Gregg Popovich
Tim Duncan
Tony Parker
Manu Ginobili
Michael Finley
Francisco Elson
Bruce Bowen
Fabricio Oberto
Mike Brown
LeBron James
Daniel Gibson
Donyell Marshall
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Larry Hughes

An interview with:

COACH GREGG POPOVICH

COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  Well, we played well for three quarters.  And as usual, the fourth quarter against Cleveland for some reason, two regular season games and two playoff games, they scored somewhere between 25 and 30 every fourth quarter.  So that was disappointing.  But we're in the playoffs, we're in The Finals, we got a win, and we're thrilled about that.

            Q.  What memories of that spill in the fourth quarter did that bring back from your player days at the Academy?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  That's all I could do.  That's the best thing I could do as a player is fall down.

            Q.  What is it about the fourth quarter that you're up 29?  It was the same thing in Game 1, that you're there and all of a sudden they make a little run.  Does that concern you?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  Sure, sure, it does.  They've done it four times in a row, so obviously I haven't figured it out yet, so I can't answer your question.

            Q.  Since '99 in this playoff run to the championships, you've guys have dominated the first two games in most of your series, but have struggled in Games 3 and 4.  Are you concerned about that going into Game 3 in Cleveland or is this a different team, different year and it doesn't mean anything?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  I'm concerned about every game.  It doesn't matter whether it's the first game or the seventh game.  So there's no less concern for one game over another one.  Coaches are paranoid that way.  They worry about everything.

            Q.  And after tonight's game, what did you tell your team about that fourth quarter?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  I just told them what I thought would be appropriate.

            Q.  Which was?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  That's just family business.

            Q.  Can you just talk about the strong way you guys did start off the game, and as a coach the challenge to keep a team interested when you have a lead that big?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  Well, that's always a challenge, but it's not as big a challenge come playoff time as it is the regular season.  If you go up on somebody, you know what happened with a 24‑second game, people are going to make runs.  But in the fourth quarter I thought LeBron got away from us without a doubt.  I thought my substitution pattern was poor and slow.  I thought a couple defenses I called were inappropriate, and I think all those things combined gave us the problem in the fourth quarter.

            Q.  How impressed were you with Robert Horry's overall game tonight?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  Robert was our star tonight.  I mean, I know that Tony and Manu scored and Tim scored and that sort of thing, and you always ‑‑ you take those kind of guys for granted.  But when somebody comes off the bench and does what Robert did at both ends of the floor, it was fantastic.  His blocks were just as big as any points he scored, any rebounds he got.  Great momentum builders, really gives the team defense a kick in the butt.  He was fantastic for us tonight.

            Q.  Just comment on the overall bench play, particularly in that third quarter.  That seemed to really set the tone for the rest of the game.
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  Well, Robert off the bench, Manu off the bench, I thought Jacque's defense was great, and I thought they just kept the energy going and we were very aggressive at both ends of the court.  I think in the fourth, as we said, LeBron turned the tables and he got away from us.  He was great.

            Q.  Tony Parker can get to the rim almost at will against anybody, but he really seems to have the knack of doing it against Cleveland in points per game versus the regular season against Cleveland.  What is it about the match‑up between Tony and Cleveland where he's been so successful?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  I honestly don't know what to tell you.  He's had success against Cleveland.  Hopefully it'll continue, but it doesn't mean that it will continue.  He's a competitor.  It doesn't matter whether people pack it in or not, he seems to figure out a way to be a factor.

            Q.  Can you talk about going to Cleveland, a place where obviously there's going to be big hype because they've never had this before, but also combine that with the poise you guys have shown throughout the playoffs on the road.
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  It'll be a huge challenge.  They've played well there, and I think they'll feel a lot looser, a lot more aggressive in a lot of ways.  So I think it'll be a tremendous challenge for us.  I think the place will be rocking, without a doubt.

            Q.  You've been here two years ago, you were up 2‑0, many people watching the series felt it could be a sweep coming up you were so dominant the first two games, ended up going to seven games.  We saw last year, 2‑0 Dallas, Miami wins it 4‑2.  You've been here, done this.  Does that give you an edge going into Tuesday?
            COACH GREGG POPOVICH:  I hope it does, but that's what the playoffs are all about.  It's hard to eliminate anybody in any round of the playoffs, and I think as each round continues it's progressively tougher.  We don't think about sweeps or anything like that.  We always plan for a long, drawn‑out, seven‑game series.  If a series ends up not being that, that's great, but we plan for seven all the time.

An interview with:

TIM DUNCAN

Q: Can you talk about the fourth quarter and what went wrong?
Duncan: Nothing went wrong. We won the game right. Isn’t that the point of the whole thing? We won the game. They made a run and we held them off. They made some shots, this whistle was blown and we made some plays and won the game

Q: Can you talk about Tony Parker’s performance tonight?
Duncan: Tony’s been great. He’s attacking these guys and finding the seams. He came into this game and was really confident with his shot and knocked down some shots and really extended the floor for us.

Q: Did Robert Horry look half his age?
Duncan: Rob for some reason failed to tell us that he can play defense. It’s playoff Rob and he’ll show up and do something special and that’s what he did tonight.

Q: Was [Coach] Popovich mad when Horry knocked him down?
Duncan: I don’t know what that was about. I don’t know what Rob was thinking.  He was thinking he was Defensive Player of the Year.

Q: What is the mindset of this team heading to Cleveland?
Duncan: Confident. We understand that we are going into hostile territory. Those guys played a good fourth quarter and they are going to take some confidence from that and playing on their home court they are going to take some energy from that also.

An interview with:

TONY PARKER

Q.         You've talked in the past about how it can be difficult for all of you guys, you, Manu and Tim, to have big scoring nights, but throughout these playoffs you guys seem to have had more than a few games like tonight.  Are y'all playing better off each other or what's been the key?
            TONY PARKER:  I think ‑‑ I don't know, for whatever reason in these playoffs, the fact that Manu comes off of the bench, he gets a lot of plays when me and Timmy, we're sitting down.  And I think everybody just gets offense.  I don't know why.  We're not doing something special.  We're still playing the same way.  I just think we're doing a better job to take turns, and we're moving the ball great and we're just taking great shots.

            Q.  Did they do anything different with you?  You still seemed to be able to get to the rim fairly easy.
            TONY PARKER:  They started with LeBron and he went on to the pick‑and‑rolls, same strategy that Phoenix tried to do.  For me it's just the fact, be patient, be patient, try to get good shots and try to get my teammates involved and try to make some stuff happen.  The key is patience, not taking bad shots, because they're just giving me shots sometimes, but I have to be patient and run the team.

            Q.  Obviously you guys were dominating them in the first half.  Can you talk about the challenge of playing with a huge lead for a long period of time?
            TONY PARKER:  It's tough, it's tough.  That's why sometimes I don't like to have a 20‑point lead.  I'm not going to complain, I'll take it.  But sometimes it's tough because it's the NBA, and Cleveland, they've got a lot of pride, and they made a hell of a run in the fourth quarter, and that's going to give them confidence going back to Cleveland.  It is hard to keep leads.
            We tried to keep strategies in defense and it didn't work out that much.  They hit a lot of threes and they was playing well in the second half.  I just think we have to keep playing and be aggressive.  Tonight we kept the lead, but we need to play better in the fourth quarter.
            I think in the fourth games we played against them we lost in the fourth quarter.

            Q.  Could you feel yourself losing intensity and trying to get it back?
            TONY PARKER:  A little bit.  When you get a big lead you're not playing with the same intensity, you don't go on the loose balls, and we can't play like that.  We can't let them out work us.  We need to play better in that situation, and sometimes it's hard.

            Q.  How much does it concern you that Detroit in that series Cleveland was able to overcome a 2‑0 deficit and come back and win the series?
            TONY PARKER:  We have to give them respect.  I'm going to go further than that.  Two years ago we won against Detroit by 20 in Game 2, and in Game 3 we got smashed, we lost by 20, and in Game 4 we lost by 30.  We need to remember that and learn from our mistakes.  I think that's enough to make us get ready.  And Cleveland, they played good against Detroit and they came back, so we have to be aware of that.

            Q.  You talked about it just for a moment, but the intensity in the fourth quarter, what is it about this team, your team, that for three quarters it's one way and in the fourth quarter it's totally something else?
            TONY PARKER:  For whatever reason, I don't know, it's just basketball.  If I knew I would not lose that lead.  I think it's about intensity and just keep playing the same way.  I thought we slowed down too much in the fourth quarter and the offense was not playing with the same aggressiveness.

            Q.  Did Pop say the same thing in the locker room?
            TONY PARKER:  Pop was telling us, push the ball, push the ball, but it just didn't happen.

            Q.  If you win at home, do you think you will be The Finals MVP?
            TONY PARKER:  It's a long way, a long way.  But I don't think about that.  I'm just trying to be aggressive and just try to play my game.  And whatever happens, Timmy is the man.  Timmy is the star on our team.

            Q.  You guys have done well, even in a lot of different environments, but what are you expecting Tuesday in a place that's never had this type of game before?
            TONY PARKER:  I think it's going to be very loud.  They've never been in a Finals so it's going to be very loud, a little bit like Utah.  It's going to be very tough.  I think they're going to play better.  I think Cleveland is the type of team that plays better at home.  They've got a lot of players who play better at home.  They're going to play with a lot more confidence and they're going to shoot the ball better, so we have to match that.

MANU GINOBILI

Q.         When the Cavaliers were making their run in the fourth quarter, you had the four‑point play.  Were you, A, intent on taking that shot, and B, on tricking Daniel Gibson into fouling you in the act?
            MANU GINOBILI:  Well, I was feeling good with my shot, so when I saw the rotation a little late, I didn't hesitate.  Then I saw ‑‑ I couldn't do anything different.  He jumped into me, but I had time enough to finish the shot, so of course it was a big play and I was very, very happy for it.

            Q.  Can you talk in general about the fourth quarter comeback the Cavaliers made, and was it disappointing to you that the intensity level of the Spurs seemed to slide some?
            MANU GINOBILI:  Yeah, it was really disappointing.  We played such a great game for three quarters that seeing the team kind of stop in the fourth quarter, it was irresponsible from us.  We've really got to learn from that, and we've got to finish the games.  We can't allow them to make a 21‑point break.  We were up 27 going into the fourth, they make it to six, that's way too much.  We can't allow ourselves to do that in Cleveland because they're going to kill us.

            Q.  Coach Pop and Tony were both talking about that you guys were here two years ago that you blew out the Pistons in the first two games and then got your lunch handed to you in games 3 and 4.  The experience of being here and knowing that you're far way from winning this thing, how does that help you out, the memories of two years ago?
            MANU GINOBILI:  Hopefully it does, and I remember what happened in Games 3 and 4.  It was really embarrassing.  So hopefully, especially the guys that were in that Finals, learn from that and we are more humble going into those games and play a better game.

            Q.  Do you take more of a business approach as a result so you don't get too up for those two games because you know what's waiting for you?
            MANU GINOBILI:  As I always say, we just took what was ours.  We just maintained the home court advantage.  Every series that we won in the last five years, we won at least one game away.  So we're going to look for it as soon as possible.

            Q.  Do you expect the game to be kind of easy the way it was the first three quarters?
            MANU GINOBILI:  Well, it was looking really good for us.  Being up 29 at a point in an NBA Finals is not something that happens often, so we were feeling so good about ourselves.  And then we stopped.  We got too over‑confident, and we stopped moving the ball offensively.  We let LeBron get to the basket and find open guys at the three‑point line.  So as I said before, we've got to learn from that because we can't get so relaxed, especially in the fourth quarter against a great team like Cleveland.

            Q.  When Bowen sits, defensive strategy on LeBron looks like it changes, and you're responsible because you're the first man on him.  And then LeBron takes off.  If he takes off, then it's difficult to stop him even when Bowen returns.  Is that a risk going into Cleveland?
            MANU GINOBILI:  I think that happened in the fourth quarter, that he started taking off.

            Q.  Exactly.
            MANU GINOBILI:  And started playing one‑on‑one against the big.  And being so athletic, smart and capable, it's almost impossible to stop him.  So we kind of changed the strategy and it didn't work.  Then we came back and it kind of looked better.  But now we realize that it's something that we can't do because the guy is good.
            Even if you make him go to the basket and you double‑team once you are close, he's too athletic and can find a shooter over the top of the defender.  It was too easy for him in that fourth quarter.

MICHAEL FINLEY

Q: How does it feel to go up 2-0 right now?
Finley: It’s a good feeling. We took care of business on our home court, and now we have to go into Cleveland and try to win up there.

Q: What is the mindset right now, having gone up 2-0 and doing it with relative ease?
Finley: Well, it hasn’t been easy. The score might (not) indicate that, but it has been a tough task, especially when you have to focus on a guy like LeBron and the rest of his team which has been playing well as of late. Going into Cleveland, we know it is going to be the toughest game yet. They really thrive off (of) their crowd. Their crowd really gets into the game – great fans there. So, it is going to be a tough atmosphere and a tough game for us.

Q: What do you make of Robert Horry’s performance tonight, particularly on the defensive end?
Finley: Robert played well for us. He did all of the things on the defensive end that the coaching staff is asking for, as far as being active, challenging shots, getting blocked shots and just being Robert Horry. When he plays like that on the defensive end, because we know about his offense, but when he plays defense like that, he makes our team a lot better. 

Q: Was the letdown in the fourth quarter a helpful reminder that you can’t let up on the Cavaliers?
Finley: Yeah. Even if the fourth quarter hadn’t happened, I think we would be very focused going into Cleveland. After last year’s Finals, with a team up 2-0 that got a little comfortable, the series turned; but for us, we have a veteran crew. The coaching staff will keep us focused, and we’ll go in and take care of business in Cleveland.

FRANCISCO ELSON

Q: How does it feel to be one more game, one more step closer to a title?
Elson: It feels good. We knew Cleveland was going to make changes. LeBron [James] played very well. We had a 27-point lead and we gave it away, but we prevailed and we (got) a victory today.

Q: Do you think what happened again in the fourth quarter will keep your team from having a letdown in Cleveland?
Elson: We’re not taking them lightly. We just had a lot of turnovers in the fourth quarter, throughout the whole game, also. I just think we have to adjust, be more focused and close these games out.

Q: What did you think about Robert Horry’s performance, in particular on the defensive end?
Elson: Oh man, he was super. Who says old people can’t play? He was great, I take my hat off to him. He came off the bench and brought a lot of energy to the game. He was probably the main reason we got up so big.

Q: Talk about how Tony Parker performed tonight.
Elson: Tony Parker was unbelievable today. The first game he played terrific. The second game he came out and played even better. Hopefully he plays like that in Cleveland.

BRUCE BOWEN

           Q: What happened in the forth quarter?
Bowen: It’s part of the game. Teams make a run and they did a great job of just continuing to try and come back into the game and we kind of got lax a little bit. I wasn’t happy with our effort in the fourth quarter, but that’s the thing about this game. It’s 48 minutes and no matter what the game is or what the score is you have to continue to compete out there.

Q: You guys knew you couldn’t go out to Cleveland 1-1.
Bowen: No, we definitely don’t want to do that. We want to take care of the home court and unfortunately it wasn’t the way we would have liked it to be in the fourth quarter here, but we got the victory and we are happy with that.

Q: Do you think their run in the fourth gives the Cavs something to build on?
Bowen: I think so. At the same time, we know we didn’t play particularly well. When we go through our film session and things of that nature I’m sure guys are going to want to get back on the court to make up for the effort we gave in the fourth quarter.

Q: Did you see [Coach] Popovich go down?
Bowen: I think he didn’t want to bring too much attention to himself, but it still happened.

Q: Is it a conscious effort that as the series goes on, the team becomes more business like?
Bowen: Yes, we understand that as we get closer to the goal of the Larry O’Brien trophy it’s that much more important for you to have all focus in the same direction. As far as having a bad call, turning the ball over, you have to move on to the next play. You can’t dwell on that right now because time is running out. There are a lot of guys that would love to be in your position and you have to take advantage of this time now.

Q: What did you think about Robert Horry performance tonight?
Bowen: Rob did a great job tonight. He was all over the place and that’s something that he brings to us. We appreciate what he does and we were really happy for him.

Quotes from:
           
FABRICIO OBERTO
           

           Q: Give an overall evaluation of where you stand in this series.
Oberto: It’s a good thing that we are 2-0, but it’s not over. We still have to play three games over there and we just have to focus like we did in the first game and the second game. In the third game, just think about that game.

Q: Would you say that things were more physical in the Western Conference with Denver, Phoenix and Utah than what you are experiencing now?
Oberto: Well, I think the series is going to keep increasing in the level of physicality. Everybody is trying to get boards and trying to fight and win the game. We are in The Finals, I mean, you can’t relax at any moment. Some teams play defense like Utah played different than Cleveland and Phoenix played different than most of the teams. We just get used to that team.

Q: Manu Ginobili was 11-for-11 from the free throw line. Do you ever remember him having a night like that from the line?
Oberto: Yes, I mean he loves to play in these kinds of games and he is going to give you everything he’s got to help the team to win. He’s a good shooter. He got the ball in the right moments and was trying to get the call and go to the line.

Q: Did you laugh when Robert [Horry] took Coach [Gregg] Popovich out on the sidelines?
Oberto: No, we were worried. Where I was I didn’t know if it was a fight or what happened over there.  He’s [Robert Horry] just going to every ball and playing really with his mindset and it’s really good for us.

An interview with:

COACH MIKE BROWN

COACH MIKE BROWN:  First of all, we've got to give San Antonio credit.  They did a terrific job moving the basketball, moving bodies, setting screens for one another and getting quality shots on offensive end of the floor.  Our effort has to be better.  Our aggression has to be higher, and we've got to be able to do it and still be poised in the same breath.  I thought the last group that was out on the floor, I was proud of those guys.  Those guys brought it aggressively on both ends of the floor.
            But yet still, they were poised.  We have to figure out a way of doing that without making mistakes because there's nothing magical that's going to help us out on the floor.  It's as simple as that.  There's no magic play, magic defense.  This is a good team and we've got to bring the juice, and right now we're not.

            Q.  How big is the upgrade in competition going from Detroit to San Antonio?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  Detroit is a great team.  I mean, they've won the East the last ‑‑ I mean, they made it to the Eastern Conference Finals the last five years.  They have an NBA championship under their belt.  People talk about East and West and it's neither here nor there.  I think the East has won two of the last three or something like that.  It really doesn't matter.  San Antonio is a great team, too, and we just have to figure out that we've got to play harder than what we're playing right now because the effort that we're bringing to the table, the aggression we're bringing to the table and the lack of poise we're having right now just isn't good enough.

            Q.  You had 72 hours to make adjustments, and you come out and you get down 29, 30.  Why the effort in this game, which was worse than in Game 1 after having the time to make adjustments?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  I don't know.  You know, sometimes it happens.  We as a group have to do a better job of starting the games better because our first five minutes of the game ‑‑ and it's hard for the average fan to see, but we're making mental errors that we haven't made all throughout the playoffs.  If you make those type of mental errors and you don't have the aggression, and then offensively you don't have the poise, you come down and you take a quick shot, that's going to result in a miss.  We had 12 turnovers, they scored 24 points off our 12 turnovers.  There's no way you're going to beat the San Antonio Spurs playing that type of basketball.

            Q.  Talk about just the difference in morale at the end of the third quarter and then after the game, and what was the key for you guys getting back into the game?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  The one thing our guys, they didn't quit.  They didn't quit in Game 1, they didn't quit tonight.  We're not in it for any moral victories.  Bottom line is we lost the ballgame.  But the thing that I'm excited about is we finally brought some sort of effort and aggression defensively and offensively, and we did it and showed some poise.  And that's what we have to continue trying to do throughout this series.
            But our guys, you know, they didn't look down going into the fourth quarter.

            Q.  And your thoughts when LeBron got his second?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  Again, when he got his second, that was one of those mental mistakes that we had where we should have been covering for one another.  We should have been more in tune to what we were supposed to be doing defensively and it wouldn't have put us in that predicament.  But he had to go, he had to help his teammate and he picked up his second foul so I had to sit him.  You don't have to him to sit with nine minutes to go in the fourth quarter and they were able to separate in terms of score from us a little bit there.

            Q.  I know on paper they held serve.  You lost the two games on the road, you're about to go home and hope things change.  But the way the team has played throughout the entire 48 minutes of both games, as a coach you don't hit the panic button, but are you a little more concerned now than maybe you were after Game 1 in terms of the series?  You've got to play four quarters or else this is not ‑‑
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  I was concerned after Game 1.  You know, I was concerned that we're not putting it together for 48 minutes, and again, I go back to a lack of focus and a lack of aggression and a lack of effort.  We have to make sure that in those areas we're a lot better, we're more in tune.  Because if we don't it's going to be a long road for us.  Bottom line is one day, one game at a time.  We've got to focus on Game 3 and see if we can clean those things up.

            Q.  What did you tell your team tonight different than the other night, look, guys, this is back to back, you're not getting the message?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  You know, I told them exactly what I'm telling you guys here.  I told them, hey, we've got to be aggressive.  We've got to be aggressive offensively.  We've got to drive and kick the basketball.  We've got to move it.  We've got to set screens and we've got to attack the rim.  If you're wide open step into the shot.  If you're on the other end of the floor, defensively, we can't play passive at all.  When you play passive against this team they'll make you pay, they'll pick you apart, and that's what they've done these last two games.

            Q.  You told us before the game that Manu used to strain the emotions of a coaching staff when you were here.  What were your emotions when he made the four‑point play after your good run in the fourth?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  I'll tell you, that was a heck of a shot.  He's a tremendous player.  But he tricked our young fellow.  When he shot the ball, you go back and you watch the tape, he's leaning to the right, right into him, because Boobie jumped to the side of him.  That was a heck of a play by Manu.  Sometimes a guy like that is able to trick officials and young guys because he's been around the game such a long time.  That was a heck of a shot and a smart play on his part, very smart.

            Q.  Could you talk a little bit about Drew?  He's really your only other starter who's scoring, and he kept you in there the third quarter to kind of set the stage for the fourth.
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  Yeah, you know, Drew can score points, but with Drew, it's not just about scoring points.  We've got to make sure that we're focused, and this includes Drew, at the beginning of the ballgame, with defensive assignments and little things.  At the beginning of the game we had too many guys just wanting to score, and it's not about that.  We've got to move the ball, we've got to set screens, we've got to rebound, we've got to defend.  There are a lot of other things you can do in the game of basketball, and that goes for Drew and everybody else in that starting lineup.

            Q.  You were talking to them about aggression and focus and mental poise, all the things you want them to change in the next game.  Emotionally after losing these two games the way they did, how do you actually effect that change in the next 24 to 48 hours?
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  You know, we've just got to dig within.  Again, there's nothing, I don't have anything magical.  I'm not that smart.  I wish I was.  I wish I had something to give them.  But the bottom line is we've been through this before.  We've been down 0‑2 before to some good teams.  Last year we were down 0‑2 against Detroit and the first two games we got beat worse than this.
            We got thumped going into Detroit last year.  The one thing I kept preaching to our guys is it's one day, one game at a time, and we've got to continue to play the right way.  If we do for as close to 48 minutes as possible, we're going to give ourselves a chance, and that's the bottom line.

            Q.  Was there any thought as that first quarter was going on, you talked about the separation they got when LeBron was on the bench.  Did you think at any point stick him back in there, and if he picks up a third ‑‑
            COACH MIKE BROWN:  It's a long ballgame, and 48 minutes, shoot, if a couple of bounces would have gone our way with three, four minutes to go in the game, we could have maybe cut it to three or cut it to five, it could have been a different ballgame.  So I did not want to do that to our team nor to LeBron that early in the game because I knew we had a ways to go.

An interview with:

LEBRON JAMES
           

Q.         These first two games, unlike Detroit, you had a chance to win with the ball pretty much on the final possession.  You came away fairly confident going back home.  These two games you were down 18 yesterday and 29 ‑‑ or two days ago, 18 and then 30.  What do you take from these first two games going back to Cleveland?  How different is the feeling?
            LEBRON JAMES:  We're definitely still confident.  It doesn't matter if you lose by 1 or lose by 30 with us.  A loss is a loss, and we've been down 2‑0 before in this situation, so we have to find a way to bring the intensity that we did in the fourth quarter tonight and carry it on to Game 3.

            Q.  Why do you think the intensity doesn't come for this team until the fourth quarter?  You dig yourselves a big hole but in the fourth quarter it's there.
            LEBRON JAMES:  I don't know, I think the fourth quarter we just realize that it's a pride thing then, and we don't want to get blown out.  We're here for a reason, and it becomes a pride thing in the fourth quarter when you're down so many points.

            Q.  Is it an upgrade in competition going from Detroit to San Antonio, and if so, how large?
            LEBRON JAMES:  I think it's just an upgrade from series to series, you know, from the first round to the second round, Conference Finals, and then to The Finals it's an upgrade.  It doesn't matter who it is, the intensity level automatically picks up.  The team is better.  It doesn't matter if it's Detroit or the Spurs.  Every round gets a little harder.

            Q.  Do you feel like the competition, though, is ‑‑ just in terms of the ability of the opponent, do you feel ‑‑ is it a big difference?
            LEBRON JAMES:  I think the intensity is a big difference.  Like I said, I don't ‑‑ you give the Spurs a lot of credit, but everyone knows that each round picks up, and the team picks up.  You get better after you win one series.  You get better when you win the Conference Finals and get to The Finals.  You get better as a team, and the intensity definitely picks up.

            Q.  What was it like for you having to sit and watch so much of the first quarter and then obviously you came out a little bit colder?
            LEBRON JAMES:  It's not a good thing for me.  I can't remember the last time I didn't play 40‑plus minutes.  I got two quick fouls and it definitely didn't work in our team's favor.  I wanted to be out there to try to help my team win, and being in early foul trouble definitely hurt us.

            Q.  Coach Brown was pretty critical of the team's effort in the first two‑thirds of the game.  What do you think the team's effort was and how do you fix it?
            LEBRON JAMES:  We can play better.  We can play harder.  It shows, the difference the first three quarters or the first half compared to the second half.  At one point we were shooting 57 percent from the field, and that hasn't been us.  We have to find a way to pick up our intensity and carry on what happened in the fourth quarter into the rest of the game.

            Q.  You've seen Tony Parker for a couple of games.  You were guarding him tonight.  Do you have any sense of what you guys can do to keep him out of the paint?
            LEBRON JAMES:  I don't know (laughing)  you know, he's very good, probably the second best point guard we've played in this postseason.  Jason Kidd is one, I think Tony Parker is two.  No matter what you do he's going to find a way to get into the paint.  He can finish over big guys, finish over small guys.  They have a great one in Tony Parker for sure.

            Q.  Is going zone a possible remedy to this?
            LEBRON JAMES:  No, that's kind of a cop‑out.  We don't want to go zone.  We're a man team, we have to man up and try to keep him out of the paint.  We have to make our best effort.  We made him take a lot of jump shots tonight, which he made.  He made a three.  I think when he's shooting the ball as well as he did tonight there's no way you can stop him.

            Q.  The big three for the Spurs, they are the big three, but can you talk about Robert Horry and the veteran presence?  I mean, he just did so many things tonight to kind of get this victory for him?
            LEBRON JAMES:  He definitely did a great job defensive, came up with a lot of blocked shots, rebounded the ball extremely well on the offensive and defensive rebound.  He's been here before, and it's nothing new to him.  It doesn't matter if he's out there for five minutes or for 25 minutes, he's definitely going to give his best effort, and he was definitely a spark off the bench.

            Q.  Can you talk about or explain to people that aren't from Cleveland how big it will be to have this game there on Tuesday, and just to be a part of that history?
            LEBRON JAMES:  It's definitely going to be a great experience I think for all Cleveland fans, for northeast Ohio, for the whole state of Ohio.  It's going to be something that hasn't been experienced in a long, long time for our city, for our fans.  It's going to be electrifying.  If you're not there, I expect you to try to get there.

            Q.  What are you telling people that are asking you for tickets right now?
            LEBRON JAMES:  No (laughter).

            Q.  It seems like after every game we're talking about Daniel Gibson, another big game tonight.  You seem even a little looser on the court when he's out there.  Can you address that?
            LEBRON JAMES:  I just think he understands how to play the game of basketball, and he knows that he's going to get some great looks, but he knows if the guys run him off the three‑point line, he knows how to finish in the lane.  He's getting better every game, every series, and it's great to see him grow and watch him continue to grow.  I think he's definitely one of the best players on our team.

DANIEL GIBSON

Q: Does it make it more disappointing considering the hole you guys dug for you in the first [half]?
Gibson: Yeah. It's always disappointing to go down by that amount. We let them out play us in the first half but I think we can take some positives from how we played in the second half.

Q: [Inaudible]
Gibson: Just try to learn from it. It never feels good to lose like this, but at the same time we just have to try to learn from it and improve, because if we don't improve it'll happen again. So we've just got to improve for the next game and take some of things we didn't do well and try to do them the next game.

Q: Was there a feeling you could come back all the way?
Gibson: Yeah, definitely. Throughout the entire game we always felt like we still had a chance. We were going to keep fighting for that chance. But, you know, got it down to six and those guys -- I give them credit -- they made a couple of plays down the stretch that sealed the game for them.

Q: How much do you think it was the fact that they relaxed a little bit?
Gibson: I think so. You go up by that much [and] teams tend to relax a little bit; they think the game's going to end. At the same time, we as a unit didn't stop; we were going to keep fighting regardless of what they did. So, we're going to take some of the things we did and try to use them for the next game.

Q: What makes it so difficult to defend their "Big 3"?
Gibson: They're great players. Tony, Manu ... all those guys, they're great players and they know how to get what they want. But at the same time, as a team, we have to understand that they're great players and figure out a way to stop them or at least slow them down.

Q: These fans, maybe some of these players, maybe think the series is over. What do you say to that?
Gibson: I mean, that's good. We want them to think that. But, in this locker room and this team we don't think so at all. You have to win four games in order to win the series. I think it's still 2-0 so we have a chance to win four.

Q: Did the comeback give you a little hope?
A: It did. I think we can take a lot of positives from the way we played in the fourth quarter and use them going into Game 3.

ZYDRUNAS ILGAUSKAS

           Ilgauskas: This team has been through this before and we fought back before ...but I believe in these guys. We fight for each other and we have to figure out a way to get back into this series.

Q: Is it disappointing that as a team the defense and rebounding hasn't been there?
Ilgauskas: You know, like I said, offensively we really have not been that good all year ... I think 15th or 16th [in the league] in points scored so the offense hasn't been that great for us all season long. But defense and, like you said, offensive rebounding and defensive rebounding we've always been very good and we've been getting beat in these categories right now and it's really hurting us, you can see out there. All the stuff that we did so well during the season that got us to this point [has] really gotten away from us. They are rebounding [better] than us, they are getting all the hustle points and they are playing better defense then us, and on top of everything they are executing a lot better on offense.

Q: Was the first half more about LeBron sitting out or did the Spurs just play that well?
Ilgauskas: They just seemed like they came out the way we were supposed to come out -- with a sense of urgency -- and [they] just took it right to us. Before we knew it we were down 20 points and from there it was like running uphill. The crowd got into it and everything and when you get down in The Finals to a team like this by 30 points you're not coming back. You can close the gap but ... it's a butt-whooping, that's all it was.

Q: Miami got killed in Game 2 last year and came back. What do you say about the Cavaliers?
 Ilgauskas: We've been there before. Last year in Detroit we got killed and came back and made it a seven-game series ... So we've been there before. This team has faced adversity before and responded well. But like I said, we've got to be careful. Just because we think we're going home it's going to happen for us like it always has? It's not going to be that way. We're going to have to make adjustments and more than anything [get] hustle points; it always seemed like they had us on our heels, getting loose balls, executing better ... they were just quicker.

LARRY HUGHES

           Hughes: Like I said, until a team wins four games we have to fight. We have to compete, and we understand that. Going down 0-2, this team protected their home court and we have the opportunity to go back and do the same.

Q: [Inaudible]
Hughes: We're not worried; we have to come out and win the game. That's the only worries that we have: that we have to come out and compete for 48 minutes and take from that. We have to put two halves together. Third and fourth quarter were okay for us, but not enough to win.

Q: Considering your injury, do you feel you'd be better utilized off the bench?
Hughes: I haven't come off the bench in 4-5 years now, so that's not something I'm used to doing.

Q: How's the injury now?
Hughes: The injury is fine ... what can I say? I'm out there playing; I'm out there giving it a go and I feel pretty good. Definitely not an excuse.

Q: Is there anything that you did in the fourth quarter that you can carry over to Game 3?
A: Not really ... we always look for little things to carry over into games, but that team will make adjustments and do different things than they did in the fourth quarter to also try to stop what we did. So it'll be a whole new game come Game 3.

Q: Going back home must be a big plus for you?
A: It is. Going back home and just understanding that they protected their home court and we have the opportunity to do the same.