Ben Wallace Teams Quotations

When we come out with that type of focus and that type of energy, it's tough for teams to beat us. When we play the way we played tonight, we make it look like that. We make the game look easy.

I think our whole team has picked it up. We're getting the ball moved from side to side, forcing teams to defend, not letting teams come out and lock in on the plays we're running but force them to cover everyone on the floor. And when we do that, I think we're at our best.

I think everybody is making a conscious effort to go out and get it done on the defensive end. We hang our hats on the defensive end, being able to get stops and forcing teams to take tough shots.

We'll use the home-court advantage if we have to. But I think the teams that are going to be successful in these playoffs are going to be the teams that go on the road and win.

When a team is short-handed, you can't allow them to hang around and feed off their emotions. Knowing that they got guys out, guys want to come out and play a little extra hard, try to pick it up. You can't afford to let those type teams hang around too long.

We're talking about it, getting back to what we were doing early in the season, when we were getting stops that would lead to easy baskets. Where everybody was getting buckets in transition and forcing teams to turn the ball over, everybody getting out and running. ... Now, we're just trying to get back to where we were.

We just wanted to give ourselves every opportunity to win games. Guys came out ready to play with a lot of energy but the playoffs is a whole different beast. This game won't mean anything for that. Everybody knows teams step up their game once the playoffs start.

Team basketball is a lost art nowadays, but it's always going to win. You can win in the regular season, but if you don't play together as a team it's going to be tough to win in the playoffs teams. And I think now teams are starting to recognize that.

You know the answer to that, ... I think I came here and played the best basketball of my career here. This team and this organization opened their arms up to me, and they let me come in when only a select few other teams around the league were willing to do that. And you know they stepped up to the plate. So there's no question where my heart is at.

All it takes is for guys to come out and make a couple shots, and you find yourself on the losing end. We know what teams are capable of doing.