Phoenix Suns' Josh Okogie: "I’m going to give my team everything I have"
Ever since the trade deadline this NBA season, all eyes across the NBA have been fixated on the Phoenix Suns because of their superstar core of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton.
This group has been fantastic together when they are all out there on the floor together and they led the Suns to the 4-seed in the Western Conference. However, what has flown under-the-radar in Phoenix are the contributions from their role players, especially the impact of Josh Okogie.
Drafted 20th overall in 2018 by the Minnesota Timberwolves, Okogie recently joined the Suns this past offseason after spending the first four seasons of his career in Minnesota. Initially seeing very limited minutes off-the-bench to begin the season, Okogie quickly flipped the script and became a key part of his team’s nightly rotation, even starting in 26 of the 72 total regular season games he played in!
Finishing the regular season averaging 7.3 points and 3.5 rebounds in about 18.8 minutes per game, Okogie has made his mark in Phoenix with his rebounding, defensive effort and improved three-point shooting numbers.
Ahead of the start of their first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers, which is currently in progress, Josh Okogie took some time to talk to Fastbreak on FanNation about the success he has found in his first season with the Suns, as well as why he believes Phoenix has a chance to win their first NBA championship.
After spending the first four seasons of your career with the Minnesota Timberwolves, what made you want to join the Phoenix Suns this past offseason?
Josh Okogie: Well for starters, I was a free agent! Minnesota did not extend my qualifying offer and Phoenix was one of the first teams to reach out to me in free agency with real interest. Obviously there weren’t a lot of moves being made in free agency last year though because of Kevin Durant request a trade from Brooklyn and stuff like that, so when Phoenix told me they wanted me to join the organization and obviously I had seen how great their culture was, that was a no-brainer decision for me. To be able to join that group of Devin Booker, Chris Paul, Monty Williams and what he has built with this organization, I knew this was the right move for me.
What would you say is the biggest thing you learned early on in your career in Minnesota?
JO: Definitely how to stay level-headed. How to fall in love with my routines and the process of staying prepared and wanting to improve. So many young players enter the league and think they’ve made it, which you can celebrate for a little bit, but it is all about what you are going to do next and how you are going to better yourself. Learning how to tone out the outside noise and not letting it affect my routine was a big lesson too. I’m grateful for the time I had with the Timberwolves and it has definitely helped me grow into the player I am today.
When you initially signed with Phoenix, what did you anticipate your role being?
JO: They kind of told me that they wanted someone to be able to come off-the-bench and not only be a backup for Booker, but someone who could provide more defense off-the-bench. I’ve always taken pride in the effort I have given defensively and my main goal was to come into Phoenix and try to impact winning to the best of my abilities. Whatever role they needed me in, I was willing to accept if it helped further the team’s chances of winning.
Obviously your role changed at the trade deadline with Kevin Durant’s arrival, but you really started making an impact near the end of 2022 and especially leading up to the deadline in February. What changed for you to be able to find all of this success rebounding and shooting from the perimeter?
JO: Just my confidence. When I miss a shot or two, I didn’t want to shoot the third one, but Coach Monty and my teammates are always pushing me and saying that they believe in me. You know, no matter how many shots I may miss, they want me to keep believing that the next one is going to go in instead of giving the ball up to someone else. The confidence we all have in one another has made each of us better players. When you have your teammates, your coaches and your front-office believing in you like that, it’s hard not to succeed.
Going back to the trade deadline, what was your initial reaction when you initially heard that Kevin Durant was coming to Phoenix?
JO: My first thought was the same as everyone else. I was shocked and in my mind, I was just like, 'Wow!' The second thing that crossed my mind immediately was, 'I’m probably playing tomorrow' because of the fact that Mikal [Bridges] and Cam [Johnson] were being traded. For real though, it was one of those things I didn't believe at first and still can’t believe sometimes because of how special of a player Kevin [Durant] is.
What has been some of the biggest advice Durant has given you or what’s an area in which he’s really helped you grow as a young talent since his arrival?
JO: I’m not sure if advice is the right word or not, but I have learned a lot just by the way he conducts himself. The way KD comes in every day and falls in love with the daily grind is something that really resonates with me and many others in the organization. As good as he is, Kevin is always looking for ways to get better and make his teammates better, which says a lot about his character. I’ve always been a guy who shows up and gets his work in, but when you see a guy like him, the first player to have a 55-40-90 season in league history, is showing up and giving it his all, it makes you want to strive for more. There are a lot of great talents in the league, but a lot of them don’t really put the work in on an everyday basis because you know, they are already really good. But seeing a player of Kevin’s caliber working out like he’s not who he is, I feel like that speaks volumes to him and also to me in terms of I’m not even close to being at where he is, so I have no excuse for leaving the gym early or not putting in the work and feeling like I need to take a day off or things like that! He’s elevated the mindset of everyone around him and has expanded on the great culture we already had.
Who would you say is the goofball of the team that always brings a lot of energy and is always the guy to make everyone else smile?
JO: Torrey Craig, you don’t even have to finish the question! T-Craig is the answer. I’ve never seen Torrey have a bad day. He may say some off-the-wall stuff sometimes, but he just brings light to everyone’s day. Torrey is just goofy and I love having him as a teammate.
What makes Monty Williams such a great coach and what are some of the lessons that he has taught you?
JO: I feel like with Mont, the biggest thing is just his humbleness and his humility. He definitely preaches gratitude and he always says this is a 'get to, not a got to.' Sometimes he just tells everyone to take a second and be thankful for where we are and that’s just the type of person he is. He’s always just so thankful and I think that spreads throughout the team. We are all about hoops, he’s all about hoops and he just knows how to give each of us the confidence we need to go out there and play to the best of our abilities. He truly cares about us not just as players, but as friends and human beings, which is why I think he is one of the best coaches in this entire league.
You were most recently recognized with the Dan Marjele hustle award by the Suns for the 2022-23 season, which is given to the member of the Phoenix Suns who exhibited the most hustle, grit and determination over the course of the regular season. What did it mean to you to receive such a recognition?
JO: It means a lot, truly. Obviously a lot of the things I do on the court for my team doesn’t necessarily show up when you look at the stats at the end of the game, so this recognition basically honors those things. Like I said, I take a lot of pride on defense and doing the little things to help impact winning. To win in this league, obviously you have guys like D-Book and KD who are scoring every game, but you also need guys who are willing to do the other things that don’t always show up and won’t always get them recognition. To be able to get that award and to be able to know that people care about the little stuff, that’s big because the little stuff wins games.
You know, you had a bunch of great games this year, but the one that sticks out to me was on March 16 against the Magic. You did not have your best shooting night, but you still scored 15 points and impacted the game in other areas with four rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks, one of which was the game-winning block against who many think is the Rookie of the Year in Paolo Banchero. What went through your mind on this play and how did you know he was going to be the one ending up with the ball?
JO: I just kind of read the game, how much time was on the clock and what situation we were facing. I knew it was going to be either him or Franz Wagner that was going to take that last shot. I was actually guarding Franz to begin the play, but then we switched every screen up top, so I ended up on Paolo [Banchero]. I knew that as soon as he caught the ball, he had to take the shot, so I used that to my advantage. Initially, our game plan was to foul them since we were up three with a few seconds left, but I knew I had the extra step on him, I anticipated the shot and instead of playing the free-throw game with them, I got the block. It can be tricky fouling a guy with limited seconds left because you never want to put the game in the hands of the referees and have them make a call that is questionable. It happens more times than not, where a guy fouls a three-point shooter, so as soon as I saw him catch the ball after switching, I knew I had a chance to get the block. Coach wanted us to foul, but I knew we probably shouldn’t foul that late in the clock and have the game put in the referees hands. Hey, we got the win and that is all that matters!
How are you feeling heading into your first-round playoff series against the Clippers and what does it mean to you to be able to showcase your skills on the league’s biggest stage?
JO: I’m not even thinking of it that way to be honest with you. For me, every day is just about me asking myself, 'how can I help my team win each individual game?' I know people say it’s series-to-series, but for me, it’s game-to-game because I know my role may not be the same every night, especially in the postseason. I’m feeling good and I’m willing to do whatever is needed of me to help us win games, regardless of the minutes I see and no matter if I have to sacrifice anything. When my number is called, I will be ready to go and I’m going to give my team everything I have.
What makes the Phoenix Suns the team to beat in the playoffs this season in your mind and why do you think you guys can win a championship this year?
JO: I feel like our passion to play both ends is unmatched. We got guys who can score in so many different ways, but we also have a handful of guys who take pride in guarding on the defensive-end of the floor as well. You have to have balance to be a great team in this league and at the end of the day, we all believe in one another and that’s all that matters. We believe we have what it takes to win it all and nobody else’s opinion on that matters.
You know, there was a video on Twitter recently of you all at practice showing you, Torrey Craig and Chris Paul’s son, Chris Paul Jr., playing a game of HORSE. Do you want to clarify who actually won this game because there seems to be some conflicting reports out there!
JO: Yeah, I was not playing! I am not sure who started spreading that rumor, but they weren’t even playing HORSE, they were playing PIG. Torrey was playing Chris Paul’s son in PIG and little Chris was doing this trick-shot layup where he went between his legs and hit the shot. I went out on the court just for fun to see if I could do it and it was a funky layup. I ended up making the shot, but I definitely wasn’t a participant in that game! After I tried that layup, I sat back down, but that game was between T-Craig and little Chris, I had nothing to do with that!
So who ended up winning that game Torrey or Chris Jr.?
JO: That’s not even a question for me, I’m going to leave that between them! I’m not going to tell you who won that game! I am going to leave that between them, but let the record show I was not playing. I don’t know why people tried to drag me into that game!
You signed a one-year deal with the Suns in the offseason and you will be a free agent again this upcoming summer. Is staying in Phoenix with this organization something you envision?
JO: I’ll take care of all of that when the time comes. I feel like that’s the great thing about this game and that’s why you hire an agent! All of my focus is on basketball and on the playoffs right now. I’m not even thinking about where I want to be long-term, yet alone next season. I do love Phoenix though. I appreciate the organization for bringing me in this season and letting me be a part of something special. I love everything about the culture here, the organization and the city, so I wouldn’t mind staying, but like I said, that’s something between the front-office and my agent. All of my focus right now man is on basketball, that’s the fun part about this!
Looking ahead five, ten, even 15 years down the line, what do you want people to remember about Josh Okogie in the NBA?
JO: I don’t want people to remember anything about me in the NBA. I feel like being in the NBA, I have been given a platform to help change people’s lives for the better. To help out in the community, be a voice for the unspoken and be able to have hope. I am so grateful for the life I have and any way I can help change people’s lives for the better outside of the NBA, I am going to do my best to aid them. I want people to remember me as a good Samaritan and not an NBA player.
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