Nate McMillan Quotations

Letdown is written on this game. For us, we have other factors that should motivate us, not so much that we played a good game against the Lakers. We only have 11 wins. This is an opportunity for us. Just as those guys are missing some pieces over there, they also see opportunity.

Some nights you just get beat. You do the right thing most of the time, but you just get beat. I think this is one of those nights.

No defense at all. There was no commitment at the defensive end of the floor. Whether it was rebounding the ball, containing the ball or defending the perimeter, we just stopped playing. We quit.

I am encouraged that we've been in control in two games against good teams. Now we have to figure out how to win those games.

We've got to play better defense. We can't keep digging holes for ourselves early in the game then try to fight our way out of it.

When they got hot, I thought we tightened up a bit.

We lost our heads a little bit late in the ballgame. We're right there with two minute to go, then they knock down a three, and I think that really took the air out of us.

I thought we looked a little fatigued early in the first half. I thought we scrapped and fought to keep ourselves in the game, but early, they were just quicker to the ball.

I thought those were the shots that we dropped our heads. That's the first thing I said in the locker room, that those were two big threes.

I thought we were aggressive. We made them work for the most part.

I saw us get tight. We looked like we knew we had possibly given this game away. But we made plays down the stretch to win it -- two good defensive stops, which was the difference.

I think he's worked hard, but he needs to play. The thing is, that's not a league where you just go and it's a cake walk. For him, there's going to be guys down there challenging him because he's up here, he has a position, and they want to come up here.

We'll always do what is best for the team.

That's a tough situation to come off. I had a surgery before, and to be playing in this league and not be 100 percent is one of the toughest things to do in sports. ... But it's something you have to deal with. It's something you have to figure out, 'How can I help that team? How can I help my team?' There are other ways that you have to find, ways to help your team get better.

When you're dealing with a team that doesn't have the experience ... having players out there who can read and know where to go and where to be, it helps. I'm comfortable with him, the majority of the time, being in the right spot.

We're encouraged by the improvement but our execution down the stretch of these games tends to break down. Our spacing was poor. We didn't respond well to traps and our ball movement slowed, causing way too many shot clock violations. Tonight in the fourth quarter we seemed to settle for a perimeter game.

Those were two big three's. I thought that took the wind out of our sails. We couldn't respond and I saw heads drop as if the game was over.

Those were two big 3s. I thought that took the wind out of our sails. We couldn't respond and I saw heads drop as if the game was over.

We were aggressive and made them work for the most part. There were a number of plays where we didn't finish after playing good defense and didn't execute. But it wasn't just one play like Devin Harris' steal and bucket. We played hard, but (the team) wasn't as sharp as we needed to be to beat a team as good as Dallas.

We can't put together 48 minutes and we're saying the same thing every single night and every single day. It's just drama and it constantly goes on with this team. Until we adjust the attitude of playing the game, it's going to get worse before it gets better.

When you play like we did tonight, those road games, you can't win a game. You have to really be together out on the road and we haven't shown that we are capable of doing that.

Finishing games in the fourth quarter is something we have got to learn. It's part of a growing process for a young team.

We've had some good days. We've got to get better in that area. We've been working on that, and hopefully we'll continue to improve.

The thing is you have a job to do. And when you're asked to go into a game, you've got to go, regardless of the situation, the score.

Our shooting from the perimeter and our free throw shooting were great. I thought the success we had (with 3-pointers) had a lot to do with ball movement and passing the ball with rhythm.

Defensively, I just thought that we weren't aggressive. We want to get up into our man's chest.

I want to give coach Hill credit for having his boys ready to play. With all their suspensions and injuries, that team came out and played really hard. That's a testament to coach Hill.

If you're playing the game the right way, you play hard and you play together. And I think if you continue to do that you'll win some games. So yes, I am happy with the effort and the focus and the togetherness that we're seeing.

The main thing was that they got down there and really accepted that move and really tried to use that to their advantage as opposed to being there and complaining. They've been pretty positive.

I hope one day I can come into a training camp and not say someone is out for the season.

It's a reality here. We're a team that at this time of the season, with teams trying to get to the playoffs, it's going to be difficult to win.