You know what?

The All Star break You get a practice and right back on the floor and then grinding, grinding out the win against the Celtics tent.

It felt good.

You know, just be able to get a few days of rest, sort of say, I'm really blessed, you know, to be able to play on that platform with so many great players and then comes straight into the season again.

Um, you know, it is what it is.

So we we just had a nice practice yesterday.

You should have saw the first five minutes they were horrible.

You know, we get went up and down scrimmaging.

You know, everybody getting back, Uh, vacation, sort of say so.

We just wanted to come out and play with maximum effort.

And I mean, you know, going against the Celtics, we'll see them down the line.

You know, later on the season, more probably in the playoffs as well, who knows?

But we just wanna, um, you know, match their effort tonight and just have fun out there.

You know?

That's just it's really what we want to do.

just enjoy competing at a high level.

You guys, you know, welcoming Blake Griffin into the mix now waiting on Kevin to return from injury.

So much talent on this team.

But you know how hard it is to win a championship to be successful.

What is it gonna take to get on the same page and achieve that ultimate goal?

Just controlling what we can control?

We can't necessarily control some of the circumstances with covid or things that come up with the team or injuries and stuff like that.

So we just control we can control every single night.

Got a lot of healthy bodies, a lot of high high I Q basketball players in the locker room.

Um, great coaching staff, you know?

So we we're just doing it together alongside everybody.

That's along the journey with the fans, that support.

And, you know, obviously everybody out there this season.

It just means something different for us to play with a different purpose.

So all of that is factored in in terms of what's going on in the season.

It's just just about something bigger, you know, We just want to make see guys be happy in this league.

Guys play with other guys that, you know they've seen for a while as competitors.

Or, you know, like I said, it's just about feeling good.

Greg Logan, News Day Kyrie.

We see you after the game hugging all your former teammates.

Big surprise, huh?

A lot of people.

Well, honestly, talking about me and all the relationships I have with every teammate of mine, Really?

We get to see it every single game.

That, uh, I got some great people out here, but honestly, it looked like it was a special game for you, And you simply weren't going to let the Nets lose.

Does this one mean a little more to you when you're going against guys, you know that?

Well, I know a lot of people in the league.

Well, I mean, it's It's my former team, obviously, um, you know, I think I let kinda the casual NBA fans talk about it, what it could mean in terms of special night.

I'm just waiting for, you know, the main stage going on and playing in front of, you know, millions of people and it actually mattering, uh, in terms of winter, win or lose and winner loser go home.

So I'm looking forward to that.

But games like this in the middle of the season where you go against guys that you've known well, and, um, you know, it's always a blessing.

I'm always happy for those guys.

And, um, you know, I want to see them do well, and we're playing against each other.

We're just gonna leave it out there on the floor.

And that's just where it stands.

We have that respect, but of course, our relationships go way further off the floor.

Brian Lewis, New York Post.

Okay, um, you talked, obviously, about the all Star break.

I'm curious.

The slow start in the beginning of this game was that just you guys figuring out how to attack a really good defensive team that turned you guys over early, or was that a matter of just kind of all star rust?

That's natural.

I mean, any time you put something down, you know anything, like whether it be writing whether it be art, you know, you put it down for a few days, you come back, you're gonna be a little rusty.

Uh, and the flow of the game, It took us a quarter and a half to get out of, uh, kind of that that spell that we were in and, you know, they wanted the game.

We're going against great teams every single night.

Every single team wants to beat us.

But we just made adjustments like any smart team should do, uh, down down the line.

And once we get acclimated and I felt like once we did that, we were good tonight.

Malik Anders, ESPN.

Harry, I'm wondering it's been a year, exactly since the league shut down Today, I'm wondering how you reflect on that now, after everything you, your team, the country has been through over this past year.

I mean, I would love to share my thoughts.

Um, you know, my sentiment goes out to a lot of the families that are dealing with the circumstances that I'm control about here, you know, it's just been changes all around our country.

My biggest thing is just bringing everyone together, making sure that I'm always standing for the right things and taking care of, you know, people who are walking the righteous path with a god with Allah, with whoever, whomever you call God I just want everybody to stay safe, you know?

And if I could bring some healing, bring some excitement into your life by going out there and putting the ball in the hoop for three hours or two hours, then I'm grateful to be able to do that, grateful to be able to step into this environment, knowing that we've had things that have been challenging for us.

But the most challenging thing has been watching what's going on in the country and seeing it be, you know, change completely.

You know, we've seen a lot of change in social injustices, seen a lot of changes in the way that we treat each other as human beings because we need that in our world.

We need more truth tellers.

We need more people stepping up and doing the right thing.

And I think we've been able to learn as, uh, human beings as well.

And, um, it's been a racial problem going on that that makes this thing even more divided.

Uh, so we have so much more to work through.

But like I said, if I'm able to use this platform to be able to talk about the things that are going on in the world while still being able to stand on the truth and expose my talent.

That's all blessing from all praise is due.

So I just want to focus on what we can control.

And I think that that same sentiment, everyone at home just take care of yourself.

Make sure you take care of your family and don't take time for granted, you know, because it could be taken away in an instant.

So been good to just play basketball and have fun, but still feel what the world is going to thank you.

Bruce Beck, NBC, New York.

Kyra, you are using the platform and we are listening.

By the way, Um, in the final four minutes, Brooklyn outscored them 13 to 3.

You had eight points, two threes in that stretch.

I'm kind of chuckling at this question, but would you like a basketball game to start in the fourth quarter?

Yeah.

Uh, man, I think that's what makes the game beautiful.

Is is being able to have spurts.

Uh, it's just the flow of the game, you know.

But when it gets to that quarter, you know it's winning time.

I've always said it throughout my career.

I enjoy it more than anything else.

So, uh, you know, my thing is just having a sustained effort throughout the whole game and being able to to play the fourth quarter comfortably.

And we had that tonight and some games we're not going to have the flow on our side.

And, uh, we just got to be able to battle through that So person Winfield, New York Daily News Hey, Kyrie.

You know, obviously entering the All Star break, You guys at 1 10 of 11 and then, like you said, you put basketball down, pick it back up and kinda have to shake off the rust.

When you when you shake off the rust and you're still able to win a game like you guys were able to win tonight, does it kind of feel like you're picking up where you left off entering the all star break?

Uh, it just feels like we're just in the journey and trying to enjoy every day.

You know, the the ups and downs of the game are going to come, Um, and we just got to be able to just battle through like it sounds cliche, but it's just it's basketball.

So when we go out there, when when you have guys that you can put in the right spot, we have adjustments ready, and we all hold each other accountable.

And we're all smiling and having fun and being physical and doing all the intangibles of the game of basketball that draws common person.

You know, just working, hard, sweating, just doing the right things, cheering on your teammates, all the details that it takes to win.

I feel like we were just trying to continue to get that vehicle going.

And, um, you know, it's a work in progress.

I'll never say were perfect because we make mistakes all the time.

We're human, Um, but for everyone that's watching, I think they study us and observe us on a very high level and expect greatness.

So why not expected from ourselves?

Um, and just go out there and do so?

Um, not not too much thinking just doing having fun.

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