http://www.tp9.net/en/itw.php?id=196
June 13, 2007
A big step towards the title
Tony, at 3-0, it would take an exceptional change of fate for the NBA title to evade you?
It is true that we just made a giant step towards the title. Our lead is now pretty important. When you play away from home, the first game is important and the pressure is important on the receiving team as it must be mistake free. We did not play our best game but the essential was preserved with this win. We put in the baskets that counted in the last quarter.
We don’t hear any euphoria in your voice.
We know the drill. We are a veteran’s team. It will be time to let go of our emotions once the title in hand. In order to do this, we will have to win one more game. Also, I am quite tired as it was a physical game. Cleveland was a lot more aggressive that in the previous two games. They’ve defended very well on Duncan, Gino and I. They did not give us any space and most of time they’ve double teamed me. It is a physical challenge to score a basket.
How do you managed this game ?
I had to show some patience. It was a bit hard in the first quarter as nothing seemed to work for us. I could not do anything as I only tried on lonely shot. Finally, the situation cleared up in the second quarter. Little by little I managed to find some openings. What I can remember is the three pointer with one minute to go in the game, shot that gave us a 5 points lead. This particular shot helped us a lot.
As you’ve just say it, you were once again decisive.
This is where I realize that I just moved up a notch. This success in the money time is not isolated. I play like this since the beginning of the playoffs. Let’s not get carried away. We’ll just have to wait for our fourth win to enjoy the good times.
又近一步
Q：托尼，3-0领先了，好运再次降临到你们头上。
A：说实话，我们又向着总冠军迈出了巨大的一步。现在我们的优势十分十分重要。当你远在客场打比赛，第一场的关键性不言而喻，输球的一方将会承受巨大的压力。我们并没有打出自己最好的水平，但做好本职工作已足以让我们保下这场比赛。我们不断地投进球，而且，前车之鉴，我们在第四节倍加小心。
Q：我并没有从你的语气中听出多少兴奋。
A：我们明白我们是一支经验丰富的球队。只有在我们举起奥布莱恩杯的那一刻，喜悦的情绪才会被完全释放——我们只需要再赢一场！况且，结束了这场激烈的比赛，我也很累了。之前两场比赛中对手比我们更有侵略性，他们对邓肯、吉诺比利和我的防守都十分到位——没有给我们足够的发挥空间，而且大部分时间，他们都来包夹我。此时，得分对我来说也算是一个挑战。
Q：你是如何操控这场比赛的？
A：我不得不表现出我的耐心。第一节我们打得有点困难，似乎一切都在朝着对我们不利的方向发展。除了一对一的进攻，我别无选择。后来，老天终于开眼了，第二节形势好转。我开始渐渐找到空位出手的机会。令我印象深刻的是，最后一节还有一分钟时，我进的那个三分球让我们取得了五分的领先。这是场及时雨。
Q：如你所说，你再一次成为关键人物。
A：我只是比以前有了多一点点的进步而已。这场至关重要的胜利并不是我一人的功劳，从季后赛开始我就一直像今天这样打了。别扯远了，我们只要再赢下一场，就可以尽情享受胜利的喜悦了！
