Postgame Report

Postgame Quotes

Coach Maurice Cheeks

On the impact of adding Elton Brand to the Eastern Conference
Obviously it makes us a little tougher, and makes the East a little tougher. He’s an excellent player, so anytime you bring in a player from the West to the East, it’s going to make the East a little stronger.

On the Raptors adding Jermaine O’Neal
I don’t know who is going to make more of an impact, both are going to make an impact because Jermaine O’Neal is an excellent player. And you put Jermaine O’Neal with Chris Bosh and the other people around them, they’re already good so it makes them a little bit better.

Andre Iguodala

First game, are you guys just trying to find the right pace and the right spots?
Yes, it is the first exhibition game and we kind of expected this. Last night Kobe (Bryant) had six points and LeBron (James) had one for no reason other than it is exhibition. It is the first game, we are just trying to get used to everyone. I thought we did pretty good, we scored 111 points, we had a lot of assists and a lot of good shots.

Was the game completely different from what you were doing last year?
Yes, it had a real nice pace, a real nice flow. I thought we got up and down the court and made the extra passes. We played unselfishly and I think we will be better going forward.

Elton Brand

Thoughts on the team
This is one of the talented surprise teams of last season. The second half of the season they were one of the better teams, not just in the East but in the NBA. I think that I complement the guys that they have here pretty well. They were the seventh seed in the East last year and we want to improve upon that. That is the minimum goal.

How is your Achilles holding up?
It feels great. We have been running a lot and playing a lot. My Achilles is totally healed and feels great out there. These guys run up and down, so I have had a lot of reps and running.