Bill Laimbeer Quotations

We came in today with a chip on our shoulder to prove who we are.

They scored 26 points in three quarters. That's solid defense.

We'll be cheering loudly for the Sun. This is about making the playoffs -- we're not going to be bashful.

I don't play them a lot of minutes. I have great starters. I have All-Stars, world champions.

I played in Joe Louis in a playoff game. I played there when the roof caved in for half a season. The facility is great for basketball because it goes straight up, so you feel like the fans are on top of you.

I thought we were aggressive across the board defensively, and you could just see it grow. As the game went along, you could see the confidence grow. It showed in the fourth quarter.

It's not tough at all as long as the fans are yelling, screaming and hollering.

There was nothing magical that the coaching staff did. This is about the players.

We joke around a lot with our ballclub.

We were able to get after the rebounds. We were able to control the paint. We were able to be physical down there.

What I've talked about the entire series and throughout this playoffs is about intensity and effort, desire and will of our players.

The players have to come and play. Today we did.

That's how we like to play basketball, is be physical down there in the paint and force teams to the perimeter.

The Finals are about a test of wills.

I have a great deal of respect for Isiah as a leader and basketball mind.

Kara did a good job of giving us some energy and offensive production off the bench this season ... and her inclusion on the All-Rookie team is a well-deserved honor. If she puts her mind to it, she can become one of the best post players in the game. She has all the physical tools, the size, and the agility to dominate, and watching her develop over the coming years is going to be a lot of fun for our fans.

I think we're more talented than they are, but they've had good chemistry with their team all year long and they're consistent,

We were unable to play our game of being a physical basketball team. The disparity in free throws was a major factor in the game.

We were looking for a guard who can play the 1 or 2.

You always get concerned when your team goes flat during the course of a game. But we attacked the rim, got to the free throw line and got back into the game.

Turnovers are frying my brain. It's so difficult for a coach to sit there and watch it happen, but we overcame it to our credit.

We watched her at the combine and she grew on us. There was no question that if we had made a trade and had lost one of our big players we would have taken her. But we would have worked a deal to move up to take her, too. She competes.

This was huge. If we lose this game, we're probably toast. We can't get the Charlotte game back, so we needed this one.

The Pistons (under coach Larry Brown last season) needed to be released offensively, though, and Flip has allowed them that freedom.

Don't talk to me about that. Talk to him about that. That's his business.

Our everyday problems that we have been unable to solve are our turnovers. We just aren't paying attention to detail.

That's going to be great for us. We won't be affected offensively, and cutting down the clock will hurt the teams that play a slower, pattern offense.

This is not a case of we didn't show. I think Connecticut played very well. They made jump shots, especially in the second half, which is going to happen. They are fine players. As far as the game plan is concerned, we wanted to keep them on the perimeter, and they happened to make them.

It's a great matchup. Both teams have been eyeing each other all season long, from the very first ballgame we played.

I tried hard, it was close, but it didn't happen.

It's not serious. She'll be out no more than six or seven days. I don't know if she'll play Sunday (exhibition opener at Connecticut). It's up to Deanna. We'll see later this week.

Connecticut played very well. Our game plan was to keep them on the perimeter. They made shots, jump shots in the second half. We had easy opportunities that we weren't able to convert.

That it's being sponsored by the NBA makes it legitimate for the better caliber of players to participate in it, ... All they have to do now is market the individual teams.

I'm not unhappy with our effort - Connecticut just played very well. They just made shots.