duncan228
10-30-2010, 11:15 PM
Post Game Quotes (http://www.nba.com/spurs/news/quotes_101030.html)
Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich
On having a lead to start the 3rd quarter…what happened - “It was a 22 -7 run over a period of time. I thought in the first half we played sloppily. I thought during the 22 - 7 run in the second half, we played poorly. So we went from sloppy to poor. Then we finally go a group on the court that played with some activity, some energy and some sharp play. I thought they did a real good job down the stretch in a lot of ways on both ends of the court. But, it’s a 48 minute game and we played for one of those quarters…one and a half of those quarters. The result was not good for us.”
On the defense which seemed active - “You gotta shoot the ball too. We had our big guys for a period that were 0-for. The perimeter people were 0-for for a good amount of time. You can play all the “D” you want, but you’ve also got to put the ball in the bucket and we didn’t have enough people play well enough in that area.”
On the energy of the team that was on the court at the end - “I thought they were more aggressive. I thought they were very aggressive, very active, did their work early and were real aggressive offensively and they made a few shots. When you make shots, things look a whole lot different.
On Gary Neal - “I thought Gary was great. I was real impressed with the way he played.”
DeJuan Blair
On the unit that finished the game - “It was good unit. We always play well together. We just fell up short because we started too late. We had a terrible first half and a terrible quarter, so that’s what you get for only playing one quarter. The unit was moving and there was a groove in the last 12 minutes. We played well, but our shots weren’t falling. We’ll get everything together.”
On if he's still finding his range - “I’m just playing. I’m not worried about when to bust out the shot. I’m going to shoot until I make it. I’m really not thinking. I’m just going to keep playing. I’ve been 2-for-9 and 2-for-10 but that’s just been my luck and I’m just playing through it.”
George Hill
On if he thought the group on the floor at the end would complete the comeback - “Any time I’m out there, I try to do the best I can to win. The group that was out there at the end gave their best effort to try to get us back in it and we did, but you have to tip your hat to [the Hornets]. They made some great plays down the stretch.”
On if he was surprised Coach Popovich stuck with the same group at the end - “No, that’s what Pop does. If the group is rolling, he’s going to keep with that group until the car stops. The defense was there, but we have to start making shots.”
On if he though Richard Jefferson’s three-pointer would be good at the end - “It looked good. I was already on my way back to celebrate a little bit. That’s how it goes though. You’re going to make some and you’re going to miss some.”
On if Richard Jefferson’s confidence level is better compared to last year - “Of course, it’s his second year here and he’s a little more comfortable. That’s the Richard everyone knows and he’s going to get better as the season goes.”
Manu Ginobili
On Jefferson's three-pointer at the end - “It was a huge play. When you’re down 20 and then have opportunities to tie the game, it’s a great moment. The shot didn’t go in and we made a mistake defensively, which made it a five-point game with a minute to go and we lost a great opportunity. We should have never been in that situation going down 20. We really struggled, couldn’t make a shot, and couldn’t play any defense. They beat us in every possible way.”
On if there's any explanation for the bad play - “I guess we didn’t come from the locker room at halftime prepared. We made some bad decisions and they made every shot. We took so many open shots and it seemed like none of them were going in. The fact that we didn’t play good defense made it really hard.”
On the unit that finished the game - “We made a great effort. Against a team like them, it’s not easy to make a comeback like that and we had the shot to tie it. We moved the ball well and attacked. On the defensive, we were way more aggressive than before, so I’m proud of what we accomplished, but it’s not enough.”
On Tony Parker and Tim Duncan sitting - “Sometimes it’s going to happen. In 82 games, sometimes you are going to have a night off where the second unit comes in, plays better, and Pop adjusts and sticks with it. What made it tough was that it was both Tim and Tony out.”
Hornets Head Coach Monty Williams
On the defensive job on Tim Duncan - “Well, you’re not going to stop him with one guy; Emeka (Okafor) plays great defense against him. The thing that I like was there was a point in between the third and the fourth quarter where we had 12 consecutive stops. To me if people don’t understand how important defense is, they should now. Our team defense is coming along, we’re not there yet and I said that in the locker room just now. We’re making improvements.”
On the Spurs' run - “Well they’re going to make runs. They’ve won four rings and they know how to weather the storm. I called a time-out and settled the troops. We made a couple of adjustments. I didn’t like the way we were leaving (Gary) Neal open for the threes. That lead to opening up the paint a little bit and it was easy to get lay-ups. They made a run, but we stayed on top of it and weathered the storm. Once we got those stops Chris (Paul), Willie (Green), Marcus (Thornton) were able to push the ball. It all goes back to the defense. Once we get those stops then we can run. I think we’re going to continue to get better.”
On the Hornets' bench players tonight - “Marcus and Willie are the catalyst for the bench. Jerryd (Bayless) is coming along, he just got here. I’m already looking forward to practice to shore up some things we didn’t do well.”
On the 3-0 start for a young team - “I’m too young for all this stuff. (jokingly pointing to his beard) This is going to get white pretty soon. It is gratifying to come in here and get a win. Any road win is big. At the same time we have a lot to improve on. Our locker room is coming together, because they are starting to understand the importance of defense.”
Chris Paul
On what was working for them tonight - “Our defense. Our defense is what worked for us tonight. Coach came in after the game and told us that we got 12 consecutive stops at one point. That’s what we practiced all during training camp and it’s still a learning process for us. We still didn’t execute as well as we would have liked, but we’ll take it.”
On the 3-0 start this season - “Am I surprised? No. I’m not surprised. I like it, but I’m not surprised. We’re professionals. Every night we step out there on the court we go out there with the mindset that we’re going to win.”
On being healthy to start the season - “You have no idea how good it feels to play basketball again. Last year…sitting on the sidelines…you just want to get out there and compete. This is what I do. Just to be out there and playing now is exciting because until you get injured, you take it for granted.”
On holding off the Spurs' late run - “I think it says that our team has a lot of character. We’ve got guys that have been in big-game situations. Trevor has won a championship. Willie has been in the league for eight years. Me and David have seen this before. We went to a seven-game series with these Spurs. We know what they are capable of.”
On Parker's absence in the fourth - “I wasn’t surprised. I play against the Spurs four times a year, so I sort of know how Pop goes. He’s one of those coaches that whatever group gets you back into the game, he’s going to let those guys ride it out. Those are the guys that brought them back to begin with. That team right there…they’re just so deep. There’s not too many teams out there that can leave a guy like Tony or Tim on the bench and come back like that.”
Willie Green
On the game - “It was a big road win for us, especially coming off another win against Denver. It was the second night of a back-to-back, traveling involved, and some of our guys came from San Antonio. It was a big win for us tonight. We’re happy to get out of here with the win.”
On the 3-0 start with so many new players on the team - “It feels good to start 3-0. It’s a great step in the right direction. Obviously there’s plenty of basketball left to be played this season, but all through training camp and all through the preseason we’ve been working on becoming a good defensive team. If we’re able to play defense and rebound the ball then we know we have an opportunity to win every game. Tonight was a good example of us just sticking together. Those guys were able to make a good run in the fourth quarter and we were able to come out with the win.”
On their bench play - “Coach has been on us lately about coming in and making sure we’re ready to play our defense and play with toughness. Tonight we played against a great San Antonio team, but our bench was able to come in and give a little spark and help us lock up the win.”
Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich
On having a lead to start the 3rd quarter…what happened - “It was a 22 -7 run over a period of time. I thought in the first half we played sloppily. I thought during the 22 - 7 run in the second half, we played poorly. So we went from sloppy to poor. Then we finally go a group on the court that played with some activity, some energy and some sharp play. I thought they did a real good job down the stretch in a lot of ways on both ends of the court. But, it’s a 48 minute game and we played for one of those quarters…one and a half of those quarters. The result was not good for us.”
On the defense which seemed active - “You gotta shoot the ball too. We had our big guys for a period that were 0-for. The perimeter people were 0-for for a good amount of time. You can play all the “D” you want, but you’ve also got to put the ball in the bucket and we didn’t have enough people play well enough in that area.”
On the energy of the team that was on the court at the end - “I thought they were more aggressive. I thought they were very aggressive, very active, did their work early and were real aggressive offensively and they made a few shots. When you make shots, things look a whole lot different.
On Gary Neal - “I thought Gary was great. I was real impressed with the way he played.”
DeJuan Blair
On the unit that finished the game - “It was good unit. We always play well together. We just fell up short because we started too late. We had a terrible first half and a terrible quarter, so that’s what you get for only playing one quarter. The unit was moving and there was a groove in the last 12 minutes. We played well, but our shots weren’t falling. We’ll get everything together.”
On if he's still finding his range - “I’m just playing. I’m not worried about when to bust out the shot. I’m going to shoot until I make it. I’m really not thinking. I’m just going to keep playing. I’ve been 2-for-9 and 2-for-10 but that’s just been my luck and I’m just playing through it.”
George Hill
On if he thought the group on the floor at the end would complete the comeback - “Any time I’m out there, I try to do the best I can to win. The group that was out there at the end gave their best effort to try to get us back in it and we did, but you have to tip your hat to [the Hornets]. They made some great plays down the stretch.”
On if he was surprised Coach Popovich stuck with the same group at the end - “No, that’s what Pop does. If the group is rolling, he’s going to keep with that group until the car stops. The defense was there, but we have to start making shots.”
On if he though Richard Jefferson’s three-pointer would be good at the end - “It looked good. I was already on my way back to celebrate a little bit. That’s how it goes though. You’re going to make some and you’re going to miss some.”
On if Richard Jefferson’s confidence level is better compared to last year - “Of course, it’s his second year here and he’s a little more comfortable. That’s the Richard everyone knows and he’s going to get better as the season goes.”
Manu Ginobili
On Jefferson's three-pointer at the end - “It was a huge play. When you’re down 20 and then have opportunities to tie the game, it’s a great moment. The shot didn’t go in and we made a mistake defensively, which made it a five-point game with a minute to go and we lost a great opportunity. We should have never been in that situation going down 20. We really struggled, couldn’t make a shot, and couldn’t play any defense. They beat us in every possible way.”
On if there's any explanation for the bad play - “I guess we didn’t come from the locker room at halftime prepared. We made some bad decisions and they made every shot. We took so many open shots and it seemed like none of them were going in. The fact that we didn’t play good defense made it really hard.”
On the unit that finished the game - “We made a great effort. Against a team like them, it’s not easy to make a comeback like that and we had the shot to tie it. We moved the ball well and attacked. On the defensive, we were way more aggressive than before, so I’m proud of what we accomplished, but it’s not enough.”
On Tony Parker and Tim Duncan sitting - “Sometimes it’s going to happen. In 82 games, sometimes you are going to have a night off where the second unit comes in, plays better, and Pop adjusts and sticks with it. What made it tough was that it was both Tim and Tony out.”
Hornets Head Coach Monty Williams
On the defensive job on Tim Duncan - “Well, you’re not going to stop him with one guy; Emeka (Okafor) plays great defense against him. The thing that I like was there was a point in between the third and the fourth quarter where we had 12 consecutive stops. To me if people don’t understand how important defense is, they should now. Our team defense is coming along, we’re not there yet and I said that in the locker room just now. We’re making improvements.”
On the Spurs' run - “Well they’re going to make runs. They’ve won four rings and they know how to weather the storm. I called a time-out and settled the troops. We made a couple of adjustments. I didn’t like the way we were leaving (Gary) Neal open for the threes. That lead to opening up the paint a little bit and it was easy to get lay-ups. They made a run, but we stayed on top of it and weathered the storm. Once we got those stops Chris (Paul), Willie (Green), Marcus (Thornton) were able to push the ball. It all goes back to the defense. Once we get those stops then we can run. I think we’re going to continue to get better.”
On the Hornets' bench players tonight - “Marcus and Willie are the catalyst for the bench. Jerryd (Bayless) is coming along, he just got here. I’m already looking forward to practice to shore up some things we didn’t do well.”
On the 3-0 start for a young team - “I’m too young for all this stuff. (jokingly pointing to his beard) This is going to get white pretty soon. It is gratifying to come in here and get a win. Any road win is big. At the same time we have a lot to improve on. Our locker room is coming together, because they are starting to understand the importance of defense.”
Chris Paul
On what was working for them tonight - “Our defense. Our defense is what worked for us tonight. Coach came in after the game and told us that we got 12 consecutive stops at one point. That’s what we practiced all during training camp and it’s still a learning process for us. We still didn’t execute as well as we would have liked, but we’ll take it.”
On the 3-0 start this season - “Am I surprised? No. I’m not surprised. I like it, but I’m not surprised. We’re professionals. Every night we step out there on the court we go out there with the mindset that we’re going to win.”
On being healthy to start the season - “You have no idea how good it feels to play basketball again. Last year…sitting on the sidelines…you just want to get out there and compete. This is what I do. Just to be out there and playing now is exciting because until you get injured, you take it for granted.”
On holding off the Spurs' late run - “I think it says that our team has a lot of character. We’ve got guys that have been in big-game situations. Trevor has won a championship. Willie has been in the league for eight years. Me and David have seen this before. We went to a seven-game series with these Spurs. We know what they are capable of.”
On Parker's absence in the fourth - “I wasn’t surprised. I play against the Spurs four times a year, so I sort of know how Pop goes. He’s one of those coaches that whatever group gets you back into the game, he’s going to let those guys ride it out. Those are the guys that brought them back to begin with. That team right there…they’re just so deep. There’s not too many teams out there that can leave a guy like Tony or Tim on the bench and come back like that.”
Willie Green
On the game - “It was a big road win for us, especially coming off another win against Denver. It was the second night of a back-to-back, traveling involved, and some of our guys came from San Antonio. It was a big win for us tonight. We’re happy to get out of here with the win.”
On the 3-0 start with so many new players on the team - “It feels good to start 3-0. It’s a great step in the right direction. Obviously there’s plenty of basketball left to be played this season, but all through training camp and all through the preseason we’ve been working on becoming a good defensive team. If we’re able to play defense and rebound the ball then we know we have an opportunity to win every game. Tonight was a good example of us just sticking together. Those guys were able to make a good run in the fourth quarter and we were able to come out with the win.”
On their bench play - “Coach has been on us lately about coming in and making sure we’re ready to play our defense and play with toughness. Tonight we played against a great San Antonio team, but our bench was able to come in and give a little spark and help us lock up the win.”