play your game and then the victories will come? LAURI MARKKANEN: Of course it's frustrating to lose all the time. But at the same time we have a young team, so it gives us a good chance to go out there and learn from our mistakes and actually get better as a team. I think that even though we're not winning, we're doing good things on the court. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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