Stephen Jackson Quotations

We're just happy to be in the playoffs. We'll play anybody.

We didn't think Danny was going to give it up that easy. It was just a straight line drive and we'd rather him take a jump shot. A situation like that, when he has the ball at the end of the game, you know he's going to shoot it. We just didn't play the proper defense on him. I wish I was guarding him. I probably would have made it a little tougher.

We shared the ball and it's not just one person getting into a rhythm, it's four or five guys. The game speeds up a little bit. But at the same time, we're like eight times better with (O'Neal) because it gives us the best of both worlds. It's a little faster, but he makes our job a lot easier.

Shaq got to the line and hit his free throws. That was the biggest thing.

My attitude wasn't to go into the stands to hurt nobody. My attitude was to help my teammate. It just happened to be a situation that I had to throw some punches.

Obviously there are certain things he's not going to be happy about and a certain way that he's going to react. But he understands now that the reaction has to be positive and it can't be at the job.

My uncle works in the prison, so he's still there and he said a lot of the houses are straight. My sister's house had a tree fall on it, but it didn't do too much damage. It's nothing we can't rebuild. You can't replace a life, but you can replace the houses and the fences.

Nobody can make excuses now. We have everybody back. It's time to go to work and play like we know how.

Carmelo is a big-time player and he hit a big-time shot. We had a slow start and got back into it. We gave ourselves a chance to win, which is all you can ask for. ... But it came down to a big shot at the end and he hit it.

I hate the fact that he's gone. I hate the way he left,

He's got to take advantage of his opportunities. He knows that with J.O. out, he's going to be one of our big men that can score. We're going to rely on him a lot. He's doing real good.

He hit a tough shot. I actually thought I fouled him a little. I don't think it should have came down to that.

He fit in like he's been here all year. We know where he likes his shots. We know his game and he fits in real well. I don't think we're going to have to change anything or slow anything down for him to fit in. He came in and did his thing.

We've got to get to the point when we get a big lead, we feel confident and finish them off. We're not going to be a great team until we can do that.

He's a big kid, and he is so misunderstood. He's not a wild guy at all. He's not a thug. He's not some ignorant guy. He's a great person.

He's getting healthy, that's what it is. His attitude has always been great, he's always been a leader. He's getting back to his All-Star caliber game. Everybody knew when he got healthy he'd be playing like this. We're just happy to have him back.

He was aggressive. He didn't let the referees get in his head, he just played well. He's getting a feel for the game.

He wants to play with us. He loves his teammates. He has no problem with his teammates. He told me that personally. He wants to come back and play.

He (Crawford) didn't have enough time to pass so I knew he was going to shoot. I just tried to contest the shot. I contested it and he hit the shot.

I was 0-for-infinity. I just wanted to make a shot. We knew they'd switch. I went backdoor and got to the basket. My teammates showed confidence in me to give me the ball. It seemed like I hadn't made a shot all game.

Stay on his hip and make him shoot over you all night. Don't give him no good looks because he's an outstanding scorer.

I was trying to get the last shot, that's what Rick (Carlisle) told me. That was my main focus. But A.J. (Johnson) made a heads-up play. His man (Gordon) got caught sleeping and he made a back-door play.

I still love him. I love him as a teammate and a friend.

I think everybody is at the point where they hate losing. It's 'When can we turn this thing around?' Nobody is going to lay down now that we're under .500. I think everybody is trying to stay positive. We've got to give ourselves a chance until everybody is back healthy.

That was the shot we wanted. It felt good. When it left my hands I thought it was going in. Things just didn't go our way tonight.

Mike has always been a great player. He's getting a chance now to really show the league that he can carry a team and hit big shots.

Miami is still a tough team without Shaq, and Wade proved that. We had to grind it out in the end to get the win. It's big for us because we know they will be there in the end. Having home court advantage really helps us out.

We got back in the game and kind of ran out of gas. We didn't keep pushing. Once we cut the lead we kind of relaxed.

We couldn't hit shots. That's what it all boiled down to. It was very frustrating, but at the same time, we got the looks.

We have to make better decisions on holding leads. We get a lead in another team's building, then give up the lead. It's hard to get it back, no matter who you're playing. We have to learn how to get a lead and blow somebody out. We haven't done that in a while.

We just didn't play the proper defense on him. I wish I was guarding him. I probably would have made it a little tougher.

We just didn't have it tonight. It just seemed like we came out tired. It seems like we don't bring it like we should sometimes.

We're trying to get out togetherness back. We are getting to know everybody so that we are ready for the playoffs. When everybody is healthy, the sky is the limit.

We kept playing. We didn't do what we normally do and that's clock watch.

This team has too many great guys and good professionals to go through so much negativity. As my friend, I would still love for him to be here, but I don't miss the negativity. Being around a positive environment, everybody plays better and everybody works better.

We just wanna worry about winning this last game and going into the playoffs with some momentum.

We feel like we have a lot to prove, ... But not to the world, to ourselves. We know we're better than the way we played last year.

Vince is one of those guys, you can't stop him, but you just hope you can make him take some tough shots and hope he has an off night. I'm going to make him work for everything out there. And hopefully, I can get away with a couple of fouls.

There's no excuse to lose to those guys. We know that we're a better team.

Is it about Ron? If it's about Ron, I'm not answering.

I've never taken that many shots in a game. I know what it feels like to miss all those shots, though.

The shots we got were within our offense and they were good looks, but we just weren't knocking them down. We got a lot of open shots that we missed.

The shot felt good when it left my hand.

People don't understand that a lot of stuff he's done and the reason he plays so hard and is so hungry is because he wants to be great. I think a lot of time Ron gets frustrated because he knows he's better than what he's been playing. He wants to be the best player in the game. That's what drives him, that's what motivates him.

The motivation of having J.O. back with us was a lift. Even if J.O. didn't come out and get 30 tonight, just his presence was big. He's our leader, he's an All-Star.

As far as being a leader, I think we all have to pick it up, ... One person can't replace Reggie, we just all have to be leaders on the court. We have to help each other as much as we can.

A lot of the guys who are wearing chains are my age and are black, ... I wore all my jewelry today to let it be known that I'm upset with it. It's one thing to have a dress code and it's another thing if you're attacking cultures.

They played that fourth quarter like they had something at stake, like they wanted to go to the playoffs. And we played like we didn't want to go to the playoffs.

There's certain lines you (don't) cross when you're dealing with a man who came up like he did and who's been through the trials and tribulations like he did in his life.

It's a situation we've been dealing with the last two years, not having our whole team. Guys have been in and out of the rotation. This says a lot about this team.

It was frustrating because I didn't know what they were going to be able to do. I'm thankful I was able to get them out before the hurricane came.

It's a big win, even though Orlando wasn't playing for anything. We wanted to come out and be playing positive and continue to do some good things and try to bring those good things to the playoffs.

It is what it is. It's basically over to me. I can't do anything about it, but abide by the rules.

It's not the first time we've been dealing with it.

It's going to be tough. They're one of the hottest teams in the league right now. Vince (Carter) is playing tremendous, and so is Richard Jefferson, so we got to play great team defense, great man-on-man defense.

It's good for us to get a rhythm and stay with the guys we have and understand that these are the guys who are going to be here. We have to get it done with these guys. We can't worry about who is coming in and when they are going to make a trade.

It shows a lot of things. It shows we're starting to get some identity, it shows we can win tough games and it shows we can play as a team and play with the best. We just have to go out there and compete.

It's hard when both of us are in foul trouble. If one of us is in foul trouble, the other can play but, when both of us are out, it's hard.

It's hard to maintain in high school unless you have your own feeder system. We have a lot of kids going to Academic Magnet or who choose to go to Bishop England. The next few years, we could do well, but the key is to keep getting the kids in.

Considering everything we are going through right now, we needed this game. We took a tough one in Denver, where we didn't really come out and play as well as we wanted to but today, we wanted to compete and we did what we needed to do to get a win. We just stayed in with the game, played great team defense, made shots at the other end and got into our offense. We were able to get the shots we wanted.

That means a lot of guys are dedicated and not taking too much time off during the summer and getting ready for next year.

The best way I can say it is we've played well, we've moved the ball and played great defense the last two games so we are showing signs that we are getting the chemistry. We can't put the blame on Ron. We can't say because Ron's not here, everything's flowing better. All we can say is we're starting to figure each other out, we're starting to play well together and we're starting to play like the team we know we can be.

It's been up and down, up and down. I know we can do it. . . . We've done a lot of talking, we've made a lot of excuses. It's just about doing it.

It's amazing. We're out there playing basketball, playing hard on both ends and sometimes games get real physical. It's a part of the game. We could have played a lot better. It's definitely hard for us to win when me and Jermaine are in foul trouble.

I've heard of some trades, but none of them have probably been true. I've talked to Ron, but it really hasn't been on my mind. I wish him the best and hope for the best for this team.

It was a big game for us. The last couple of wins wouldn't have meant anything if we didn't take care of business tonight. We knew we had to come out and match their intensity.

Once he starts playing basketball and continues to play how he's been playing, a lot of the negativity will soon blow away.

It's no buzzer beater, but we did win the game. I'm glad I made it because I didn't make a shot all night.

I'm not disappointed. I got a championship out of it, ... A lot of guys play their whole career and don't get a championship.

I'm getting a lot more touches now. I just try to make plays for my team. I have to be more aggressive because I can score and I'll also get shots for other people. That's a big part of it.

I miss Reggie; he did a lot for this team, a lot for this organization, a lot for this city. But it's a new time, a new uniform and a new year,

I have no problem dressing up ... because I know I'm a nice-looking guy,

I'm not trying to replace Reggie because that would be something that's impossible, ... All I can do is come here and do my job and make it seem like he's not missed.

I'm at the point where pushing it is making it worse. I've been pushing it for so long that it's easier to sprain every game. I've sprained it in seven of the last 10 games. I'm going to take a game off and try to let it heal a little bit and try to be ready for (Tuesday's game at Chicago).

I just told Ron he shouldn't feel bad. They boo me, and I play here. I don't think it bothered him. If they'll boo me, they'll boo anybody.

I just think that's attacking young, black males. The part about wearing suits, I think we should dress up. A lot of guys have gotten sloppy with the way they dress and I have no problem with that. But the chains, that's going a little too far.

I played great 'D.' It was a tough 3 off the glass. There's nothing you can do about it. It was just one of those shots that was just meant to be. I didn't want to foul him. I wanted him to take a tough shot.

I just didn't want to foul him. I wanted to make him make a tough shot. I thought I did my job - he just did his better.

He's a nice-dressed guy. He thinks he's the sexiest man on earth, so he had a lot to do with it. He did a great job with it. The whole team is satisfied with the look.

I definitely feel that's a racial statement. Almost 100 percent of the guys in the league who are young and black wear big chains.

He's one of the best players in the NBA. You have to take your hat off to him the way he carries his team.

He's not as good of a defender as Ron, but he's an All-Star. I'll welcome any All-Star to our team. He's a great player.

He's not here. We're not worrying about where he's going ... We've got a job to do. I think we're worrying about these 12, 15 guys coming out and playing together trying to gain some kind of relationship on and off the court so we can get this thing done the right way.

I continue to get in his ear and let him know that he's unstoppable. I get in his ear and let him know he's our franchise guy. As well as he plays, the better chance we have at winning. I continue to give him that confidence. When he has monstrous games like he had (Thursday), it's going to be hard to beat us. He is a dominant player and I want him to continue to play like that.

I do not know where he is. I expect him to turn himself in sometime during the next 24 hours.

I have no problem dressing up . . . because I know I'm a nice-looking guy. But as far as chains, I definitely feel that's a racial statement. Almost 100% of the guys in the league who are young and black wear big chains. So I definitely don't agree with that at all.

As bad as I disagreed on stuff, I wanted to get a technical foul, but I didn't. When guys on the team see me get technical fouls, it tends to trickle down to the team. I just took it and dealt with it.

It's been kind of hard, I'm labeled as a jerk right now, you know what I mean? But I love it. I've been a jerk all my life. My momma loves this jerk. My kids love this jerk. I'm going to be a jerk in a good way, though. I'm going to be a jerk to the other teams and just go out there and play basketball. I can do that.

The best day of my life was when I turned 25. That's the day my car insurance went down. Yeah, boy, I saved $1,200 that day.

I got fined for talking to myself.

I make love to pressure.