NBA FINALS: HEAT VS. NUGGETS

June 4, 2023

Jeff Green

Denver Nuggets

Game 2: Postgame

Heat 111, Nuggets 108.

Q. Jeff, Coach Malone mentioned that he was surprised that he had to talk about effort in the postgame locker room.

JEFF GREEN: Me, too.

Q. That's what I was going to ask. Are you perplexed at this stage of the season that that's even a talking point?

JEFF GREEN: Yeah. It's the [expletive] Finals, man. Our energy has to be better. We can't come out like we did, and we have to be better.

Q. How much better does the team need to be defending and not biting in fakes?

JEFF GREEN: I think it's all about discipline. We just have to be better disciplined on the ball, off the ball, knowing our coverages, knowing what we're supposed to do, playing without fouling.

Q. When you talk about effort and discipline, how do you amp that back up or how much needs to be said beyond the postgame locker room?

JEFF GREEN: Nothing needs to be said at this point. I think we understand, especially after tonight, how we need to be. Like I said, it's the Finals. I don't think we need a rah-rah speech in order to get us up. I think we know what we have to do going into Game 3.

Q. Jeff, do you think that the Heat's strategy to make Joker a scorer and take him out of the passing game affected the rest of the team? He only finished the game with four assists.

JEFF GREEN: No. I think he did what he was supposed to do. When he had to be aggressive, he was aggressive. He makes the right play, and he sees the floor very well. I don't think what they did took him out of him getting assists.

If he's going to be aggressive like that, other guys can figure out how to be effective on the court. It's not about us just waiting around trying to get Joker to figure out how to get us the ball. We have to figure out how to be aggressive. It starts with the defensive end and then we carry that over to the offensive end.

Q. Jeff, the bench in the first half went really well for you guys. Start of the fourth quarter didn't go so well. What was the difference between those two stretches for you?

JEFF GREEN: They made shots. We didn't turn them over like we did in that first stretch, and that was the tale of those two halves. We didn't get the stops that we did. We didn't put the pressure on them. We wasn't aggressive enough on the defensive end, and we allowed them to get a groove, and that carried on to the fourth quarter, and that's how they got the win.

Q. I was going to ask you, you mentioned a few seconds ago, do you think the lack of -- the inability to get stops defensively impacted you all offensively, or do you think the lack of movement offensively impacted you defensively?

JEFF GREEN: No, I think it's the defense that impacted the offense. We allowed them to get comfortable, easy looks. Like I said, our discipline wasn't as great. Fouling jump shooters, allowing easy cuts. We wasn't ourselves tonight. Our communication has to be way better going into Game 3, and I think that was the reason they got into the lead.

Q. Jeff, this is the first time you guys have lost at home all postseason. How confident are you that you guys will be able to regroup and shake this one off?

JEFF GREEN: Well, I mean, we've won on the road before. I think we understand what's at stake. They did what they were supposed to do. They came in here, got a split. Now they're going home, and I think we have to go in there worried about Game 3. We can't worry about Game 4. We have to worry about Game 3. We know we have to be better defensively. Our energy has to be better, and then get that win when we play Wednesday.