Latest / Bleacher Report / Anthony Edwards & Julius Randle Talk Timberwolves Blowout Game 1 Win vs. Lakers _ 2025 NBA Playoffs

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Anthony Edwards & Julius Randle Talk Timberwolves Blowout Game 1 Win vs. Lakers _ 2025 NBA Playoffs · Bleacher Report

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Like, what did you see from him tonight in the
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: way that he took control and did exactly what you
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: needed from him.
• 0:06
  Speaker 2: He had ultra confidence. That's what we talked about to
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: start the week. And he's sixty eleven and has everything
• 0:12
  Speaker 2: that a person who sixty two has in his game.
• 0:14
  Speaker 2: So I mean, as long as he trust himself, we
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: all trust him one through fifteen, even the coaching staff,
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: the whole organization.
• 0:20
  Speaker 3: So he's just being Jadie mc dames.
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  Speaker 1: Coach was saying that you were very vocal at halftime.
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  Speaker 1: Just what were you feeling as you went into the
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: locker room where you trying to convey to the team
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: to come out of it strong.
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  Speaker 2: Just some of the reads that we was able to
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  Speaker 2: make on off on the offensive game going into the
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: second half.
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  Speaker 3: I was telling my teammates.
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: On how to how we could space the Florida hurt him,
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  Speaker 2: and we did that in the third coming right out
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: and that's how we got that big league space in
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  Speaker 2: the Florida right way, cause you know, they tift the
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: floor heavy on me and Julius, So just being able
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: to make the right reason all throughout the night.
• 0:49
  Speaker 4: Julius, what what do you think kind of flipped this game,
• 0:51
  Speaker 4: or maybe one or two things that you guys were
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  Speaker 4: doing that second quarter or third quarter that that kind
• 0:55
  Speaker 4: of turned the game on its head for you guys.
• 0:57
  Speaker 5: I think, uh, it was really just our defense. Obviously, Luca,
• 1:01
  Speaker 5: he got off to the hot start, hit a couple
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  Speaker 5: of threes, but once we were able to slow them
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  Speaker 5: down and really defend, you know, we blew the game open,
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  Speaker 5: was able to get in transition a little bit, and
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  Speaker 5: then offensively exactly what An said. You know, they tried
• 1:16
  Speaker 5: to tilt the floor, so we just got to make
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  Speaker 5: the right place.
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  Speaker 4: And now I was just talking about your leadership, and
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  Speaker 4: he said, you would think that you were thirty years
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  Speaker 4: old at at times with the way you you lead
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  Speaker 4: in the in.
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  Speaker 3: The locker room.
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  Speaker 4: Where are you at with that and at this point
• 1:30
  Speaker 4: in your career maybe then maybe two or three years
• 1:32
  Speaker 4: ago in terms of communicating with your teammates on that level.
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  Speaker 2: Just knowing I mean it's fifteen, it's fifteen grown men
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  Speaker 2: in the locker room and knowing how to everybody, got emotions,
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: knowing how to talk to everybody. Everybody can't you can't
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  Speaker 2: you know, deliver a message the same way to one
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  Speaker 2: through fifteen.
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  Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying.
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  Speaker 2: So some guys I gotta talk to pull them to
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  Speaker 2: the side. Some guys I can cuss at them. Some
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: guys I gotta you know, just different ways, man. And
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  Speaker 2: I think not being afraid of doing I think that's
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  Speaker 2: the main thing. I stepped into that role and my
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: teammates trust me and they listened. So it's a privilege
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  Speaker 2: to have guys like that.
• 2:06
  Speaker 6: And he talked this week during practice about a couple
• 2:09
  Speaker 6: of ideas of how they might guard you or guard you.
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  Speaker 3: Guys as a team.
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  Speaker 6: How did what you were kind of picturing versus what
• 2:15
  Speaker 6: they what they threw at you, how that look it was?
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  Speaker 3: It was similar. It was similar to Phoenix, but I
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: will say they I'm not gonna get out the game plan.
• 2:25
  Speaker 3: But yeah, it was similar to things.
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  Speaker 6: Julius for you to like offensively reading where where your
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  Speaker 6: offense was gonna come from as a scorer and playmaker.
• 2:35
  Speaker 6: How did that settle in over the course of the game.
• 2:37
  Speaker 3: It was good, It was good. Second half was better.
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  Speaker 5: I think just for myself, I had just way too
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  Speaker 5: many turnovers and I think, you know, as well as
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  Speaker 5: we played for myself individually, I feel like that's where
• 2:47
  Speaker 5: I can clean up. But uh, it was good. You know,
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  Speaker 5: it was just fine and finding open spaces on the floor.
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  Speaker 5: We knew how they were going to defend us defensively,
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  Speaker 5: so I knew and had the ball where to be.
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  Speaker 5: And you know, he did a great job. Yeah, like
• 3:00
  Speaker 5: aighter nane assists, you know, somebody, And that's what facts facts,
• 3:04
  Speaker 5: and that's and that's what coach said he needed, you know,
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  Speaker 5: at the beginning of the UH when we were preparing
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  Speaker 5: at the beginning of the week, he was saying, we
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  Speaker 5: need you guys have aiight nane assists and did exactly that.
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  Speaker 3: So you know, for me, I.
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  Speaker 5: Worked extremely hard on my catch and shooting and trust me,
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  Speaker 5: and he finded me and you know, I'm just gonna
• 3:20
  Speaker 5: go knock it down and take.
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: It every time. And what did you learn about your
• 3:24
  Speaker 3: team tonight?
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  Speaker 2: We got a great group of guys, But it wasn't tonight.
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  Speaker 2: I learned that in training camp. You know, it just
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  Speaker 2: takes a minute for us to jail. It's a new team,
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  Speaker 2: you know, So yeah, it just took a minute for
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  Speaker 2: us to figure each other out.
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  Speaker 3: And I feel like now we're just.
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  Speaker 7: We're rolling for UH and Julius the Lakers side of things,
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  Speaker 7: they said that they felt your guy's physicality and thought
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  Speaker 7: that was a major factor in the game coming into
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  Speaker 7: the series. How was that a point of emphasis for
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  Speaker 7: you guys to kind of establish that and you know,
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  Speaker 7: obviously there's referees involved too, So how do you know
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  Speaker 7: the line that you can kind of push it to
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  Speaker 7: without not the better?
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: Great question? Uh, how many free throws they shot? Drew?
• 4:08
  Speaker 3: How do I find that sixteen?
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  Speaker 5: How many we shot eleven? Okay, you just gotta keep playing.
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  Speaker 2: Gotta played through her, Just try to be as physical
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  Speaker 2: as possible. I mean, the main thing for us was
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  Speaker 2: we didn't want to We didn't want them to get
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  Speaker 2: into bonus early because you know, now everybody gets into
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  Speaker 2: a rhythm. You see a couple of free throws go in,
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  Speaker 2: Luca gets into a rhythm, Brun gets into a rhythm,
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  Speaker 2: all five of those guys.
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  Speaker 3: So that was the main thing.
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  Speaker 2: We wanted to keep them out of the bonus early
• 4:37
  Speaker 2: in the quarter, and I think we did a good
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  Speaker 2: job of that in the second half.
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: How did you stay locked in and do that, especially
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: in an atmosphere like this, and especially when Luca got
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: that big half court shot.
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: I wasn't out there for the half court shot, but
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  Speaker 2: I mean in the atmosphere like this is it's easy.
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  Speaker 3: It's easy for me.
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: Man. I've played in Denver, Man, Denver is tough place
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  Speaker 2: to play in on the road.
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  Speaker 3: So I mean it was nothing And did did you?
• 5:02
  Speaker 3: Was it a little need or.
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: And you guys have been good defensively all year? But
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: did this game feel a little more like last year?
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  Speaker 1: Like just the a level that you guys hit from
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: a defensive standpoint, attention.
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  Speaker 3: The detail was there.
• 5:17
  Speaker 2: I had a couple of game playing mistakes, We may
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: had a couple of slippages throughout the game plan, but
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: I feel like the attention to detail was was.
• 5:25
  Speaker 8: Of the part of the Julia's first questions for you
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  Speaker 8: number one, really liked your post touches A lot of
• 5:31
  Speaker 8: times when Austin was getting there, you guys found that.
• 5:33
  Speaker 8: And then how did you like how y'all stick to
• 5:35
  Speaker 8: y'all identity more so staying with the big group, you know,
• 5:38
  Speaker 8: you and Rudy as sometimes and then you and Nas
• 5:41
  Speaker 8: and just staying big and sticking to that identity when
• 5:44
  Speaker 8: they were going small the whole time. I mean, we
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  Speaker 8: feel like that's our advantage, you know, to be honest,
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  Speaker 8: we got guys who could switch out on the fan.
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  Speaker 8: You know, Rudy did a great job today as well.
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  Speaker 8: And then you know he protects the rip. So it's
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  Speaker 8: like we all got our strengths and you know, we
• 6:00
  Speaker 8: try to play to those and then we try to
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  Speaker 8: protect each other's weaknesses or whatever that might be. But
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  Speaker 8: you know, we feel like that's that's to our advantage.
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  Speaker 8: You know, we all each individually do something very well
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  Speaker 8: and we try to you know, bring that out of
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  Speaker 8: each other. Yep. And then you know, and for you,
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  Speaker 8: I got to the gym what three and a half
• 6:17
  Speaker 8: hours early. You and Julius were out there working and
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  Speaker 8: it kind of reminded me of the summer. I remember
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  Speaker 8: right after you want to go medal. I hear Trey up.
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  Speaker 8: I'm like, bro, he back in the gym, Like did
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  Speaker 8: he take a week off? Like what's going on? But
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  Speaker 8: like for you, like how is that? You know? For you,
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  Speaker 8: just always staying with the work no matter what, not
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  Speaker 8: really taking no time off, just working on your craft.
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  Speaker 2: I just always want to get one percent better every day. Man,
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  Speaker 2: that's to go. And I really got that from Julius. Honestly,
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  Speaker 2: I seen him doing it and I was like, man,
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  Speaker 2: I need to try that out, you know, And it's
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  Speaker 2: been working for me.
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  Speaker 3: So I appreciate my brother.
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  Speaker 5: And I say on top of that too, man, it's hard,
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  Speaker 5: like energy is contagious, you know what I mean. So
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  Speaker 5: it's hard like if you're in the gym and not
• 6:56
  Speaker 5: want to be great and not want to get better,
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  Speaker 5: you know what I mean. So I think, like he said,
• 7:00
  Speaker 5: he might have got that from me, but like I
• 7:02
  Speaker 5: get a lot from him. You know of how he
• 7:04
  Speaker 5: attacked his work and how you know, attacks every day,
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  Speaker 5: so you know, it's contagious.
• 7:12
  Speaker 3: Vote for Aunt Julius.
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: A lot of national media picked the Wolves to be
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: the loser in this first round series, and obviously y'all
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  Speaker 1: have a lot of belief in yourself. But what message
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  Speaker 1: would you have the fans that are kind of seeing
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: everyone picking the Lakers now and everything like that.
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  Speaker 2: No message, man, they still got the Lakers. The Lakers
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  Speaker 2: supposed to win. That's just how it's supposed to go.
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  Speaker 2: Not supposed to be here. So we just gonna compete
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  Speaker 2: to the best of our ability.
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  Speaker 9: And what what does it mean for you when you're
• 7:37
  Speaker 9: attacking and you know what's coming. But for your teammates
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  Speaker 9: to relocate as much as they did tonight, it seemed
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  Speaker 9: like they were finding the saft spots to give you
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  Speaker 9: the best possible pass Winns.
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: Like I said, man, we had a week to prepare.
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: We watched film together as a team, the Hope. The
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  Speaker 2: four hours that we was on the way here, we talked.
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: We watched games that when they played against Okay, see
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: when they played against Dallas. We was just watching film
• 7:58
  Speaker 2: on them and the coaches did a great job to
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: put us in the right positions. And then I think
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: the player development, see Hins, we was working on relocation.
• 8:05
  Speaker 2: Me and Julie was driving the gaps because we knew
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: they was gonna took the floor and just being able to.
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  Speaker 3: Find windows for us to pass.
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  Speaker 2: And the guys did a great job man, And you
• 8:12
  Speaker 2: know he was able to reward that.
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  Speaker 9: You don't get a lot of practice time during the season.
• 8:16
  Speaker 9: Is it fun to drill something so consistently and see
• 8:18
  Speaker 9: it come up play out.
• 8:19
  Speaker 2: He's super fun, man. That's why we ain't want to
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: be in the play in. We needed that week, Yes, sir,