DETROIT PISTONS HEAD COACH DWANE CASEY
(On finishing close games):“You live by the sword and you die by the sword. In the first few games were close and we were winning them and now we’re losing them. It’s on ourselves, myself, everybody in this locker room. It’s mental things, leave the strong side corner and they knock down a three, miscommunicate on switches and they knock down a three. This team made us pay for every mental mistake we made. They’re a good 3-point shooting team, so we shouldn’t be surprised when we don’t execute our switches properly.”
(On if the losing streak is adversity for them):“It is adversity. For me, every game is adversity. It’s fighting through it, bouncing back. Nobody in this league is going to feel sorry for us. When we were 4-0 nobody was cheering for us and nobody is going to feel sorry for us when we lose three in a row. We’re in a situation where we have each other. We have to pull together and take care of the mental mistakes we’re making and I have to make sure we’re getting better shots for our guys where we can execute better offensively.”
(On if he was satisfied with the looks they got at the end of regulation and overtime):“You can’t dictate what the defense gives you, but you take what they give you. Would have, could have, should have. We had our two best offensive players coming off for their shots in their sweet spots. You have to shake their hand. They did a good job at defending that. I have to look at the film and see if we can get a better shot.”
(On Blake Griffin’s role down the stretch):“He did a great job. He did a great job down the stretch of carrying us. He made some big three’s down the stretch to carry us. He’s been doing that for us all year and we need him to do that. Really happy with the way he’s handling the ball, making the decisions in those situations.”
PISTONS FORWARD BLAKE GRIFFIN
(On why the team has not been able to execute late in games and if it’s a collection of little things):“Yeah, I think so. Little mistakes down the stretch, mostly defensively. Like I said earlier on those little things, they come back to bite you, and each game was decided by such a small margin that we got to be better.”
(On Reggie Jackson’s last-second shot at the end of regulation):“It was a good look. We’ll take that. We got the switch, got into the lane, got it up on the rim and gave it a chance. We just have to do a better job defensively.”
(On how he relishes the opportunity to have the ball with the game on the line):“I’ll gladly take that every single time – try to make the right play. I don’t think forcing a shot is very good, but our play kind of got a little mangled. I just tried to get the ball up on the rim, early enough, and unfortunately it didn’t go in.”
PISTONS CENTER ANDRE DRUMMOND
(On how disappointing it is to lose in the final seconds in back-to-back games):“Man, that switch onto Spencer (Dinwiddie) – I feel like I should have got up a little bit more on him. I made him feel comfortable. He got into a rhythm. Took his step back, shot the three and made it. We had a chance to finish it at the end of the game. Tough shot. It didn’t go in. The rest is history.”
(On his appreciation for Spencer Dinwiddie’s game):“That man has got a personal vendetta every time we play him. He’s trying to let us have it every time we play. Any time he sees the Detroit Pistons, he comes after us. So, I mean, that’s a great mindset for him to have. I know it’s a big year for him, so I wish him the best.”
NETS SPENCER DINWIDDIE
(On whether there is something extra for him when the team faces the Pistons):“At this point, no. Players have changed. Coaching staff has changed. I was just able to hit a couple shots and help my team win. That’s about it.”
(On how important it was to get this win and end the Nets’ losing streak):“That was the thing that made this win really big for us – because of the losing streak. Because of what we’re fighting for. We’re trying to be a good team and trying to change the tide of Nets teams of the past. You’ve got to learn how to get out of a rut quickly. They can string together and it can affect morale and all that other stuff.”
(On what the Nets did late in the fourth quarter to change the momentum):“I think obviously, they hurt us on the glass per usual and then Ish (Smith) and Reggie (Jackson) were being effective, getting in the paint and kind of creating havoc for us. I think down the stretch they kind of slowed it down and iso-ed Blake (Griffin) a lot. Granted, Blake is their best player, but we’ve got capable defenders, like Rondae (Hollis-Jefferson), etc., who kind of got a chance to get them one-on-one and kind of load up and slow the game down. We were able to flip the possession game in that stretch.”
NETS JOE HARRIS
(On what allowed the Nets to get back into the game):“Just getting stops, honestly, that’s where it started. Competing defensively. Making things tough. It just kind of loosened everybody up offensively. Got some easy baskets in transition. And then obviously, guys stepped up and made some big plays offensively for us down the stretch.”
(On the team improving in clutch situations):“Yeah, that’s huge for us in terms of the maturation of everyone. We’ve been in this experience a lot. A lot of close games last year. A lot of close games to start this season. For us to close one out – execute down the stretch – take care of the ball. Execute defensively. This is huge in terms of confidence for us and just a big morale boost whenever you get a win like this.”
(On if the offense was looking for Harris and Spencer (Dinwiddie) on the perimeter down the stretch):“I wouldn’t say it was necessarily a focal point. Spencer just had gotten hot there at the end of the game. We wanted the ball in his hands, we wanted him to get down hill, try and facilitate. He was doing a good job getting downhill to the rim. Making plays for himself and for other guys. And the same thing with Rondae (Hollis-Jefferson) too, to be honest. Rondae was the one that found me twice in the overtime period. We were able to knock down shots, whether it was JD (Jared Dudley), myself, Caris (LeVert), Spencer (Dinwiddie) – everybody just stepped up and executed and did their part.”