'Nobody wants them to go in more than me': Fred VanVleet on shooting slump

Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet discusses how teams are scheming against him differently and the upcoming tilt vs. the Lakers.

Video Transcript

- Even though they're not falling right now, are you happy with the looks you're getting and the shots you're taking?

FRED VANVLEET: I think so. I mean, some of them, some of them are great looks, shots that I take. Some of them are a little more contested in the films, in the game when I go back and break the film down. But it's just one of those things.

They're not going right now. And you know, I just need a spark to turn it around. And I'm not really concerned about it. Obviously, I would like to be-- nobody wants them to go in more than me, trust me. But it's just the way it goes sometimes.

So you just can't get too high or too low with it. And just keep working and trying to find ways to get better.

- You haven't been in a lot of these extended funks over the course of your career. But do you go back and look at some of those and how you got out of them? And do you take anything away from that, or--

FRED VANVLEET: Yeah, I mean, some of it is very situational. So it's hard to try to translate that. But I mean, once you're in it, it's all just mental, you know what I'm saying? There's nothing really more to it.

It's just mental, just trying to find a flow and a rhythm to what we got going on, and probably just a product of the situation. It hasn't been pretty out there for me, personally. So you've got to go back to the drawing board to find ways to be successful. And you know, I'll do that. I'm not concerned about it.

- Freddy, when you look at-- you go over clips or tape, are you looking more at your 3-point looks, or kind of at the rim and [INAUDIBLE]?

FRED VANVLEET: I look at everything.

- Yeah.

FRED VANVLEET: I look at everything just to see-- it happens so fast out there that when you look at the tape, you might see other things. So you just look and see, make sure your fundamentals are in shape, and your skill and everything is-- and you've just got to go out there and make them. It's a fine line between making them and missing them. And over the last week, I've been missing them. And you know, I'll get back to it soon.

- Are teams playing you a little different, trying to run you off the line, get you into the paint, challenge you there, that kind of thing?

FRED VANVLEET: Yes. I mean, there's a lot going on. I mean, like, a lot going on all across the board. I'm not really going to go run down the list with you guys. I'll just play better. And then you'll have better things to talk about.

But there's definitely a lot of reasons for this situation I'm in. And I'm going to continue to just keep working and showing up, being professional, and giving everything I got when I step out there. So hopefully, it'll turn around soon.

- Freddy, a lot of teams early in the season were wondering whether the Lakers were going to be any good. They're old, and you got a [INAUDIBLE]. But now, they're rolling.

FRED VANVLEET: Yeah.

- What do you see when you're looking at guys like that?

FRED VANVLEET: I mean, you've still got LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook. They filled some pieces around the board. Lonnie Walker was a good addition. Austin Reaves is playing great. They got players. They got players.

And Coach Ham and their staff are doing a great job of giving those guys an identity on how they want to play. And sometimes, you need a little adversity to knock you into shape a little bit. I think they went through that. It's good to go through it early.

And now, they're finding who they want to be. So definitely a tough team to play right now.

- And they've got some veteran players who've probably been through all kinds of [INAUDIBLE].

FRED VANVLEET: Yeah, no doubt. Yeah, they've been around the block a little bit. So they've seen it all. And the level that AD's playing at right now, it makes them a tough team to play any night when he's rolling like that. So that definitely could change the dynamic of your team.

- Fred, there's the style, obviously, that you guys want to play-- creating extra possessions, turnovers, getting out and running. Do you feel like you guys are able to win in different ways right now when, like, let's say you guys aren't winning the possession battle or the game isn't going exactly the way that you want it to go?

FRED VANVLEET: I think it's been a little bit of both. Like, we've seen a lot. I mean, what are we, 24 games in, I think, you know what I mean? I think we've seen a lot. We've seen good losses, bad losses, bad wins, good wins. Like, we've seen a lot of different things.

We're not really where we need to be. And that's not a bad place to be. We've just got to grow out of this.

I mean, we've just got to make that jump if we want to be a great team. I talked about it the other day. I think we're a really good team. I think we've got a lot of talent. And we've got good players.

But there's a level that you have to get to of just consistency and execution and attention to detail. And those are the things that we're struggling on right now. And that's why you see the lack of consistency.

It's hard to win every night in this league if you're not going to be sharp and attentive. And you make too many mistakes, you beat yourself. And we've just got to get to the point to where we're not beating ourselves.

- When you talk about that inconsistency, do you see that as taking steps in the right direction? Or do you still feel like you never know what you're going to probably get on a night to night basis?

FRED VANVLEET: I think we're trending in the right direction. Again, we had a tough stretch of guys being out and unhealthy, and tough schedule. And now, we're getting back. And everybody's-- we're trying to figure out what it's going to look like all together.

So it's early, man. We've got a long way to go. It's a long season. And I'm confident that we'll turn out to be who we think we are at a certain point.

It's just patience is easier said than done. So it sucks in the moment sometimes. But you've just got to trust the bigger picture.

- Last night, you guys played one of those great teams in the league. Did that show you how close-- how close do you think you are to being one of those teams? You said it's a big gap. But how did it feel?

FRED VANVLEET: I think it was-- I mean, we lost the third quarter, you know what I mean? We were whatever it was, 17 points difference in the third. I mean, that's the game right there. The rest of the game was pretty much back and forth, even.

They came out and they put together an incredible third quarter. And again, that's how small that margin can be, you know what I mean? One quarter away is the difference.

But we've got what it takes. We've just got some growing to do. And everybody is on their own track. So you can't really compare teams, our trajectory to theirs.

Like, I'm sure they went through their struggles before they got to this point. And we're going through our growing pains before we get to the finished product of what we're going to be, too.