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NBA PLAYOFFS ROUND ONE: NUGGETS v WARRIORSMay 2, 2013Mark JacksonOAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: Game Six NUGGETS – 88 THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach Jackson. Q. Saw you there hugging a lot of people, especially Bogut and Stephen. Can you talk about your emotions there. COACH JACKSON: I got emotional and I'm still emotional because just how incredible of a blessing this is. And I think that, you know, God has a sense of humor because he wanted to show folks at the end as we threw the ball all over the place, and it's only a miracle that we advanced. This is a scrappy group. When you look at Bogs, when you look at Steph, when you look at David, three guys that have been through a lot physically. But it was incredible when you think about the performances. Bogut played his best game. Hugged him. He just said what it meant to him. He said, It's about time. We know what we got when we traded for him. With Steph, when we were down in that first half, I pulled him aside and I said, There's going to be a point in this game where you're going to take over because you're the best player on the floor. What will happen is everybody else will follow. Sure enough, that's exactly what took place. I can't say enough about David. Absolute miracle. You think about all of the experts. Talk about never seeing anybody come back that quickly. It's just unbelievable. Q. When did you find out that David Lee was going to be healthy enough to play? What is his role be going forward? COACH JACKSON: I don't know what his role will be going forward. I watched him work out yesterday. I watched him run. I watched him play dummy one‑on‑one with one of our video guys, shout out to J.J., he was physical with him. I thought David got through a lot of it. My eyes and myself, I just looked with the doctors and the training staff, strength and conditioning, we were amazed. I realized right away he could help us in the ballgame. I didn't ever want to put him on Faried because of his ability to run the floor. Everything else I thought he was good enough to do. It says a lot about who he is. He put himself in position to inspire his team. Q. With the most important minutes of the season, you stuck with Draymond all the way down the stretch. What was it about him you had faith in him at that time? COACH JACKSON: He's a gamer. He's an absolute gamer. He competes. He battles. He's confident. He believes. He does everything that you want a guy to do to put you in position to win a ballgame. It's just amazing. I looked out there and three rookies are out there in Game 6, first round of an NBA playoffs, against a 3‑seed, and I felt comfortable because of what those guys have put in. This feels good right now (smiling). Q. I was wondering, have you seen Draymond's shooting that he's shown in this series? Has that been present in practice? COACH JACKSON: No, he works every day, every single day he's working. There's people that say, Why is he shooting threes? He puts the time in. Anybody on my team that puts the time in, there's no shot I would tell them not to take. I watch this guy every single day drill it, miss, come back, shoot. He put the time in and he's confident. He's made some big shots. Tonight he really made some big shots. But he's not surprised when he makes 'em. Funny thing, he's running down the floor like he's Steph Curry making faces and gestures. Q. As far as Bogut, it wasn't that long ago where somebody thought he wouldn't return, couldn't guess what he could give. Are you amazed to see what he's doing now? Could you have foreseen this? COACH JACKSON: You know, 21 rebounds, 14 points, four blocked shots, 39 minutes, I didn't expect that. But you got to understand, it's something when you're tied together. It's easy to let go of the rope when it's just me. But when you're in a locker room full of guys that's your brothers, that care, that loves you, that's committed, that have a lot invested, it's tougher to let go of the rope. To his credit, even though he was frustrated at times, he hung in there and battled and played huge for us. Q. How would you grade your rookies' performance during this playoff series? COACH JACKSON: Well, I said it before. Credit to our ownership and our management, our scouting staff. We targeted those guys. They were awfully impressive in the interview process. They were impressive during the combine process. We wanted them. Fortunately those three guys were on the board. They're absolute pros, incredible young men. They work their tails off. They helped to change this culture. They helped to change this culture from day one. Q. Were you putting David in just mostly to inspire? Could you expect any basketball out of him in this situation? COACH JACKSON: I guess the NewYork City in me, the Willis Reed impact as a kid, really played a role. Not only did I put him in, but I ran a play for him for a shot, just about where Willis hit his shot. But I wanted to make sure, like I said, I didn't want to put him in against Faried. I had no concerns about David because I watched him work out yesterday. The main thing I wanted to see was how his body responded this morning. Obviously part of it was for inspiration. It got the crowd going. Unfortunately it was a timeout right away and I had to sit him back down. Q. San Antonio, second seed. Do you approach it like this one, you're the underdog, all the same stuff you used for this one? COACH JACKSON: Well, it was the material that they gave us. If I was picking this series, giving the check mark as a team, they're the No. 2 seed for a reason. For a long stretch of this season, they were the No.1 seed in the Western Conference. I give them the check mark again at the coaching. Future Hall of Fame coach. I think an incredible coach. They got three future Hall of Fame basketball players. It's a model organization and it's going to be a tough task. They are clearly the favorite. But it's going to be a lot of fun. It's going to be a lot of fun. Q. What did Steph show in this series about his toughness? COACH JACKSON: The great ones find a way, even during nights when they're struggling. At times he was struggling, but he found some moments to change the game. I think he separated himself from a bunch of guys in this league, very good players. Steph Curry has proven to be an elite player. He deserves it because he's a better person than he is a player. Q. Being from Denver, it's tough, but I found myself feeling privileged at times watching Stephen Curry become a superstar. Do you ever as a coach looking at this organization and having a moment of admiration? How do you reel yourself in from being that proud father? COACH JACKSON: I don't reel myself in. I'm extremely blessed to be in this position, to have that group of guys in that locker room tied together, incredible men. I don't believe I just had an impact in their lives, they've impacted my life. When we go in the locker room, we're jumping up and down, we're hugging, we're changed men. That's a special group. I look away when I read comments about my guys, never disrespectful, never pointing the finger at themselves, never arrogant, cocky, always saying the right things. I look at them as husbands, fathers, friends and brothers. This is the greatest group of men as far as a team that I've ever been around or ever seen in my life. When you conduct yourself that way, good things happen. They deserve it. Q. There was a lot said after Game5 regarding dirty play and things of that nature. Did this game meet your expectations as far as the level of physicality? Do you regret anything that was said after Game5? COACH JACKSON: I don't regret anything I said. If you play back the tape, what I did say is they're an excellent team. I did say they're a No.3 seed for a reason. I did say they have some incredibly talented players, great depth. I said they have a future Hall of Fame coach who I have tremendous respect for. So when you tell the story, tell the whole story. At the end of the day I talked about it being a physical series. It was physical tonight. That's just the way it is. That's the way it's going to be. We're playing for all the marbles. But still have great respect for that team. It was an awesome series and we're very fortunate to come out of it. Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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