NBA Post-Game Quotes
Minnesota vs. Cleveland
November 26, 2005 @ Quicken Loans Arena

Cleveland 85
MINNESOTA 89

Minnesota Coach Dwane Casey:

(On the game):
“That was a gutsy win by our team. On a back-to-back, to come out with that effort and getting Kevin Garnett diving after lose balls, Troy Hudson, for the second night in a row, getting inside the paint, boxing out big guys… all of those are winning basketball plays. And, those are the things we have to do each and every night to be a scrappy team to win basketball games.”

(On the T-Wolves bench play):
“Troy and Eddie (Griffin) played super. That’s the second night in a row that Eddie has played excellent basketball for us with 12 rebounds and five blocks. He’s been active, on his tip toes, just being really active and I’m really happy for him because he’s come through for two nights in a row. Those two guys were really the key, but everybody who walked on the floor tonight for us contributed and played basketball the right way.”

(On Kevin Garnett’s field goal with 2 seconds on the shot clock):
“Kevin’s bucket with 2 seconds to go, I thought, was the back breaker. It’s a play we have in the playbook and we executed it to perfection. Those are the kind of plays we have to come through with down the stretch.”

(On the T-Wolves interior defense):
“We had a scheme that we had in place that we wanted them to shoot jump shots. But, there was nothing in our gameplan that gave them 21 offensive boards. I was disappointed with that. But they got in 88 shots and anytime, again, that you hold a team to 31 percent, it gives yourself a chance to win.”

Minnesota Forward Kevin Garnett:

(On his field goal with 2 seconds left on shot clock late in game):
“I just counted in my head. The play was drawn up and I was just trying to be patient and get some loft on it. A lot of my shots to that point were kind of flat and I was trying to get some loft. It was a decent shot.”

(On T-Wolves interior defense against Cavaliers in 4th quarter):
“We noticed that they scored a lot of layups. They’re playing this ‘Phoenix Basketball’ where they get up and down the court and it’s real fast and it’s high tempo. Very similar to what Sacramento has created, very unorthodox. So, we tried to limit as many layups as possible, and for the most part, we gave them jump shots. When they hit them, we had a hand in their face, and we kept them off the board.”

(On getting first road win and stopping Cavaliers home win streak):
“I care less where we got it, as long as we got it. I was happy for ‘Case’ and the coaching staff. That’s what I’m most proud of.

Minnesota Guard Troy Hudson:

(On the win):
“It’s big, especially with the road stand (trip) coming up next week. Especially, it’s a confidence booster and it takes a monkey off our back, especially against a good team like Cleveland.”

(On his second half performance):
“I was just waiting for my opportunity and I tried not to force things. I came in the first half and I really didn’t see any opportunities to be creative and score, so I was just waiting for my opportunity. I knew I was going to have a chance to do something for my team in the second half.”

(On relishing role off the bench):
“Me and Casey had a talk in training camp. He told me he was going to see that the job was not given to anybody. I told ‘Case’, just bring me off the bench, as long as you let me play my game. He said that was no problem, so I said bring me off the bench and I’ll be happy with that role and I’ll help the team any way I can.”

Cleveland Coach Mike Brown:

(On the game)
“Ugly ball game for us. I thought we played well at stretches. Minnesota is a good ball team defensively and at getting back in transition. It’s going to be tough to win a ball game shooting 32 percent. I thought we had some great looks tonight and from the right people. I thought we had some good looks on some drive and kick plays. I keep telling our guys that there are going to be nights were we are going to get open looks and they are not going to go down. When that happens we have to get stops, and tonight we didn’t get stops.”

(On Troy Hudson’s play)
“Troy Hudson was terrific. He hit some tough shots. I thought he hit some tough shots with a hand in his face. Kevin Garnett hits some tough shots in his face with two seconds on the shot clock. They hit tough shots and we didn’t.”

(On getting open shots and not making them)
“I thought the penetration was there. I thought we got some good looks from the penetration especially off the pick and roll. We turned the corner, we were able to get into the paint, and kick it out for some open shots that normally go down. Look at the third quarter for instance. He kicked it and got a wide open set shot and missed it. When it does happen, we as a team need to get stops.”

Cleveland Forward LeBron James:

(Question: 32% from the field you are not going to win a lot of games)
“Not against a good team like that. We shot 32% from the field. We missed, shot after shot after shot. Wide open shots. There will be nights like that. We gave ourselves an opportunity to win at the end, but when you shoot 31% against a good caliber team like that, most nights you are not going to win.”

(Question: Bench play only 7 points, and Troy Hudson a big key offensively)
“He (Troy Hudson) played very well for them tonight. He gave them a spark in the 3rd and 4th quarter, and got them the lead. We just missed shots we make any other night. We gave ourselves a chance to win, that is all you can ask for.”

(Question: Missing open shots, would you like to see the team penetrate more)
“No. Those are shots we make. You have Donyell (Marshall) spotted up for three’s, you got D Jones (Damon Jones) spotted up for three’s, you got guys spotted up for three’s that make shots any other night. They missed shots. You can not worry about it.”

(Question: About Kevin Garnett being worth every penny)
“Of course. He (Kevin Garnett) is going to make sure his team competes every night, no matter what. He made that shot with two seconds on the shot clock, that killed it. That is what kind of player he is.”

(Question: Cavaliers undefeated home winning streak coming to an end)
“We did not want it to end, but it had to end at sometime. We gave ourselves a chance to win. We are going to keep getting better. We are not a great team right now, we are a good team. We are going to keep getting better.”

Cleveland Forward Drew Gooden:

(Speaking on the game tonight)
“It just did not fall in for us tonight. We played D (defense). We had chances to win the game towards the end, but they made shots toward the end. They got the upper-hand.”

(Question: It almost seems Kevin Garnett’s shot at the end was a back-breaker)
“I would not say back-breaker because we came back, we clawed back and had chances. It was a tough shot. He made it. He is a heck of a player.”

(Question: What do you do when shots are not falling)
“We have to grind it on defense. We got stops. He just have to continue to grind defensively on nights like that when we shot 31%.”

(Question: About the play of Troy Hudson)
“He (Troy Hudson) was coming off of picks. We had to switch our defensive scheme on him. It didn’t work. He just caught flame. Troy Hudson once he gets going he can heat it up.”

(Question: About losing at home)
“It was just one of those nights. We broke the ice. We lost one game (at home). We are motivated. We are focused on not losing any more. We are focusing right now on starting that streak back over.”