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NBA FINALS: HEAT v THUNDERJune 11, 2012Scott BrooksOKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA: Practice Day Q. How was practice today? Where does your guys' focus and concentration lie right now? COACH BROOKS: I thought practice was very good. We had a great film session, did not do a lot on the court but enough to get up and down a little bit, worked on some defensive things that we have to do very well playing against them. But did some shooting, some free throws, but it was good, good focus. Didn't surprise me. Our guys have done that all year, so it's not going to change now. Q. Russell has struggled a little bit against these guys the last two years, numbers‑wise anyway. What makes it tough for you and do you expect to see different looks at him, Wade, Chalmers, etcetera? COACH BROOKS: Well, they're a good team. They're a good defensive team, but we looked at‑‑ I look at things differently than numbers. We split the series this year 1‑1. I thought Russell did a good job of controlling the tempo here, and we were in a position to win there. Russell is getting better every day, and I love what he does. We would not be in this position if it wasn't for Russell. He's helped us, he's taken us to this level, and he's done a lot of great things. And a lot of times you focus on the wrong things, at least some people do. But I really believe that what he does, he brings great energy, he brings great passion, he brings enthusiasm to the practice floor, and it carries over on how we play as a team on the game floor. Q. Despite the fact that you have one, two or three bona fide stars on this team, you've gotten the guys to buy into the concept of team. How has that played out? COACH BROOKS: You know, we talked about that recently. One of the things I love about our guys, it's always about the team. That's all we've known. When we were coming up together, that's all we had is a group of guys in the locker room to support one another, and fortunately for us, we had a great fan base that did not boo us when we were playing and not winning a lot games. We kind of just stuck together as a team, and we don't look at it as big one, big two, big three. And I think with Kevin, we know that he's one of our best players, and if I would single him out to the team like that, he wouldn't want that. It's never been a question. We've always done everything as a team. That's what makes us a good team, that we defend as a team, we're continuing to improve offensively as a team, but it's always about our guys in the locker room. If anything I coach Kevin harder than the guy that doesn't play because I've always felt that's the way it should be done. You want to get on the guys that play most of the minutes instead of getting on the guys that play seven or eight minutes, and with our team that's what we think. That's what all of our thoughts are is about the team. Q. I know you couldn't talk to players during the lockout. How much did you know about Kevin and LeBron working out together? What did you think about it, and did you know anything about their game that they played in Baltimore against each other where it was a nice one‑on‑one battle? COACH BROOKS: I mean, I followed it as much as I can in the summer. Obviously we weren't allowed to communicate. Didn't think much of it, because one of the things I know about Kevin, he's a gym rat. He's playing against whoever he can possibly be in front of, wherever, didn't matter to him. He was going to play basketball like all of our guys. I wasn't worried about guys coming back in not in good shape because our guys love to play, and they have enthusiasm for work. With Kevin playing against LeBron, I think when you play against‑‑ you always want to be able to work out with guys that are very good. You don't get better by playing against‑‑ nothing against you or me, but we're not very good. You don't improve that way. You improve by playing against the best players. And whether it's a week or so‑‑ that has not made Kevin a better player or LeBron, just for a week, because there's a lot of days in the summer that you have to work, and it's just not seven days. But I have a lot of respect for LeBron. I'm assuming that he's a worker just like Kevin, because you don't get to the level that they are just because they're athletic and they're talented and they've got great physical abilities. It's through work. Q. You and Erik Spoelstra have had similar career coaching paths. How well do you know him and how much do you respect what he's done? COACH BROOKS: I don't know him well. I've talked to him a few times. I have a lot of respect. It's not‑‑ this is a job that we all take pride in, and we're thankful for the opportunity. He has a great team, and we also have a great team, but I have a lot of respect for what he does and the preparation that it takes to be a coach in this league. It's not always easy. You have to‑‑ there's a lot of time, there's a commitment, there's sacrifices. But he's done a great job. Q. Much will obviously be made about LeBron and Kevin. When you look back as a fan of the NBA, whether it was Magic and Jordan or Bird, Wilt and Russell, what match‑up in the Finals kind of stood out to you that you enjoyed? COACH BROOKS: Well, I grew up watching the '80s NBA. I grew up in the '80s watching the great Celtics teams against the great Sixer teams to get to The Finals and then the great Laker teams. I've always felt that what really impressed me with those groups, they had a bunch of great players, but they played together as a team.  They always seemed to have each other's back, and that's what we try to do as our group of guys. They always try to have each other's back. And we have a bunch of good players on our team, but just looking at those teams, you always remember if somebody was coming down to the lane, you were always there to help your team, whether it was a little more physical back then, there was guys on the floor quite a bit coming down the lane. And then the next time down the court, it happened to the other team. But it was always about the team. Just looking back and just‑‑ my memory always tells me, the Celtics teams were great because of the team. The Laker teams were great because of the team. Obviously Magic and all the great players, Bird, all the great players they have. Their teams were always impressive because they always battled each other or for each other. Q. Your team has one motto. Are you sure, though, that a lot of people are going to be looking at LeBron and Durant just because of the superstars they are? COACH BROOKS: Well, of course they're going to definitely do that. That's good basketball, to see Kevin and LeBron go at each other. There's always game within the game. You always have to have that personal pride in guarding your man. That's the first line of our defense; guard your man. If you're not doing your job, we've got to find somebody else to do your job. But you have to guard your man. I'm sure they're going to guard each other quite a bit in this series, but it's not going to come down to one guy guarding one guy. It's going to be how we guard their team and vice versa. But definitely it's a match‑up that definitely will be enjoyable to see and see how it turns out. But if Kevin has a bad shooting night, it's probably because they played a great defense on him team defense‑wise, and vice versa. They're both great teams. They can score in so many different ways. They both have developed every year, and they're both going to continue to get better. They have many more years of improvement ahead of them. Like I said, they're both very driven, hungry basketball players. Q. You sort of just answered my question a little bit, but the last time you played Miami, you let Kevin handle LeBron the majority of the game.  With the issues with fouls and stuff like that, are you going to be comfortable, do you think, letting him play as many minutes as you did the last time? COACH BROOKS: Yeah, I don't go into the game worried about fouls, I don't go into the game worried about effort, that he's going to be exhausted guarding him. Kevin's job is to play whoever we have him guard. He's not one to hide. He knows that he has to be a good defender for us to win. He does so many things offensively for us, and he's improved a lot on the offensive end. He scores easier now. He shoots a high percentage, he gets to the free‑throw line, he makes the free throws, he makes threes, but what he really does for us, he leads on the defensive end. We are a defensive team with Perk, Serge, Russell, Thabo and Kevin. You can't be a good team when you have one guy not playing defense, and he has to be able to play defense, he has to be able to commit to that end of the floor, and he doesn't want to be a one‑way player. He's determined to be a special player in this league, and you have to be a two‑way player, just like LeBron. LeBron is a fantastic defender. Q. Just talk about your team being here for the first time and the experience after that setback last year. How do you think that plays into how the two teams will be? COACH BROOKS: Well, I'm not sure obviously how they will feel, but I know how our guys feel. We will embrace this challenge, but we're not here just to be here. We're here to win a championship. That's been our goal all season long, just like 29 other teams. But we knew that it was going to‑‑ it will be a long and hard process, and I think our guys have basically hit every step along the way. They're not one to try to get there quickly and do it the wrong way. They're going to work for it, they're going to keep improving, and we've done that. We've been together now for four years, and we haven't got to this level, but we're here because of the work they've put in. They're not going to be intimidated with the stage of an NBA Finals. They know what's at stake. It's one game at a time. It's everything that we have to get that game for each other, and I think our guys have done a good job with that all year. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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