SAN ANTONIO — The triumph by the Nets had Patty Mills and LaMarcus Aldridge smiling.
The tribute from the Spurs had them crying.
The pair, on Friday night time, made their first returns to San Antonio since leaving for Brooklyn, they usually acquired a heat reception from Spurs followers and had been honored with a video tribute at AT&T Middle.
“It was cool that we get to share the second collectively as a result of clearly we each had been right here for a while,” Mills stated. “So it was cool and distinctive for us to have the ability to share the second collectively. So it was actually cool to share the second.”
“Ah man, I used to be touched,” Aldridge added. “It’s at all times good to see what you achieved and people moments that had been particular to me and this group. Once I left Portland it was a bitter ending, so it was good to have it right here.”
Aldridge had 16 factors and 7 assists within the Nets’ 117-102 win. Mills, who performed a decade as a Spur and received a title in 2014 — added 9 factors. Mills went down the Spurs’ bench hugging former teammates. Coach Gregg Popovich humorously refused at first, earlier than relenting.
“You could possibly inform it was actually intimate for each of them to return again, I feel Patty had a number of tears in his eyes earlier than. He was attempting to carry it collectively,” Kyrie Irving stated. “And LA as nicely, being again residence, he lives proper down the road … it’s simply nice to see that they respect them at a excessive degree.”
After the Nets agreed to attempt to commerce Paul Millsap to a workforce with which he can play, coach Steve Nash commented on the franchise’s failed experiment with the veteran.
“Simply an unlucky scenario,” Nash stated. “Paul’s been nice, his spirit and the best way he’s been an amazing teammate and accepted a restricted position to date has been tough for him. It’s not what I’d anticipated going into it, nevertheless it very not often is what you anticipate. So we’ll attempt to discover a answer — a optimistic answer — for Paul.
“You add all of it up and there’s 5 facilities,” Nash stated. “That makes it tough. For various causes and totally different elements of the season, you press totally different buttons. And though he received some alternatives, he didn’t get a ton of alternatives and I really feel that was unlucky for Paul, and I perceive. Only a tough scenario that we didn’t essentially foresee. However right here we're.”
Nets assistant coach David Vanterpool was fined $10,000 for “interfering with play” close to the top of the Nets’ win Wednesday at Washington, and the workforce was docked $25,000. Vanterpool caught his hand out whereas standing by the Nets’ bench and deflected a cross from the Wizards’ Spencer Dinwiddie to Kyle Kuzma. The refs missed it in the course of the recreation.
The Nets refused a request to talk to Vanterpool.
“I do know he feels horrible about it,” Nash stated. “Within the second, we’ve all made errors within the warmth of the second, and that’s the consequence. However he clearly feels dangerous about it and we’ve all made these errors earlier than.”
DeAndre’ Bembry (again spasms) returned to motion after lacking two video games and scored two factors in 9 minutes. Nic Claxton (left hamstring) missed a sixth straight recreation, and Nash was uncertain if he would play Sunday at Minnesota.
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