We’re not afraid to have expectations.

I told them to have patience.

We need a scorer. It doesn’t need to be a shooter, but it’s got to be a scorer. There’s a lot of help out there. I’m comfortable with that. … What we project as our...

We make it hard sometimes. We sit on top of the mountain and don’t recognize what you need to do.

We gave up 25 points off those 21 turnovers. And our backcourt was 5-for-29 from the field.

The beginning of the third, we didn’t get anything done. After six games and two weeks, we didn’t have the energy to get the job done.

I don’t have the courage to inquire right now.

That was an eye-opening move. He said ‘welcome,’ … To not miss a step on that crossover and continue to go straight ahead at full speed. Raymond did the right thing. He just turned around...

Brevin has earned the starting spot. But guys have to maintain that status with commitment to effort and with consistent effort. We think we’ll have that kind of competition throughout the lineup next season.

I’m looking forward to Wednesday, that’s when the season ends. I am looking forward to relaxation.

The last two games, the one in Detroit, late in that game and this game is really the most competitive that we’ve been with a very, very good basketball team.

We are happy that Gerald will continue his career and development with the Charlotte Bobcats. He is a quality young man and has considerable upside,

We’ve hit the wall as a team. Our guys have played a lot of minutes and were having mental lapses, and the common things we just didn’t get done. It was an indication of a...

The good news is that this is a different injury than we originally thought, but it is still an injury we have to let take its course in recovery. Gerald is having a tremendous season...

He’s 7 feet. He can shoot. He has a great work ethic, … If he falls on his face, I can live with that.

If there’s something worthy and makes a difference in your basketball team, you have to have the flexibility to do it. That’s where we are.

What’s the bottom line? We made shots. That’s what it’s all about.

It’s not going to do anything to them statistically for either one of them. They are who they are at this point. They have nothing to prove.

Everything in this basketball game was pretty much even, but they shot 33-of-39 (from the line). Everything else was pretty much even. It gets down to the free-throw line and making the free throws. The...

He’s chomping at the bit.

We didn’t have to force anything. We had great shots. And we’ve got to make shots. It’s that simple.

I thought our defense was superb on the last two possessions that Atlanta had. They couldn’t get a shot off. I thought we made them earn every possession.

That’s a pretty damn good basketball team that we played. They’re very efficient. Most (teams) have a go-to player. That basketball team has a go-to team. They’re very good, very efficient. When a guy’s open,...

We are fortunate that this was a minor injury and caught early. Sean has a great work ethic and we know he will work extremely hard to be back to 100% when the regular season...

When you play here in the Garden, it always has that special quality to it. The ghosts are still here. We try to remind the young guys that this is a great stage to perform...

They’ve just got so many weapons that somehow, someone’s going to make a play.

Obviously it’s always very difficult. It has its benefits because we watch guys evolve and they get an opportunity. But where the difficulty comes in is all the things you’ve implemented you can’t do, especially...

This year is getting ridiculous. I’ve never seen anything like this. I guess I won’t be able to say that again because we’re experiencing it now.

He’s going to the battleship? Well, I guess he’s getting mentally ready, huh?

Collectively, the group has been what we wanted them to be in terms of that commitment to effort.

The bottom line is whether we were prepared and ready to play when they threw the ball up. It didn’t appear that way to me, and I think that’s a responsibility that when people come...

You know what he did first tonight was get his teammates involved. I had a conversation with him before the game and I told him I wanted him to play with passion. You have to...

They’ve been struggling a little bit, if you can call 49 wins struggling, but they just have too many pieces. I’m proud of our guys. That was about the most competitive that we’ve been with...

I can’t divulge that. My credibility’s on the line. There’s a good possibility they made the right decision.

When we come to a decision, we make that move regardless of when it is. Some team could pick Kareem up at a nominal cost and still have the right (to pick up the option...

I am sure it’s difficult for him. Out of loyalty to his teammates, I am sure he wants to be out there and be a part of the franchise that is being built around him.

The 11 guys in that room are giving it everything they’ve got and their decisions are good. And guys who have not had an opportunity before are stepping up and performing.

They (Detroit) just have so many weapons that somewhere somebody’s going to make a play. They just keep you coming from behind all game.

This is a great opportunity for him to play for a team that is vying for a championship. We didn’t want to stand in his way, and we appreciate the professionalism and commitment he gave...

He needed to make those plays in the end to make up for some of those things he didn’t get done early.

The problem was that the group that was getting the stops wasn’t very good offensively.

We have five (big men) out, they have Jermaine.

We played about a quarter and a half tonight. But we played the fourth quarter with some fight to get back into it. The shot Brand made late in the game was a big-time shot...

What they did tonight was make shots. I think it’s significant that they would hang in there and not surrender because that was a concern of a lot of people.

Chicago just got Christmas early.

This is where we’re weak and that’s on the boards in those situations.

He doesn’t want to take time off, I know. But I have to issue some kind of edict where he doesn’t show up.

We finished this one. We made it hard though. I told the guys that they are kind of hard on their coaches.

Dirk has been great, but what Steve has done is just unbelievable. We tried to get the ball out of his hands, and he still picked us apart. He’s made everybody better.

It was on us to make critical plays and we didn’t do it.