Exclusive GAME# 53: BLAZERS @ JAZZ - FEBRUARY 7, 2020 - Quote Book

PREGAME QUOTES

Utah Jazz vs. Portland Trail Blazers

February 7, 2020


Terry Stotts –Head Coach

On what’s contributed to Damian Lillard’s hot streak

“Well, you’d probably have to ask him, but he’s just in a real good groove. The ball’s coming off his hands well, he’s playing with confidence. I think he’s mixing up getting to the rim and deep three’s really open things up for him as well. His passing is probably being overlooked because of how well he’s scoring.”


On if back-to-backs are as challenging as people make them out to be

“Yeah, I think they’re challenging. There’s fatigue involved, but I do think once you get out on the court, you’re able to fight through it. I don’t know what the record is on the second of a back-to-back and whether the team before played and you didn’t or vice versa. I’ve always thought back-to-backs, pro athletes handle them very well, it’s the four games in five nights which we don’t have anymore, five games in seven night, six in nine nights where it just keeps adding on.”


On the challenge of tackling Utah’s bigs if Hassan Whiteside can’t go tonight

“The biggest challenge is probably rebounding the ball. [Rudy] Gobert’s a great rebounder, they’re a good team rebounding game. They have good offensive rebounding guards in [Donovan] Mitchell so that will be the biggest challenge.”

 

PREGAME QUOTES

Utah Jazz vs. Portland Trail Blazers

February 7, 2020


Quin Snyder – Head Coach

On defending Damian Lillard

“We got to take something away. Often times, how you execute is not necessarily a direct line to what you’re doing. Sometimes it’s ‘hey let’s do the same thing, let’s do it better.’ Other times, let’s adjust. Sometimes it’s usually somewhere in the middle. But I think on the backend, certainly if he gets 15 threes and he gets fouled and he gets assists then we didn’t do very well. Some of that, you have to be careful. He’s so good and he’s going to adjust to what you’re doing over the course of the game. So there’s always plan B and things like that. You have to make it harder on him in order to beat him. What he did last night, he found shooters at the end of the game consistently and guys hit shots. Again, you got to take something away. Try to take away as much as you can.”


On Jordan Clarkson

“Dennis [Lindsey] loves basketball in addition to being really good at what he does. I think, he sees the game a lot like a coach. I think he knows me. They are always running stuff, ‘what do you think about this guy?’ Not with any intent at a certain time to make a move per say, but you’re just kind of trying to evaluate guys in the league and we get to that when we play against them. I always felt like, in addition to having the ability the create off the dribble, he loves to play. There’s a passion about him. I told him today, ‘I want you to get better throughout this last part of the season.’ I’m going to pick five things and he gets to pick five things and we’re going to see where they land. Johnnie Bryant’s part of that too. I think there’s other things that he’s capable of doing because he loves to play. I think he’s going to become a better and better defender as he emphasizes that. He’s taken a lot more catch-and-shoot threes. He wants to improve. Anytime you see a guy that loves the game and that’s talented and wants to improve, as a coach, those are fun guys to coach.”

 

I don't often get pregame quotes but they showed up tonight.

 

And can you post it in Braille? For the refs.

 

As soon as I get it I will post it.

 

POSTGAME QUOTES

Portland Trail Blazers 114, Utah Jazz 117

February 7, 2020



Notes: With tonight’s loss, the Trail Blazers are now 24-29 on the season … With his 21st point and first assist tonight, Damian Lillard now has 1,500+ points and 400+ assists this season and joins James Harden as the only other player to have scored at least 1,500+ points in every season since 2012-2013 … Lillard had a team-high 42 points for his seventh 40+ point game this season … With five three-pointers made tonight, CJ McCollum has made multiple three-pointers in each of the past five games played against the Jazz… Caleb Swanigan had 11 rebounds tying his career-high (also 10/30/18 at Indiana).

 

Terry Stotts – Head Coach

On the game

“I was really proud of our guys. I mean obviously we’re short-handed and it was an outstanding effort by everyone who played. And it’s just a shame that it was decided on an inexcusable missed call. There’s no other way to describe it. They could have called goaltending and reviewed it. But they swallowed their whistles on a play that was pretty obvious. So it’s disappointing that such great effort was decided by that.”


On what he told the team

“There wasn’t a lot to say. Everybody’s pretty pissed off.”


On the effort of the team

“They did you know. And I think it was so obvious fatigue kind of came into it in the fourth quarter, some of our shots were short, you know, we didn’t get to some rebounds. But everybody stepped up. Dame [Damian Lillard], CJ [McCollum], and Gary [Trent Jr.] all played the second half, entire second half. We made a lot of good plays and like I said it’s really disappointing to not come away with a win after that.”

 

Damian Lillard – Guard – 42 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds

On the way his team played

“I love the way we played. We were on a back-to-back against a team that plays really well at home and we came out and did what we were supposed to do. We had a great first half, they made their run, got back into the game and we weathered the storm and we gave ourselves a chance to win a tough game on the road …”

 

CJ McCollum – Guard (27 points, 5 rebounds)

On playing with a short bench

“We did what we were supposed to do. Go compete, control what you can control. You go hoop. Our guys got an opportunity to play extended minutes and I thought they did a good job. But this is a winnable game for us that we lost.”

 

POSTGAME QUOTES

Utah Jazz 117, Portland Trail Blazers 114

February 7, 2020


NOTES: With the win tonight, the Jazz are now 33-18 on the season and … Bojan Bogdanovic had a team-high 27 points, his 23rd game with 20 or more points of the season… The Jazz outscored the Blazers 66-40 in points in the paint… Rudy Gobert had 16 points and a team-high 14 rebounds to mark his 39th double-double this season… Utah outscored Portland 20-8 in fast break points… Utah outrebounded Portland 56-43.

 

Quin Snyder – Head Coach

On the message to the team at halftime

“There’s times when you have to change what you’re doing and there’s other times when you have to dig in and compete and do it better. More than any breakdown there were some plays in the first half that were just grit type plays that we didn’t make. I thought, you just get to a point where nothing else matters except competing and winning the game. That usually manifests itself on the defensive end. Our guys put whatever else they were thinking about, whether it be individual concerns or considerations or not making a shot, whatever the things are that are going through your mind that takes your focus away from the defensive end, that’s what we came out in the third quarter and did.”


On the defense

“We just executed. Guards getting locked into their man and not getting screened. Bigs being up at the point of the screens. Damian Lillard, he’s a special, special player. That has to be your priority. No matter what is going on, he demands that. That wasn’t where our focus was. Everybody’s got a job to do and he’s so good that if one person doesn’t do their job, he makes you pay. He may make you pay anyway even if you do your job and you do it well. We make plenty of adjustments during the course of the year. You make them. You don’t know what to adjust to if you’re not doing what you tried to do with the right amount of urgency and resolve. Our guys came out and dug in and did what they needed to do on the defensive end.”

 

Sheesh, that's a huge logo. It's so big, nobody but an NBA ref can miss it.

But thanks for posting these, Sly!

 

Bojan Bogdanovic – Forward (27 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist)

On the message to the team at halftime

“I the first time in the last six, seven games, we didn’t put our head down at halftime. We kind of talked to each other, tried to adjust. I think the first half, we had a good game plan and we executed our game plan in the second half. First half we were not aggressive enough. Especially not defensively. We let them get into the game. Easy buckets, easy shots. It’s tough to stop to them. Like I said, nothing serious happened at halftime, we just didn’t put our heads down.”


On outscoring Portland in the paint

“Yeah they didn’t have any, let’s say, great rim protector over there and they were trying to blitz Donovan [Mitchell] half of the game. We were trying to attack the basket, find Rudy [Gobert] for easy layups and dunks. And then second half, like you mentioned, 40 points [in the paint for the game], great defense and we were allowed to run more.”

 

Mike Conley – Guard (18 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists)

On the game

“When we were going through it like we were, it’s one of those things, you kind of have to scrap for every little bit, it’s not going to be easy. Tonight we made the plays that we’ve been waiting to make. Donovan [Mitchell] on the boards. Guys getting loose balls. Just really being a physical team down in the second half and able to make the plays to win.”


On the message to the team at halftime

“Stop worrying about so much. Go out there, have fun, play the game we love to play. We love playing with the teammates that we have. You really just have joy. We were just thinking too much when we were trying to do the right things, almost too much. We went out there, played free, played hard and were able to get back in the game.”


On attacking the rim

“I think just being able to get in the paint allowed us to get a little bit more ball movement. Tried to get to the free throw line. Tried to get easy twos to open up the three ball. I think we really just tried to be aggressive and not settle too much.”