Q&A: Scott Brooks

Courtesy of John Rohde

Your overall thoughts on training camp so far?

“I thought we had a great week of basketball. We have three more to go.”

There have been a lot of nice things said about rookie Perry Jones III. Are you worried there might be too much expected?

“We're excited about what he brings. We're excited about his effort and the energy and the person that he is, but he is also a rookie. It's not easy to break into this league and also to break in with our team. He has guy ahead of him who are young that are good who have five or six years experience if he plays behind Kevin (Durant) or Serge (Ibaka). He's a guy who can (play) multiple positions and that's always a big asset to our team.”

What are your plans for Lazar Hayward this season?

“He's a 2-3, a 3-2. He's a perimeter player. He's really done a great job coming back in great shape. Just appearance-wise, he's lost a few pounds. He looks great and he's working. He can guard 2s and 3s and some shooting 4s. I like what I've seen the first week out of him.”

How have centers Hasheem Thabeet and Daniel Orton fared?

“I like both of them. I like what they bring. Daniel, he has a good feel for the game. He has a good sense of where to be. He's an offensive rebounder. He gets us extra possessions with his tap outs. And he has some toughness. I think (Thabeet) has really done a good job. For a guy 7-3, you don't normally say athletic. But he's pretty athletic. He gets up and down the court. He can move pretty good. I'm happy with that.”

Backup guard Reggie Jackson excelled at times at the Orlando Summer League. How much do you read into Summer League performances?

“I think you have to read some things into it. Summer League is important, but there are a lot of great Summer League players. I was one of them (smiling).”