Magic Exit Interviews: Stan Van Gundy Quotes
Coach Stan Van Gundy:
On this season:
“It’s disappointing because our goals were obviously to win a championship. Not only didn’t we do that, we also didn’t get back to The Finals, so that’s a disappointment. There is no other way around that but to say we are all disappointed where we finished.”
On if the season was a complete disappointment:
“There are all kinds of good things. Ultimately, we were not successful but that does not mean there were not good things along the way. I think the best thing you can probably say is that our organization has come far enough and we have reached a level that going to Game 6 of the Conference Finals is not a success. I think that’s the best thing you can say about our organization. We are one of a very small group of teams that genuinely has the expectations of trying to win a championship. For those teams, that is the only success. It makes it hard to finish in anything other than disappointment. You have to be No. 1 out of 30; No. 2 won’t do it or anything else. At the same time, I think that is a good thing that our organization has reached that level.”
On the differences between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic in the series:
“There were a few. If you look at all six games, on a consistent basis, you have to say they played with a better energy, particularly at the start of games. Beyond that, what I thought was the difference was their willingness and ability to move the basketball to a second, third and fourth option on their offensive possessions to get a good shot was beyond belief. I thought that was really what set the teams apart.”
On if the Celtics’ defense was a big factor in the series:
“You have to give them credit and I have said this a lot of times with our defense too. It is always hard to separate. You hold a team to 38 or 39 percent and you feel good, but it is always hard to separate because it is always a little bit of both, your defense and the other team missing shots and not playing as well. It was the same way with the Celtics series. I thought we could have played better but I thought they did a great job defensively also. It is sort of hard to say for sure but I certainly don’t want to take credit away from them and what they did but I also feel like we should have been able to play the game a lot better than we did at the offensive end.”
On what the mood of the team is like:
“We didn’t spend a lot of time today. It was very brief and then we talked about basically voting playoff shares and the whole thing. Everybody seemed fine today, nobody seemed suicidal but at the same time we didn’t spend a lot of time talking about it. I think we are all pretty much on the same page. We had a very good season and then a very disappointing series. I think the fact that we had as good a season up until that point as we did makes the final result even more disappointing. At least for me, the overwriting feeling is disappointment. But like I said, it’s a double-edged sword in some ways. It’s good that our organization got to the point that you can go to where we did and feel like it was a disappointment.”
On whether or not the team needs some tweaking:
“The probability is, in this profession, that you almost never come back with the same group. Can you? Yes, I think we could come back with the same group and be even better. I think I could do some things differently that would allow us to be better and I think we’ve got some improvements that individual guys could make to be better. I said that to Otis (Smith) this morning, when he and I met, that we could be better with the same group but I also think, as always, you are certainly out there looking and seeing if there are ways you can improve your team. You would be foolish not to.”
On if there is sometimes an overreaction to act after playoffs end:
“Certainly fans tend to be very major reactors, which is fine. What you want from your fans is that they have interest, which ours do. But I would say probably Otis’ greatest strength is that he does not overreact to one game, two games, a series or a week. He is a pretty even keel guy who stays pretty objective on what is going on. I think whatever happens will be based on a very objective analysis on what we can do and what we end up doing. I do not think it will be like, ‘Oh my God, we lost. This guy didn’t play as well so we have to get rid of him.’ It is not going to be like that. I don’t think it will ever be like that with Otis. Again, I think that is his greatest strength.”
On what his plans are this summer:
“The two things now is, yes I’ll get some time off. I watched a perfect game this weekend on TV and then I watched a 1-0 game yesterday. So I’m going to watch a lot of baseball and spend a lot of time with my family. At the same time, my immediate thing on the flight home was to basically fill up a legal pad, while stuff was fresh on my mind, of things I didn’t like that we did and things we need to change and then it is an analysis of what might be out there on the free agent market and the whole thing. We will gradually start getting ready.”
On the Celtics winning the series:
“There are a lot of factors in that. I think that some of the bigger factors in that series was that in too many of the games we did not start with great energy and I thought we started too many games turning the ball over which led them into easy baskets and got them going a little bit. I think when we got the big win in Game 5, it was largely in part of dominating the boards and we didn’t do that throughout the series. We outrebounded them throughout the series but if you take that one game out, we actually got outrebounded. That wasn’t good enough. It always comes back to basic things, taking care of the ball, rebounding the ball, getting back on defense and even more so in the playoffs. You’re not going to fool anybody and it comes back to very basic, very fundamental things. They were better in those areas than we were.”
On Dwight Howard’s growth this season:
“I thought particularly the last three games in the Boston series, I thought he grew in terms of understanding even more fully what he needs to do as a leader in terms of setting the example and trying to bring other people up. I thought that was probably the most promising thing. I thought over the course of the year, that his offensive repertoire increased. He did some different things. To lead the league in block shots and rebounds again and (be named) Defensive Player of the Year, he clearly had a great season. We were talking about a First Team All-NBA guy three years in a row all at the age of 24. He is one of the dominant players in the league. As far as where his improvement goes from here, I think it becomes more gradual things. The one thing that stands out of course, and he is working very hard on it, is his free throw shooting. That alone changes the way he gets played so he will continue to work at that. Everything else is just getting better a little bit in every area.”
On Dwight Howard finding his offense a little bit more in the last three games:
“That can be a good thing. To me it is more I think he started to understand how much he has got to set the example in terms of his effort and energy, and then from there, to inspire the other guys to do the same thing. I thought he did that the last three games of the series very maturely and very much like a great player should and I think that will carry over.”
On if any of the four losses stick out to him more than the others:
“I think Games 1 and 3 are the ones to me. I think that from even reading our own guys comments. When you are talking about this level of playoffs and you are not happy with your effort and energy and when it happens more than once. I was really surprised with our energy in Game 1 and in Game 3. We had great preparation and I was convinced we were really ready to go. That’s probably the most surprising game I’ve had here in my three years. I was very surprised in the way we played in Game 3 because our guys put a lot into getting ready for that game.”
On what he would do differently with his roster next year:
“I think you put your team together and play in a way that is going to give you the best chance to be successful and obviously right now, it is a hard question to answer because until your roster gets finalized, the answer to that becomes pretty vague. We don’t know for sure who we are going to have next year and what it is going to be. The one thing I will say is that the thing I was probably most critical of myself, looking back on the season in terms of what happened in the Boston series, is that I think we should have had a couple of different lineups that were more viable to us based of the fact that we would have used them more during the season and would have been more comfortable with them. I think a couple of those things we didn’t do enough and weren’t comfortable enough with them to be successful. If we had essentially the same roster again next year, that would be something that I would look to change. But the roster could change so those things could be irrelevant by next year. The main ones with me would have been more of a viable lineup that we were comfortable with at times during the game with Rashard (Lewis) at the three. Even though we used it some, it would be more of a comfort level. I also would have used Dwight (Howard) and Marcin (Gortat) together more. Those were the two I think, at least in the Boston series, that could have had more of an impact on the series had we been more comfortable with those lineups. With that said, and I know it is a topic of discussion, in terms of the way we played and who we played, I’m absolutely convinced we are playing, with the roster we have, the absolute right people for us to be at our best. People can disagree and that is fine but I wouldn’t do that any differently. If I came in tomorrow with the same roster and had Rashard at the four and Vince (Carter) at the two, that would be a hard thing for me to change.”
On this season:
“It’s disappointing because our goals were obviously to win a championship. Not only didn’t we do that, we also didn’t get back to The Finals, so that’s a disappointment. There is no other way around that but to say we are all disappointed where we finished.”
On if the season was a complete disappointment:
“There are all kinds of good things. Ultimately, we were not successful but that does not mean there were not good things along the way. I think the best thing you can probably say is that our organization has come far enough and we have reached a level that going to Game 6 of the Conference Finals is not a success. I think that’s the best thing you can say about our organization. We are one of a very small group of teams that genuinely has the expectations of trying to win a championship. For those teams, that is the only success. It makes it hard to finish in anything other than disappointment. You have to be No. 1 out of 30; No. 2 won’t do it or anything else. At the same time, I think that is a good thing that our organization has reached that level.”
On the differences between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic in the series:
“There were a few. If you look at all six games, on a consistent basis, you have to say they played with a better energy, particularly at the start of games. Beyond that, what I thought was the difference was their willingness and ability to move the basketball to a second, third and fourth option on their offensive possessions to get a good shot was beyond belief. I thought that was really what set the teams apart.”
On if the Celtics’ defense was a big factor in the series:
“You have to give them credit and I have said this a lot of times with our defense too. It is always hard to separate. You hold a team to 38 or 39 percent and you feel good, but it is always hard to separate because it is always a little bit of both, your defense and the other team missing shots and not playing as well. It was the same way with the Celtics series. I thought we could have played better but I thought they did a great job defensively also. It is sort of hard to say for sure but I certainly don’t want to take credit away from them and what they did but I also feel like we should have been able to play the game a lot better than we did at the offensive end.”
On what the mood of the team is like:
“We didn’t spend a lot of time today. It was very brief and then we talked about basically voting playoff shares and the whole thing. Everybody seemed fine today, nobody seemed suicidal but at the same time we didn’t spend a lot of time talking about it. I think we are all pretty much on the same page. We had a very good season and then a very disappointing series. I think the fact that we had as good a season up until that point as we did makes the final result even more disappointing. At least for me, the overwriting feeling is disappointment. But like I said, it’s a double-edged sword in some ways. It’s good that our organization got to the point that you can go to where we did and feel like it was a disappointment.”
On whether or not the team needs some tweaking:
“The probability is, in this profession, that you almost never come back with the same group. Can you? Yes, I think we could come back with the same group and be even better. I think I could do some things differently that would allow us to be better and I think we’ve got some improvements that individual guys could make to be better. I said that to Otis (Smith) this morning, when he and I met, that we could be better with the same group but I also think, as always, you are certainly out there looking and seeing if there are ways you can improve your team. You would be foolish not to.”
On if there is sometimes an overreaction to act after playoffs end:
“Certainly fans tend to be very major reactors, which is fine. What you want from your fans is that they have interest, which ours do. But I would say probably Otis’ greatest strength is that he does not overreact to one game, two games, a series or a week. He is a pretty even keel guy who stays pretty objective on what is going on. I think whatever happens will be based on a very objective analysis on what we can do and what we end up doing. I do not think it will be like, ‘Oh my God, we lost. This guy didn’t play as well so we have to get rid of him.’ It is not going to be like that. I don’t think it will ever be like that with Otis. Again, I think that is his greatest strength.”
On what his plans are this summer:
“The two things now is, yes I’ll get some time off. I watched a perfect game this weekend on TV and then I watched a 1-0 game yesterday. So I’m going to watch a lot of baseball and spend a lot of time with my family. At the same time, my immediate thing on the flight home was to basically fill up a legal pad, while stuff was fresh on my mind, of things I didn’t like that we did and things we need to change and then it is an analysis of what might be out there on the free agent market and the whole thing. We will gradually start getting ready.”
On the Celtics winning the series:
“There are a lot of factors in that. I think that some of the bigger factors in that series was that in too many of the games we did not start with great energy and I thought we started too many games turning the ball over which led them into easy baskets and got them going a little bit. I think when we got the big win in Game 5, it was largely in part of dominating the boards and we didn’t do that throughout the series. We outrebounded them throughout the series but if you take that one game out, we actually got outrebounded. That wasn’t good enough. It always comes back to basic things, taking care of the ball, rebounding the ball, getting back on defense and even more so in the playoffs. You’re not going to fool anybody and it comes back to very basic, very fundamental things. They were better in those areas than we were.”
On Dwight Howard’s growth this season:
“I thought particularly the last three games in the Boston series, I thought he grew in terms of understanding even more fully what he needs to do as a leader in terms of setting the example and trying to bring other people up. I thought that was probably the most promising thing. I thought over the course of the year, that his offensive repertoire increased. He did some different things. To lead the league in block shots and rebounds again and (be named) Defensive Player of the Year, he clearly had a great season. We were talking about a First Team All-NBA guy three years in a row all at the age of 24. He is one of the dominant players in the league. As far as where his improvement goes from here, I think it becomes more gradual things. The one thing that stands out of course, and he is working very hard on it, is his free throw shooting. That alone changes the way he gets played so he will continue to work at that. Everything else is just getting better a little bit in every area.”
On Dwight Howard finding his offense a little bit more in the last three games:
“That can be a good thing. To me it is more I think he started to understand how much he has got to set the example in terms of his effort and energy, and then from there, to inspire the other guys to do the same thing. I thought he did that the last three games of the series very maturely and very much like a great player should and I think that will carry over.”
On if any of the four losses stick out to him more than the others:
“I think Games 1 and 3 are the ones to me. I think that from even reading our own guys comments. When you are talking about this level of playoffs and you are not happy with your effort and energy and when it happens more than once. I was really surprised with our energy in Game 1 and in Game 3. We had great preparation and I was convinced we were really ready to go. That’s probably the most surprising game I’ve had here in my three years. I was very surprised in the way we played in Game 3 because our guys put a lot into getting ready for that game.”
On what he would do differently with his roster next year:
“I think you put your team together and play in a way that is going to give you the best chance to be successful and obviously right now, it is a hard question to answer because until your roster gets finalized, the answer to that becomes pretty vague. We don’t know for sure who we are going to have next year and what it is going to be. The one thing I will say is that the thing I was probably most critical of myself, looking back on the season in terms of what happened in the Boston series, is that I think we should have had a couple of different lineups that were more viable to us based of the fact that we would have used them more during the season and would have been more comfortable with them. I think a couple of those things we didn’t do enough and weren’t comfortable enough with them to be successful. If we had essentially the same roster again next year, that would be something that I would look to change. But the roster could change so those things could be irrelevant by next year. The main ones with me would have been more of a viable lineup that we were comfortable with at times during the game with Rashard (Lewis) at the three. Even though we used it some, it would be more of a comfort level. I also would have used Dwight (Howard) and Marcin (Gortat) together more. Those were the two I think, at least in the Boston series, that could have had more of an impact on the series had we been more comfortable with those lineups. With that said, and I know it is a topic of discussion, in terms of the way we played and who we played, I’m absolutely convinced we are playing, with the roster we have, the absolute right people for us to be at our best. People can disagree and that is fine but I wouldn’t do that any differently. If I came in tomorrow with the same roster and had Rashard at the four and Vince (Carter) at the two, that would be a hard thing for me to change.”
