Quotes: Spurs vs. Pacers: 3/31/12

(Opening Statement)

“Well, Manu and Timmy and Tony led the way. All three of them played really well tonight and everybody else fit in, but those three guys were all good all at the same time. We needed that because Indiana is a physical team; very talented and they know what they’re doing. They’re well-coached and they never gave in.”

(On the defense…Hibbert’s a guy that’s given you some problems in the past…)

“I thought the team defense was pretty good. Timmy started out and got him off the block a little bit and got him in spots where he’s a little further from the rim and from the block and everybody else helped. I thought we did a good job on him.”

(On the Spurs depth and balance…)

"We have a lot of players that can do a lot of things. Tonight was one of those nights. The bench came in the second quarter and stretched the lead a little bit. They gave us some breathing room. To get where we want to be it's going to have to be a collective effort."

(On Gary Neal's fourth quarter play…)

"Matty (Matt Bonner) passed me the ball twice in the rotation and I happened to be wide open. This has been the way we have been playing all year. We have been moving the ball and getting guys open shots."

(On Indiana hanging around all game…)

"We knew that they are an extremely tough team. They are physical. They try to establish their will from the beginning and we knew they weren't going to quit. We hung in there and got the win."

(On Hibbert’s play…)

“He has had a very good year. He is a very good player and very talented. I just tried to keep him away from the basket as much as possible and challenge every one of his shots. We got a good lead early and they went away from going to him. We made him take more jump shots and all in all it was a good team win.”

(On Indiana’s relentlessness to go away…)

“They are very physical. They are very young and very talented. They have a lot of guys that can score the ball and as I said they did not go away. They just kept on playing. They showed some real character, especially in the second half. We got up big on them but they fought their way back. I thought we finished the game very well. We did a good job of moving the ball and defensively made some stops.”

(On the Pacers great play as of late…)

“They have been playing great. We did not come in disrespecting those guys. We gave them the respect that they deserve. We had to fight for four quarters. We came in at half time knowing they were a second half team. So we were not complacent with the lead and knew we had to go out and win the game.”

(On the Pacers physical play…)

“We are (physical) too. It’s part of the game. I don’t think anybody is complaining. The NBA is physical. In order to be champions, you have to go through a lot. This is just part of it.”

(On the sharp ball movement of the Spurs…)

“I think the more practice we get and the more time we play together, we are starting to realize how deep our team is. We have confidence in everybody to make shots and to be aggressive on offense. That is what Pop teaches us, to believe and respect your teammates and believe anybody can score and knock shots down.”

(Opening statement on tonight’s game…)

“Our guys showed some resiliency. We’ve been in this situation a few times where we didn’t bounce back in the second half and we did this game. We outscored them by seven in the second half. We made it a game, but just not enough.”

(When asked if the Spurs are contenders for winning a championship this year…)

“They have a championship core. They have a legitimate shot at winning it all. Anytime you have Gregg Popovich, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan, that foursome is capable of doing anything. They upgraded their bench. They spread the floor which makes them very hard to defend. They have to be in the conversation.”

(When asked Spurs are not only difficult to guard but also their three-point shooting…)

“Not just their three-point shooting, but their ability to attack long close-outs. They spread you out and when you do get to the shooters, you run them off the line and they attack the rim or get to the free-throw line.”

(When asked being down by 22, Pacer teams in the past wouldn’t have fought back as hard…)

“I think there’s a renewed belief in this team. We believed in ourselves all year and got off to a strong start. We had some minor bumps in the road. I think they understand that our starting five is as good as anyone in the NBA. Our bench is upgraded. I think we believe we can make a lot of noise toward the end of the season.”

(When asked it seems that the Spurs are clicking on everything…)

“They’re (Spurs) playing terrific. It’s the first time in five home games where a (opposing) team has lost fewer than 11 points. Every other game has been a 20 point blowout. I’m not happy that we only lost by nine. A loss is a loss. We played good enough to beat most teams tonight, but not this team in their house.”

(On the Spurs’ offense throughout the game…)

“Everyone was just playing well. Everyone gets credit today. The coaching staff executes so efficiently offensively. They move the ball from side to side, they get you in rotations and have shooters spread out all over the place. We shot a good percentage but we just couldn’t stop their offense.”

(On his four point play in the fourth quarter…)

“I hoped it would be. That’s a big play, a four point swing. We came down and made a few more buckets but Tony Parker came up with some big shots and Tim Duncan had some good shots. We just couldn’t use that as momentum.”

(Thoughts on Kawhi Leonard…)

“He’s probably got the biggest hands I’ve ever seen, first of all. I think he’s going to be a good young player in this league. He made some open shots and he’s a pretty good defender.”

(On rotational adjustments made at the end of the game…)

“We were trying to make adjustments and that’s not a slight on anybody. Whoever is playing well at the time will keep playing. We just got to figure it out. We had to get a feel for the game, if one person’s playing well, then they will continue to play.”

(On working with Tim Duncan during the lockout…)

“He’s a great friend and I text him all the time. I ask him for scouting reports and I texted him yesterday asking him how I can guard him. He said go for the pump fake. I try to learn from him and he tries to teach me how to work outside of the box, face up and use some stuff that’s out of my comfort zone. He’s a good informant and I want to continue to work with him and talk once every week or two. Tim took time out of his day to invite me to San Antonio to work out with him. I had dinner with him and his family and he treated me like one of his own teammates during the summer. I’m going to continue to talk to him and learn from him.”