What They Said!!! Grizzlies vs Lakers 02-24-16

POST GAME QUOTES

GRIZZLIES 128, LAKERS 119

 

 

GRIZZLIES HEAD COACH DAVE JOERGER

Opening statement:

“It was a good win. We had a good opportunity tonight for Lance (Stephenson) to get out there and feel the love, and to play in front of the home crowd. P.J. (Hairston) got his feet under him. Everybody was real excited tonight to play in front of a big crowd. I thought, by and large, we made a lot of shots. Mike Conley shot the ball really well and really kept us under control. Matt Barnes obviously had a great night shot it really well. P.J. made some shots. So I thought it was a good game for those guys to get out there. Do we have some things to work on? Absolutely. We gave up 17 threes, 15 offensive rebounds and too many free throw attempts. We’ve got to build that trust. That’s basically a new group of guys playing together defensively. We’re having Zach (Randolph) play some center, and we’re just having all kinds of different lineups. Defensively, I’m concerned, but it was a good win. They don’t ask ‘How?’ they ask ‘How many?’ at the end of the year.”

 

On if he feels he can rely on the three-point shot from this team:

“No.”

 

On what Brandan Wright has brought in Marc Gasol’s absence:

“Brandan (Wright) got a little ticked off in the fourth quarter and really responded. They were getting offensive rebounds. I think maybe he feels that we didn’t team rebound and help him out, but it’s not just the biggest guy on the court’s job to get every rebound. I thought he got pretty aggressive after that, offensively. I thought he and Bird (Chris Andersen), which is not a lineup I plan on trotting out there very often, they picked up our rebounding. We had a chance to put the ballgame up to 20, 22 and 24 points, but we’d give up an offensive rebound and they would hit a three. That’s demoralizing, but we played through it. Those two guys gave us really good minutes playing in the pick-and-roll. I got Vince (Carter) back in there to play with Lance (Stephenson) a little bit, and the ball started moving. We got a rim runner, we got better defensively and we pushed the lead back up. Brandan was a big key in that. He’s always the one rim running, but with Bird rim running tonight, he got to play in space. I thought he attacked the basket really well.”

 

On if he has reflected on coaching against Kobe Bryant for his last game in Memphis:

“No. It’s a nice deal. Several of you I’ve had personal conversations with. If you can find a guy luckier than me, I dare you. I don’t know why I’m sitting here, but I had the opportunity to be in this position, and see the things I’ve seen and been a part of. It’ll be a while, but I will look back. I’ve seen LeBron (James) score 55 in here, I’ve seen Kobe score 50-something, whether it be here or there (Los Angeles). When I look back at the opportunity I’ve had to be in this position, it’s just fantastic.”

 

GRIZZLIES FORWARD BRANDAN WRIGHT  (15 points, 6 rebounds)

On enjoying the game:

“There were a lot of points scored on both ends, usually those are the fun games for us and the tough games for the coaches to watch. But, it’s a win. Whatever we can do to get the job done, it’s still a ‘W’ in the win column.”

 

On focusing on Grizzlies’ struggles despite 128 point game:

“This is a different team now. We’re going to be more up-tempo, we’re going to get out and play a little bit more, go for steals. So we’re going to give up some threes and some offensive rebounds. We still have to clean that stuff up, there were way too many tonight. The points are going to fluctuate, but we have to be active and when a team makes a run, we need to make a run back.”

 

On being able to break out in Memphis:

“My legs were feeling pretty heavy the first two games. I felt a lot better tonight. Like I said the first game back, it’s only going to get better for me and I’m looking forward to these last 25 or 26 games.”

 

On difficulty of facing the same team on a back-to-back:

“It’s tough. I’ve played a lot of these in my career and it’s tough for any team to win both games. We have to go in and attack them in the first five minutes. I know they’ve been on a long road trip, so the first game back home will be great for them. But, we’ve got to win all these games. The next games coming in March and April are going to be tough, so we have to take advantage of the opportunities.”

 

On importance of getting must-win games in the final stretch of the season:

“You have to win those games and if we don’t win those games, it’s going to hurt us in the end. We’re not looking that far ahead. We’re taking it one game at a time. We know we have a pretty tough back-to-back coming up and then we’ll take it from there.”

 

 

GRIZZLIES GUARD/FORWARD LANCE STEPHENSON (8 points, 4 rebounds)

On first game at FedExForum:

“It felt great. The atmosphere is amazing, my teammates are amazing and they’ve helped me out so much. I’m just trying to get adjusted and trying to figure out my teammates and trying to have fun.”

 

On Memphis crowd giving him an ovation upon check-in:

“It was very surprising. I’m just happy they’re accepting me and wishing the best for me. I just want to come in, work hard and just have fun.”

 

On Grizzlies’ issues despite scoring 128 points:

“Coach (Dave Joerger) has to stay on us and make sure we’re engaged and know our defensive rotation. I think he’s doing a great job. I’m just trying to come in and learn as much as possible.”

 

On process of blending with the Grizzlies:

“They are making it easy for me. I’m learning the plays as we go. At some points in the game I’ll be like, ‘Oh, I don’t remember that play,’ but they got me through it. I’m just trying to learn as much as possible.”

 

On what it means to be on the court with Kobe Bryant during his final season:

“Kobe is unstoppable. He has so many moves, even at this age. He still has the fadeaway and he just has so many go-to moves. Playing against him and learning from him when I was younger, some of my moves are from him and I just try to put in my own style. Kobe is amazing and it’s great watching him.”

 

LAKERS HEAD COACH BYRON SCOTT:

On halftime discussion:

“It was only defense. The last three games especially, we just haven’t been able to guard anyone. Teams are scoring pretty much at will, outside and inside. We just need to figure out a better way of understanding what we have to do on that end of the floor. We have to do it for 48 minutes.”

 

On Jordan Clarkson and D’Angelo Russell defensively:

“Contain the dribble. The biggest thing is contain the dribble. Guys were just beating us off the dribble and it does not really have to make three or four moves. It’s more just the straight-line drives. Just have to get help and help doesn’t come quick enough. Just both of them need to do a much better job of containing the dribble.”

 

On the evolvement of D’Angelo Russell offensively:

“I think the biggest thing is the mid-range and getting to the rim more. That was something he wasn’t doing earlier in the season. He was just really settling on the jump shots a lot. Right now, he is doing a much better job of getting to the basket, a much better job of getting the mid-range game. Still settling for the threes at times, probably a little too much. Overall, I think his game has gotten much better as far as variety, not just settling on one thing.”

 

On when D’Angelo Russell has turned into a player:

“It has to be something he can do on a consistent basis. We got 22 or 23 games left so he has plenty of time to really start settling in and becoming more comfortable on the floor. But until I can see that on a more consistent basis, I will be more comfortable to say ‘Hey, you are starting at point.’”

 

On his players playing the full game:

“I think you need to prepare like you are going to play 30-plus minutes every game no matter what. Doesn’t matter who you are or how many minutes you play in a game, you still have to prepare like it’s a 48-minute game. It is not different with those young guys that are going to play a lot of minutes. That means taking care of yourself, getting some rest, eat right; all of those little things that you have to do to make sure you are ready.”

 

On Kobe Bryant enjoying his goodbye tour:

“I think I said this a long time ago. I think just the fact that he knows this is his last season he is ever going to play. His demeanor has been different. He still loves to compete but I think he is appreciating the fact that everyone is showing him so much love and respect after playing for 20 years. I think that gets to his heart. I think he really feels it. Just the fact that he is at peace and can acknowledge what he is going through right now is a great thing.”

 

LAKERS FORWARD LARRY NANCE, JR. (3 POINTS, 3 REBOUNDS)

On how he feels after playing tonight:

“I’d say I felt better after the whole game, not the fact that we lost, but individually I felt like I was playing with a lot less pain and a lot more free.”

 

On his dunk:

“Well we were on a bit of a run. Lou (Williams) was making some big shots and we were just trying to come back and doing every little thing we could. Crashing the glass is part of that and fortunately I got around, I think it was Vince (Carter), and just caught it.”

 

On playing against Vince Carter:

“Vince is one of those guys that you see on the court and you think, ‘Man I cannot believe I’m out here with this guy.’ He’s one of those legends that you just relish playing against.”

 

On proving himself to the coaching staff:

“It was like show and tell, really. I would do something then I would look over at them and be like, ‘See guys, I’m alright.’ But of course, they’re looking at me like, ‘Come on, not all in one day.’ It was fun being out there.”

 

On what the Lakers need to do to prepare for the Grizzlies on Friday:

“We’ve got to keep them out of transition and keep the turnovers down. Probably the biggest thing is keeping them out of the paint. They had a few offensive rebound points, put backs. Brandan Wright, JaMychal Green, we’ve got to keep them out of there. I would say overall just defense.”

 

 

LAKERS GUARD NICK YOUNG (8 POINTS)

On tonight’s game:

“They were just making shots. We kind of had some mental lapses out there on the defensive end, but somehow we found a way to put the ball in the hole and we just kept trying to fight.”

 

On Jordan Clarkson:

“He’s been hitting those three balls kind of good lately. We’ve just got to continue to keep it up. Even though the season kind of is what it is, these young guys have to stick with it and play.”

 

On Larry Nance, Jr.’s dunk:

“I was shocked. I haven’t seen him do that in a while. I was happy to see him get back into being who he is. It’s good to see that.”

 

On what the Lakers have to do different on Friday against the Grizzlies:

“We need to watch film. These guys are knocking down shots. Matt Barnes had a big night. We’ve got to somehow try to shut that down.”

 

LAKERS GUARD KOBE BRYANT (13 points, 1 rebound)

On D’Angelo Russell:

“You know, it’s just a timing thing for him. It’s just a rhythm thing. It’s very hard coming off the bench to really establish the game, especially as a point guard, because you’re always chasing the game. Because the momentum takes place and now you’ve got to come in and adjust to what’s going on. It’s much easier for him, when he does start, to control the game and make certain reads and things like that. It’s just easier for him to play better.”

 

On what it would take to visit Memphis:

“Just to come back and finally eat for once. I’d probably be able to come and enjoy some of that good food. That’s all it takes. It’s not much.”

 

On playing against great players:

“It wound up being the end result of trying to get to the point where I’m out playing more, have a longer career. But it always started with, ‘How can I become the best basketball player that I can be?’ and in order to do that, certain people were in the way. You have to kind of figure out what did they do well, what did they not do well, you know just in case. Like Vince (Carter) it used to be like, ‘Oh, he’s in the Eastern Conference.” So, when I played against him, I was always trying different things, trying to figure them out, just in case we saw him in June. So, it was always about that, and I enjoy Vince. I enjoy playing against him every time.”

 

On being able to sustain his career for 20 seasons:

“Seriously man, it’s the stubbornness. Really I was just being extremely, extremely stubborn being like, ‘This is not going to happen. I’m not going to just fall off. I’m going to keep at it. I’m going to figure this thing out. I’m going to change my game, and I’m going to adjust.’ I think it was just the stubbornness and just constantly pushing and pushing and pushing.”

 

On announcing his retirement at the beginning of the season:

“I feel good about it. For me, a lot of it has to do with the organization, as well. If you know and you’re mind is made up, why wait? I could’ve went behind the scenes and told them behind the scenes, but in L.A. everything leaks anyway, so you might as well just come out and say it. You start with the organization and franchise, this way they can make their plans, in terms of how to rebuild, and secondly, you say thank you to the fans. Being able to enjoy openly coming her for the last time, and to other places, to be able to let you guys know, and let the fans know how much I’ve appreciated you guys over all these years. So, it’s been great, man.”

 

On his plans after retirement:

“One thing about planning throughout my entire career that I’ve learned is that you have a plan, and then what comes out of that is nothing near what you thought your plan was going to be. But, you know, you can’t build a house without having a solid blueprint first. So, I feel confident about it, I feel good about it, and from now the adventure can begin.”

 

On the end of his basketball career:

“You’re always going to miss the competition, and playing and doing all sorts of things. But, I’ve had 20 great years. You can’t play forever.”