Notes from NBA TV’s NBA Fan Night presented by Sprint
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Los Angeles Lakers (92) @ Brooklyn Nets (83)
Voting is open on NBA.com, the NBA Facebook Page, Yahoo.com, mobile web, NBA Game Time app and Twitter for next week’s Fan Night match-up that will air on Feb. 12
Fans can select between the following games:
Denver Nuggets @ Toronto Raptors
Portland Trail Blazers @ Miami Heat
Sacramento Kings @ Memphis Grizzlies
Houston Rockets @ Golden State Warriors
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NBA Fan Night presented by Sprint
Matt Winer, Steve Smith and Chris Webber
Webber on Lakers point guard Steve Nash: “If Nash is one of the best point guards in the league, the ball has to be in his hands.”
Webber on Nets center Brook Lopez: “Right now, Brook Lopez is playing some of the best basketball in his career and arguably may be the second best center in the game, depending on who you ask.”
Smith on the chemistry between the Nets’ Deron Williams and Joe Johnson: “I’m disappointed. I said they would be the best backcourt. Joe Johnson has been playing well but he can play better. Collectively they haven’t been on the same page. Both can shoot…I thought it would be a natural progression that these guys would play well together, but so far I’m disappointed that they haven’t played better together.”
Webber on the Nets and identity struggles: “It seems as if no one has found their sweet spots. You have to wait for that period of adjustment…so I’m just waiting for them to have that breakout game.”
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Sprint Halftime Report
Winer, Smith and Webber
Smith on the Lakers offense: “You have to keep it simple when you have talent like that. It is not the Mike D’Antoni system, it’s not the Princeton system…this is the simple basketball system. We are going to pick out who is our best player and mismatch.”
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NBA GameTime presented by Hyundai
Winer, Smith and Webber
Smith on the Lakers’ advantage over the Nets: “They had guys that could close the game; they knew where they wanted to go. They just started to make the big plays down the end.”
Webber on Brooklyn’s energy: “I have to put this on the offense of the Brooklyn Nets. D-Will, very honestly, needs to be more of a star. Most of the game it seems as if he wasn’t around. With this team in Brooklyn, who are they? Where is their energy? You need more Reggie Evans type of plays, more Brook Lopez type of plays.”
Lakers guard Kobe Bryant joins the GameTime crew following the game
Bryant on the Lakers defeating the Nets without Dwight Howard and Metta World Peace: “It is a big win for us. Going through what we went through at the start of the season has given us more fortitude and a little more grit. When these things happen, we don’t get discouraged; we just keep on battling and continue to think strategically.”
Bryant on playing at Barclays Center: “I enjoy playing here. There is a lot of energy in the building. You kind of feel like you are playing in Rucker Park.”
Bryant on the Lakers mindset: “It is a game-by-game thing. We are just locked in on what we have to do on a nightly basis in order to get a win. The results will take care of themselves. We will start playing more consistently. The dust will settle eventually.”
Smith on Kobe’s ability to still dunk: “I’m amazed at a guy playing that long, at that level, and still having that type of spring in his step. When you get older you settle for shooting jump shots but he’s not settling.”
Webber on the Brooklyn Nets: “You just didn’t see this team want to take it. In the playoffs, every game sends a message to other teams in the NBA. It just doesn’t seem like they took it upon themselves to say we are going to protect home [court] tonight.”
Smith on the Indiana Pacers: “I think they have found their rhythm. This is a team that doesn’t have that one go-to superstar, but they have a lot of guys that can hurt you in different ways.”
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