University of Georgia Athletics
Bulldogs Discuss Season Opener Against Oregon
November 04, 2023 | Men's Basketball
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia Basketball head coach Mike White and players Jabri Abdur-Rahim and Noah Thomasson met with the media on Thursday to discuss the Bulldogs' season opener against Oregon. Georgia will face the Ducks at 4:30 p.m. ET on Monday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas as part of the Naismith Hall of Fame Series. The contest will be televised by truTV.
Quotes from Coach White and the players follow:
Head Coach Mike White
On his observations of Oregon's team...
"Talented and it's a good program year in and year out. They're going to be good. They're going to be really competitive in their league and play in the postseason. That's what they do. Really big team, and a team that we've got to do a much better job on the glass than we've done to this point to be competitive against them."
On the importance of having competitive matchups on the non-conference schedule...
"I mean, we've got to prepare for the SEC, right? We want to be competitive in our league, which is going to be the best league in the country. So, we try to amp it up a little bit. We've got great opportunities starting Monday, so we'll see. We've worked hard and our guys will put their best foot forward in preparation for these next four days. I know we'll play hard, and I know we'll play together. I know we'll prepare well starting today. Hopefully we play well on Monday."
On preparing to play a team that hasn't played a game yet...
"Just rely upon the past as much as possible. We've watched a bunch of stuff from last year and you try to forecast the best you can."
On the characteristics of Dana Altman's teams...
"You know, he's won a lot of different ways. He's pretty unique in that way, and I'm not overly familiar with that side of the country, but as much as you've seen them play in the postseason and the success that they've had, of course. He's always interesting and fun to watch because sometimes they're a little bit faster. Sometimes they play a little bit slower. Sometimes they'll zone a little bit more. Sometimes they won't. He's a veteran that has won a ton of games, and he's been very successful for a long time."
On conversations with Kario Oquendo before transferring to Oregon...
"He decided to enter the portal, and we didn't have much conversation after that other than, 'How can we support you? How are you doing academically?' Stuff like that and just running into him utilizing our facilities and being around. He's a guy that we care about. I hope he has a great year. Obviously, we hope we do a good job against him, but he was a great kid to coach. He was fun to coach. He's an explosive scorer. Again, hopefully he has a great year."
On Kario Oquendo's strengths to prepare for ahead of Oregon game...
"Explosive driving and getting to the rim. Putting pressure on the rim and drawing fouls. He was a guy too, in one year of coaching him, that made big shots at big times. Really dangerous in the open floor of course as well."
On takeaways from Monday's exhibition against Eastern Kentucky...
"We took some 'my turn' shots in the second half. It was a little bit more telling when you watched the film. A little disappointing there. This team has been really unselfish, and we've moved it pretty well. Credit to EKU though for over pressuring us and making us put our heads down and make some subpar decisions at times. We got to do a better job there. Then we got to do a better job on the glass especially moving forward against bigger and stronger teams like Oregon."
On RJ Sunahara and Jalen DeLoach injury updates...
"Day to day. We'll see. Hopeful that they can contribute on Monday. You know, we need as many hands on deck as possible."
On what the pictures determined on RJ Sunahara's injury...
"Knee. Not major, but there was an injury there."
On the condition of RJ Sunahara and Jalen DeLoach's injuries...
"Yeah, definitely something right now that doesn't seem to indicate that it'll be long, long term. Hopeful that [DeLoach] will get a couple of reps today. We'll see. We'll rely on the training staff there."
On overall guard play against EKU...
"Bad shots. Did some good things. I thought Silas [Demary Jr.] was really good and played within himself. Five assists and zero turnovers, you know, we'll take that most nights from your freshman point guard. From a couple other spots there in the backcourt, we've got to pick our spots better in terms of what our shot means."
On importance of playing within oneself for the team moving forward...
"We've got to play together. We got to move and share it, and we got to take the shot that the defense dictates. Guys have got to be ready off the bench. I like our parity. I like our depth. I like our ability to come at you from a bunch of different spots. From a personnel standpoint, I think we can be hard to prepare for in that regard."
On what he's seen from the team's depth...
"Yeah, you know, potential depth, right? How productive that depth is will remain to be seen, and we'll figure that out as time goes on."
On who he expects to step into DeLoach and Sunahara's roles if they are unable to play...
"We can play with a couple bigs or we could play some small ball. A couple of freshmen might have opportunities to play and have a little bit more of an impact than maybe otherwise they would have had. A guy like Dylan James is in the frontcourt, of course, so we'll do the best we can. We'll figure it out."
On who on the team fits the definition of an explosive scorer...
"I think this team is more of a 'do it by committee' type team. Kario was great and is great with isolations and just going to get one himself. We've got to figure that out in time. I'm not sure that will be as much us, though, this team's offensive identity."
On what he saw from Dylan James in the exhibition against EKU...
"He was good. I liked his tempo. He's got a really good feel. His pace for a true freshman, as we've talked about a few times, is nice and slow. He lets it come to him. He's got a high basketball IQ, great length and versatility. Good player."
On if he exchanged tapes after the exhibition...
"No. We've got very little to watch, so we're relying heavily upon last year."
On what he's seen in practice after the exhibition and getting ready for the first game...
"Day off and back at it today. Excuse me, we went one day and then had a day off. It all runs together. We got some stuff done a couple days ago. Nothing Oregon-specific. That'll start today and tomorrow and heavily in those next couple of days."
On who stands out as the biggest defenders on the team...
"We need everyone that we play to be good defenders to compete in this league. The veteran guys are probably a little bit ahead right now. Noah [Thomasson], Russ [Tchewa], JJ [Jalen DeLoach], RJ [Melendez], and those guys come to mind. Justin Hill's a developing defender who has become a little more committed to becoming a pitbull on the basketball, but we've got to find some others too."
On the travel schedule for Monday's game...
"We'll get out there a day and a half early. We'll go out there Saturday afternoon, get in in the evening. Not going to do much sightseeing. We'll do some eating and some filming and prepare when we get out there. We'll have as good of a practice as we can on Sunday and get ready for Monday."
#1 Jabri Abdur-Rahim | Sr. Guard
On the attitude of the team going into the season opener...
"We're all excited. Finally, a real game. When you go through summer, fall and training. It kind of gets a little repetitive playing against each other all the time. You do all the scrimmages and exhibitions, but the real thing is something you've been looking forward to. So, we're really, really excited to play."
On his takeaways from the exhibition against Eastern Kentucky...
"I thought we scored it well. We didn't rebound it as well as we wanted to. Could've defended a little bit better. I thought there were some highs to take away. Then watching the film and coaches' feedback, there were definitely some things that we needed to work on. As expected, it was the first time, well second time we got out there. We took away what we needed to take away, and we're going to get ready for Monday."
On the excitement level to play in Las Vegas...
"Really excited. Vegas is a cool place, and for us to get the opportunity to play there against another high-major team is exciting. We are definitely looking forward to it."
On if this game is a chance to enhance the program...
"I think it's a big opportunity for us to really get out there for the first time and show the public against a really, really good team is definitely a high-level opportunity. I think we are all ready for it. We've been working really, really hard. It's definitely a good opportunity to show what we've been working on."
On if this season feels different than his previous two for Georgia...
"I feel like this team is more connected, and like I said before, a lot of that has to do with a lot of the guys on the team. We have a lot of older guys, a lot of mature guys and guys who have won at different places, so I think everybody fits in really well with one another. We all really like each other, and I feel like everybody's game really compliments each other in some way or form. It's a really close team, and I think it's going to show on the court."
On if playing a high-level opponent to start the season is a motivator...
"It's huge. You take every game serious, right? An opponent like that you really have to get up for. I think it's a huge opportunity, and it's something that we are not going to take for granted. I think we are ready to go."
On talking with the team about former UGA player Kario Oquendo...
"I know his game well, so I'm ready for what's coming. That's one of my best friends, so I'm looking forward to it for sure. I haven't seen him in a while, so it's going to be cool."
On if he keeps in touch with Oquendo...
"We talk. We text a lot, but I haven't seen him in person, so hopefully we will get some time to catch up. That would be good."
On Oquendo's strengths...
"He's a really confident offensive player. He's a strong downhill driver. Obviously, he's really athletic, so we have to be prepared for all of that. He's a really good player."
On if we spoke with Oquendo about his transfer decision...
"No, we didn't talk about it."
On what has stood out to him about the Oregon team...
"I think just knowing the level of the Pac-12 right now and knowing how good of a conference that is right now. Just knowing the coach that is there and the success that they've had in the past, and I know they have a lot of good freshmen and a lot of good transfers. We just know how talented they are. We have to be prepared for that."
#3 Noah Thomasson | G | Gr.
On what he learned about the team from the exhibition against Eastern Kentucky…
"We're really diverse. If you look at everybody on our team, we all bring something else to the game. There's a lot of high-flying plays and just good basketball overall. I was really confident, and I felt good about the win."
On the vibe of the team heading into the season-opening game against Oregon…
"Everybody's excited. The opportunity to play in Las Vegas at a nice arena in T-Mobile Arena, play against a really good team in Oregon, we're fired up and we can't wait to play."
On his initial impressions of the Ducks…
"Obviously, they have a familiar face from our team last year. I wasn't here to play with him, but Kario [Oquendo] is a really good player. They have a couple transfers coming in and a couple freshmen that are really good. It's going to be a really good game. I'm excited."
On how big of a motivator it is to compete against a high-caliber team to open the season…
"Speaking for myself, coming from a mid-major level, the opportunity to open up against Oregon in the nice city of Las Vegas is always a big-time deal to do. It's a chance to get our feet wet and get started and kind of see where we're at as a team is always exciting to do."
On what he sees as his role on the team…
"Just be a veteran guard, a leader. Help out guys like Silas [Demary Jr.] and Blue Cain and try to be that extension of Coach White every day. Just bring in positive vibes and score when I have to, facilitate, when I need to, and just play defense.
On how he thinks the team still needs to improve…
"We've just got to rebound better and communicate. Like I said, it's a new team. It's obviously not going to be the first day where we're playing a real game with fans for the first time. It's not a sprint, it's a marathon. It's going to take time, but I think we have a chance to be really good."
On his individual performance in the exhibition game against EKU…
"I played okay. I hit some shots. I didn't rebound well from a guard perspective. Just a chance to get better every single day is obviously the goal."
On how much the team sees Monday as an opportunity to set the standard for the season…
"I think it's a big opportunity for us. A lot of people are saying we're one of the lower-ranked teams in the SEC, which we try not to worry about things like that. The SEC is a really good league, so a chance to put a statement to America that the Georgia Bulldogs are back is obviously a big opportunity for us, so we're excited."
