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#thisleague UNCUT: Bucks F Bobby Portis

Published Apr 15, 2024, 9:00 AM

Chris Haynes flies solo on this special edition of #thisleague UNCUT to interview Bucks F Bobby Portis! They discuss the challenges Milwaukee has faced this season with a midseason change at head coach and adjusting to the addition of superstar Damian Lillard. Portis also makes his case to win the 6th Man of the Year Award and the latest on the injury to Giannis Antetokounmpo.

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Welcome to this League Uncut in the world of twenty four hour NBA news. This is you, Chris Haines. It's so telling Mark Stein, it's so time This League Uncut is underway on five.

It should be a good one, Yes, sir, this will be a special episode. This will be a good one of this League Uncut podcast with Chris Haynes and Mark Stein. Mark Stein's not able to join us today is having mechanical issues, so uh, it's all good. The show is going to keep on rolling on. And I told you, I told you guys, this week we're going to have a special guest, and I told you. I gave you a little clue. So it's going to be Bucks related. So without further ado, I want to introduce to you a member of the Milwaukee Bucks, one of the most efficient players on that team. When the top reserves in the entire association in the running for the sixth Man of the Year award. This guy has the smooth turnaround jumper, you can't stop it to back it up, he got the pivots, he brings the energy. And lastly, you might know him from a k a big bob on that ass You know, I'm talking about the energizer buddy for the Bucks. Mister Bobby Porters, how you doing, brother?

I'm sorry, man, that's one of the best introductions I've had.

I want.

I wanted to make you feel special, brother, you be.

Man, Yeah, but he made me feel pretty pretty damn good.

You should, man, you have. You're having a phenomenal season. Man, Like I said, you know, I wanted to put emphasis on efficient because by you know, you know I played college basketball, didn't you know? Obviously I didn't go to the NBA. But one thing I've been noticing. I've watched every single Bucks game. One thing I notice about you, and it doesn't always start that way, but a lot of times you end up when you coming to the game, you end up a lot of times I don't I haven't looked at the stats, but you end up hitting your first shot every you know, most of the time when you come in the game. Can you tell me, like, when you come in the game and hit that first one, how do you feel.

So it's been like a thing since I was like a kid, bro, Like, if I see just one go in, man, that's all I really need. That's really all Hoopers do around the world. Though, like, no matter how the game going, no matter how you know, if you ozer for five, oh for six, like you see worst shot go in, shoot, it's just it's it's game time. And I think all Hoopers can have tested is like you know, if you see your first shot go in, man, you auto made thinking there's gonna be a good night. So for me, I just try to come in and just be efficient as I can and to shoot the same size every night.

Now you've definitely been doing that. Man, That's one thing I noticed. I'm like, man, every time he come in, he hit that first one and from there, from there up, you know, that opens up the game. And I'm like, man, you know you ended up going on your runs and you may hit seven or nine straight points and getting stills and playing d And I just wanted to know, like, how did every talk me about this role? This this six man role, because most players don't they don't dream of being a six man, right. Everybody wants to be a starter and then you know, be a star in that role. Usually you have to a coach has to usually convince you to get into that role. And a lot of times, even if they convince you to accept that role, the player doesn't really accept that role and it just never works out. How tell me about the the maturation process you've had with that role, because it seems like, man, you just it seemed like it just fits you or you just know how to just fib and he's talking about that.

So like, Man, obviously, coming to the Bucks, you know, the lineup was really kind of already set for real.

Man, you got Jannis, you know, you got Chris, you got Brooken.

Then at the time when I first came here, you had d'Arte DiVincenzo and Drew how Today as a starter. So just being a pro man, you gotta find you gotta find a way to impact.

Winning, to help the team win.

You know, not gonna lie like my role has grown over the years. But when I first came to the Bucks, Man, I didn't really like feel like a six man for I just felt like one of the other guys.

You know. You know Coase Budd used me a little different, and uh, you know he was he was hard on me, man, he was.

He was great for me though, because he was always hard on me, making sure I did all the little things to stay on the court, you know, like getting extra possession office of rebounding or boxing out or playing defense. He won the first coach really just hard to buy my defense and playing defense and being acting with your hands, moving your feet.

Things like that.

But as my time has progressed with the Bucks, like the trust has grown, the camaraderie has grown, and guys trust me enough to go out there and do what I do. So it just makes it that much easier for me to just come in just BEBP. I got good teammates man, that believe in me. We all work hard and they know how hard I work. So when I come in, man, I just try to come in and impact the game. And what better way than coming in and trying to give a team an extra lyft with's going.

Yeah, and you've been doing that from start to finish this season. I know things might start off a little bit slow for you earlier in the season, and you just seem like you picked it up. I want to say around to my knowledge, it seemed like around January is when you really started to just like hit your stride. What was it about. I know it's a different team, Dame, and you know some new pieces. What was it about that time? Were you able to turn the corner, you know.

To get back to the basics for real. Man, You know, every season is different in the league. You like, like every year I played in the league has been some different adversity at some point, Like every year is different. So this year from last year, you know, we were the best team in the league. You know, we cruised through the cruise through the regular season and then get to the playoffs. We first round exit. You feel me like, did we come to the new season? I mean, I'll get back from Team USA, playing with them over the summertime and get back to Milwaukee, and then suddenly I got new We got a whole new team.

You feel me like it just it just changed.

And obviously adding the top seventy five player like Dame changes everybody role kind of a little bit. To start the season, we had to figure it out just a little bit and figure out how we're gonna you know, I just to implement him with us and then how we're gonna you know, be with him and find out chemistry.

You know. Obviously we start off the season pretty.

Good, but it was kind of hard just to find the find a groove, find the rhythm and inconsistency at first, and then once January came. Man, just get back to the basics. I just got back to the gym, get my form, shots up, and just saying, hey man, it's just trying to hoot.

Man, stop all that thinking. Man.

I think when you're a basketball player, when you think too much and think the game and try to do all the right things throughout the game, you kind of mess with the game a little bit and being who you are. And I'm just a guy that goes out there and plays point five basketball.

If I got a shot, I take it.

If I don't, d h O, I try to get to rempenetrating, piss to a teammate, just pay point five ball.

Getting back to that for real.

How challenging has this season been? You know, you've been around the league and you face adversity, different, yeah, trials that may come your way. In the eighty two game season, you got a coach and change, which shocked a lot of people because, believe you, guys were records pretty good. I can't remember what it was at the top, but it was good enough to get you to get to have the Bucks coaching staff be the coach of the Eastern Conference All Stars. So how challenging has this season been with all the changes.

I mean, it's been challenging obviously. I think every season is a challenge, to be honest.

But you know, just as a fan.

Probably of the game, you know, you probably like, hey, like, why can't all these players that's you know, great guys, great great players in the league just work automatically, or why can't this coach, you know, coach these guys up to a standard or be.

Whatever it is. But you know, it's like it's not a video game.

You feel me like we are real life people, Like we are people in real life.

Sometimes things take time.

You know.

Adversity isn't always a bad thing, you know, adversity is good. And I know with US, man, I don't know which team in the league has went through more adversity than US this season. Like we've been injured most of the years, some guys been out in and out the lineup. And we had three different coaches obviously, we had Adrian and Doc and Joe even coached two or three games as well, Joe Prunty. So you know, I don't think many teams been through as much as versity to the US.

So that could be a could be a.

Great thing in the long run for US Man, especially when playoffs coming. You know, you can hit with their first hate maker and then you got to respond.

That's a good way to look at it. And my producer Ryan just sent me a text that you guys were thirty and thirteen when Adrian Griffin was dismissed as brought in since has brought in Doc Rivers. But yeah, it was that was a shock to many at that time. But BP, I want to ask you. I want to get back to the team, but let me ask you about this six man real quick. So you know, I watched again. I watch every BUS game and I see the contribution. It's like all these awards out there, right, It's like a lot of voters don't get to see watch these guys every day and they don't understand the impact. They don't understand how vital it is. Like sometimes like you have you may have a six man candidate, right VP, but they play like real starter minutes, like they may play like thirty five plus like they're playing starter men. They may play more than some of the starters. And then you have six men who come in and they have you know, your cap on your limits you know your your limit cap. You got to get to it exactly, you get to it. So the names that we're hearing, you know obviously your name, Bobby Porters, and then a lot of people show a lot of love for Malik Monk with Sacramento. And I'm not trying to ask you to discourage any other candidates out there, but for people who don't get to see or who choose not to watch a lot of New Bus games, tell me what it is that you provide. If you got to explain, okabp, what is your role on this team? What do you do for this team on a day to day basis? Explain your season in a nutshell to people who probably aren't informed.

Man, if I could just say one word for real, man, shit, just just availability. I'm I'm ready every night, bro, Like I play every game. I think the Bucks have played eighty one games this season. We got one game left them all. And I think Barby Reporters has played eighty one games as well. Like I'm here, bro, like hurt whatever it is I'm feeling tired or feeling sluggish, or my elbow hurting, my knee hurting, Like I'm out here hooping, Bro, like for real. And you know last year I got you know, criticized a lot for starting a lot of games. So I didn't win the award last year. So this year I've only started three games. You know, I come off the bench every night. You know, I don't talk about the other candidates. Other guys are great, they do great for their teams and whatever. But you know, I just think my impact on my team. Man, It's just a lot more different.

Man.

I'm like a heart and soul. You feel me like I work my heart on my sleeve every single night. You know, No coach gotta worry about trying to get number nine hyped up.

He come in already hyped. You feel me.

BP. Has there been a situation where, uh, the team might have wanted you to start to start a game or two, You be like, nah, no, leave me on the bitch. I gotta get this. I'm going for the sixth Mad of War.

Nah, I think.

I think like in years past, I tried to do that and Coach Budd still won't going. Yeah, like years past, this year I just set up. I really want to worry about no award or nothing like. I talked about it a lot last year. And once I fell up short last year kind of like I ain't gonna say discouraged.

But it was like, dang bro I like average double double off the bench, you say, the dude win. Yeah.

But this year I've just been trying to just take it a day at a time. Man, it's been a long season, up and down a lot of adversity. So just trying to be available for my team every night, no matter who's playing, and try to stack as many games and stack the camaraderie you going into a postseason. But nah, I ain't never really just been like, hey man, hey doc I don't.

Want to start doc Na. I ain gonna tell them. I'm gonna tell him that.

For those who don't know, BP's playing an average of twenty four minutes a game, averaging just a shade under fourteen points a game, shooting fifty percent from the field and shooting forty percent from three with seven point four boards. That's crazy. So you think if he's averaging starter minutes, that's a double double easy. And the season he talked about last year where he averaged let me see, it was fourteen point one, shot forty nine percent from the field, thirty seven percent from three and he averaged nine point six rebound and he played almost close to two minutes more last season per game. So that's what he's speaking on when he's talking about just the shortcomings. And so BP, let me let me ask you this. So we're recording this on a Saturday and it's going to air Monday morning, so you guys will already know your pecking order in the standings, and you talk about availability, BP, and I'm not trying to persuade you, but just hear me out. So you talk about availability here. So if I'm looking at the standings VP, and if I'm thinking because you guys ain't been playing well over the last few weeks. So if I'm looking at the standings, you guys as the number two seed, you know you could potentially go against Philly or Miami in that first round depending on the play. In situation, right, you're at the three seed, potentially Orlando or Indianna. So BP, if Doc Rivers comes to you and says, BP, I'm sorry, I know availability is important to you, but uh, I think I think I like our chances better at number three seed, and so we gotta sit you.

No, I'm probably if that's the case for real.

I'm gonna I'm gonna check in and check out like did.

Yeah, okay, yeah, yeah, I gotta get my eighty that's fair.

But BP, you know, I gotta get this.

You get that, Don and I and I commend you on that, BP, but you know, but BP, you know you come in and out. Now your your points per game is dropping.

Yeah, it's all about being healthy.

It's all about being healthy going into the postseason and being a pro man. That's part of the gig man is being able to be coachable, being able to understand situations and being under and being able to to understand the bigger picture man, like the bigger picture and this is that you know, we're trying to get to June and it is April, and that is two months away. So being smart about the things and being coachable to what the coaches and training staff and front office has already scouted for us, they'll be the smart thing. But I think were hooping them all though, for sure, I think we think Yeah, I think we.

So b How do you how do you guys view the standards? Like, how do you guys look at those matchups? Because I love it, bro, I love it.

I love it this year because you got to think about it like, no matter if your first, second, third, or fourth, like whoever you get, man like, you're getting a good opponent.

You feel me. So it's not like like you've a duck somebody or we're.

Gonna lose this game in that game because we don't want to play such and such.

No, if you're three, you still play Indiana.

They nice. If you four, you still play the Magic. They're gonna play hard to give you a great game. If you want, you might Miami, if you wanted to, you may play Miami or Philly, no matter where you're at, Like like you you're gonna get a get a great opponent. And it's only this this this playoff is gonna be lit man like for TV purposes, for matchup purposes, the storyline that's.

Gonna get built. I'm a fan of the game.

I love basketball, So this playoff is gonna be jumping man like. It's gonna be some great matchups, and it's gonna be some mussy TV like think about it, like the Clippers and the Clippers of Dallas, Like that's already locked up, Like that's a lot of buckets. Bro like you know what I'm saying, Like that's must ce TV. Like it's just as a fan of the game, speaking as a fan, like this.

This playoff is gonna be jumping man. Who wanted more? That's always gonna be this year who wanted.

So you got the elephant in the room? Is Gianni out with the cap injury miss the remains in three games of the regular season. Uh, how how optimistic are you that you have the big fella back when when the playoffs start.

I really haven't heard much about the situation obviously, Like nobody ever wants to see, like nobody get hurt, whether it's your teammate, whether it's somebody like on another team.

Like, you know, this game is beautiful.

We all play it to provide and play it to uh you know, obviously because we love the game. But you know, obviously it sucks to you know, not have one of the best players in the league obviously available. Uh we don't know the situation and in entirety, but can only send thoughts and prayers out to him for a speedy recovery, however long it takes. And our main job is to keep the main thing, the main thing, basketball stay of the same man, you know, go out there and play, play the game the right way, trust each other and all the things we went through all season. Uh, you know it's time to you know, just put it on display in these playoffs.

Man.

But like I said, I don't know much about the situation, haven't heard much. But hopefully everything all right. Hopefully everything all right with big fella.

What there's a lot of people who have jumped off the Bucks bandwagon, especially over the last few weeks. Why, obviously, you guys will still believe, you know, you guys are competitors. But what gives y'all hope, you know, especially what happened all season long has never really been you know, you guys have had spurts, but never really clicked for a long periods of time. And then the way you're ending the season is not not you know, the optimal way. What gives you, guys hope that you guys can make a run and not just a run because this team is built to win a championship. What gives you guys hope that you guys still can pursue and accomplish something like that.

I would say, like just as a fan of the game, like like nobody really talked about like Denver last year when they I was like eight out of fifteen games in the season, like they lost, like nah the sixteen eight out of fifteen games, and to see nobody like.

Ever brought it up.

So it's like with us, like we just take it with a grain of salt for real, Like that's the outside world's you know, views and.

How they view us whatever it is.

But you know, teams go through slumps, teams go through adversity, and like I said, man, we just sold battle testing.

Man, we didn't been through everything this season.

Man, we didn't have three coaches, We didn't went to Vegas like like we didn't.

Like we didn't been everywhere. Like it's like it's crazy, like like for real, like with the Vegas doing scenes, like bro, we didn't. We didn't did everything this year. Like it's been crazy.

So I think what keeps us optimistic about our chances just the makeup of our team. Man, our team is very very very fucking resilient with everything. Uh, you know, we together, our camaraderie is is great. Sometimes we just have we had to those lapses during throughout the season where it didn't look right.

But with us.

Uh, you know, I think the best thing coming up is you know, it's playoff ball. Every game matters, and the makeup of our room is champions. You know, we got battle tested guys that's been there before. So I'm not worried at all, man, just more more so, just want to take it to day at a time, thinking or trying to get to ahead of what's to come.

And BP Bobby Porter's here with us on this league and cut last question for you, Doc Rivers, since he's come on board, what had what has his presence been like in the locker room, in the organization. You just talk about him being a part of the franchise.

Man, Like I got so much respect for Doc man just I never really knew him before, Like like my favorite player is Kevin Garnett, Like it's my favorite basketball player. I try to immolate him a lot on the court and do things, shoot fase, whatever it is.

But that's my god.

Man.

You know Doc's cool, bro, Like he.

Done did so much for me just his time being here, building the confidence in me, Like I'm extra confident and I don't see like if people watch me, who like I'm just extra confident, Like he import so much confidence and to me and in belief, like as a as a player, like you always want your coach to believe you feel me like, and he believes in us.

He believes in the group.

And you know, no matter what the outside media may may persuade people to think about him, man, he's a competitor as well.

He want to win. Man, He's been great for our group.

Man.

Obviously they can say the record this or whatever it is, but you know, he not the one out there playing. We don't want that went out there and you know didn't win the game.

So I love Doc. I like what he I like what he brings to our team.

And he's been great for me personally, Like I can speak for myself like he's unlocked a new clearing me for sure, Like he's just been great for my second half of the season with him.

Well, BP, man, I know you're in Orlando right now, correct?

Oh yeah, what do you.

Do with Orlando? Like what I go to brook Creb, hang out with Brooks. Okay, of course, of course.

I'll be trying to think what the weather though, great weather it is.

Well, yeah you'lid, Yeah you can't complain. Yeah, you're coming from Milwaukee.

So yeah, and and we had snow last I feel I feel you. It is it is April, yeah, so I take I take a couple of days in Florida.

So I'm gonna let you get the rest of your afternoon because five fifty eight over there. Yeah, get the rest of your afternoon to the soak in the weather BP. I just want to say, man, you know, I always man appreciate man like you've always treated me as a professional in this league. Man, and uh, You've always been solid with me, bro, and I appreciate watching you play, man. So thank you for taking this time out to hop on this this podcast. And I wish you the best of the luck. And hopefully you get more six Man Award votes this season.

Brother, I so hope.

So, Man, you know, I feel like I've earned that this season. Uh you know, I feel like I put the time in and then like I feel like I'm important to my teams, to my team's success.

Man.

I think you know, all the voters should take that into take that into consideration, Like you know, which one of these guys if they take them off, they team with the team still be the same.

Uh you know, I don't I don't.

I don't won't speak on it, but I don't think so, no doubt, no doubt, no doubt.

That's Bobby Porters, Walkee Bucks Sports. Yeah, on this league.

Let's get it, y'all. Let's get it man, and that'll do it for us. See you next time.

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