NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: NUGGETS VS WARRIORS

April 27, 2022

Will Barton

Denver Nuggets

Game 5: Postgame

Warriors 102, Nuggets 98

Q. Will, how proud are you of the fight you showed tonight?

WILL BARTON: Very proud. We tried to make that push to get the win, get back to Denver, extend the series, make a series out of it.

Give them credit, they made the plays they have to make in the clutch to seal it to win.

Q. First time you've been healthy for the post-season in a long time. Do you go into the off-season saying you want more of yourself?

WILL BARTON: Definitely. Ups and downs. That's the plan, is what you said. Going into the off-season, definitely learn from this series, this post-season, attack the off-season to get better and come back ready to fight and go towards it again next year.

Q. What did you think of your season as a whole, the regular season?

WILL BARTON: I thought I had a pretty good season, pretty good season. I'm a guy that's always hard on myself, I always want more, always feel I can do more, play better.

Just like I said, I'll watch a lot of film, learn from the whole season as a whole, come back better.

Q. The load and responsibility that Nikola carried, without Jamal and Mike, how are you going to remember his season?

WILL BARTON: Dominant. The best player in the league, the MVP. Just doing what I expect him to do, what he always does.

Q. Do you allow yourself to think about what you guys can be when you're whole next season?

WILL BARTON: Definitely, you always think about that. Right now I try not to. You got to go with what you got. I felt like we had enough to even win this series. We just was a little inconsistent. That came and bit us in the rear at the end.

Definitely way know when we're fully healthy we can be even more dangerous.

Q. How are you going to detach?

WILL BARTON: The first week I'll probably just get some rest, just chill, stay away from basketball, probably try not to even watch it.

Then after a week, maybe a week and a half, I'll get my kids and we'll get to the crib and we'll start working out again.

Q. What is your message to Bones approaching his first off-season?

WILL BARTON: Just keep doing what he's doing. He's grown a lot from the beginning to the end of the season, not with just his game but him being a pro on and off the court, his mindset, his attitude. He has a bright future as long as he keeps remembering to keep growing as a person and as a professional.

Q. Given what DeMarcus did tonight, do you want him back? Do you encourage him to talk about, talk to management? Would he fit well moving forward?

WILL BARTON: Anytime you have a guy like that, you always want him back. Like I say, he's still DeMarcus Cousins, a guy who when he's healthy is a very good player. Those are not my decisions. I'm not in management.

Obviously if I have a voice in the fight, definitely would love to have him back. He was big for us on and off the court, presence in the locker room. We'll see what happens.