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NBA ALL-STAR 2018

February 18, 2018

Dwane Casey

Los Angeles, California - Postgame

Team LeBron - 148, Team Stephen - 145

Q. Coach, can you talk about the competitiveness of this game from a coach's point of view?
COACH DWANE CASEY: I loved it. It's something that we talked about yesterday in practice about how we wanted to change the narrative of the approach and the description of the All-Star Game. It was mandated by the league and also by the players. The Players Association wanted it to be better, and I thought -- I didn't expect tonight to be as competitive as it was.

But I thought tonight was a great first step of going forward of how we should approach the All-Star Game. We're a shining light around the world as far as basketball is concerned. Coaches, AAU coaches, high school coaches, coaches in Italy, all looking at our game and saying, hey, no disrespect to the Harlem Globetrotters, and that's not a good narrative, that's not a good description for our great game because we've got too many great coaches, too many great players, developmental coaches, and we put too much time and effort to lose the image that we've built up.

I thought tonight was a great one. My hat's off to LeBron and K.D. and all the guys that stepped up, and they reiterated exactly what we talked about after we said, hey, let's change the narrative. Let's make sure we change how people look at the NBA All-Star Game.

Q. When you guys were down a point late in the game, you called a timeout. I think it's 145-144. What was by design, what was by freelance?
COACH DWANE CASEY: Well, it was by design how we got into the play, but it wasn't by design we had to make two passes to get the last lay-up. But the structure of the play, the initial thrust of the play worked out perfectly. We had the floor spaced the way we wanted to have. That's the main thing you want with great players is great spacing. And that's what they had and they executed the play and finally got the bucket.

What I was just as impressed with was the defensive stop at the end. K.D. and those guys with their length locked up Steph, and over in the corner, he had nowhere to go. He couldn't even see out of the double team. So that execution was just as good as the last offensive play.

Q. I know you haven't coached an All-Star Game before, but how much coaching --
COACH DWANE CASEY: This is my third one. As far as head coaching, it's my first one. But third All-Star Game, and this is by far the most competitive as far as schemes, running plays. Back in the day they were semi-competitive, but George I think drew up a play, called a timeout or argued a call. And I felt both teams were into it. And, again, that's the description we want to have for our game is how this game was played down the stretch tonight.

Q. LeBron's 33 years old, the oldest player in the game, won his first MVP in a decade. What did you glean from coaching him this weekend, and how is he able to maintain his level?
COACH DWANE CASEY: Jealousy. I'm jealous of Ty that he has someone like that. Because, again, we all know how great a player he is. We're going to try to beat him as much as we can back in Toronto.

But tonight he was on our team. He's a joy to coach. He's a coach's coach. He reiterates exactly what should be said, the right things. No BS. In the huddle, defensively, he got the guys jacked up and juiced up as far as wanting to get a stop. Because I asked him, do you want to foul? We're up three. He said, no, Coach, let's get a foul.

So everything he says, if he says that, or any great players say that, you want to go with them because it was their idea, their belief, and he had it. My hat's off to him.

Also, K.D., I thought those two came in, two of the superstars with the right mindset, and everybody else had to follow.

Q. Talk about coaching against DeMarre DeRozan and Kyrie?
COACH DWANE CASEY: That was tough, that was tough. You look out there and you're yelling at the guys to get up on them, to push them, and to play DeMarre's left-hand or right-hand, and push him left. All those things that you fight against as a coach.

Those things are the things that you feel bad about, but, again, those two have carried us and pushed us, and taken us in the conversation of being one of the top teams in the league.

I love both of them as sons, and I'm proud of them for where they come from, and they've made themselves multi-time All-Stars.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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