Dec. 10, 2008 at Air Canada Centre
Raptors 101, Pacers 88
PACERS COACH JIM O'BRIEN
(On tonight’s game) "We didn’t play a real strong game other than Troy Murphy. I thought Troy played a good game. To their credit, they outplayed us. It’s good for Coach Triano (Jay) to get his first win and I congratulate him on that. Their team just outplayed us."
(On Jason Kapono getting the Raptors going early) "I think Kapono, I think Graham (Joey), I think Moon (Jamario), their perimeter players outplayed our perimeter guys by a huge margin. Certainly Kapono got hot early, but I think their perimeter guys just murdered our perimeter guys."
(How disturbing is it to have been outplayed on the perimeter) "Nobody in that locker room is very happy with their performance. I think Troy can feel like he did a solid job, I don’t think anybody else really feels like they stepped up at the level that they need to step-up at a more regular basis. We are very disappointed."
PACERS GUARD T.J. FORD
(You were greeted with a warm reception from the crowd) "I did, it definitely felt good and I definitely appreciate it. I didn’t know what to expect. I appreciate the fans support even though I am not with the Raptors they still gave me a good welcome."
(Is it a more difficult loss when it is your former team?) "No, but they came out and played well. It is going to be tough to beat teams when they come out and shoot 50 percent for the game. They were determined to not let me come in here and get a win. They played like everyone was expecting them to play. They played with a lot of energy and we just couldn’t match them."
(Thoughts on Jason Kapono's play) "He is playing well. He was being very aggressive and showing some different dimensions to his game besides shooting and three-point shots and tonight he played well. I think that their whole team played well."
PACERS FORWARD TROY MURPHY
(Thoughts on the game) "Tonight we were both hungry teams and they came out and just took it to us. (Jason) Kapono, that was a heck of a shooting exhibition by him."
(Does the team feel the emotion when a player returns to play his former team?) "You can tell. We want to win this game for T.J. (Ford), Rasho (Nesterovic) and Maceo (Baston) and I am sure that they want to play well for J. O. (Jermaine O’Neal). That is a game that you want to get and unfortunately we came up short, but we will have other chances this year."
RAPTORS COACH JAY TRIANO
(Thoughts on getting the first win) "I’m really happy for our guys because they have tried to adjust and make changes to what they have been doing and I think we are slowly getting there. It wasn’t perfect again tonight but at least we had a system tonight and guys are rewarded with it. Hopefully it translates into them wanting to buy into it even more."
(On being the first Canadian coach to get a win) "Didn’t think about being Canadian. Always proud to be one, but didn’t think about it after the game."
(Are you glad to get the first win out of the way?) "I knew the first three games were tough ones. I think we’ve been taking steps in the right direction, we had good intensity throughout the game and we got a lot of performance from different guys. I’m happy to get the win for the guys in the locker room who have had to put up with the change over the last week."
(On making changes to the starting lineup) "It happened and I think this is why you continue to coach throughout the whole game. It happened in Cleveland went I thought we were a little lethargic chasing the basketball off of the defensive glass. When that second group when in last night, Jamario (Moon) was one of the guys that seemed to be tracking the ball, a guy who will go and get it. He did that for us, he goes and gets the ball, he chases balls and he brings us a little bit of energy, he doesn’t demand the ball at the offensive end and I think, for now, Andrea (Bargnani) coming off the bench will be a plus because he will be able to score a little easier."
RAPTORS CENTER JERMAINE O'NEAL
(On giving the game ball to Jay Triano) "It was a well deserved game for coach. It was for Jay, he was in a tough situation where he was trying to change some things that we were doing and he didn’t have very much practice time. But he kept at it, he has been extremely positive with the team and it was well deserved. We wanted to get him of the schnide three games ago but it didn’t really work out that way. I am just happy for him."
(Thoughts on facing his former team) "Well you know, I told the guys, when I saw a couple guys, I told them I would talk to them after the game. You just try and keep your friendships until after the game and not really talk about too much other stuff before the game. You don’t want to do that, I think it softens you up and takes your focus off the game and tasks for what you have to do for your team. Obviously being back in Conseco (Fieldhouse) it is going to be a little bit different. But my approach is going to be the same way. I just tried to be as aggressive as possible. I got the two quick fouls, which I couldn’t pick a worse case scenario for myself, but I tried to find a way to get back into the game, I wasn’t scoring, (so I was) helping out on defence and grabbing some rebounds."
(Importance on just getting a win) "More than anything it was very important. I think sometimes when you lose four or five games in a row you lose confidence as a team. You could kind of tell that is was wavering a little bit. We were trying, but it just wasn’t happening so it was good. Now we can build off this, it is a little bit different building off a win than building off a loss."
RAPTORS GUARD JASON KAPONO
(Thoughts on being in the starting line-up) "Starting, yeah, it’s easier but as a player you have to be ready to do both. As a starter you can get into a rhythm and a flow quicker. You know that you are going to play more minutes. You don’t have to worry if you start off slow or miss a couple of shots."
(Does Coach Triano’s style suit your game better?) "Jay, in his playing and coaching days, used a lot of pin-downs, screens and motion type of sets. That has always been my best game. I try to read the screens and be able to use my knowledge of the game versus my quickness, which I don’t have."
(How comfortable were you starting?) "I felt pretty comfortable throughout. I feel pretty confident; it’s just a matter of getting into a rhythm and being able to play extended time. As a team, I think it’s the first time we gelled together. Everybody performed well, we stayed on task, we did what we were supposed to do and it turned into a win."