nbascribe
06-19-2006, 01:27 AM
Okay here's the transcript of interviews from tonight's game for everyone to read.
G. Moore
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MIAMI HEAT
An Interview With:
COACH PAT RILEY
Q. Dwyane Wade kind of started off rough in the beginning, but can you talk about as the game went on how he was able to exploit Dallas's defense?
PAT RILEY: I don't know if he exploited anything. Their defense was I think geared to him. He was 3 for 13 in the first half. He was having a hard time finding spaces and gaps. And, you know, once we started the stop running plays for him and giving him the ball at the high post, he was making his jumpshots.
I think finally pulling up instead of trying to find airspace, and the fact that he was making enough of them, was what won us the game.
Q. How important was the run that you had at the end of the third quarter?
PAT RILEY: Well, we're down eight, throughout the third quarter at 30, I think they had this 21 9 run again on us just before the half, and that was big. It was huge to be able to close the gap. My fear was that it would get into double digits, and it's very hard to come back all the time. We got it down to I think 71 70 or something like that at one point and from there, it was probably one of the greatest games I've ever been around, part of. Everybody making big shots; you know, the shot that Dirk made to put them ahead by one, I don't think you can defend it any better than that. There's no way that you could defend it. It was nothing but net.
Then Dwyane made the play he had to make.
Q. On the last play, was Dwyane supposed to keep the ball and basically shoot under any circumstances, or did he decide on his own just to go one on three, one on four?
PAT RILEY: Well, they were in a zone the two possessions prior to that, and you don't know what they are going to come out in.
Obviously the important thing for us was to get him the ball, make sure we got him the ball. Because I think if it went to anybody else first, they would have denied him, and he had to have it. So he ran into the backcourt to get it.
Last thing he said to me coming out of the time out is, "Coach, I want to go left, I want to go left."
I said, "Well, tell Shaquille to move out of there." So he went right twice and came back left, anyhow. That's what Dwyane is now, if there was an open man; but I think he was so committed, and I've seen him do it before, trying to find a gap that he would have created a shot, I think probably the best shot.
But we did not have a second option, believe me.
Q. Can you talk about or describe how Dwyane's mentality prepared him for being able to take those last two free throws, especially with the break in between?
PAT RILEY: He's a great free throw shooter, first of all. I think his percentage in the last eight or nine minutes of the game or last five minutes of the game is up in the 90s, you know, so he's a winner. That's all you can say, he's just a winner. To make both free throws, hit nothing but net, is just what he's about.
Q. Are there other players who have, especially if they had that
PAT RILEY: What's that?
Q. Well, are there other players that maybe with the confusion or break would have come back unfocused?
PAT RILEY: Dwyane was pretty calm while that stuff was going on and he took that inadvertent time out, I think he did. But he stayed right on the rim most of the time, which isn't saying much.
Q. Can you talk about the task at hand now, having to win one more at Dallas, a place you haven't won in four years.
PAT RILEY: Well, law of averages. (Laughing) It's going to take a lot more than that, but we'll see. I'd much rather go down there this way, one game away from the Championship, instead of having to win two in a row. I mean, they played a great game tonight. They did everything they could to win. And now it's our job to go into a very hostile environment and do something this franchise has never done. That's what it's about.
Q. Do you rely on your coaching past experience to bring you threw this one here?
PAT RILEY: Well, I know I can get through it. I think it's getting out all of us right now. I can get through it and I'll do the best job I can to give them a chance, period.
Q. You said a moment ago, "inadvertent time out," do you believe that there was some confusion or is Dwyane the kind of player that he knows what to do, or does he just have to keep shooting?
PAT RILEY: They were denying the ball. They weren't making it easy for him. Probably he could have got off the ball a little bit more in the first half, you know, which is what we did talk about, if they were going to try to stop him, there would be people open. But we began to open up the floor for him, that's all. We have a set that, you know, he can run two or three things out of it, but at least everybody can see where he is and he can see where everybody else is in that situation.
Q. Dwyane was 21 for 25, even though he started off shooting poorly. Just talk about that attack mentality to get to the free throw line and how big that was?
PAT RILEY: That's it. That's his personality as a player, and it was in college, and it is now and probably forever will be. I'm sure the fact that he makes pull up jumpers now, he took what the defense gave him, but he's very, very smart when they are in the penalty. They got in the penalty third quarter, fourth quarter, a little bit early, and when they are in the penalty, he's not going to accept anything else but go to the basket.
So he gets fouled a lot on the floor and guys are bumping and banging on him and he gets the line. So it's one of the benefits of actually having Shaquille when they started to hack him, they got into the penalty rather quickly in overtime, and he gets the line.
An Interview With:
DWYANE WADE
Q. Dwyane, talk about the defense and the things that that they did against you tonight, and talk about just that whole sequence during the time out, what you were going through.
DWYANE WADE: Well, you know, the defense, I think they probably pressured me a little bit more, tried to get into my airspace a little bit more, make it hard on me.
The only difference I really seen was probably they made it when I went to the basket, they made sure I didn't finish too much. They knocked me down and put me on the floor, something I'm used to. So that was the biggest difference.
You know, at the end, the time out just with the free throws, just thinking about, you know, all the times you stepped up there and made them, you're thinking about all the times you've been in the gym and made them and just positive thoughts. So, you know, it was no question in my mind I was going to make them. There was no question in any of my teammates minds I was going to step up there and make them.
Q. Could you just talk about you guys sweeping at home, how great that is for you guys, and now also trying to win in Dallas where it's been very tough for you to get a victory.
DWYANE WADE: Yeah, you know, we took care of business at home like we're supposed to do. Won three games, two of them in dramatic fashion. But like I said, we took care of business, took care of home court, just like they took care of their two. But, you know, we've got to win one on the road to reach our goal. We've got a challenge ahead of us, and I'm excited about this team's chances with the challenge.
Q. Pat Riley was saying there's no second option of you getting the ball; it was just you getting the ball with that last attempt at a basket in overtime. What were you thinking about wanting the ball in your hands at that point?
DWYANE WADE: Oh, no, yeah, I wanted the ball, yeah, always. Once I got it, once I seen it, it was like two or three guys coming at me, I was just trying to get a little space where I could use my quickness to get by them. Once I got by Jason, I was able to maneuver my way to the basket. And I got hit twice on my way to the basket, I heard someone say it wasn't a foul, but it was. You know, just tried to attack. Didn't want to settle for a pull up jumper. Wanted to go to the basket, either hit it or make a foul. Man, that's what happens. I was fortunate enough to get the ball and be able to attack.
Q. Could you describe the conversation you had with your cousin last night about pressure shots?
DWYANE WADE: He was just in my ear a lot, after my workout, I was just shooting free throws and he was standing there in my ear, telling me I'm not that good, just all that stuff that cousins are supposed to do. That's what I was thinking about every time I stepped to the free throw line was him, his face, actually right there underneath the basket in my ear telling me I wasn't that good and different things like that.
So every little thing helps and every little thing gives you an edge, and that was my edge and look for another one in the next game.
Q. Jumpshots not falling early, will you talk about the importance of being able to get to the line and was hitting free throws, did that get you started from the floor later in the game?
DWYANE WADE: Yeah, no question. You know, when you make free throws, it puts you into a rhythm. Early on I hit some shots I normally hit, but give them credit, they did a good job of making me take tough shots. I kept going, kept attacking.
Second half, I came out and tried to get to the hole more, and like I said the whole thing it was they were trying to not let me get there, you see the segment, it was four hard fouls in a row. It got me into a flow and got me kind of mad at the same time. I was ready, I told Shaq, "I'm with you, man."
Q. There was a point you were underneath the basket and put your head down on the basket; do you remember that?
DWYANE WADE: Yes, sir.
Q. What were you thinking and did you ever lose confidence in yourself for a second?
DWYANE WADE: No, I didn't lose confidence, I was just thinking it was a stupid pass. I threw a lazy pass. I saw Shaq trailing, and I did a couple of those, threw a couple of lazy passes and I was just think to go myself, "Stupid, stupid, stupid."
I'm hard on myself. I always bounce back. I'm never going to get that frustrated where I can't come back and make the next play. That's a sign of a player maturing if you can come back and make the next play and I think I did that.
Q. To get to the free throw line 25 times, how physically draining and demanding is that?
DWYANE WADE: It's very demanding. I just was telling them in the back, I played 50 minutes and I felt good on the court, but I'm starting to feel it now. I'm a little tired.
But, you know what, it's no time to be worrying about it. We have a couple days left in the season. I have time to rest for a little while in the summer and I'll rest then. I'll continue to do what I have to do to help my teammates get better and help the Miami Heat get better. If I have to keep going to the free throw line, that's what it is.
Q. How do you push yourself to keep attacking?
DWYANE WADE: You have to have will, strong will in this game, if you want to get to where you've got to get to. That's to the end, that's to the final thing, and that's to the championship.
They put the ball in my hands, so they expect a lot out of me, so I have to come through for Coach Riley and the coaches and my teammates who put the ball in my hand, who say, "hey, Dwyane, go to work." Of course I've got to come through for them guys.
Q. Could you describe the emotional roller coaster, the mentality of you guys going from 0 2, to up 3 2, in one week's time; how you feel about the highs and the lows of it all?
DWYANE WADE: Like we said, we knew we didn't play any good games in Dallas. I mean, you know, when you go on the road and you don't play good games, then you turn the ball over, it's hard to win. But we took our two losses and came back home and got better and won a dramatic game in Game 3, and our confidence got really, really rolling after that. You know, it's just been, we've been playing on a high level. We have to continue to do it. We're up 3 2 and for us to win everything, we have to go out there and win one in Dallas. It's going to be very tough, but that's why we play this game, for these moments, so looking forward to it. Thank you.
An Interview With:
SHAQUILLE O’NEAL
Q. Shaquille, talk about you guys holding serve here and going back to Dallas with the lead, and that's a nice Father's Day present, too?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yeah, they took care of business at home. We took care of business at home, and now we just have to try to go there and just win the first one that we play.
Q. Can you talk about there was a story that your house was broken into and you stopped the guy with a tazer, can you enlighten us on that?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: This morning there was a guy who was beaten up in front of my house. I just gave him some assistance. I just called the ambulance and called the cops.
Q. He was beaten up in front of your house?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yes.
Q. You just went out and helped the guy, that's what happened?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yes, sir.
And no, I didn't beat him up. (Laughter).
Q. You guys became only the second team in history to win all three games at home. How does it feel to be one game away from delivering the promise of the NBA Championship to Miami?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: It feels pretty good. But I told the guys that the job is not done yet. We want to enjoy this win tonight, but, you know, we've still got to go to a hostile arena in Dallas and take care of business. And we look forward to doing it.
Q. How frustrating has it been to have to sit out possessions?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I mean, I've really been through that before. You know, I understand what Coach is doing. He's just playing the percentages.
But, you know, D Wade, he had my back tonight. He was a fabulous player, and everyone just played.
No, I've been in the league 13 years, I've been in every situation. You know, I just try to do the other things well. I still shot the ball pretty well from the field. I still rebounded, still played some pretty good defense. And we've just got to keep playing, just got to keep playing. We've, you know, we've seen it all. We've seen it all, we've done it all, we've been through it all.
Q. Can you describe the faith you have in Dwyane taking that last shot in overtime as he's driving to the basket?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I have a lot of faith in him. We all have faith in him. We just give him the ball and he does what he does. He's a very unselfish player, a very great player. He started off slow, but, you know, when he starts off slow, you have to worry about him heating up. It's not too many times that he starts off slow and he stays, you know, slow.
So he just heated up at the right time, and, you know, we played a fabulous game and everybody played well. You know, Dwyane is just a fabulous player.
Q. How would you describe how he responds to pressure with those two free throws at the end, maybe compared to some other players?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: He's the best right now and that's all you can say. He's the best.
Q. What's up big fella. Can you describe the feeling that was going through you when G.P. made that shot? I mean, the guy had been here twice and came away empty, you was with him in Los Angeles.
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I mean, it's a big, big shot for G.P. He stumbled a little bit and he laid up with the left and I was right there for the rebound and it just went in. I think at that point that put us up by one, and then Dirk came down and hit a tough shot over Udonis and me to put them up by one.
So, you know, he's been playing great. He's been good all year, helping out Dwyane, helping out some of the other younger guards and I'm happy for Gary right now.
Q. If you guys win the next game, would you consider retirement?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Not really. I mean, I have four years left and you know, I'll probably just, you know, play out my four years. Then I don't know what I'll do. I'll probably start dressing like him. (Laughter).
Q. Was it frustrating dealing with the hack a Shaq thing?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: No, I just really wanted to hit him, it felt good leaving my hand but it just didn't go in today.
Dwyane Wade, he had a fabulous game. He stuck up for me. I told him that I owe him one.
DALLAS MAVERICKS
An Interview With:
COACH AVERY JOHNSON
Q. If you could just talk about what was happening there at the end as far as that time out.
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, the signal was for the time out to come after the second free throw. We've been in this situation a million times, and it was assumed that we wanted it at that time.
Q. Did you miss Jerry Stackhouse's presence on the floor during the course of the game at any time?
AVERY JOHNSON: Yeah, we always miss Stack when he's not there. We miss him when he's not on the floor.
But our players put up a valiant effort tonight.
Q. Are you upset at all that Jason Terry did not drive on the last shot of regulation and maybe try to get a foul there?
AVERY JOHNSON: You know, he was kind of in between right there, pretty much his shot. We've seen it go in quite a bit. Didn't have much time to work with, so when he caught it, he was kind of in between right there.
Q. Do you feel like the free throws cost you the game at the end?
AVERY JOHNSON: The free throws cost us the game?
Q. I'm asking you.
AVERY JOHNSON: You know, obviously they are free and, you know, we normally make them. So we had two or three at that point that didn't go in for us. It's kind of disappointing. But I don't know if that's why we lost the game.
Q. Can you talk about having to win two to win a championship now?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, we just need to focus on one. That's what we've done a good job of all year. It will be good to get a little home cooking.
Q. What was your impression of Wade's drive to the basket when he got the free throws?
AVERY JOHNSON: You tell me. What was your impression?
Q. Unfortunately nobody cares about my impression.
AVERY JOHNSON: No, you tell everybody here. You tell us. What was your impression?
Q. My impression was he got two free throws out of it.
AVERY JOHNSON: No, that's all right. That's a political answer. So let me ask you the question again. What was your impression on that play? We're waiting.
Q. Did he get fouled?
AVERY JOHNSON: I'm asking you the question. What was your impression?
Q. I don't know what to say. What do you want me to say?
AVERY JOHNSON: No, I want you to give everybody an honest answer. We have people from Israel and Minnesota, Chicago, all over, Dallas, Germany.
Q. I'll follow up with another question if that's all right.
AVERY JOHNSON: Yeah, well, go ahead.
Q. The
AVERY JOHNSON: Don't stutter.
Q. The free throw issue, the time out at the end, I'm still confused, was it supposed to be called after the first one?
AVERY JOHNSON: Pretty much most people who have ever been involved in the NBA for 20, 30 years, no, we wouldn't want one anyway with only one time out anyway.
So we were pretty dumbfounded that that couldn't get relayed.
Q. You said it was assumed that you wanted a time out after the second one, was it assumed by one of your players or by one of the referees?
AVERY JOHNSON: No, we gave the signal, second free throw, time out, and we'll have to look at the replay. One of our players was saying time out. I said, yeah, after the second one. So but that's not that's not, you know, the game. There are a lot of other situations that we're disappointed with.
Q. After everything that's happened in Miami, after the way these three games have gone down, what do you tell your team now to get their confidence back for Game 6?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, we were pretty confident for this game. We had great focus, we had great energy, we rebounded the ball well, had a chance to win at the end of regulation. And Wade got away from us, then Terry missed a shot, his shot. We had another chance to bottle up Wade. We pretty much sent three people at him, if you can remember that play, and we thought we had him bottled up. But, you know, he went to the free throw line again, pretty much the same amount that our whole team went to the line.
So we thought we played good defense on that play, but just wasn't rewarded for our hustle.
Q. What do you tell them going into Game 6?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, again, man, we're a team that's tough minded. I don't know if anybody could respond in this game even the way we responded. There are not many teams that's why we're here in The Finals. That's why we're the Western Conference Finals champion and we're here.
We're going home, and I know our fans are going to be really crazy. We play pretty good basketball at home. We've got home court advantage. So we know we have to play well and win Game 6. There's no tomorrow, and I like that "no tomorrow" feeling for our team.
Q. When you look back on these three games, will you say that Wade hurt you the most or will you also look at your mistakes and perhaps the team's frustration, will that loom larger than Wade's play?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, Wade is obviously playing great. We tried a lot of different things on him. You know, we've just got to stick with it. We've got to stick with it. We had a stretch there where we denied Wade, and then Gary Payton scores on a flip left handed layup over one of our centers.
Hopefully we can put together more of a complete game than what we've done here in Miami.
An Interview With:
DIRK NOWITZKI
Q. Can you just talk about far as what Miami defensively was doing against you, were they doing anything special, or was it just a tough night for you?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, I thought they did the same thing that they did in the first four games, body up. I thought posted up, Shaq was coming up low, so they were just swarming me. Nothing new. J.T. had a great night, Josh was great. We still had opportunities to win the game in regular play, and in overtime, we had some chances, so...
So obviously a tough loss.
Q. A tough week in Miami, lost three games, player suspended. How do you bounce back from that now to get back in the series, and going home?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, you know, we were confident. We are a good home team all season long. We won big games at home.
Obviously this one is a tough one to sit on for a day. But, you know, starting tomorrow, we'll get focused again, watch some film of what we can do better and just be confident. Our fans will be great at home. They pushed us in Game 1 and Game 2, to two W's, so we're looking forward to more of the same in Game 6 and hopefully Game 7.
Q. Is your confidence shaken a bit or do you think you can get it back together?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, I think we had enough opportunities to win this game today. We know we can beat this team. We showed it in Game 1 and Game 2. Like I said, this is a tough one to swallow for a night, but starting tomorrow, we should feel a lot better about ourselves again.
Q. Can you explain what you saw in that whole last sequence when the time out was called?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Obviously, I thought it was a tough call. You know, I thought Dwyane pushed off like three guys to get to the basket now and I saw him come running at me. I kind of thought I went out of the way and they gave him the call. So I thought it was a tough call.
Then in the time out, I don't really know what happened. I was on the other side. Obviously we wanted a time out after make or miss. That was obviously the plan. I don't know who said what. But, you know, I think that's the referee, he needed to wait a little bit, and obviously they should know, too, that we don't want to waste our time out. So you need a little finger tips in a situation like that, so it was tough.
Q. Is what you will remember letting it get away late in the fourth quarter two games, or will you try to just forget about everything that happened here and think about going forward?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, obviously we've got to approach it the way that we need to win two home games. We know we're down, our backs are against the wall, and we responded to tough losses pretty much all season long.
So, yeah, I mean, we're going to watch the film, obviously what we did in the fourth quarter and overtime. Obviously we thought we had Game 3 under control what couple minutes left, so, you know, we just made some mistakes that we can't make. So, we'll go from there.
Q. You tossed the ball into the stands at the end of the game. Can you talk about, what were you thinking at that moment, was that just frustration?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, obviously frustration, that's a tough loss. You know, to lose a game like that where we went up one, went up two right before overtime, and they tied the game. Then, you know, we go up one with a couple seconds left and they get a call. So more than anything, it's frustration. And I'm an emotional player out there, and I don't think it was anything bad.
Q. J.T. said that you guys are mad, you're upset. Talk about that mentality going back home.
DIRK NOWITZKI: Yeah, I mean, obviously we were mad already after Game 4. I mean, we got embarrassed here. They suspended one of our players. So obviously we already were pretty mad. I thought we responded, we were in the game, we had our chances. You know, now we go home and same attitude as we came into the game today and we'll see what happens.
Q. Are you surprised that Dwyane Wade goes to the line as many times personally as you do as a team?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Yeah, I mean, he's a good player. Obviously he knows how to get to the basket and he knows how to draw contact. He gets to the line a lot. You know, he's been doing this all playoffs long, and you've got to give him credit.
An Interview With:
JOSH HOWARD
Q. How tough was this loss?
JOSH HOWARD: It was tough. But like I said, we’ve got to get ready for Game 6. We’re not out of it yet. They’re up 3-2, but we’re going back home.
Q. What did Avery say to you guys right after the game?
JOSH HOWARD: Nothing. We took it upon our team to know what we’ve got to do and that’s it.
Q. Can you tell us what happened – did you call a timeout, did he (the referee) think you called a timeout?
JOSH HOWARD: He thought I called a timeout. But I didn’t make any contact with him, or any eye contact with him. Like I said, he felt that I called a timeout and he gave it to us.
Q. Do you think Avery’s assessment of the team having a vacation mentality while in Florida was accurate?
JOSH HOWARD: I’m not even thinking about that right now. We’re just going to go back to Dallas.
Q. What do you think about the free throw disparity, with Dwyane Wade having as many as you guys had?
JOSH HOWARD: I’m going to let you break that down. I don’t have anything to say about that either.
G. Moore
============================
MIAMI HEAT
An Interview With:
COACH PAT RILEY
Q. Dwyane Wade kind of started off rough in the beginning, but can you talk about as the game went on how he was able to exploit Dallas's defense?
PAT RILEY: I don't know if he exploited anything. Their defense was I think geared to him. He was 3 for 13 in the first half. He was having a hard time finding spaces and gaps. And, you know, once we started the stop running plays for him and giving him the ball at the high post, he was making his jumpshots.
I think finally pulling up instead of trying to find airspace, and the fact that he was making enough of them, was what won us the game.
Q. How important was the run that you had at the end of the third quarter?
PAT RILEY: Well, we're down eight, throughout the third quarter at 30, I think they had this 21 9 run again on us just before the half, and that was big. It was huge to be able to close the gap. My fear was that it would get into double digits, and it's very hard to come back all the time. We got it down to I think 71 70 or something like that at one point and from there, it was probably one of the greatest games I've ever been around, part of. Everybody making big shots; you know, the shot that Dirk made to put them ahead by one, I don't think you can defend it any better than that. There's no way that you could defend it. It was nothing but net.
Then Dwyane made the play he had to make.
Q. On the last play, was Dwyane supposed to keep the ball and basically shoot under any circumstances, or did he decide on his own just to go one on three, one on four?
PAT RILEY: Well, they were in a zone the two possessions prior to that, and you don't know what they are going to come out in.
Obviously the important thing for us was to get him the ball, make sure we got him the ball. Because I think if it went to anybody else first, they would have denied him, and he had to have it. So he ran into the backcourt to get it.
Last thing he said to me coming out of the time out is, "Coach, I want to go left, I want to go left."
I said, "Well, tell Shaquille to move out of there." So he went right twice and came back left, anyhow. That's what Dwyane is now, if there was an open man; but I think he was so committed, and I've seen him do it before, trying to find a gap that he would have created a shot, I think probably the best shot.
But we did not have a second option, believe me.
Q. Can you talk about or describe how Dwyane's mentality prepared him for being able to take those last two free throws, especially with the break in between?
PAT RILEY: He's a great free throw shooter, first of all. I think his percentage in the last eight or nine minutes of the game or last five minutes of the game is up in the 90s, you know, so he's a winner. That's all you can say, he's just a winner. To make both free throws, hit nothing but net, is just what he's about.
Q. Are there other players who have, especially if they had that
PAT RILEY: What's that?
Q. Well, are there other players that maybe with the confusion or break would have come back unfocused?
PAT RILEY: Dwyane was pretty calm while that stuff was going on and he took that inadvertent time out, I think he did. But he stayed right on the rim most of the time, which isn't saying much.
Q. Can you talk about the task at hand now, having to win one more at Dallas, a place you haven't won in four years.
PAT RILEY: Well, law of averages. (Laughing) It's going to take a lot more than that, but we'll see. I'd much rather go down there this way, one game away from the Championship, instead of having to win two in a row. I mean, they played a great game tonight. They did everything they could to win. And now it's our job to go into a very hostile environment and do something this franchise has never done. That's what it's about.
Q. Do you rely on your coaching past experience to bring you threw this one here?
PAT RILEY: Well, I know I can get through it. I think it's getting out all of us right now. I can get through it and I'll do the best job I can to give them a chance, period.
Q. You said a moment ago, "inadvertent time out," do you believe that there was some confusion or is Dwyane the kind of player that he knows what to do, or does he just have to keep shooting?
PAT RILEY: They were denying the ball. They weren't making it easy for him. Probably he could have got off the ball a little bit more in the first half, you know, which is what we did talk about, if they were going to try to stop him, there would be people open. But we began to open up the floor for him, that's all. We have a set that, you know, he can run two or three things out of it, but at least everybody can see where he is and he can see where everybody else is in that situation.
Q. Dwyane was 21 for 25, even though he started off shooting poorly. Just talk about that attack mentality to get to the free throw line and how big that was?
PAT RILEY: That's it. That's his personality as a player, and it was in college, and it is now and probably forever will be. I'm sure the fact that he makes pull up jumpers now, he took what the defense gave him, but he's very, very smart when they are in the penalty. They got in the penalty third quarter, fourth quarter, a little bit early, and when they are in the penalty, he's not going to accept anything else but go to the basket.
So he gets fouled a lot on the floor and guys are bumping and banging on him and he gets the line. So it's one of the benefits of actually having Shaquille when they started to hack him, they got into the penalty rather quickly in overtime, and he gets the line.
An Interview With:
DWYANE WADE
Q. Dwyane, talk about the defense and the things that that they did against you tonight, and talk about just that whole sequence during the time out, what you were going through.
DWYANE WADE: Well, you know, the defense, I think they probably pressured me a little bit more, tried to get into my airspace a little bit more, make it hard on me.
The only difference I really seen was probably they made it when I went to the basket, they made sure I didn't finish too much. They knocked me down and put me on the floor, something I'm used to. So that was the biggest difference.
You know, at the end, the time out just with the free throws, just thinking about, you know, all the times you stepped up there and made them, you're thinking about all the times you've been in the gym and made them and just positive thoughts. So, you know, it was no question in my mind I was going to make them. There was no question in any of my teammates minds I was going to step up there and make them.
Q. Could you just talk about you guys sweeping at home, how great that is for you guys, and now also trying to win in Dallas where it's been very tough for you to get a victory.
DWYANE WADE: Yeah, you know, we took care of business at home like we're supposed to do. Won three games, two of them in dramatic fashion. But like I said, we took care of business, took care of home court, just like they took care of their two. But, you know, we've got to win one on the road to reach our goal. We've got a challenge ahead of us, and I'm excited about this team's chances with the challenge.
Q. Pat Riley was saying there's no second option of you getting the ball; it was just you getting the ball with that last attempt at a basket in overtime. What were you thinking about wanting the ball in your hands at that point?
DWYANE WADE: Oh, no, yeah, I wanted the ball, yeah, always. Once I got it, once I seen it, it was like two or three guys coming at me, I was just trying to get a little space where I could use my quickness to get by them. Once I got by Jason, I was able to maneuver my way to the basket. And I got hit twice on my way to the basket, I heard someone say it wasn't a foul, but it was. You know, just tried to attack. Didn't want to settle for a pull up jumper. Wanted to go to the basket, either hit it or make a foul. Man, that's what happens. I was fortunate enough to get the ball and be able to attack.
Q. Could you describe the conversation you had with your cousin last night about pressure shots?
DWYANE WADE: He was just in my ear a lot, after my workout, I was just shooting free throws and he was standing there in my ear, telling me I'm not that good, just all that stuff that cousins are supposed to do. That's what I was thinking about every time I stepped to the free throw line was him, his face, actually right there underneath the basket in my ear telling me I wasn't that good and different things like that.
So every little thing helps and every little thing gives you an edge, and that was my edge and look for another one in the next game.
Q. Jumpshots not falling early, will you talk about the importance of being able to get to the line and was hitting free throws, did that get you started from the floor later in the game?
DWYANE WADE: Yeah, no question. You know, when you make free throws, it puts you into a rhythm. Early on I hit some shots I normally hit, but give them credit, they did a good job of making me take tough shots. I kept going, kept attacking.
Second half, I came out and tried to get to the hole more, and like I said the whole thing it was they were trying to not let me get there, you see the segment, it was four hard fouls in a row. It got me into a flow and got me kind of mad at the same time. I was ready, I told Shaq, "I'm with you, man."
Q. There was a point you were underneath the basket and put your head down on the basket; do you remember that?
DWYANE WADE: Yes, sir.
Q. What were you thinking and did you ever lose confidence in yourself for a second?
DWYANE WADE: No, I didn't lose confidence, I was just thinking it was a stupid pass. I threw a lazy pass. I saw Shaq trailing, and I did a couple of those, threw a couple of lazy passes and I was just think to go myself, "Stupid, stupid, stupid."
I'm hard on myself. I always bounce back. I'm never going to get that frustrated where I can't come back and make the next play. That's a sign of a player maturing if you can come back and make the next play and I think I did that.
Q. To get to the free throw line 25 times, how physically draining and demanding is that?
DWYANE WADE: It's very demanding. I just was telling them in the back, I played 50 minutes and I felt good on the court, but I'm starting to feel it now. I'm a little tired.
But, you know what, it's no time to be worrying about it. We have a couple days left in the season. I have time to rest for a little while in the summer and I'll rest then. I'll continue to do what I have to do to help my teammates get better and help the Miami Heat get better. If I have to keep going to the free throw line, that's what it is.
Q. How do you push yourself to keep attacking?
DWYANE WADE: You have to have will, strong will in this game, if you want to get to where you've got to get to. That's to the end, that's to the final thing, and that's to the championship.
They put the ball in my hands, so they expect a lot out of me, so I have to come through for Coach Riley and the coaches and my teammates who put the ball in my hand, who say, "hey, Dwyane, go to work." Of course I've got to come through for them guys.
Q. Could you describe the emotional roller coaster, the mentality of you guys going from 0 2, to up 3 2, in one week's time; how you feel about the highs and the lows of it all?
DWYANE WADE: Like we said, we knew we didn't play any good games in Dallas. I mean, you know, when you go on the road and you don't play good games, then you turn the ball over, it's hard to win. But we took our two losses and came back home and got better and won a dramatic game in Game 3, and our confidence got really, really rolling after that. You know, it's just been, we've been playing on a high level. We have to continue to do it. We're up 3 2 and for us to win everything, we have to go out there and win one in Dallas. It's going to be very tough, but that's why we play this game, for these moments, so looking forward to it. Thank you.
An Interview With:
SHAQUILLE O’NEAL
Q. Shaquille, talk about you guys holding serve here and going back to Dallas with the lead, and that's a nice Father's Day present, too?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yeah, they took care of business at home. We took care of business at home, and now we just have to try to go there and just win the first one that we play.
Q. Can you talk about there was a story that your house was broken into and you stopped the guy with a tazer, can you enlighten us on that?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: This morning there was a guy who was beaten up in front of my house. I just gave him some assistance. I just called the ambulance and called the cops.
Q. He was beaten up in front of your house?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yes.
Q. You just went out and helped the guy, that's what happened?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yes, sir.
And no, I didn't beat him up. (Laughter).
Q. You guys became only the second team in history to win all three games at home. How does it feel to be one game away from delivering the promise of the NBA Championship to Miami?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: It feels pretty good. But I told the guys that the job is not done yet. We want to enjoy this win tonight, but, you know, we've still got to go to a hostile arena in Dallas and take care of business. And we look forward to doing it.
Q. How frustrating has it been to have to sit out possessions?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I mean, I've really been through that before. You know, I understand what Coach is doing. He's just playing the percentages.
But, you know, D Wade, he had my back tonight. He was a fabulous player, and everyone just played.
No, I've been in the league 13 years, I've been in every situation. You know, I just try to do the other things well. I still shot the ball pretty well from the field. I still rebounded, still played some pretty good defense. And we've just got to keep playing, just got to keep playing. We've, you know, we've seen it all. We've seen it all, we've done it all, we've been through it all.
Q. Can you describe the faith you have in Dwyane taking that last shot in overtime as he's driving to the basket?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I have a lot of faith in him. We all have faith in him. We just give him the ball and he does what he does. He's a very unselfish player, a very great player. He started off slow, but, you know, when he starts off slow, you have to worry about him heating up. It's not too many times that he starts off slow and he stays, you know, slow.
So he just heated up at the right time, and, you know, we played a fabulous game and everybody played well. You know, Dwyane is just a fabulous player.
Q. How would you describe how he responds to pressure with those two free throws at the end, maybe compared to some other players?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: He's the best right now and that's all you can say. He's the best.
Q. What's up big fella. Can you describe the feeling that was going through you when G.P. made that shot? I mean, the guy had been here twice and came away empty, you was with him in Los Angeles.
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I mean, it's a big, big shot for G.P. He stumbled a little bit and he laid up with the left and I was right there for the rebound and it just went in. I think at that point that put us up by one, and then Dirk came down and hit a tough shot over Udonis and me to put them up by one.
So, you know, he's been playing great. He's been good all year, helping out Dwyane, helping out some of the other younger guards and I'm happy for Gary right now.
Q. If you guys win the next game, would you consider retirement?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Not really. I mean, I have four years left and you know, I'll probably just, you know, play out my four years. Then I don't know what I'll do. I'll probably start dressing like him. (Laughter).
Q. Was it frustrating dealing with the hack a Shaq thing?
SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: No, I just really wanted to hit him, it felt good leaving my hand but it just didn't go in today.
Dwyane Wade, he had a fabulous game. He stuck up for me. I told him that I owe him one.
DALLAS MAVERICKS
An Interview With:
COACH AVERY JOHNSON
Q. If you could just talk about what was happening there at the end as far as that time out.
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, the signal was for the time out to come after the second free throw. We've been in this situation a million times, and it was assumed that we wanted it at that time.
Q. Did you miss Jerry Stackhouse's presence on the floor during the course of the game at any time?
AVERY JOHNSON: Yeah, we always miss Stack when he's not there. We miss him when he's not on the floor.
But our players put up a valiant effort tonight.
Q. Are you upset at all that Jason Terry did not drive on the last shot of regulation and maybe try to get a foul there?
AVERY JOHNSON: You know, he was kind of in between right there, pretty much his shot. We've seen it go in quite a bit. Didn't have much time to work with, so when he caught it, he was kind of in between right there.
Q. Do you feel like the free throws cost you the game at the end?
AVERY JOHNSON: The free throws cost us the game?
Q. I'm asking you.
AVERY JOHNSON: You know, obviously they are free and, you know, we normally make them. So we had two or three at that point that didn't go in for us. It's kind of disappointing. But I don't know if that's why we lost the game.
Q. Can you talk about having to win two to win a championship now?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, we just need to focus on one. That's what we've done a good job of all year. It will be good to get a little home cooking.
Q. What was your impression of Wade's drive to the basket when he got the free throws?
AVERY JOHNSON: You tell me. What was your impression?
Q. Unfortunately nobody cares about my impression.
AVERY JOHNSON: No, you tell everybody here. You tell us. What was your impression?
Q. My impression was he got two free throws out of it.
AVERY JOHNSON: No, that's all right. That's a political answer. So let me ask you the question again. What was your impression on that play? We're waiting.
Q. Did he get fouled?
AVERY JOHNSON: I'm asking you the question. What was your impression?
Q. I don't know what to say. What do you want me to say?
AVERY JOHNSON: No, I want you to give everybody an honest answer. We have people from Israel and Minnesota, Chicago, all over, Dallas, Germany.
Q. I'll follow up with another question if that's all right.
AVERY JOHNSON: Yeah, well, go ahead.
Q. The
AVERY JOHNSON: Don't stutter.
Q. The free throw issue, the time out at the end, I'm still confused, was it supposed to be called after the first one?
AVERY JOHNSON: Pretty much most people who have ever been involved in the NBA for 20, 30 years, no, we wouldn't want one anyway with only one time out anyway.
So we were pretty dumbfounded that that couldn't get relayed.
Q. You said it was assumed that you wanted a time out after the second one, was it assumed by one of your players or by one of the referees?
AVERY JOHNSON: No, we gave the signal, second free throw, time out, and we'll have to look at the replay. One of our players was saying time out. I said, yeah, after the second one. So but that's not that's not, you know, the game. There are a lot of other situations that we're disappointed with.
Q. After everything that's happened in Miami, after the way these three games have gone down, what do you tell your team now to get their confidence back for Game 6?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, we were pretty confident for this game. We had great focus, we had great energy, we rebounded the ball well, had a chance to win at the end of regulation. And Wade got away from us, then Terry missed a shot, his shot. We had another chance to bottle up Wade. We pretty much sent three people at him, if you can remember that play, and we thought we had him bottled up. But, you know, he went to the free throw line again, pretty much the same amount that our whole team went to the line.
So we thought we played good defense on that play, but just wasn't rewarded for our hustle.
Q. What do you tell them going into Game 6?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, again, man, we're a team that's tough minded. I don't know if anybody could respond in this game even the way we responded. There are not many teams that's why we're here in The Finals. That's why we're the Western Conference Finals champion and we're here.
We're going home, and I know our fans are going to be really crazy. We play pretty good basketball at home. We've got home court advantage. So we know we have to play well and win Game 6. There's no tomorrow, and I like that "no tomorrow" feeling for our team.
Q. When you look back on these three games, will you say that Wade hurt you the most or will you also look at your mistakes and perhaps the team's frustration, will that loom larger than Wade's play?
AVERY JOHNSON: Well, Wade is obviously playing great. We tried a lot of different things on him. You know, we've just got to stick with it. We've got to stick with it. We had a stretch there where we denied Wade, and then Gary Payton scores on a flip left handed layup over one of our centers.
Hopefully we can put together more of a complete game than what we've done here in Miami.
An Interview With:
DIRK NOWITZKI
Q. Can you just talk about far as what Miami defensively was doing against you, were they doing anything special, or was it just a tough night for you?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, I thought they did the same thing that they did in the first four games, body up. I thought posted up, Shaq was coming up low, so they were just swarming me. Nothing new. J.T. had a great night, Josh was great. We still had opportunities to win the game in regular play, and in overtime, we had some chances, so...
So obviously a tough loss.
Q. A tough week in Miami, lost three games, player suspended. How do you bounce back from that now to get back in the series, and going home?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, you know, we were confident. We are a good home team all season long. We won big games at home.
Obviously this one is a tough one to sit on for a day. But, you know, starting tomorrow, we'll get focused again, watch some film of what we can do better and just be confident. Our fans will be great at home. They pushed us in Game 1 and Game 2, to two W's, so we're looking forward to more of the same in Game 6 and hopefully Game 7.
Q. Is your confidence shaken a bit or do you think you can get it back together?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, I think we had enough opportunities to win this game today. We know we can beat this team. We showed it in Game 1 and Game 2. Like I said, this is a tough one to swallow for a night, but starting tomorrow, we should feel a lot better about ourselves again.
Q. Can you explain what you saw in that whole last sequence when the time out was called?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Obviously, I thought it was a tough call. You know, I thought Dwyane pushed off like three guys to get to the basket now and I saw him come running at me. I kind of thought I went out of the way and they gave him the call. So I thought it was a tough call.
Then in the time out, I don't really know what happened. I was on the other side. Obviously we wanted a time out after make or miss. That was obviously the plan. I don't know who said what. But, you know, I think that's the referee, he needed to wait a little bit, and obviously they should know, too, that we don't want to waste our time out. So you need a little finger tips in a situation like that, so it was tough.
Q. Is what you will remember letting it get away late in the fourth quarter two games, or will you try to just forget about everything that happened here and think about going forward?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, obviously we've got to approach it the way that we need to win two home games. We know we're down, our backs are against the wall, and we responded to tough losses pretty much all season long.
So, yeah, I mean, we're going to watch the film, obviously what we did in the fourth quarter and overtime. Obviously we thought we had Game 3 under control what couple minutes left, so, you know, we just made some mistakes that we can't make. So, we'll go from there.
Q. You tossed the ball into the stands at the end of the game. Can you talk about, what were you thinking at that moment, was that just frustration?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Well, obviously frustration, that's a tough loss. You know, to lose a game like that where we went up one, went up two right before overtime, and they tied the game. Then, you know, we go up one with a couple seconds left and they get a call. So more than anything, it's frustration. And I'm an emotional player out there, and I don't think it was anything bad.
Q. J.T. said that you guys are mad, you're upset. Talk about that mentality going back home.
DIRK NOWITZKI: Yeah, I mean, obviously we were mad already after Game 4. I mean, we got embarrassed here. They suspended one of our players. So obviously we already were pretty mad. I thought we responded, we were in the game, we had our chances. You know, now we go home and same attitude as we came into the game today and we'll see what happens.
Q. Are you surprised that Dwyane Wade goes to the line as many times personally as you do as a team?
DIRK NOWITZKI: Yeah, I mean, he's a good player. Obviously he knows how to get to the basket and he knows how to draw contact. He gets to the line a lot. You know, he's been doing this all playoffs long, and you've got to give him credit.
An Interview With:
JOSH HOWARD
Q. How tough was this loss?
JOSH HOWARD: It was tough. But like I said, we’ve got to get ready for Game 6. We’re not out of it yet. They’re up 3-2, but we’re going back home.
Q. What did Avery say to you guys right after the game?
JOSH HOWARD: Nothing. We took it upon our team to know what we’ve got to do and that’s it.
Q. Can you tell us what happened – did you call a timeout, did he (the referee) think you called a timeout?
JOSH HOWARD: He thought I called a timeout. But I didn’t make any contact with him, or any eye contact with him. Like I said, he felt that I called a timeout and he gave it to us.
Q. Do you think Avery’s assessment of the team having a vacation mentality while in Florida was accurate?
JOSH HOWARD: I’m not even thinking about that right now. We’re just going to go back to Dallas.
Q. What do you think about the free throw disparity, with Dwyane Wade having as many as you guys had?
JOSH HOWARD: I’m going to let you break that down. I don’t have anything to say about that either.