Grizzlies seemingly had the game in hand down the stretch tonight, but Kobe Bryant provided the late game heroics in his return to the Lakers lineup to deliver a 99-98 loss to the Grizzlies.
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Mayo learns from the NBA's best closer - by Chris Avis
Coach Hollins' postgame pressor
On the technical foul:
“The technical was not the play that won or lost the game. I was upset at Marc (Gasol) for setting an illegal screen. I hit the table, and he called a technical. Kobe (Bryant) hitting a couple of big shots was the game coming down the stretch. That was the game. He (Kobe) kept making plays at the end of the game that kept them (Los Angeles) close. There are a lot of things that were going down coming down the stretch and they’re called breaks. Sometimes the breaks go your way; sometimes they go against you. Tonight, coming down the stretch, it was all set up for Kobe to do his thing and he was able to finish.”
On how to improve
“We are just going to keep playing, keep shooting the ball, and keep talking to each other. If we play together everything will be alright.”
On the team’s performance
“We played one of the best teams in the league tonight and for a bit of time we were ahead. We played some pretty good basketball. I think we did well.”
On the plan for the last possession:
“Talking and helping. He hit a big shot. It wasn’t a free throw. It was a fadeaway three-pointer and he made it. He’s one of the best.”
On guarding Kobe Bryant:
“You always try to hope he misses and play good defense, so if he gets a shot it is a tough shot. It was a tough shot and he made it. There is nothing you can do. It was a fadeaway three-pointer. Not many guys can make that.”
On the team:
“We already know we are playing a lot better. We already know we can play the best teams in the NBA and do a great job. Nobody comes here thinking we are the team from last year. They come here knowing that we are a different team and more aggressive. We play hard and don’t give up.”
On the last possession:
“There is not much you can do. He was a few feet from the three-point line and knocked down a big shot which he has done before and probably not for the last time. He’s a great player. We played great defense.”
On the team’s performance:
“During these big games we step up. We have to learn what we do during this kind of games and do it every night.”
On what they can learn:
“We can learn from every loss and every game. It was a game where we had to make a lot of plays down the stretch and they had to make a lot of plays down the stretch. Hopefully we get better from it and take it into tomorrow’s game and the rest of the season.”
On going into the next game after a loss:
“It does make it tough but you’ve got to have a short memory. The great thing about the league is you get to play another day. We have to focus on tomorrow’s game and try to get the win.”
On the next opponent (Washington Wizards):
“They are a team that has been playing better. They aren’t the team we played earlier in the season. They got a lot of guys in the trades so we’ve got to be ready to go.”
On frustrating O.J. Mayo:
“He played very well tonight. He shot the ball well. He made great decisions. I try to make it tough for him, but he is a phenomenal talent and he is just getting started.”
On Mayo’s missed free throws:
“We have all been there before. I have missed big shots. I have missed big free throws. It happens.”
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