See what the Brooklyn Nets had to say after their 138-112 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
KENNY ATKINSON
On biggest issues in game:
“The biggest issue was the Suns. They dominated us in every fashion. They were unbelievable, we were obviously sub-par and not up to our standards and when you have that kind of disparity, you can lose by 30 on the road. These games happen in the NBA. There is two things that I don’t love, that it is this early in the schedule and I don’t love that we gave up 140 points or whatever. Those are two big issues for us and obviously we have to get it fixed. We’ll work on it tomorrow and see if we can bounce back.”
On defense:
“I think part of it was they were really good. They have a five-out that does great ball movement, great distribution. I think that they had 37 assists, they really kind of spun us around and that’s something we got to look at, but real credit to them. Like I said, if we are sub-par and they are an elite level, that is what happens in this league. You are going to lose by 30, especially on the road, so we will take the responsibility, but I give them credit first.”
KYRIE IRVING
On the loss:
“Teams are going to jump out on you. You’ve got to credit and respect when it’s due. You know they came out, really attacking our defense and our switching and got out to a 10-1 lead and never really looked back after that. They played with a sense of purpose, very comfortable and it’s just the tale of the rhythm of how the game goes at times and you’ve got to play through. We cut it to five with like two minutes left to go, or six with 2:30 left to go and then they get it back up to 18. Then we come out at halftime and it’s just back and forth at that point and they just kept it going. Then we went into the zone and they started attacking the zone and Ricky started getting downhill and they just really started picking apart our defense. It starts on the outset, especially with me setting the tone. I don’t think I shot one free throw tonight which is a tell tale sign of just how aggressive I am not in the game, getting downhill and setting a press and slowing the game down and really getting to my spots. A lot of the accountability falls on me and really the game plan of guarding Ricky and not being in the right spots.”
DEANDRE JORDAN
On the game:
“They made tough shots. We turned the ball over a lot. They brought it to us early. When you’re playing catch up, it’s kind of tough. The basketball gods don’t reward you in situations like that. Obviously defensively we have to be better. We’ve got to come out with a defensive mindset with physicality and we also have to pay attention to the game plan. But you know, it’s the NBA, guys score points. But we’ve got to have better starts to games.
On Phoenix backcourt:
“Ricky is a great facilitator. He made a couple of his first shots early and got into a rhythm and Devin is Devin. He can score the basketball pretty much at all three levels of the court. When he’s aggressive, they’re a great team.”