Game 4 Postgame Quotes
Magic 100, Pistons 92
“Well great job again by our whole team. We stop giving up these 29 points in the first quarter we’d be just a dominant defensive basketball team right now. A lot of it is just energy and hard work and everyone just buying into their roles and it’s really nice to see. A lot of great efforts by guys on our basketball team. It’s nice to see four guys in double figures; Drew Gooden was phenomenal. At the end he almost gave me a heart attack with the 2 three’s - he was getting very young at the end of the game. But other than that, he was sensational. Pat Garrity he made two shots but it’s amazing - a guy who everybody in our locker room is cheering for, he makes a shot and I thought it lifted our entire team spirit. Little great efforts by a lot of guys. Chris Whitney and Tracy (McGrady) did another fantastic job, in my mind, of just getting guys involved in the game."
On whether Pat Garrity was feeling better tonight: “I don’t know that. He said he felt great. Johnny Davis said before the game that he had a great feeling about Pat Garrity. He said he was watching him shot and run out on the floor and he said he was moving as well as he’s seen.”
On Richard Hamilton’s play tonight: “He missed some good shots, I will say that. It’s an amazing game. Number one, I think our guys have done an amazing game of really getting up into him and trying to take away his air space and I think that’s vital. You give him an inch he takes it and makes it. And two, as crazy as it sounds it’s human nature, I thought Gordie (Gordan Giricek) had been struggling offensively because he’d missed shots. He makes those shots and he comes in to today with a whole different body language, a whole different mindset. He had great focus and I thought he did a nice job. I think our guards are helping better too. They know Rick Hamilton is the guy so far that has really hurt us. Chauncey Billups had a big game against us today. I tell you he’s a terrific player.”
On Darrell Armstrong’s play during the playoffs: He’s been amazing. You think about the little things you do all season and you think about the little things you do all season and you make the decision all the way back before training camp; no matter who’s the point guard, Darrell Armstrong will not be starting and he would come off the bench because the last two years he’s had nothing in the playoffs. He is fresh right now. I asked him at the beginning of the fourth, let me give you a couple of minutes and he was saying ‘no, I feel great.' Last year there was no way that Darrell Armstrong could play this amount of minutes.”
On the Magic depending on Tracy McGrady or playing aggressively: “I think they just have to stay aggressive. Tracy said before the game the other night ‘don’t wait for me, don’t try to get me off, you go out and play your game, look for your shots - I’m going to get my shots’ and he’s right. If you’re going to win you’ve got to play your own game and I think guys are doing that.”
On having a 3-1 series record: “It doesn’t mean a lot right now to be honest because it’s not closed and we have a lot to do. Worse case scenario, they have two more home games and we have one. We want to go and do our job in Detroit and just play the same way we played here with the same spirit.”
On Drew Gooden’s play: “The things that are probably hurting Drew Gooden and us is we really don’t know all the things he can do yet; we haven’t had a chance to look at him. He came here in the middle of the season or late in the season so I said on trade night that we have a chance to be pretty good this year but I think with him and Gordie in the fold through a training camp it will really help us."
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On whether Pat Garrity was feeling better tonight: “I don’t know that. He said he felt great. Johnny Davis said before the game that he had a great feeling about Pat Garrity. He said he was watching him shot and run out on the floor and he said he was moving as well as he’s seen.”
On Richard Hamilton’s play tonight: “He missed some good shots, I will say that. It’s an amazing game. Number one, I think our guys have done an amazing game of really getting up into him and trying to take away his air space and I think that’s vital. You give him an inch he takes it and makes it. And two, as crazy as it sounds it’s human nature, I thought Gordie (Gordan Giricek) had been struggling offensively because he’d missed shots. He makes those shots and he comes in to today with a whole different body language, a whole different mindset. He had great focus and I thought he did a nice job. I think our guards are helping better too. They know Rick Hamilton is the guy so far that has really hurt us. Chauncey Billups had a big game against us today. I tell you he’s a terrific player.”
On Darrell Armstrong’s play during the playoffs: He’s been amazing. You think about the little things you do all season and you think about the little things you do all season and you make the decision all the way back before training camp; no matter who’s the point guard, Darrell Armstrong will not be starting and he would come off the bench because the last two years he’s had nothing in the playoffs. He is fresh right now. I asked him at the beginning of the fourth, let me give you a couple of minutes and he was saying ‘no, I feel great.' Last year there was no way that Darrell Armstrong could play this amount of minutes.”
On the Magic depending on Tracy McGrady or playing aggressively: “I think they just have to stay aggressive. Tracy said before the game the other night ‘don’t wait for me, don’t try to get me off, you go out and play your game, look for your shots - I’m going to get my shots’ and he’s right. If you’re going to win you’ve got to play your own game and I think guys are doing that.”
On having a 3-1 series record: “It doesn’t mean a lot right now to be honest because it’s not closed and we have a lot to do. Worse case scenario, they have two more home games and we have one. We want to go and do our job in Detroit and just play the same way we played here with the same spirit.”
On Drew Gooden’s play: “The things that are probably hurting Drew Gooden and us is we really don’t know all the things he can do yet; we haven’t had a chance to look at him. He came here in the middle of the season or late in the season so I said on trade night that we have a chance to be pretty good this year but I think with him and Gordie in the fold through a training camp it will really help us."
