Post Game Quotes (Suns Game Three)

[duncan228]

Post Game Quotes (Suns Game Three)

Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich

When asked about the first 16 minutes of the game. If there was anything that bothered him then - “Well, missing seven free-throws in a row is not a good thing. We were playing very well defensively and offensively, but we gave up a great opportunity by leaving nine points at the free-throw line in the first half. I think that’s going to affect a team mentally to some degree. I thought we lost a little bit of aggressiveness offensively with that. We made a couple of defensive errors and they got back in the ball game. So that was a huge change in the first half.”

On Goran Dragic in the fourth quarter - “He was fantastic, but in general the whole second team kicked our butt. Their second team was fantastic. They did a great job, their whole team showed a lot of character by being patient by not worrying about being behind. They continued to execute and they did things the right way. We couldn’t guard the second team.”

When asked about the Suns' three pointers - “Well they’re the best three point shooting team in the history of the league. That has a lot to do with it. We did have some breakdowns and we made some mistakes. It’s a game of mistakes. We needed to have more people play better for sure. We had too many people that didn’t have good games.”

When asked what he thought of Nash, Stoudemire, and Richardson not playing in the 4th - “It’s a great thing for them. It might extend Steve’s career five or six years, if Dragic keeps playing like that.”

When asked about Tony Parker's hand injury - “Nothing is wrong with his hand. It was his shoulder and he’s getting x-rayed now. I’m not to sure what is wrong, but we’ll look at it.”

Manu Ginobili

On the game - “They just killed us. They played small with five shooters and decided to switch and they decided to attack the rim, penetrating, kicking out and making contested three-pointers. They were unbelievable. They picked us apart and it seemed there was no way to stop them whether it was their three-point shooting or penetration. It was embarrassing, they scored 39 points in the fourth quarter. It wasn’t that they ran or we fouled, it was just field goals. They were great and we were poor defensively.”

On missing seven straight free throws in the second quarter - “I don’t if that got in our heads of course it hurt us. We were up 15 points probably at that point and we could have extended the lead. We missed those free throws and they started to make shots. We kept them in the game and helped them make a run to close the gap at the half and it was a different ball game as a result. Instead of leading by 10 or 15 at the half, it was only six. Then in the second half they were great. They shot their three-pointers at a great percentage and played good defense. They were the whole package and beat us.”

On being down 0-3 - “It’s really hard not only because of the fact that we are down 3-0 it’s the way that they are beating us. We couldn’t stop them and anything we tried it was a bucket for them. It was demoralizing. We are going to have to play the perfect game. In the first game we fouled too much and they were too much in transition, it was our fault. In game two, it wasn’t running but offensive rebounds. Today, we didn’t foul and Amar’e only had 7 points and they killed us anyway. That’s the tough part to shallow. We have to play 48 minutes at a great intensity without mistakes.”

Tim Duncan

On if surprised by the Suns performance in the fourth quarter - “Yes, I still am. They made every shot as we tried to stay in front of them and contest every shot. We wanted to make everything as tough as possible for them and yet they made everything.”

On the Suns going small in most of the fourth quarter - “It was a thing effective for them. They used their pick-and-rolls to get the match-up they wanted as they got me on top of the key as I tried to do my best to contest the shots as they didn‘t miss any.”

On adjustments tonight - “We tried just about everything as we just didn’t do one thing as their pick-and-rolls were manipulative to get the match-ups they wanted. We did several different things and it always seemed to end with them making a shot.”

On what they need to do for the next game being down 0-3 - “We‘re going to do what we have to do. We‘re going to come out here as this team has a lot of character, as we‘re going to come out here in game four and try to do it one game at a time.”

Richard Jefferson

On missing free throws and losing the lead - “When you‘re up 18 and you miss some free throws that‘s no excuse. We had a good lead at home as in the playoffs you have to protect that.”

On being surprised with the Suns going small - “If you have success with something you‘re going to stay with it so in that sense, it really didn‘t surprise me. I couldn‘t hit a shot as I needed to play better tonight in order to help the guys. I made some defensive mistakes that you can‘t make against them especially when you have a guy like Dragic who along with Richardson hit some really tough threes as other people on their team carried it over.”

On being down 0-3 in the playoffs - “It‘s frustrating but we‘re adults. We don‘t pout, cry, or whine, you just have to keep going out there and playing hard as a professional.”

Suns Head Coach Alvin Gentry

On the game - “It’s a great win for us. I thought we did a really great job of just hanging in the game. They had a great start and we couldn’t make a shot. They had a lot to do with that. They came in with a lot of energy and ran us off a lot of shots that we’ve been making. I just kept telling our guys that we needed to hang around, because I think we’re good enough offensively that somewhere along the line we’ll get run and score some baskets. As long as we’re close enough. I told them they couldn’t get enough separation that we had to work so hard to get even that we can’t get over the hump. When we went in at the half and it was a six-point game after they made that jump shot at the end [of the first half], I thought our guys were really positive and they thought that we would come out and make a run at some stage. We just kept trying to find combinations of guys that would work together. We played smaller tonight than we have in the series. We just that it gave us the opportunity to spread the floor a little bit more and get in situations where we could go one on one. Obviously Leandro and Goran played well in the fourth quarter. They just stepped it up. I said that we had to attack the switches and I thought that Goran and Leandro did a great job of that and getting the ball to the basket to finish.

We just played great tonight. The thing about this team and the thing I like most about this team is on some nights guys just don’t play well and we stick other guys in there. The guy who is on the bench who just got replaced seems to be the guy that’s cheering the loudest. Tonight Steve couldn’t be any happier for Goran. Jason couldn’t be any happier for Leandro. This is just such a great team to coach because of the character of the guys here. They just want to win.

I’m a little bit shocked to tell you the truth. I didn’t think that in a million years we could do that. I thought that we could get close enough that we would be able to make a couple plays at the end. But the way we played in the fourth quarter, not just offensively, but I thought we were great defensively, too. It’s a great win for us and puts us in a good situation.

As I told the guys, we still have to win another game. That won’t be easy. I told the guys, ‘I know you think that everything is okay and it’s over, but I know those guys and I know Gregg Popovich. I know Tim Duncan. I know Manu Ginobili. I can tell you right now that there’s no way that they’re going to quit. They will not quit. We’re going to have to play our butts off and figure out a way to win a game”

On Goran's performance tonight - “When we put him in the game we told him he had to be aggressive. Even at the risk of making some mistake, we told him he had to be aggressive. I think everyone forgets what a great athlete he is. He’s as fast with the ball as anyone on our team. When he’s playing with confidence, he’s got a lot of little tricks and he shoots the ball exceptionally well.”

Steve Nash

On the game - "I don’t know how many guys in the history of the game that have had a quarter in the fourth quarter of the playoffs. It was pretty remarkable. I am incredibly proud of him. I am not sure he scored last game or even until the end of the third quarter today. We have a lot of confidence in him and we have been waiting for him to get confident in himself and into a rhythm and flow. Obviously, he got that over that tonight. It was a pleasure to watch and be apart of not only for him but for our franchise. It was a great moment. To play as he did, it’s something that I will remember for a long time."

On the fourth quarter - "Barbosa got it going and he some isolations and was really brilliant for us during that stretch to start the fourth quarter. Goran got a few cracks and got going, one thing lead to another and he rattled off bucket after bucket. Obviously the lineup that was out there was to spread the floor with five shooters with Tim on the floor. We wanted to make it difficult for Tim to cover one of the guards and Barbosa and Dragic made it difficult – he was phenomenal."

On the Suns' mentality in the game - "We struggled again tonight in the first quarter and took a good shot from the Spurs. The crowd was great and it was not the way it drew up in the locker room. We never lost confidence or poise or felt like it was over. We had a lot of confidence that we could get back into the game. We weren’t scoring proficiently but we were playing defense. In both of those areas we really picked it up in the fourth quarter and we did a lot of things good. To be down by one at the end of the third quarter really set the stage for the fourth quarter."

Grant Hill

On Goran Dragic - “Wow! Goran was huge. He has been huge for this team all season. He had a first half in Utah that was very similar to what you saw tonight in the forth quarter. Tonight was by far the best performance I've seen from Goran. I think it’s safe to say that may have been the best forth quarter performance I have ever seen in a Playoff Game. It’s a credit to him because he was struggling with his rhythm in this series. Goran won the game for us down the stretch tonight."

On tonight's game - "We knew San Antonio wasn't going to quit tonight and it took a heroic effort from Goran and Leandro. Those two guys have been a very big part of this team."

Goran Dragic

On the halftime change - "During half time I was talking with coach Gentry and he told me I have to be more aggressive and drive the lane. When I came back out on the court I just did what he told me and when I hit the three point shot with the foul I knew I was being aggressive."

On his hot streak - "I knew I was hot so I just wanted to have the ball during the pick and roll. On a lot of those plays I had Tim Duncan on my side and coach told me if you feel it shot it. My goal was to score."

On the foul by George Hill - "I was just going for a foul against George Hill. I didn't expect the shot to fall I was just going for the foul. After that shot the rim was huge."

On his confidence - "I have a lot of confidence in my game and this team. I feel great this year and everyone is confident in me. I feel great on the court."

[venitian navigator]

Props to suns.
After a night of yelling and suffering for my team I just have a recognize that our opponents played better and deserved to win.
Probably the turning point of the game has been Parker's fall (and following missed free throws) but all in all Phoenix found a way to came back in the game more than one time and their 4th quarter was just incredible.
Their approach to the game was the right one and Gentry needs credit for that.

Props to our guys too for trying hard till the very end...but tonight, likem Manu said, looked how isf they had all the answers agaist us, so there was nothing more to do.


I still think we are the better team overall but Phoenix, in this moment, is a nighmare match up for us...and if they shoot well from outside thay give us terrible trouble. Frankly, one of the falling pieces for us has been Hill's defense... against Nash, he's been always beaten on the first step or beaten with the outside shot, against others he didn't make a better job. That's weird coming from a player who's best quality should be defense.

On offense, apart the free throws problem (another weird one, considering Egelland...looks more like a nerves than a tecnique problem), is ununderstandable how Jefferson is playing this bad. I have nothing against that guy, also 'cause he played decent defense and rebounding, so looks as if he cares, but he just looks like uncomfortable when taking shots.


That said...well..we are still not dead... let's go again and let's try to make history!!!!!