Frank Vogel joined 1070 the Fan in Indy to talk about the style of game two, whether their strategy is to make LeBron James and Dwyane Wade work extremely hard on the defensive end to try to wear them out, on their strategy of making the other guys on Miami beat them, what he made of Dwyane Wade’s comments about Indiana’s celebration after winning the game and what he thought of Wade’s flagrant foul against Darren Collison.

On the style of game two:

“Yeah we definitely like to grind out games. The physical games, the defensive battles and certainly we want to be a little bit better offensively, but The Miami Heat are such a terrific defensive team and they really take you out of everything you’re trying to do. It was a fun game to be a part of and more fun to jump out on top.”

Whether the strategy is to try to wear down LeBron James and Dwyane Wade by making them work hard on the defensive end of the floor:

“It’s part of our strategy, it’s not our entire strategy. You look at those two guys play and the thought of actually doing anything that can fatigue them is a little bit comical. They’re almost super-human with their body types and athleticism and they just seem like they can play the game forever. We don’t want to overdo it but we definitely recognize that trying to guard David West is a physical drain. The challenge is he (James) does such a good job now of not letting David get the ball it’s tough to go at him without the risk of stagnating an offense.”

On making the other members of the Heat beat them:

“They’re very focused on what those guys’ strengths are. All their role players are capable of much greater production than they put forth last night but they’re sort of limited in what they do. They’re either drivers or shooters or dunkers at the basket but they’re not versatile or multi-weapon type of guys. If you just dial into taking away their one strength, they’re guys that can be limited. We were fortunate to do it last night and hopefully it can continue the rest of the series.”

What he makes of Wade’s celebration comments following the game:

“I don’t know. It’s sort of like Déjà vu for me. I’ve heard this before. I think there are 30 teams in the NBA and if you get a game that comes down to the last possession of the game and the buzzer sounds, I don’t think there’s a team in the NBA that’s not going to celebrate a little bit. It’s the playoffs and there’s a lot of emotion involved so I don’t put much to it. We’re just happy to get out of there with a W.”

What the win over Miami meant to the organization:

“It’s just another step in building confidence of how good we can be right now. There’s a lot of talk about this franchise, its future and taking that next step and that next step doesn’t have to be defined by ‘well we got into the playoffs last year and then this year we get out of the first round.’ We dream big. We think the sky is the limit, we think we can beat the Miami Heat in this series and we think we can go on a deep playoff run. We talked about it all year and every time we win at Chicago, at LA, at Dallas, at Boston, beat Miami at home, all of these wins are another step in building confidence and belief that anything is possible with this group. We don’t really have any holes and if we play as a team the sky is the limit. Just looking forward to the next game.”

On Wade flagrant foul against Darren Collison:

“I never want to see our guys hit like that, I know that. As to what penalty comes into play that’s up to the league. Give kudos to DC for bouncing right back up, standing up for himself, his teammates standing up for him and it just exhibited the kind of togetherness that has been with us all season.”

Listen to Frank Vogel on 1070 the Fan in Indy here

Seahawks rookie quarterback Russell Wilson joined Jon Arias on The Big 1070 in Madison to discuss the draft process, his height (or lack thereof) and the quarterback competition that is apparently about to go down in the Pacific Northwest.

On if he was surprised he was chosen in the third round after lots of prognosticators had him going later in the draft:

“No, I wasn’t surprised at all. I’d talked to several teams and they thought I could go in the second or third round, and talent-wise I had all the talent in the world and just, the only knock on me was my height. Obviously if you’ve seen throughout my career and playing at the University of Wisconsin being behind those big offensive linemen, the height’s not a factor. And that’s just what I had to show teams, and I put it on tape. And that’s what I kept telling teams: ‘Just watch the tape and watch the way I play, I have a high, quick release.’ And when teams measured my arms and my hands and everything, they were like, ‘Man, this kid’s got arms of a 6-5 quarterback.’ That’s part of it. That definitely helps me. And just knowing the game, just playing smart football. And so it’s a blessing to be drafted by the Seahawks, it’s a great situation.”

On why the height criticism doesn’t bother him:

“It makes it that much more unique and that much more cool in terms of the fact that I can play at a high level that I play at 5-11. And that’s the thing about it. And I think that’s something that I definitely embrace.”

On head coach Pete Carroll stating that he has a chance to compete for the starting job:

“I’m excited about it. I mean, the key for me is just getting there and learning, getting around the guys and just being who I am. And not changing, just competing at the highest level that I can possibly compete at. Learn as much as I can from (Matt) Flynn and (Tarvaris) Jackson and it’ll be a great experience. And just do whatever it takes to win games. I think that’s the mentality you have to go into it, and I’m a relentless competitor so I’ll definitely be competing at the highest that I can and just doing what I have to do.”

Listen to Russell Wilson on The Big 1070 here

Boston coach Doc Rivers is actually looking at the bright side a little bit, however. In his mind, his team has been outplayed twice but at least is still entrenched in a 1-1 series. The Celtics will look to get the ball back to Kevin Garnett to get back on track in Game 3 in Philly tonight.

Doc Rivers joined WEEI in Boston with Dennis and Callahan to discuss not getting the ball to Garnett in Game 2, Paul Pierce’s injury, how much it is affecting him at this point, taking bad shots, Rajon Rondo’s defense, the late call that went against Kevin Garnett and the team’s mentality now tied 1-1.

How did your guys end up going away from Kevin Garnett in Game 2?:

“Maybe we weren’t a smart team last night or a well-coached team last night because that was obviously the gameplan to go there. We were in transition a lot and never really got into our sets. That happens in games; you see it all the time. We just took too long, and I said that after the game, to get into it. It took to long to establish it. We took timeouts to get into it and we just never really did.”

How hurt is Paul Pierce?:

“He’s not hurting himself by playing, but he’s probably not healing, either.” If you had won Game 2, would you have considered giving him Game 3 off to heal up?: “I doubt it. Eddie just says at this point he needs to play. After Game 4 there’s a break and hopefully that will help. But right now we have a lot of guys that are banged up and we’ve just got to get through it. We didn’t play well [Monday] night. That had nothing to do with injuries.”

But his numbers would indicate he’s just not capable of giving you the production everyone is used to seeing:

“We’ve got to figure out a better way of getting the ball to him in different spots, away from traps. I think Paul has to do a better job of handling those. I thought in the first game he was terrific down the stretch. … Our three baskets down the stretch in Game 1 was off of a Paul Pierce play. They’re trapping him everywhere and he moved the ball.”

Do you have to resist the temptation of saying that the shots that weren’t falling in during the second and third quarter usually fall?;

“We did miss a lot of open shots, but we still didn’t play right. I don’t ever look at if shots go in or don’t go in. I look at how we’re playing and I never thought we played right. I thought we took a lot of jump shots, a lot of early-in-the-clock jump shots and a lot of them were open. I thought that was part of the reason Kevin didn’t get the ball, because guys were jacking up shots. You can pass up a good, average shot and get a great shot to Kevin in the post and I didn’t think we exhibited the discipline to do that.”

Does Rajon Rondo need to be better defensively on the ball?:

“Well I think we’re inconsistent and he’s inconsistent there. … I thought we were all, in Game 1, we were off the ball way too much, and that was everybody. I thought in Game 2 we were inconsistent with it and Rondo has to be better at it.”

The referees appeared to be consistent with the late call on Garnett. Is the gripe just the timing of the call?:

“It’s a tough call and I’m going to stop there. I was not happy with it. If you look at it closely, Iguodala actually had Kevin’s arm from underneath and that was what pulled him out. But, listen, it was called. And like I said, we put ourselves in that position for a call or for a crazy shot to go in and for us to lose the game and it happened.”

Philadelphia has to feel good as the eighth seed going home with a 1-1 tie. Do you have the same mentality that they had to start, that you need a split at their place?:

“We want to win both. We’re going to take one at a time. We don’t go for splits. … But we have to play better. In my opinion, Philly has outplayed us in both games, we just won one of them.”

Listen to Doc Rivers on WEEI in Boston here

Let’s give Buck Showalter some credit here. The Orioles manager has had an uphill climb ever since he took over this struggling ball club in 2010 and has got this team believing they can do something special.

Buck Showalter joined The Dan Patrick Show to discuss the Baltimore Orioles being a legitimate contender this season, being more prepared to handle the media attention now that he used to be a media member, notching his 1,000th career victory, the loss that still stings the most in his career and the toughest managerial job in baseball.

Are the Orioles real for the long haul this season?

“I don’t know Dan. It’s like the agent says it’s not about the money day it’s about the money. It’s about the pitching. It’s no secret why Tampa competes. They know who they are and their starting pitching takes them deep into the game which allows you to set up a bullpen every year because you have less outs to get and put people in the position that they have the ability to handle and if we go deep into games with our starters we will competitive. It’s not a real complicated thing and that’s what we’ve done early in the season with some exceptions and if that continues we will be competitive.”

After working for ESPN and formally being a part of the media, how does that help you with the media? Does it change how you deal with the media?

“I think it’s helped. I think it just kind of verified some thoughts that I had. I think you are sympathetic to their needs more and realize that there is nothing personal about it. Everybody has got a job to do and you try to take time and you count to five sometimes and answer the same question again, but I think that is what is so different about our sport as opposed to basketball or football. We play every day. I  may met with the media two times a day and you get to know them. It’s about relationships. It’s part of the job description and the most important thing is probably the fans. It’s part of something you have to try to be good at.”

Just got your 1,000th victory. How did that feel?

“I’m getting real close to 1,000 losses. I remember every one of them. My wife says I could remember pitch sequences from 1990, but I can’t where the keys are.”

Out of all the losses, which one hurts the most?

“Last night. Right now last night. I guess probably game five of 1995 playoffs in Seattle [while he managed the Yankees]. You rehash all of those back-and-fourth. There’s always things that sit in your head and you get about five minutes to relish the win as you are walking up the runway and you are thinking about how to keep that feeling. I’ve been fortunate enough to manage a team that won 100 games and there were times in the season where you felt like you might not win another game. I’ve been on expansion teams and there were periods of the season where you really had it going on and you may not lose another game and you gotta keep reality in check, so understand the flow of a season. That’s what I like about our team. Our guys really have a grip on reality with all the drama that goes on. Anytime you play the Yankees there’s a lot of drama involved and I think they have a grip on and I am real proud of them.”

What managerial job would eat you up more? What is the toughest managerial job in baseball?

“Probably managing in Triple A. Believe it or not. It’s not to go away from the Major League’s, but I think one of the toughest jobs in our sport is Triple A because everybody is unhappy there. We got guys on their way back. You got guys going down. You got guys thinking they should be up. I mean nobody is really happy there and we got a great guy in Triple A in Ron Johnson, who was the first base coach for Boston last year. He has done a great job for us down there. We are really lucky to have him.”

Listen to Buck Showalter on The Dan Patrick Show here

Dennis Allen joined 95.7 the Fan in San Francisco with John Lund to talk about how the new players look, if Dennis Allen is paying more attention to the defensive side of the ball because of his background, whether a long-term deal will get done after getting franchised this offseason, on the struggles on defense a season ago and how different things are with all the changes.

On how the new players look:

“Everybody is looking good. I’m excited. We’ve got a new defense, guys are out there making plays, been attacking the ball and I’m excited about it.”

If Dennis Allen is paying more attention to the defensive side of the ball because of his background:

“He’s been keeping an eye on both sides but he’s a defensive minded coach so he’s been paying a little more attention to us I think. It’s hard to get a gauge on it. Today was my first day of OTA’s so it’s hard for me to get a gauge on him. He’s a good coach and it seems like he knows what he’s doing.”

Whether he would like to get a long-term deal done after getting franchised:

“I hope so. I try to stay out of that. That’s what I’ve got my agent for. I’m just focusing on the football side of things so I hope something gets worked out but if not, it’s a business and I understand that. I’m just here to make plays and win games.”

On how bad the defense was a season ago:

“We struggled so we definitely want to go out there and redeem ourselves. We have some new guys in here and it’s a whole new year. We can’t dwell on last year, we just have to stay focused and push forward. Everybody buy into this new defense and we have to go out there and execute.”

On how different things are now with the passing of Al Davis:

“It’s definitely different. I’m not going to say it’s better or worse but it’s definitely different and these guys have us running a lot more and the tempo of practice is a little faster so it’s definitely different. (Host: How different is it off-the-field and around the facility without Al Davis?) It’s a little different. Like I said all new coaches. I don’t think it’s just the passing of Mr. Davis. I think it’s the whole new coaching staff and everything changing from top to bottom, even new strengths coaches. It’s just a different feel in the whole building.”

Listen to Tyvon Branch on 95.7 the Fan here

That’s the case now that Vince Young has arrived in Buffalo to back up Fitzpatrick.

New Bills quarterback Vince Young joined Tim Micallef and Sid Seixeiro on The Fan 590 in Toronto to explain why he decided to come to Buffalo, and how the Mario Williams signing has helped draw free agents to the city. He also touched on the timing of the signing and if he thinks he’ll have a chance to start at some point. And finally, Young touched on Michael Vick’s underrated work ethic and knowledge and addressed whether he himself is underrated.

On why he chose to come to Buffalo:

“Just a lot of respect. I see what a direction that we’re going and got a opportunity to learn from (quarterbacks coach David) Lee and Coach (Chan) Gailey. I’m just pretty excited about it. It’s a long tradition here and some great fans here as well. One of my closest cousin is Thurman Thomas, so to follow around in those footsteps is awesome too, as well.”

On if Mario Williams signing with the team opened the eyes of other free agents:

“Definitely. To add to the defense that already was a good defense as well, and the impact that he can bring as well as the rest of the guys on the defense. Like I said earlier, you just know, you feel the direction that the guys are going in and I felt like it was a great opportunity to be a part of a great team.”

On why he didn’t wait for training camp injuries to make teams more desperate:

“The whole thing is just getting into camp and OTAs. The biggest thing about NFL players is you wanna get your chemistry down with your guys, especially if you are new to the team and the system, as well as learning new terminology and learning a new offense. So I felt like it was a great opportunity to come in early. From last year, having a lockout and then going to a new team and trying to learn on the go, that was a pretty tough deal. So I felt like I have learned from that experience to get in somewhere and get on with a good team as well. And I’m gonna just go from there.”

On if, based on his strong winning percentage as a starter, he feels as though he’s underrated:

(Laughs) “No, not at all. The biggest thing is, like I said, I just wanna continue to keep working to answer my critics and naysayers and things like that. But the biggest thing is, it’s not about me. My whole thing is trying to represent my teammates and help out in any way I can to get us to where we need to be at, and that’s the ‘ship — going to the playoffs. And that’s the biggest key. And my talent, my leadership, that’s all I want to bring to the team and just keep guys excited about their job and working. And hopefully we get where we wanna be at the end of the day.”

On if he thinks there will be an opportunity to start at some point:

“Not that I know of. I know my role. Fitz (Ryan Fitzpatrick), he’s the starter, and right now I’m competing for the second job, second-string quarterback right now. So my whole thing is just waking up in the morning, working out, doing what’s been told and getting in the film room and the study room with Coach Lee and trying to soak up all the offense that I can before OTAs on the 29th get here. That’s my biggest role right now. That’s all I’m worrying about right now.”

On if he regrets how things went in Philadelphia:

“No, not at all. I felt like I had a good time in Philly. I had a good experience in Philly, from the players, coaching staff and the owner, Jeff Lurie. Especially Andy Reid and Marty (Mornhinweg), man, and hanging out with Mike Vick and Mike Kafka in the quarterback room. We had a great bond. So I learned a lot from the standpoint from studying more film and different schemes and protections that kinda help me out that can help me over here as well. But overall I don’t regret it at all. It was definitely tough trying to learn a offense in less than a month and during the whole season, but I put that challenge on myself. And I was in there doing extra work, studying and making sure when my time was to come that I was ready to go. So it’s the same thing over here. We got a starting quarterback already with Fitz, and my whole thing is is just staying ready and competing for the second string job.”

Something that people would be surprised to know about Michael Vick:

“Very smart. Very knowledgeable, man. Knowledgeable guy. He knows exactly what he wants and he’ll give you a lot of information on anything that’s going on in your life, especially in the game room. He studies a lot. A lot of people don’t know that. They know it now but they didn’t know he studies a lot, very smart. He puts in a lot of work. … He’s funny, and this guy takes some hits and gets right back up. So I give him a lot of heart, man. A lot of heart.”

Listen to Vince Young on the Fan 590 here

Looking back, Thibodeau said he’s not second guessing himself when it comes to playing guys, including Rose, a lot of minutes during a shortened season. Now he’ll get a chance to look ahead and figure out what to do with one, and perhaps more, of his top guards out to start the 2012-13 season.

Tom Thibodeau joined ESPN 1000 in Chicago with Carmen, Jurko and Harry to discuss the short playoff run, playing Derrick Rose and others extensive minutes in a short season, Carlos Boozer’s comments that everything’s OK because the team won the regular season, Boozer’s play in the playoffs, Luol Deng’s potential surgery and Olympics situation and a possible contract extension.

What was the weekend like after reflecting on the first-round loss to Philadelphia?:

“It’s tough. Overall, I was very pleased with the season in terms of I thought our guys gave us everything they had. I think the two things you need going into the playoffs are to be playing well and to have your health. Unfortunately we didn’t have that, but I thought our guys battled. We were in position to win all the games.”

Do you have any regrets about how you played Derrick Rose or any of your other guys during the shortened season?:

“I don’t, other than, we had a lot of guys who had injuries throughout. I feel that the minutes weren’t a problem. It was a condensed season. You look at everything and I think once the season is concluded, the league will look into whether they feel it was a factor. The thing that I was concerned about was that the regular season ended and you had one day going into the playoffs and it’s continued on. It’s basically been a continuation of the regular season. … Some guys played, and I believe Derrick was around 1,300 minutes for the season. … It seemed like we couldn’t get our health all season long.”

On a comment made by Carlos Boozer that the playoff exit was OK because they won the regular season:

“I’m not sure the context in which he said that, but the challenge for everyone is to get the most out of everybody. At the end of the playoffs, I know our team was disappointed. We all were. But that being said, we were disappointed in the loss, but I’m certainly not disappointed in our team. I think our team gave everything they had and that’s all you can ask for.”

It seemed like the second straight year that he (Carlos Boozer) disappeared late in a postseason game where the series was on the line. Are we reading too much into that?:

“I think it’s important to take a step back and look at it in totality. He did a lot of good things throughout the season and we feel that one of the strengths of the team is the depth up front. … In Game 6, we felt that the defense of Taj and Omer was giving us a chance to win. Obviously he didn’t shoot the ball particularly well in that game, but he did rebound the ball extremely well. The bench guys that were in there … I thought they gave us a good chance to win that game with their defense.”

Do you think Luol Deng should go play in the Olympics or have surgery now and miss them?:

“I think we’re going to have an opportunity to sit down and talk to him about what his plans are. The thing is, he may not need the surgery. We don’t know yet. There’s a lot of things to weigh in and until we have an opportunity to sit down with him, I really don’t want to comment on that.”

What are you looking at in terms of a contract extension and how long you want to be in Chicago?:

“I’m not even looking at any of that. That stuff will take care of itself. I’ve been fortunate to have a great group of guys, a great organization, a great city. We’ll have an opportunity at some point to sit down and go over that.”

Listen to Tom Thibodeau on ESPN 1000 Chicago here

Giants defensive end Justin Tuck has come out and backed up that statement as well. No.91 sheds some light on the dangers of playing in the NFL while he is enjoying his off-season coming off a Super Bowl XLVI victory.

Justin Tuck joined 98.7 ESPN New York with The Michael Kay Show to discuss Osi Umenyiora possibly leaving the Giants, worrying about his health after he retires, agreeing with Jay Cutler that football players know what they are signing up for when they play the game, letting his kids play football and Osi Umenyiora’s Mother’s Day tweet at LeSean McCoy.

Any concerns about Osi Umenyiora coming back to the Giants?

“Yeah definitely. A lot of concerns because Osi is such a dominant player and he definitely brings a different dimension to our defense and our defensive line. He is definitely someone we would like to have in blue and red and white. Hopefully him and Jerry Reese and Coach Coughlin in there get involved and figure out a way to get one of my running mates back with me. I think he would definitely make the team better, but obviously as a player seeing and being through it you understand the business side of things too. Hopefully it works out for both parties involved.”

Are you worried about your health when you retire if things don’t change in the NFL?

“You definitely do. You definitely worry about it. I know Junior Seau and you just see how the NFL in some ways is taking a turn that you don’t want to have your kids playing. Kurt Warner even made those statements. When you play the game and me personally you don’t have to think about it, but with stuff like this. A lot of it happening it takes background message because you have to say if you are putting your body on the line just like Junior Seau did what’s to say there isn’t a ton of issues they went through that you won’t necessarily go through, but with that being said you have to understand there is a lot of help out there for retired players that might be going through whatever issues they are going through and the biggest thing is a lot of athletes are stubborn minded and always saying they don’t need help. I’m hoping that an instance like this [Junior Seau's death] will get guys to think I am not too big to ask for help if I need it. Hopefully open up that can of worms where guys can start to seek help and we can avoid issues like this.”

Do you agree with what Jay Cutler said? He claims he signed up to play football and understands the risks and that players shouldn’t be able to sue the NFL?

“For the most part yes I do agree. I say this and everybody I talked to football isn’t an easy game. Everybody that plays football understands that it is a dangerous game. We’ve seen it. We’ve seen guys tear ACLs. We’ve seen guys tear Achilles. We’ve seen guys tear up their shoulders. We’ve seen guys have concussions. You know if you play this game long enough you put yourself more at risk to have those types of injuries. I don’t see why guys jump on bandwagons to sue the NFL for things they put themselves through willingly. If the NFL did some things where they knew you had a problem and didn’t get you the proper help that’s different. That’s because you had a concussion and things like that. You put yourself in that situation. I definitely see where Jay Cutler is coming from with that statement.”

Would you let your kids play football?

“I am going to let them make the decision. I’m not going to force football on him just because I played it and have been successful at it. I’m definitely going to let him make the decision. If he tells me that he doesn’t want to play football then I am going to push him to be great at whatever he wants to be.”

What did you make of Osi Umenyiora’s Mother’s Day tweet at LeSean McCoy?

“I don’t know. Osi being Osi. It was funny to me, but I don’t know. Sometimes I think twitter battles are just hilarious. They are probably secretly at a restaurant somewhere laughing at everybody taking it so serious. Who knows? Osi is not the fighting type anyway . I don’t know what to make of it. I really don’t.”

Listen to Justin Tuck on 98.7 ESPN New York here

Despite the loss, the Nuggets showed that there is a ton of potential and they also showed that they are one of the deepest teams in the NBA. Their bench carried them at times in the first round against the Lakers, but ultimately they fell to a team of stars. As the offseason approaches with the team having decisions to make on JaVale McGee and Andre Miller, they also have to examine their roster and decide whether they can win in the tough, rugged Western Conference the way they are constructed, with point guard Ty Lawson as option number one on offense.

George Karl joined 102.3 the Ticket with Les and Jojo to talk about losing game seven against the Lakers, whether this season was his most enjoyable as a coach, where he would like to see him team improve this offseason, if he thinks the Nuggets can improve enough to win a first round playoff series without making changes to the roster and what he thinks about JaVale McGee.

On losing game seven against the Lakers:

“I never won a seventh game on the road. I’ve won some fifth games on the road but I’ve never won a seventh game on the road and my team, I thought was playing at a really good emotional level and when we got the lead with about eight minutes to go up four I actually said to myself it’s probably too early to get too happy but it was just a good experience. The whole season was crazy from the standpoint of the lockout, trades, having some tough times, bouncing back and have a lot of injuries with different lineups having to come in and learn their role and their responsibilities and then to kind of put it together in April at the end of the season and then play well, down three to one and losing game four, it’s kind of funny they shot the ball so poorly the whole series but they won two games with the three ball. They won game seven and they won game four with the three ball.”

Whether this season was his most enjoyable as a coach:

“No question. It was enjoyable because it had a different pulse to it and I think we responded, I think our coaching staff and our organization and the players all responded faster and quicker than a lot of teams in this league did. The lockout season threw you a lot of curveballs. I called it the ‘knuckleball season’ because you didn’t know when you were going to be tired, the fatigue factor was up and down and all over the place and I think the depth of our team it solved two problems. It solved the fatigue problem and also the injury problem. We overcame those things where I think other teams got hit by the fatigue situation on certain nights and just never responded or could get the game back to being positive. The closeness between the team and the coaching staff helped us survive and survive the tough times and then when the ball got rolling in a good way we had an ability to keep it rolling that way.”

Where he would like to see his team improve this offseason:

“I’d like to toughen up a little bit and get our big guys a little more physical and a little more rebound oriented. Thought the Laker series, I’m not saying we got beat up but we got pushed around a little bit. I think offensively we need to shoot the ball better, I think our perimeter guys have to spend more time in the gym making the three ball and I think in general there just has to be a commitment that this isn’t good enough. The next step is going to be harder than what we did this year and we can’t be happy or satisfied with having a good series and losing in the first round.”

Whether the improvements can be made to win a first round playoff series with the current roster in place:

“ I think you’re always going to have that attitude of making improvements but I think in the same sense this is probably the most complete roster at the end of the season that we would say ‘hey we’re okay with this roster, we can go win next year.’ There’s going to be all types of summer what ifs. What if we can do this? What if we can do that? What if this happens? We’re going to be ready for whatever is dealt our way but I don’t remember a season where we would be probably as content to go into next year. And our free agents, I think (General Manager) Masai (Ujiri) with JaVale (McGee) and Andre (Miller), very content to try and get them signed and I trust that they will probably get them signed.”

On JaVale McGee’s game:

“He’s pretty good. We think he’s really raw right now so you’re looking at a guy that I think can be a starting center and put together really good numbers. We thought Nene was good at 12 and eight or 14 and eight, I don’t know what Nene averaged last year but I think JaVale McGee can get to those numbers really quick and what we want to teach them is to not give us the bad part of basketball. Don’t give us mistakes, become fundamentally sound and be a presence every possession, have a presence to your game at both ends of the court on every possession. He does wild and crazy things on the court but he is pretty coachable. He listens and I think he’s very anxious to be with the coaching staff this summer and I think you will see us spend a lot of time with him between now until when he becomes a free agent just to make sure he understands that we want him with us and touch him along the way.”

Listen to George Karl on 102.3 the Ticket here

While some have talked about flopping being a concern in the league, including commissioner David Stern, Griffin says he hasn’t seen it and he’s not concerned. His focus is on the San Antonio Spurs, the Clippers’ next opponent. Game 1 of the series is tonight in Texas.

Blake Griffin joined The Dan Patrick Show to discuss his playing time in Game 7 of the first series, his status for tonight’s game, the Clippers winning a playoff series, the impact of Chris Paul, the critics of him flopping, if flopping is a concern in the league, gamesmanship in the league, taking on San Antonio and measuring the Clippers’ success this season.

What happened in the fourth quarter of the clincher? You didn’t seem to play much:

“I mean, when I came out, I had three fouls. That’s normally when I come out anyway in the third quarter. As I was sitting there, my knee tightened up a little bit. Then, when I tried to go back in, it wasn’t really working for me, so we just kind of put that group in that was doing well at the end.”

What’s your status for Game 1?:

“I’ll be able to play, especially with part of yesterday to rest and all day today. I’ll just get a lot of treatment. It’s one of those things that it’s just going to get a lot better with rest. There’s not a lot else I can do. Hopefully I’ll feel a lot better by [Game 1].”

You’re fairly new to the organization. Do you have a grasp on what you guys just accomplished by winning a playoff series?:

“Yeah, I mean, we know the history. People remind us all the time and we know what’s at stake. We’re definitely proud that we did get past the first round, but we’re not satisfied by any means.”

What were your thoughts when Chris Paul first arrived and now looking back, what has he meant to this team?:

“When he first got here, I knew we were getting the best point guard in the league. But since he’s been here and being able to play with him over this past season, he’s brought a lot. Not just scoring and passing and all that, but his basketball IQ, the way he thinks of the game, all of that combined is what makes him so good as a player. He’s been huge. He’s won a lot of games for us.”

How do you answer critics who have discussed you flopping and drawing fouls?:

“Just keep grinding through it. It’s never really something that I’ve had a problem with, but all of the sudden now it’s kind of come up. So I’m just going to keep playing the way I’ve been taught and playing the game and it’ll all go away I think. It’s just kind of a phase or a bandwagon that some people want to jump on.”

The commissioner said flopping is a concern. Is it a concern for you, not just individually, but around the league?:

“No, it’s not really a concern. I guess it depends on the individual but it’s not really a concern for me. Especially in the playoffs, guys are doing everything they can to get an extra possession or to get a stop, whatever it is. I’m not sure what David Stern feels, but it’s not a concern to me, really.”

Is there a fine line to gamesmanship?:

“Oh yeah, there’s a fine line between completely overselling it and knowing how to draw a foul or this or that. I haven’t seen a lot of plays where guys have completely gone over the line. I honestly can’t think of that many times.”

What do you expect in a series with San Antonio?:

“We know that they’re a well-oiled machine. They’ve been playing together so long that they know the ins and out of not only the regular season, but playoff basketball. … It’s going to be a tough series, but we’re ready for it.”

Has it already been a great season for the Clippers?:

“It’s been a good season. One of our goals is obviously to make the playoffs and make a run. We’re on our way, but we’ve got to keep playing.”

Listen to Blake Griffin on The Dan Patrick Show here