Head Coach Tyler Marsh: Chicago Sky Postgame Presser — vs. Indiana Fever — 08.08.26

[0:00] hi tyler um just wanted to get your reaction to the dejeune objection and what you saw happen [0:05] on that play uh in the moment i thought that um that she made a play on the ball i didn't think [0:11] it warranted a flagrant two i didn't see the replay um you know when it happened so um that [0:17] was my initial thoughts um but the officials made what they made i haven't looked at the [0:22] at that place since so i really don't know if it was justified or not but um that's what i thought [0:28] in the morning dejeune posted on social media several times from the locker room um in one of [0:35] those posts she uh wrote white privilege and then tagged the indian in favor in it just kind of [0:41] wondering do you have a chance to talk to her about that kind of what your reaction is that that i'm [0:46] sure that's going to be findable but just kind of what's your reaction to that for her um i'd have [0:53] to get back to you on that because i'm just now hearing about that so um yeah we'll handle that [1:02] just a quick follow-up on that um obviously it would be easy for the outside for folks fans to [1:09] read something into a foul happening with so to kind of you just the way that she's been in the [1:14] headlines lately did you get a sense that there was any extra emotion anything like that coming into [1:19] this game from your players did you guys have any internal conversations about that you know we're [1:24] fighting for our lives to try to make the playoffs so every uh i mean dejeune is a passionate a [1:29] passionate player just like most of our players on our team and um obviously you want to protect [1:34] the safety of all the players but i think when it pertains to this game individually we didn't come [1:39] into this one with any more or less juice than things you've had the last four since the uh you [1:44] know since the all-star break like our our mindset is trying to win games um as a player and as a coach [1:50] coaching staff and so um that's where it was at going into this game and that's where it'll be moving [1:55] forward um you know you hope that selfie's okay and nobody's severely injured and um at the same [2:02] time it's not um i don't think there is ill intent um on on our end so oh this is more of a game of [2:09] bronze where you sat down and got back in but folks when you all got down a couple times what was it [2:15] about this team when they were able to get back in the game but also what's up the team with the ball [2:19] just the main thing that moments in the end it was a great team um they put pressure on you [2:25] offensively from you know for from start to finish and so i'm proud of how we fought and how we [2:32] were resilient um within the game and put ourselves in position we had a couple of self-inflicted wounds [2:39] um throughout the game they came back to they came back to bite us when we won three of the four [2:42] quarters tonight and a second quarter kind of was a deciding quarter for the before the game from a [2:47] numbers perspective but um i was proud of how we fought um offensively i um i don't think we played [2:55] great i think i could have could have helped us out a little bit more on that end but um you know [3:00] we we learned from it and we keep pushing i think that um you know we would have loved to come out of [3:05] this home stand four and one but um three and two isn't awful but we'll we got to take it and move [3:10] forward but um going along the road for us for a few but um you know this team continues to fight and [3:17] there's there's a lot to be said for that um when you're down as many bodies as we are when you're [3:21] battling the stuff that we're battling um they don't quit exactly tyler i'm just wondering what [3:28] your thoughts were on natasha's performance i mean she made some big made some big shots down the [3:32] stretch made some big plays down the stretch and really got everybody involved and obviously the [3:37] intensity level is really high and that was evident you know with with her and in different capacity [3:42] different capacities just wondering what your thoughts were on her performance tonight yeah i thought [3:46] she was really good um uh i think that especially starting the game off in some foul trouble to be [3:53] able to have that defensive discipline um for the remainder of the game uh knowing how big how crucial [3:59] she is for us from a defensive game plan standpoint and from an energy standpoint especially playing that [4:05] you know those secondary or fourth quarters without dj neck um we needed we needed that from her we [4:12] needed that juice and that boost from her but that's that's what she's been for us all year and it doesn't [4:17] matter the role she came off the bench early on for us and then was put back in the starting lineup [4:21] and um and that's made the most of it so um it's it's what we've grown to expect from from her [4:28] ricky uh kelsey mitchell uh 16 games with 20 points or more wmba record what are the challenges [4:35] guarding her and sort of how are you guys preparing for her coming into the game yes someone asked me [4:40] about uh about leah boston uh three game and i said pick one and i'm gonna give you the same answer for [4:46] kelsey um as well as her downhill speed is second to none in this league um her shot creation second [4:54] to none in this league um and she just from a skill standpoint from an athleticism standpoint it's just [5:03] um she just it's it's constant pressure you have no seconds to to relax throughout a position and um [5:11] that's where it starts and ends with with her um off ball she finds ways to score she attacks [5:16] some mismatches when she when she has them um and then she's obviously lethal with the ball in her [5:21] hands and so uh in in a weird way i think she's still underrated for what she's able to do when [5:27] she brings nightly um but you know she's she helps make them really often julia when you look at kind [5:36] of veteran leadership whether it's djma getting herself removed early in the game or maybe just like [5:41] tosh getting back tech late in game off the bench are you concerned about or having any conversations [5:47] about just kind of that veteran like discipline that veteran leadership just making sure that they're [5:51] kind of just keeping things a little bit more level-headed in those moments yeah of course we [5:56] got i mean we have we have some pretty good vets across the board um thought that our vets that came [6:01] off the bench today did a really good job rachel had a great game i thought elizabeth gave a really [6:05] good minutes today as well um it was good to have azray back um today but yeah i mean you you want to [6:14] be able to keep a little ahead in those in those moments at times but also you don't want to take [6:19] the passion from from them and the intensity that they they play with i think that that's that that's [6:24] part of who we are too and um djna gave us some really good juice for a few moments um you know before [6:30] she before she got ejected but and then tosh continued to bring it throughout the game and so you [6:35] sometimes you gotta you gotta live with some of that and um i think that a lot of their toughness [6:41] and and uh and passion is contagious uh throughout and so we uh i i think they know when you know in [6:48] times when it would go overboard and when i don't think that there's that that's something that that [6:52] i have to constantly reel in and then um uh they know i trust them when they're when they're out there [6:57] and sometimes you need a little bit of that to get things going um as long as it's you know hardest in [7:03] the right way and coach you spoke a little bit about ratio you know when she's a bigger brain [7:09] today okay speaking of the fact about just staying around the culture throughout the entire season [7:13] right you know you haven't had that many minutes because you know so many better reasons but the [7:16] fact that she was able to still contribute throughout the process you know i think a lot of people take [7:21] rachel for for granted um the pro that she is um the person that she is um the player that she is i think [7:28] that um you you you're not around in this league for as long as she's been around if you if you're [7:34] not bringing someone to the table um and for her she just finds ways to to produce she's a she's a [7:40] high iq basketball player um i think she just she is find ways to to be effective and make things happen [7:47] and uh it's been a rough year for her from a from a minute standpoint um especially coming off of last year [7:54] and so um i'm glad that she's stuck with it i'm glad that she's uh i think she's got some some quiet [8:02] toughness in there as well and she understands what it means to be a bro she comes to work every single [8:07] day um uh prepared for moments like this and so um i think you're you're rewarded when you approach [8:14] the game that that way go back to ricky uh gabby played 21 minutes today her minutes have been a [8:20] little bit up and down lately but yes um what have you seen from her growth throughout the season [8:28] and how do you think she's progressing in a rookie year yeah this has been great she um i think she [8:35] uh maybe like a couple weeks before the all-star break i think she hit like a rookie wall so to [8:41] speak and she's catching her second win um since and i think that she's made the most of it her minutes [8:46] have been up and down too as we've gotten healthy from the wings from a wing standpoint um but she's [8:52] been able to stay focused and stay committed continue to grind and come into practice and [8:57] uh and put the work and i think she just whatever minute she has out there she's found ways to make [9:02] the most of it that's all that you can ask from a rookie she's she's as tough as it gets to um but [9:09] she's been she's been great to have on the court and she's been great to have the locker room back to [9:13] al have her a couple more which i know that was a pretty much a tough matchup from jc in general [9:19] one against uh kelsey milchua and also kayla clark but she actually plays some very good defense [9:23] although they want you know make things tougher she's just begun performance in that department [9:28] yeah so it's it's hardly completely shut down two players as good as as good as caitlin and [9:34] kelsey and um but jc was up was up for the challenge um she's not going to back down from anyone [9:40] she gives the same level of effort and energy no matter who the matchup is or what her role is [9:46] or assignment is for the night so um jc i have i said it you know several times in the past jc is [9:52] somebody that i think the other 14 teams in this league would love to have on on their team and so [9:58] it's just what she uh it's what she brings nightly it's an approach that she has it's a way that she [10:03] treats people um the way that she communicates the way she goes about her business um she just [10:09] uh she fits the mold of who we want the chicago's going to be thank you thank you