Postgame Interview: Erik Spoelstra

Postgame Interview: Erik Spoelstra

Obviously with numbers like that was it the way you shot or was it what they did to make you shoot the way you shot yeah you do have to give them credit um you know I thought we started the game out great you know those first four or five

Minutes U they went to the zone that uh definitely flattened us out um and then from there our um level of energy detail um and willingness to to go to different layers um of our offense so you know was not great and then obviously yeah it always looks a little bit different if

You knock down shots I mean there were some stretches you know during um the first half I thought we had some good looks um or we just we uh you know went several empty possessions um and they are packing the paint they’re staying in the zone um and I would have too you

Know um and but there was some detail things where we didn’t just only have to live live with those um you know aggressiveness and like body movement player movement um those were not uh you know examples of our best body of work um you know and

They they made us pay the price you know for that they they played well you know for the most part until those last five minutes I thought defensively we we were able to weather some storms um you know I thought that we were going to

Be able to you know be able to keep it close enough to make a run at it you know in the fourth quarter um you know and then you know when we needed to get some extra stops since we were on shot making you know there uh

Tended to be a costly breakdown or offensive rebound that led to um you know kind of a deflating uh play um Eric when a team is packing the paint like that and playing Zone do you generally want a slightly different mix of threes and drives or would you would

Have wanted more drives tonight just because threes were not falling I think uh a little bit of uh of both I mean you know at some point you know they double down triple down quadruple down on you know protecting the pain you know just daring us to shoot you you know we

Do have to to take those uh when they’re available um and you know at the same time there were opportunities where we could have moved our bodies a little bit more cut more uh run more um attack the paint more uh move uh off of those drives a little bit

More uh those would have been improvements in the margins um you know I think you know also just a few more makes to stem the tide you know that that also could uh change the complexion or just the feel of some possessions because defensively were pretty good uh

In that first half I was encouraged by that it was about as poorly as we could shoot uh in that first half and we held them to 46 um and then you know as it continued to toh go on in the second half um our defensive resolve uh started to waver

Um you know in that in that fourth quarter you went to Cole for obvious reasons what do you like about what you got out of him and how much are you encouraging him and the same way as you did Duncan years ago just to shoot whenever he had daylight yeah you know

You it’s not an easy rooll you know to come in there you know to see you know all right there’s been a bunch of missed shots I have to come in there and I have to you know make a the longest shot you know in this game

That’s not an easy deal uh but he’s really worked at uh things you know his Player Development and then all the games in sou Falls uh have kept him you know in the same system and you know he’s he’s really played extremely well you know there um so he’s earned you

Know these kind of opportunities you know probably maybe even some more you know throughout the course of the Season uh but um you know we just overall were not able to do enough things offensively it wasn’t only the three ball as I’ve been saying coach how would you sort of

Assess the defensive performance as a whole because obviously you held Zion to four which as an explosive player that’s pretty good but then CJ had 30 yeah basically what I said you know I thought um throughout you know the first half it was it was in our wheelhouse um it’s

Always tough to look at things objectively you know you just you feel it uh you know when they’re going on runs but we we pushed that thing back there’s always going to be ups and downs uh you know we pushed it to uh um you know 46 to 402 you know that that

Seems like a game in the 90s uh the 1990s that is um and then you know there was a tough start of the third quarter you know defensively and offensively and then we just had to dig and dig and dig you know the rest of that quarter and we

Did show some moments where we were able to do that um but not enough um you know and McCullum was was very good uh you know in those isolation uh situations um he was able to get to his spots uh and shot make uh and also when we were in

The zone he had some big ones that uh made us think twice about you know staying in that all right thank you

Mar. 22, 2024 – Erik Spoelstra speaks to the media following Friday night’s game vs. the New Orleans Pelicans.

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