That's What He Said - vs Heat 11/9

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http://www.nba.com/celtics/news/twhs-20131109-BOSMIA.html

i]Celtics at Heat
American Airlines Arena, November 9, 2013


Celtics 111
Brad Stevens
Re: The end of the game:
"I am glad that we had time left on the clock. I knew we had two timeouts at the end of the game. It is proof that in this game if you score quickly, you are going to have a chance to at least shoot the ball if the other team misses free-throws. It was a great play by Jeff Green but it is fortunate to even get a shot off in that moment."

Re: The final play:
"In college basketball, that game would be over because you have to go the length of the court in .6 seconds that is almost impossible. In this, you have a chance to catch it facing the basket and shoot with 0.4 seconds or more. The guys really did a good job of getting from the huddle to the court and Jeff Green made a great play, while Gerald Wallace made a great pass... I had that play written down, but I have never run it before. I have run some variations of it but by then, you are free-styling it a little bit because you don’t know who is going to still be in the game."

Re: The successful road trip:
"I am excited for them and I am excited for the comradery that this type of trip can build. But I know that we are not in a position where we can think too much of ourselves. We have to go back to work and be as good as we can be."

Re: Boston's hustle:
"If we (Boston Celtics) don’t play hard, we are in trouble and won’t have a chance at the end of the game. There is just something about basketball that you will have a chance to win if you play the right way."

Re: Phil Pressey
"Phil Pressey really gives us a good little jolt off the bench in transition and he is a hard guy to keep in front, as you can see. That has given us a really good boost in the last three games as well."

Jeff Green
Re: His game-winning shot:
"The ball went in. Gerald [Wallace] made a good pass. Kelly [Olynyk] made a great screen. I was able to get a good look. My teammates, once again, put me in a position to win the game. I have confidence in every shot that I put up. I was in the first row because I faded back so far. I saw the shot when it went through. I just shot my regular shot. I trusted that it would go in."

Re: His success against the Heat:
"They are the best team. They’ve won back-to-back championships. You have to get up playing against those guys. They have one of the top five players in the game. It’s only right."

Re: Boston's confidence after the win:
"It brings us a lot of confidence. We’ve been on a good roll. Our team effort has been tremendous by helping each other out. That’s what we need. Our communication has been there. We’re just making good strides to become who we want to become. It just shows all the weapons that we have. Avery [Bradley] came in and made big plays. It’s tough for people to stop us playing the way that we played today. We just have to keep building. It just shows us battling and getting better each game. That’s what you’re supposed to do throughout the season. We’re going to have our ups-and-downs, but as long as we stay together and build as a team, the sky’s the limit."

Avery Bradley
Re: The game:
"We just want to continue to take steps forward. I feel like that’s what we did tonight. We improved as a team. We’re a hard-working team that doesn’t have a superstar. We work together and depend on each other. We trust each other. That’s the only way we’re going to win. We have to bring it every night. We were able to knock down shots. We weren’t able to play defense as well. We’ll watch film and we’ll continue to grow. Every possession is important. Games like this come down to the wire. We’re able to trust each other. We’re able to game plan. When our coach draws up a play, we pay attention and execute."

Re: Green's game-winner:
"I knew it was going in. I told Coach that the ball needs to go to Jeff. He hit a big shot for us."

Re: His clutch performance in the final quarter:
"I caught a rhythm. My teammates were able to give me the ball and I was able to knock shots down. I was more relaxed today. I felt comfortable going into the fourth quarter. It starts on the defensive end for me first. That’s about it."


Heat 110
Erik Spoelstra
Re: The game:
"Boston played well, so give them the credit for taking this game tonight. They outplayed us, out-competed against us. But this game has always had . . . an energy and a karma about it, and we did too many things where we did not deserve to win that game and it cost us at the end. Even when it looked like we had daylight, we just were not doing enough of the little things or the tough things the way we’re capable of. And I think it’s pretty clear we were just trying to win this game at the offensive end. And it’s a shame that that type of offensive game gets out-shadowed by an extremely poor defensive effort."

Re: The Heat's defensive deficiencies:
"I could go on and on. You could see it. The lack of awareness, the energy, the effort. Running it down our gut. Beating us off the dribble. Open shots all night."

Re: What part of Miami's defense was lacking:
"Categorically, it’s probably across the board we were very poor. Any situation. Off the dribble. Air space. Effort to get back in transition. Get your defense set. Help side. Pretty much all of it.”"

LeBron James
Re: Green's 3-pointer:
"We covered it as well as we could. That was a hell of a pass by Gerald [Wallace]. It was a great catch-and-shoot. I was right on him but, we messed with the game tonight and it got us back."

Re: His back:
"I’m not 100 percent. My back is not where I want it to be, but I can still be effective. I felt like I was effective tonight. I didn’t make enough plays to help us win."

Re: Dwyane Wade's missed free throws:
"I was down on the other end, I wasn’t clear [with what he wanted to do]. After the fact, after I saw him miss it, I was clear. I wasn’t down there to communicate or see what he was trying to do or wanted to do in that situation."

Chris Bosh
Re: The last play:
"It goes in you move on. We’ve had our fair share. Sometimes it happens to you. It never comes down to one play. We understand that. Like we say around here, own up to it and do better next time."

Re: Miami's defense:
"We never got in any rhythm, on defense. They got in a good rhythm starting the second quarter. We got off to a decent start, we just didn’t sustain it. They got a lot of confidence. They started hitting a lot of bombs, and then finished with a bomb. We have to get off to better starts and we have to keep those starts going. It’s all about defense right now. We aren't playing really good defense right now through the whole season. We have to fix it. We gave up a ton of layups. That’s uncharacteristic of this team; just something we have to fight through."

Re: The inbounds play to end the game:
"I saw it but I didn’t want to give up the slip too much. If I was crazy I would have went for it all the way. The thought process is to the back corner with a guy chasing him, you have to play your percentages sometimes and he hit that small percentage jump-shot. Things are going to even out. I believe in balance but it doesn't come down to that one play.
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