That's What He Said, vs Knicks

by **bobheckler** Thu Feb 05, 2015 4:28 am

That's What He Said
Celtics 108 vs. Knicks 97
Madison Square Garden - February 3, 2015

Brad Stevens
RE: What he told his guys before the game:

We talked about what you do well and try not to overdo it. It helps when you make shots. We made jump shots consistently. I thought they played well on both ends. I think more encouraging is the way Jae (Crowder) can give us versatility off the bench. We will continue to mess around with that.

RE: Boston's edge in the game:

We made a couple of jump shots in that moment and that is not easy to do. We were moving it well and we were getting good looks so we felt good about it but you have to step up and make it in those moments.

RE: Getting off to a fast start:

It makes it feel you better. You have to play the rest of the game. We have gotten a lot better at it, to be honest, the last few months. We have done a better job of handling that. It stayed at that margin, or right around there, for most of the game.

RE: Avery Bradley:

He cut well, we found him and he didn’t force a thing. You are not always going to shoot it 70%, or whatever he shot, but you are going to shoot it better than 50% the way he was playing out there.

RE: Jared Sullinger:

We talked about what we wanted to do defensively. The only thing we said offensively, all day, was do what you do well and stay with that. He made his jump shots. He had open shots. He needs to take those but he also has to get on the block and he is a tough matchup.

Avery Bradley
RE: How his left thumb feels:

I am not thinking about it. I am icing and taking care of it and try to get it healthy. I can’t really dribble with my left but like I said I am not thinking about it. If I think about it, it will take away from me being aggressive.

RE: Boston's hot start in the first quarter:

I think the defense helped us get out in transition and I was fortunate to make shots.

RE: What Marcus Smart brings to the team:

He brings that defensive intensity as a team. He brings a lot to this team. We play as hard as we can and it makes everyone else play hard as well.

Marcus Smart
RE: How Boston started the game:

We came out with energy right out the gate. That is what we have been lacking.

RE: The Celtics' roster:

We got guys who compete. Our effort was through the roof. We took every shot that they had and we came back with our own shots.

RE: What the team did to push past the Knicks:

We made it hard for those guys to score and we ran our offense. We made it uncomfortable for them.

Jared Sullinger
RE: Marcus Smart's energy:

One thing people mess up with (Marcus) Smart, and he is very talented, but he is (also) an energy guy. He makes plays because he has so much energy. The way he moves the ball, the way he attacks pick-and-rolls, allows us to play with energy

RE: Boston's defense:

The simple fact that we know if we miss a shot, we know we are guarding really well on the defensive end, we are very comfortable. When you got somebody like Marcus (Smart) defending, every turnover leads to layups so that gets us going. And we moved the ball side to side which is key for us.

Evan Turner
RE: Getting off to a fast start:

It is great. I feel like the past few games we got some good shots and it finally went in tonight. It is definitely better to play ahead.

RE: The game:

We did some great team defense. They have players that hit shots but we were able to answer and get stops when we needed to.

Derek Fisher
RE: Tonight's game:

We didn’t start the game with the energy and the Celtics did and jumped out. They really brought the game to us right from the start. We couldn’t get the game under the control. The slow start definitely hurt us and even when the game when on we couldn’t get stops.

RE: Avery Bradley's performance:

I think the start of the game, guys are good players in this league, when they get started early and make their first few shots it is hard to convince them that they can’t make shots. He shot the ball well in the first half and some of the shots he hit in the second half were tougher shots. He was comfortable at that point. Very rarely do you see a team shoot the midrange shot that well. That is a matter of will sometimes. He was more willful than us.

Carmelo Anthony
RE: The game:

We didn’t have it from an energy standpoint and Boston beat us tonight. They made plays.

RE: What set the tone for the game:

“I think that 14-2 lead at the beginning of the game, we had to fight back, so by the time we made a run in the fourth quarter... they made a run back.

RE: What Boston did to disrupt New York:

They set the tone from the beginning of the game. They got in the passing lanes and were aggressive on the defensive end and they played off of that.

RE: His fatigue level:

I wasn’t the same. We all felt and looked tired today. The energy wasn’t the same but the good thing is that we get a chance to bounce back.

RE: Playing Brooklyn on Friday:

I wouldn’t consider it a rivalry yet but we accept all challenges. It is always a big game so we are looking forward to that game. It gives us a chance to bounce back from tonight.

RE: Getting a break during All-Star weekend:

I don’t think that is on our mind right now. I know that it is on my mind. It is a matter of taking it day by day and going from there.

RE: The Knicks piling up losses:

It is hard to even have a conversation about that. That is reality and that is the situation we are in right now. We have to build up from that.

bob

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