Warren Gillis claims Glasgow Rocks must be ready to push through their growing pains to chase a spot in the BBL’s top four, starting with tonight’s trip to Sheffield Sharks.
The American guard, averaging 14.9 points per game, has starred and struggled in equal measure in his rookie campaign mirroring the inconsistency of Sterling Davis’ men who are still to rack up two wins in a row. And Gillis believes the Scots are guilty of letting small problems escalate into a full-blown crisis.
“Mistakes are going to happen,” he said. “We just have to be confident in ourselves and not use those as an occasion. We expect ourselves to win so if we mess up, we expect ourselves to fix it. Sometimes teams make tough shots. Sometimes they make easy shots. It’s the easy ones we have to stop because the tough ones are just great plays.”
Sheffield, who ended Leicester’s unbeaten start last weekend, inflicted Glasgow’s heaviest loss of the season so far when they pulled off a 90-62 rout at the Emirates Arena last month. And the Rocks, the league’s second-worst rebounding team, must be prepared to hustle for every advantage, Gillis concedes.
“As a team, we gave up too many offensive rebounds last time we met Sheffield, so that’s something we need to cut out,” he said. “We know what we’re capable of. Against Newcastle, we were with them to the final two minutes but we lost our focus. I know I need to be more efficient.”
Meanwhile reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Steph Curry has admitted the Golden State Warriors will target the league’s longest-ever winning streak after pulling off a record-breaking 16-0 start to the season. The All Star, whose side have emerged as clear favourites to defend the title they won last June, now need 18 more wins to surpass the mammoth unbeaten run of the LA Lakers, set 43 years ago.
“We talk about 33,” Curry told The Herald. “I think I've probably talked about it more than anybody else on the team, just because I know about the history and just really how hard it is. We've had like two 16-game winning streaks the last two years and those are pretty special feats. For us to have to double that output, I mean we're going to play hard and hopefully close in on that record.
“But it won't be a disappointing effort if we don't get there. Because there are so many talented teams in this league and for us to just be playing at a high level right now that's what we're worried about. And if we close in and get to 29, 30 games, we'll talk about it a little bit more.”
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