Interview: Raivio discusses Summer League

Former Mountain View High School standout Nik Raivio discusses his first three days of practice with the Portland Trail Blazers’ Summer League team.

Raivio on how things are going:

It feels good. You’ve got a lot of guys who are draft guys. … Some Summer League teams have 17 guys. Some guys who were drafted only get two minutes a game. Some guys who went undrafted get 25. So, one game you might play; one game you might play 20 (minutes). So, you’ve just got to always be ready.

On how he feels about things he can control, such as his shot and conditioning:

I feel great with things I can control. Even with the small opportunities I get, I’ve done well. They threw me in at point guard. I did well. Had a couple assists. You’ve just got to be ready for whatever, any situation. Whatever opportunity I’m in, I try to take advantage of. I don’t know if it’s going to be 30 seconds or three minutes. I’m trying to go hard out on the court and not have any regrets.

On the sets the team is running:

They’ve put in a few basic sets. But just a few quick hitters. It’s pretty much play; make your reads. For me in college, I could pretty much get the ball and attack whenever I wanted. Here, everyone wants to attack and shoot. So, I find myself — I’m still shooting open shots. But I’m trying to do a lot more dishing and rebounding. It’s kind of nice having other guys around who can make plays and score.