That's What He Said, vs Charlotte

http://www.nba.com/celtics/news/twhs-20150105-CHABOS





That's What He Said
Hornets 104 vs. Celtics 95
TD Garden - January 5, 2015

Brad Stevens
RE: Boston's early-game struggles:

First of all, they played at a great pace, and they made shots and Kemba (Walker) was great. We couldn’t stop him. Cody Zeller was playing at a higher energy level than anybody else on the floor a lot of the game, and you know (Gerald) Henderson has always really given us fits. I thought all three of those guys looked like they were at a different level early. And we weren’t very good.

RE: James Young's contributions off the bench:

Well I think it speaks to the impact of being able to go back and forth to Maine and keep his game sharp as he waited his turn and got through some injuries. I thought he did a good job.

RE: The impact this game has on the rotation:

I don’t know. I don’t know. I’ve got to figure out how to coach this team better. I’m not doing a very good job. We’re not playing well and we’re playing almost – it’s not good basketball. We’ve got to do a better job playing good basketball. I’ll figure out the rotations later, once we start playing good basketball and once we all are very focused on very good basketball. And that’s on me. I’ve got to do a better job.

RE: The starters, outside of Jared Sullinger, struggling:

I don’t know. Again, I’ve got to figure out a way to get those guys to play, and it’s – that’s on me. We weren’t very organized offensively, we weren’t very good defensively, we got torched by one guy – pretty bad coaching.
RE: It being hard not knowing which Celtics team will show up on a given night:

We’ve got to get to the point where we know. We’ve got to know it every day. We’ve got to play the right way every day. And, you know, that was really disappointing. That was a disappointing effort all around.

RE: Why Cody Zeller was successful:

Super energy. It’s what he is. Plays really hard, all the time. And he’s a quick seven-footer. Like he’s a good driver, he’s physical, he beats people to balls, and you see on tape all that stuff and you have to at least match it. And sometimes, in an ideal world, you beat it. But very rarely do you beat a high-energy player’s energy. You just have to play with that kind of same stuff, otherwise it can hurt you. And (Michael) Kidd-Gilchrist is that kind of player. It’s an interesting team because the first group doesn’t shoot it normally – Kemba (Walker) obviously shot it tonight – but they only attempted one three other than him, the starting group. And then the backups are all, for the most part, 3-point shooters. So it’s a really unique team to prepare for and play. The energy level of the first group has been phenomenal in most of the games I’ve watched, including they beat Orlando pretty good the other day, and it was pretty similar. Very similar type of game; they were up 52-29 or something and just, they set the tone for how the game was going to be played.


James Young
RE: How he felt getting into the game:

Felt great; at first I had the jitters, I didn’t really shoot the ball and I just tried to contribute to the team.

RE: Playing more assertive as the game went on:

Yeah. I was kind of nervous when I first got in, my first time playing really in the regular season. I was just trying to go out there in the second half and just be aggressive, everyone told me just to be aggressive.
RE: Who told him to play aggressively:

Before I walked out B. Bass (Brandon) just told me to be me, stay aggressive and just zone in and that’s what I did.

RE: Playing with confidence:

I just tried to take every shot with confidence. After one fell I just tried to go for another and another and that’s how I’ve been playing all my life so I just tried to stick with it.

RE: If he thinks he'll get more minutes:

I just want to go out there and just provide for my team. If I get more minutes, I get more minutes. I just want to bring energy to the floor.


Jared Sullinger
RE: It being challenging with recent personnel changes:

Very challenging. We've just got to do better.

RE: Brad Stevens taking the blame for the loss:

That’s who he is, but as a team we just have to do better.

RE: Why James Young played well:

Yeah, all his hard work he’s been putting in. Going back and forth from Maine to Boston and all the hard work he’s been putting in throughout the couple weeks is finally showing. I’m so proud and happy for him and the best is yet to come.

RE: What the Celtics need to do better:

Everything. Defensively, offensively, executing the game plan, we've just got to do better. We have to step outside of ourselves and understand that we are a team; one person can’t make that home run play.
Jae Crowder

RE: The mood in the locker room:

We didn’t play hard enough the first half and we dug ourselves a hole and that’s why he (Brad Stevens) was pretty upset. We just tried to get a little better effort in the second half, but we got to find a way to start a game with more effort than what we did tonight.

RE: What Coach Stevens can do better to prepare:

I don’t know what he can do to prepare but when stuff like this happens, I guess hold guys accountable early and just don’t let it keep happening. We just kept digging ourselves in a hole, I just feel like you have to hold guys a little more accountable.


Steve Clifford
RE: Playing with a faster tempo without Al Jefferson:

It’s something that we’ve tried to do, obviously with him we’re so efficient when he’s in the game the ball gets to him more. It’s not so much our fast break baskets but we’re trying to get into action quicker and it’s helping us.

RE: James Young's impact in the game:

We knew he could shoot the ball, he came right in and was a big factor in them getting back in the game.

RE: Cody Zeller's perfect shooting night:

He was terrific, and I thought his defense was terrific too. I thought he played great at both ends of the floor.
Kemba Walker

RE: The tempo of the game:

Our pace is really good at this point. We’re trying to push the pace and get up and down. I think it’s mainly our defense, our defense is really good right now, we’re all in sync, we’re all in the right spots and the right place.
RE: Getting back-to-back 30-point games for the first time in his career:

I think it’s just the flow, the pace, I’m just taking my opportunities and making my shots. My teammates are doing a great job of setting me up. Gerald (Henderson) had eight assists today. All of the guys are just doing a great job of creating for me, I’m just making shots.

RE: Stopping the Celtics' comeback:

We made plays. We could have got frustrated, we could have got down but we stayed with the game.


Cody Zeller
RE: Playing against his brother Tyler Zeller:

I want the best for him, I want success for him but there are a few times each year we have to go against each other and both of us can’t win.

RE: Charlotte playing a faster tempo than normal:

That’s what we have to do, especially with Al (Jefferson) out we lose a lot of offense there. We have a lot of guys who can get up and down, Kemba (Walker) played really well tonight and that’s what we need to continue to have him do.

RE: Stopping Boston's comeback:

We just got back to what we were doing, made a couple big shots... But we just had to grind it out to win and made a few big plays down the stretch.



bob



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