|
August 30, 2006 / Saitama, Japan
Australia Head Coach Brian Goorjian
Playing against them in Athens and playing against them now, they
approach the game much differently defensively. They are much more accepting
of their roles. They play much better together as a team and they, just
physically, they come after you for 40 minutes. I think, they haven’t
lost a game yet – all the way through and they are getting better
as they go along. As this thing continues, I just don’t know if anyone
can – physically – can play like that for 40 minutes. You watch
what they do in these games. Some teams are capable of doing it for 30
minutes. Some teams are capable of doing it for 35. We were capable –
today – for doing it for 8-to-10 minutes. They get those steals,
they go on that run. You look over and they are stripping three guys off
that are the names we all know. They are playing physical on the defensive
end and they are pushing that ball and they are playing well together.
Full credit. Coach keeps talking about the other coaches around the world,
but he has a reputation that precedes him and he’s carried it over
to the USA team. I also think the USA team has a tremendous responsibility
‘basketball-wise’ around the world. Everybody comes out to see
them play. I think this team is all class and plays very well together.
I think they have a very good chance of winning that gold medal.
USA DIRECTOR OF SCOUTING - RUDY TOMJANOVICH
We’ve got Germany up next. Of course, they have one of the
best basketball players in the world in Dirk Nowitzki. He’s always
a threat. He can do so much with the basketball – inside and out.
We’re going to have to try to do a great job of keeping his opportunities
down by denying him. When he does get the ball, we’ll come up with
a game plan of what we’re going to do, because he’s also a great
passer.
On Germany’s win over Nigeria:
Nigeria has been one of the surprises of this tournament, coached
by Sam Vincent who’s an ex-NBA player and a coach in the D League.
I’ve watched a lot of his games. He’s a very good coach and
he did a great job of mixing up his defenses and keeping the game close.
They had a shot, right at the end. They made a great drive at the basket,
but didn’t execute the last play.
 USA
HEAD COACH MIKE KRZYZEWSKI
On the game with Australia:
We have a great deal of respect for worldwide basketball. In the
last six weeks that I’ve been with this team, and we’re been
studying international basketball - - we have an amazing respect for the
quality of play, the coaching and the effort that’s given. The team
we played today – we were ready to play – because in watching
them in (video) tape, their offensive and defensive schemes are well put
together. The coaching staff uses their players very well and it’s
a well conceived system. We have more talent, but in respecting who we’re
going to play – it helps us prepare better. And, that’s why
we played well today. Coach shouldn’t have had his team playing so
well.. they play with great energy. This was a really big win for us,
because we have a lot of respect for the Australian team.
On being criticized for saying ‘that
the USA wants to dominate every quarter you play,’ was that the right
approach?
In coming up with a long scheme of what you want to do, you sometimes
use short-term goals to get you past the obstacles that were there for
other teams. It wasn’t necessarily something we thought we were going
to be able to do – as a staff – but, just like I might tell
my team early in the season that they needed to run sprints at a certain
time, and I knew they weren’t going to make it, but maybe they would?
It would get them to be closer to their potential. So it was a means to
an end. The only thing we’re here for is to represent the Unites
States well and to try to win a gold medal. The domination and everything,
that is just something to get us to another point. And, it did. We worked
hard. We didn’t accomplish that goal. I knew we wouldn’t. But
sometimes you do those things. We’re a little bit crazy in coaching.
We do stuff like that. You can’t believe everything that we said.
On adjustments for next game and adjustments
on defense:
We’ll make adjustments to the base of defense that we have.
Whether it’s a good big guy – like we did for Bogut today, or
a good shooting guard, like (CJ) Bruton. You try not to go against the
main scheme you normally have. You want your guys to be instinctive. Our
guys adjusted well to that today. We’re going to have to do that
again against Germany with Dirk. But, we still have to maintain ‘our’
defense with subtle adjustments.
On whether you would rather have a game,
or you win big but then have a couple days off:
No, I’d rather always play well. Then adjust to what we’re doing
after playing well. We’re well prepared for Australia because we
thought Australia’s scheme was a very good scheme. We will not take
the next two days off. We’ll study Germany and we’ll prepare.
We don’t have time to take off. Next Sunday, if we’re fortunate,
we’ll be playing for the world championship. It’s not the time
to take time off. It’s the time to sprint, not rest. We have a lot
of respect for the German team and you can be sure that we’ll prepare
that way. Hopefully, we’ll play that way.
On any areas of concern for you after today’s
game?
Coaches are never satisfied. I thought the Australian team did a great
job of transition offense against us. We didn’t communicate real
well at the beginning of the game and they got some open looks against
us. Then, we did that better. The main thing for me is to keep everyone
healthy and everyone together. Keep the morale high and everyone playing
hard. We’re doing that. We’ll make the subtle adjustments. Germany
is our next opponent. If we do a good job, then we’ll have another
opponent. Our main goal is to have another opponent after Germany.
 CARMELO
ANTHONY
Your team moved the ball around well
and got a lot of people involved today:
That is something we wanted to do—move the ball around. We
have 12 guys out there who can make shots, who can score the ball. So,
when you give it to them, you have confidence they can make that shot.
That’s being a team.
The way we moved the ball, the way we defended, especially in the second
quarter, we played well. We picked up full court, we got some steals,
we made them miss shots and we stuck to our game plan.
Have you been challenged yet?
Yeah, we’ve been challenged. We played Brazil in China on
the way here and they were tough. Italy was probably our biggest challenge
in Sapporo. Today in the first half, Australia was a challenge until we
picked it up defensively. We know that Germany will be a challenge on
Wednesday. They beat Nigeria tonight. We have to do our research, look
at our scouting report and figure out our game plan.
Are the results of the 2004 Olympics motivating
you?
Yes. What happened in 2004 motivates us. We want to go out there
and prove everybody wrong. We just want to play basketball the way we
know how to play.”
 SHANE
BATTIER
We were very excited to play today. We thought the crowd was great
in Saitama. It reminded us a lot of an NBA arena. It was great to see
so many fans cheering for us. We were excited to play today and I thought
we started the game very well. Obviously, we turned the defensive pressure
up in the second quarter and that really won the game for us. When we
play defense like that, we feel very good about ourselves.
thought we played exceptional defense in the second quarter. We totally
took them out of the game and it shows that if we really put our mind
towards defense, we can be really good.
On a defensive specialist for the team
shooting so well from the three-point line:
Well, I have a lot of confidence in my shooting ability. I think that
if I’m open, I can make a few. My role on this team is just to play
hard, be a good team guy. If the teams are focusing on LeBron (James),
Carmelo (Anthony) and (Dwyane) Wade, the other guys around them can hit
shots. That has been my mind-set every game. (Coach Krzyzewski adds: “He
still holds the record at Duke for most three-point shots made in a game.
He can shoot the three.”)
On this U.S. team playing like a team:
I don’t know about the make-up of former teams, but I know
that this team really cares about USA Basketball. And, we care about playing
the right way and playing the game with each other and not against each
other. That’s been the mindset since ‘Day 1’ and that’s
been the message that Coach has preached to us since ‘Day 1’
and the guys have done a very good job of following that. It’s a
really fun way to play basketball. The guys are really unselfish and we’re
having a lot of fun out there.
On the strides this team has made since
the first week of the tournament:
We’re excited about our progress. It’s very difficult to come
into a situation like this and gel immediately. You need some time to
come together. We have taken steps along the way, starting with an exhibition
game back in the States. Then, going over to Guangzhou and Korea, building
our team. We feel that we have some of our best basketball ahead of us.
We have a tough game against Germany coming up. We’re going to prepare
for that diligently. It’s exciting to see the progress and the hunger
of our team wanting to play together.
On Germany and Dirk Nowitzki:
Dirk is one of the best players on the planet, right now. Probably one
the top five players on planet Earth. He’s tough to stop. I don’t
know if you can stop him? It will be all of jobs to make him as inefficient
as possible and make him take tough shots.
 CHRIS
BOSH
It seemed like this may have been your team’s
best effort of the tournament:
We wanted to make a statement coming into the round of 16. We know
that if we play defense, we will be in pretty good shape. We know we can
score the ball. We know we can play with anyone offensively, but it’s
our defense that’s going to help us out.
You came out and played with a lot of energy
today:
Yeah, that’s my job. That’s how I am going to play. I
think that after playing pool play, I figured out how I was going to be
effective for Team USA. Bringing it in, getting some offensive rebounds
and just mixing it up down there, those are going to be my strongest points.
You and Brad (Miller) each got threes today.
Is that part of the game plan?
It’s more rare for me (laughter). That’s what Brad does
but it is rare for me, but I almost had to shoot it.
About playing against Dirk and Germany
next:
At this point in the tournament we can’t underestimate anybody
because everybody can play. We are going to have to focus on Dirk a lot
because we know he is a main part of their offense. We have to see what
they are going to do defensively and attack their weaknesses offensively.
And, like always, play good defense.
 ELTON
BRAND
About his play today:
Everybody has to do what he has to do when he gets the opportunity
out there. Our depth is one of our advantages in this tournament. We have
a lot of guys who are very capable at each position. When everybody is
playing and playing well, that’s when we expect to win.
About the play of Joe Johnson and Chris
Bosh today:
Joe Johnson had an excellent game today. He had 18 points, his
highest output of the tournament thus far and was active at both ends
of the court. Chris Bosh played great. He came out with a lot of energy,
deflected some passes and played great defense for us today.
About playing against Germany as next your
opponent:
Of course, Germany has Dirk Nowitzki, a great NBA player. They
also have Okulaja who played at North Carolina and he is a very solid
player. They will be tough and we will have to be focused.
What are your feelings playing here, having
been a part of the USA team in the last Worlds?
As the only holdover from that team, I definitely want to avenge
that, play well and win.
Do you hope to play against Argentina?
We are taking them one game at a time. If we do play them, it should
be a good game. I have played against Argentina a few times in the past
–in the Worlds, in qualifying tournaments and they always play hard
and they always play with a lot of pride.
 KIRK
HINRICH
General comments on today's game:
We wanted to get out of the gates in the medal round. We wanted to send
a message to teams around the world. We know there are a lot of good teams
out there and that we’re going to have to play better as we go along.
Right now, we’re happy with the way we played today. Everybody gave
it a good effort and we’re moving forward.
The arena is a beautiful arena. It’s huge, state of the art. It’s
fun to play in the bigger atmosphere. Everybody felt good in front of
the bigger audience. The stakes are higher and we were trying to step
our game up.
About the USA style of play:
We want to dictate the game with our defensive pressure. If we can take
teams out of their sets, make them do things that they are uncomfortable
doing, it will hopefully play into our hands.
Are you your own toughest opponents?
No, I don’t think so. We respect all of our opponents. Don’t
get me wrong, but if we can apply our defensive pressure, it will be to
our advantage. We want to make the tempo fast, get out in the open floor
with the players we have, it plays into our hands.
About playing against Germany next:
Playing against Germany we obviously
have to face the big fella, Dirk. He’s an amazing player. He poses
unbelievable matchup problems for any team, either in the NBA or here.
He is used to playing internationally and with his German teammates. He
poses a real challenge. We are going to have to a great job on him and
his team as a whole. We are not looking past anyone. We know they are
a team to be reckoned with.
 LEBRON
JAMES
It was a great performance. Defensively, we came out and established
what we want to do for the medal round. That was to play defense, get
our run, and make the extra pass. We were able to take care of business.
On upcoming opponent Germany:
It’s going to be a great game. They have one of the premier scorers
in our league, one of the best players in our league, in Dirk. We’ve
got to do a great job in trying to contain him and try to make sure we
contain some of the others on their team also. We don’t have to change
what we do. We have to get out and put defensive pressure on them.
 ANTAWN
JAMISON
Do you have a special strategy to
use against Dirk Nowitzki?
No, there is no special strategy to take Dirk out of a basketball
game. You just have to have a guy on him at all times. Make him work for
the ball. Once he gets the ball in his hands he is able to create shots
not just for himself but also for his teammates. We have two days to prepare
for Germany. We will definitely be prepared and hopefully we can make
it tough on them.
We don’t want him to score anything like the 47 had last week, because
when he is on like that he obviously attracts a lot of attention to himself
and then he makes a lot of plays for his teammates. Once he gets it going
offensively, his teammates feed of it and it becomes a difficult task.
We definitely want him to take tough shots and we don’t want to allow
him to get into a rhythm.
 JOE
JOHNSON
General comment on Tonight’s game:
I was just trying to active on both ends of the court, make plays
and provide some energy. In the second quarter we really picked up our
energy.
We haven’t really gotten off to a good start these last few games,
and that’s something we have to work on. But we came out in the second
quarter tonight and picked up our defensive intensity and as a result
we got some easy baskets and kept going from there. I think that was the
deciding quarter tonight.
I thought I personally was more aggressive tonight. I am just looking
to make plays.
On playing against Germany Wednesday night:
Dirk is a great player. We know we are going to have our hands
full. We have to make everything tough for him and his teammates. We can’t
give them anything easy.”
 BRAD
MILLER
On playing Australia today:
They came out okay in the first quarter, but the way our guys played
in the second quarter, it shows how we can step it up. We moved the ball
around well today and, obviously, that is when we are going to be at our
best because everyone on this team can really play. The more we get guys
involved, the better it is going to be for us.
 CHRIS
PAUL
About other players and teams in
the tournament:
There’s a lot talent in this tournament. Some of these guys
you don’t get to see in the NBA and some of the best players don’t
play in the NBA and this is a great opportunity to play against them.
We may not have played against everyone but we know just about everybody.
We’ve seen film and we will see a lot more. Everybody on our team
is watching games on tv at our hotel. We are all basketball junkies.
On getting a lot of players involved in
today’s win over Australia:
That was huge for us. I think we are at our best when everyone
is shooting and sharing the ball. As long as we are making he extra pass
I think we will be one of the toughest teams in the tournament.
About playing Germany as the next opponent:
Man, they have Dirk. I mean he had 23 or 24 today in a hard-fought
game against Nigeria and he had 47 points in a game last week. He’s
one of the best players in the NBA and one of the best players in international
ball as well. They have some great role players. Hopefully we will come
out ready to play against them. We have to continue to play the way we
did today.
 DWYANE
WADE
Were you trying to make a statement
today, opening the medal round?
Every night, when we step on the court, we try to make a statement.
But, we also try to get better as a team, defensively. So, we came out
early today and they were playing well. In the second quarter, we kind
of took off. We had the game in hand from that point.
The whole thing is to win ballgames and do it in a style – defensively.
On Germany and Dirk:
It’s going to be a good match. For our ‘4’s’
– especially Shane and ‘Melo and sometimes guys like LeBron.
Of course, it’s tough to stop Dirk in the NBA, but it’s even
tougher over here because he’s got even more of a ‘green light,’
so it’s going to be tough, but we’re looking forward to it.
We’ve been preparing for this. It seems like forever now. We started
in Vegas. We’re prepared mentally. Physically, all the guys are all
right and we have a couple days of rest before the next game, so there
are no excuses for the US team.
On the strengths of US team in game against
Australia:
In Sapporo, we played a lot better, but today, was the best we played
as a unit – everyone making the extra pass and getting the best shot
possible. When you do that, it makes the team play that much better because
everyone feels good and everyone is involved. One to 12. Everyone on our
team played well and scored today. We’re not looking for just 1 or
2 guys to lead the charge. We’re looking for everyone who comes in
to really help lead us to victory.
Do you approach a game differently, in a
win or go home situation?
You can’t think about that. You’ve got to concentrate
on the task at hand for that game and concentrate on it every minute that
you are in the game. You don’t think about it. Maybe in a final game.
Right now, we’re just trying every game and we’re trying to
get better. You have to do that to focus on the team and focus to beat
your opponent.
|
