Spurs @ Mavs Post Game 21 Quotes "Wins are hard to get"

What the Dallas Mavericks and the San Antonio Spurs said 
after Game Twentyone of the Perfect Season.

Quotes

Mavericks

Coach Carlisle

(On the Game) "It’s a wacky year, and there are a lot of things going on with crazy scores and leads and deficits disappearing. You’ve got to be ready for anything."

(On Terry's Game-tie-er) "Terry was great. The shot at the end of regulation, we were in transition, had a timeout and decided not to take it. And he hit a terrific shot."

(On Beaubois) "I thought he made some key plays that were important. This is a different challenge for him, starting at point. They're going to dare him to shoot and keep a body on Dirk. In those situations, he's understanding more and more he has to step into those shots and make those teams pay the price. This is where you learn a lot in a short period of time. I thought he did well.''

(On Spurs getting their last 51 Points from the Bench) "I'm not surprised at all. I think he's the greatest coach ever in this game. All their guys function in their system at a high level. Gary Neal isn't a point guard. But he was in there making point-guard type plays and hitting shots. We were making a few mistakes on them but they were executing like crazy and it's a great example of what playing the right way is about. I've seen Pop do this time and time again. If the same group gets them back in the game, he lets them finish the game, unless it's some kind of unusual situation."

(On the intensity of the game) "It wasn’t that intense until they scored eight out of nine times on us."

(On the 2nd Half) "Give San Antonio a lot of credit. They shut down all their starters and their second-unit guys scored eight out of nine times in the fourth quarter. That’s great execution by them, and we’ve got to be better defensively. It’s basically that simple."

(On the Mavs in the 4th) "I love that we came from nine down in the fourth. It’s a tough position to be in, but the guys fought and got it tied. Then in overtime we were able to get out of here. We’re fortunate, but we earned it."

(On Kidd's injury) "It's not real serious, but it's going to take awhile. We're going to say 'a week' and then we'll see where things are at.''

(On Beaubois manning the Point in the Meantime) "This is where you learn a lot in a short period of time."

(On Carter) "He’s a major weapon for us. He’s a big part of what we’re doing."

(On Haywood) "Haywood has been great most of the year. The last three weeks he’s been phenomenal…He’s an anchor for us right now."

(On the Suns next) "I'm ready to get to Phoenix and move on to the next one. The one thing that I'm not going to allow to happen is to have our team feel bad about a win. I've been around too long; wins are hard to get. We're fortunate, but we earned it."

Dirk Nowitzki

(On his Game) "I moved better. Had a couple of one dribble, two dribble pull-ups which was basically non-existent before I left. So, yeah, it's coming back. Still had some swelling this week though, but the work load was a lot. I lifted a lot, had two-a days on the court, tried to really push myself. Still had a little swelling in but I think it's going to be OK. My legs are getting stronger, my base is getting stronger so I just got to keep on working."

(On the Win) "It’s definitely good to get the win, but I think when someone comes back from a break you look to see how he’s moving, and so definitely, that was an improvement. But I've still got to keep working and it'll be back to normal soon.

(On Terry's shot) "He put us on his shoulders there. He made some great pull-ups. He got to his sweet spot to send it to OT."

(On Beaubois) "I like what he’s doing. That’s being aggressive, looking for his shot. That’s his game. He will never be a Jason Kidd. I think we all understand that. He’s got to play his game and be aggressive and make stuff happen off the dribble."

(On 13 Boards) "Thirteen rebounds, that was two weeks worth, so that was definitely a good sign. No, but I feel like I have a little more lift than I did a week ago, even on my jumper."

(On Fisher-Green) "We got a little lucky there. I thought it was over."

Jason Kidd

(On his calf) "I feel good. We'll rehab the calf and then we'll see where we stand in a week. They were a little nervous that I had torn an Achilles or something, because that, I guess, is the common theme when you say that you got kicked in the back of the calf. So I was just happy that it was just a strain."

(Time to break down, bodywise?) "I hope not. The good thing is that my back feels great and it was just a freak incident in the sense of the calf. So hopefully it can heal fast and get back and help my guys win ballgames."

(On sitting) "It's always tough to watch, but it's also good that my teammates are playing well. The team has a pretty good record without me and Dirk in the lineup. I think this is great for Roddy to get minutes under his belt.''

Jason Terry

(On trailing late) "You never know what Pop is gonna do, but tonight he got into a situation where his starters didn’t have it. We got off to a good lead and they play tomorrow night, so he was gonna rest them and if his energy group could give them what they gave them he was just gonna ride them. Take your hat off to those guys, they continued to play, played hard and they made shots. That’s just a Popovich-coached team."

(On 34 Points) "I was locked in. You know, the first time we played San Antonio I was disappointed. I watched the film and there were some shots that I know that I make. And I said if I continue to get those same looks and opportunities I would be aggressive and take them and they gave me the same looks."

(On 1-5 from Deep) "They ran me off the 3-point line and when a team does that to you you have to make that adjustment on the fly. You have to know how they’re going to play you and I got to the paint. I got a couple of short mid-range shots to go for me."

(On Dirk) "He moved good in the second half after we froze him out in the first half. I thought he started to get into a rhythm. He had some good looks that he would have liked to have knocked down, but that’s gonna come. So, he looked alright. The best thing about it is he has another game tomorrow to really test his self and see where he’s at."

(On Travelgate) "No, he didn’t travel. I was worried about the over-and-back call, he was getting close to halfcourt. But I didn’t think he traveled. Smart play on his part."


(On tieing the Game) "I took a glance at the clock and time was running down. I wanted to get to my spot where I knew I could get a shot off and the rest, I guess, was history."

(On 4th) "It's just the will to win when the game is on the line. I like to take the shot when the game is on the line. When my team needs me the most, I'm going to come through regardless of what's going on the entire night. Fourth quarter is winning time."

(On French Jesus) "He’s a competitor. He just hasn’t been in enough of these situations. It's a blessing in disguise that J-Kidd's out because Roddy's kind of forced in to having to assume the role of leading the team, starting at the point guard position. He's going to take his lumps but he's going to do more right than wrong. We definitely encourage him more than beat him up."

(On Beaubois tonight) "It was great for Roddy Beaubois to be in the situation he was tonight, a playoff-type atmosphere. Those are experiences you're only going to get in a game. He'll learn and grow from it."

(On the Standings) "You've got to be careful of watching the standings. If you lose tonight at Phoenix, you'll be back in eighth place. These games are coming fast and furious, and so if you watch the standings you're going to kill yourself. We just want to win the games that are before us and take care of our business."

Rodrigue Beaubois

(On his Game) "I just tried to be aggressive. If it was open, I tried to score. But everybody did a great job. Jet was amazing. Vince Carter was great. Everybody was great.''

(On Playingtime) "It’s an opportunity for me to get better, learn as a player and for sure help the team to win. If coach is making me play that many minutes, it’s because he believes I can help the team. I just need to be ready for that."

Vince Carter

(On his Game) "I was able to just get going and get going early trying to be aggressive," Carter said of his quick start.

(On Season-high in Points) "It doesn’t matter about points. The team won."

(On the Mavs) "Through blowing an 18-point lead, we were able to get back in the game down nine and pull out a victory. I think that says a lot about our team."

(On Beaubois) "This is a great time for him. He’s playing well, he’s very aggressive. He’s going to make mistakes, and I think young guys when they make mistakes and are playing in games like this, if you make them, you keep going. You don’t have to look over your shoulder now. We’re going to need you to play."

Spurs

Coach Pop

(On Dissappointment) "It's disappointing. I don't know what you want me to do. Do you want me to cry? I don't know what you want me to do. How disappointing? Very disappointing, is that OK? It's disappointing."

(On the nearcomeback) "You don’t see that very often, but we were on fire shooting threes. That got us back in the game. It was simple as that. I thought the energy defensively was great; we double-teamed everywhere. They were playing great.

(On not putting starters back in in the 4th) "That group was playing great. Why would I?"

Tim Duncan

(On the Bench) "Those guys got us back out of a hole. You ride with what’s going good. It was the right call."

(On Greens disallowed Gamewinner) "I don’t know if the clock started early, or Danny’s release is slower, or what."

Danny Green

(Tough luck) "I guess it was just too good to be true."

(On the Difference in Fishering) "His goes in the books. Mine doesn’t."

(What was your plan?) "I was going to run out of the gym, just like Derek did. I said, ‘Guys, let’s go. Let’s get the heck out of here.’

(What happen?) "Nobody wanted to follow my lead."

Vids

Game Recap

Postgame

Dirk (Nice Glasses, Bryan)

Shawn Marion (doesn't know how he's feeling)

Vince Carter

JET

Parker (Hey, about Roddy...)

Roddy (Norelle has some strong arms)

Tim Duncan (Bench vs Fogafini)

Links

MMB | Rottcap I'm a Survivor

This one wasn't always pretty, and it wasn't always pleasant. But it was a typical meeting between these neighboring teams, going all the way to the wire.

Pounding the Rock Quickcap | Recap

In any close game, there are an infinite number of 'What ifs.' Quickly, what if the officials didn't suck? What if they (who apparently have an affinity for spending ridiculous amounts of time reviewing plays) had reviewed the possession before Danny's near game-winner (when over half of a second ticked away after Terry hit his go-ahead bucket) and put a few tenths back on the clock? What if they called a travel on Dirk when he inexplicably picked the ball up while sprinting full speed down the court in an attempt to call a time out? What if they called that ball out on Yawn? What if Danny's three had counted when they called a foul on Yawn as he plowed through Bonner's screen. What if they called any of the many fouls that went uncalled on the Mavericks in the fourth quarter and overtime? What if Pop put a point guard into the game rather than relying on our shooting guards to handle to ball? And finally, what if Pop gave the ball to ANYONE aside from Bonner on the last play? Every other player was having the game of their life. The broken play that sealed our fate really took a chunk out of my life expectancy. But enough of the what ifs. Who does that anyway? I, for one, am above pointing out such trivial matters that definitely stole a victory from our beloved Spurs. I refuse to do it, and I certainly wouldn't dedicate an entire paragraph of a recap to listing them out, one after another.

48 MoH El Conclusion |

The big debate after tonight’s game will center on Coach Popovich. Did he do the right thing by letting the second unit run the entire fourth quarter and overtime? I think so. But opinions will vary, and I’m sure they will be heated. From where I sit, this Spurs team might not make the playoffs, and even if they do they will need a strong bench. In either scenario, developing the second unit makes sense.

2MG's Difference

Behold, the power and savvy of Gregg Popovich.

Hoopdata Boxscore

Mavs 50 Shots between 10-23 Feet, Spurs 25. So much for the Jumpshooting team.

Stats

FT-Watch

Brendan bricked one of two from the line. So far he is sporting a brickrate of 50%. Celebration for our third best Center, Beaches! [nsfw]

On the other Hand, Dirk didn't even get to the Line and YAWN bricked Twice in an important Situation, kinda. HMMMM

Rest

Outrebounded? Nope, 55-52. Barely

44 FG, 15 Assists for the Mavs. That's bad. Real bad.

Bonus

Disclaimer: If you couldn't tell by now, all italic sentences are made up thoughts, not actual quotes.