HEAT Head Coach Stan Van Gundy

On the game:
“I don’t know how many games, playoffs or other wise you are going to see two teams shoot the ball from three point range the way they did today. There were a lot of three point shots made which was obviously key for us. But they made some key adjustments at halftime and came back and scored 56 points on us in the second half. So like with any series its back to the drawing board. We will try to get better for Tuesday night.

On Damon Jones performance:
“No one expects someone to go 7 for 9 from three, and 10 for 12 for the game. He got a lot of open shots, and he is a great shooter. He knocked them down and he was phenomenal. Both of our guards had huge games, and that’s what led our offense. I thought that we did a decent job defensively but we have to find a way to get on them when shooting three pointers.”

On Dwyane Wade:
“I think what makes him a great player is the fact there is no fear. He knows there are going to be games where he does not get the job done. He has no fear of that. He is stepping up and trying to make plays. He was well prepared tonight mentally for what he was going to see. He made some adjustments from the way that they had played him during the regular season. He made himself very difficult to guard. Hopefully that will continue. They will make adjustments, and we will not see the same things on Tuesday night.”

On Shaquille O’Neal:
“He started the game with great energy, and we struggled to get him the ball. His stamina was lacking. This was the fourth day that he has worked in the last 22. I do not think we will see Shaq at his best until late in this series, or the beginning of the next. He is still pretty formidable down there and they still have to make a decision on whether to guard him or not. I think that he can do a better job on his defense, pick-and-roll wise, and he can get his legs under himself a little better offensively. Hopefully, we will see that happen as time goes on.”

On Christian Laettner:
“It is pretty tough to have your four man sitting down behind Shaq when Christian is sitting up at the high post. The guy is one of the best 18-foot jump shooters in this league. It makes things very difficult for them. He was a huge lift for us. The game got very easy for us for a stretch.”

HEAT Guard Damon Jones

On the game:
“Never. Because the importance of the game being Game One of the playoffs, we wanted to get off to a great start as a team and being able to contribute is always special. The outcome was even better. I didn’t start having fun until the clock said zero, zero, zero, and we won the game. Those guys were still fighting hard throughout. Carter was making threes. Kidd was making threes down the stretch. The fun began when the game was over.”

On getting their swagger back:
“Well, it’s a work in progress. Shaquille O’Neal’s second day being back [after] about a week. He looked really good out there, and I’ve always said that Shaquille O’Neal at 50 percent is better than no Shaquille O’Neal at all. And to have him out there, and for us to play well and get this victory, was big for us.”

“I felt it was possible if I ever got the opportunity. I knew with my work ethic and the way I approach the game night-in-and-night-out was one that can be conducive to a game like this if I ever got the opportunity. This year has been a great year for me personally, as well as for the team. I’m living a dream right now.”

HEAT Guard Dwyane Wade

On the game:
“The playoffs are a time for players to step up. If you consider yourself a leader and a player, it’s time to step up. That’s what I tried to do. Whether it was scoring, rebounding or passing the ball, I try to do what is needed for my team.”

“I have more confidence this year. This year, I have more responsibility and I have the ball in my hand a lot.”

“Shaq always gives our guys confidence whether he plays a lot or doesn’t play. We can go out there and play together and win. Having him out there today helped us out a lot. Tonight he was just getting back into the flow of things.”

“When it’s playoff time it is not the Dwyane show or the Shaq show. It is the Miami HEAT time. It’s all about the team. There are going to be some nights where I am going to have more assists then points. I’m fine with that as long as we get the win.”

“My mindset coming into the game was to come out and make plays for my teammates, knowing that New Jersey was going to force me different directions on pick-an-rolls and make me pass the ball. I had a couple of opportunities to get a couple of shots and they went for me early and that got me rolling throughout the game.”

HEAT Forward/Guard Eddie Jones

On the game:
“We tried hard to make sure we did not let them [New Jersey Nets] have a good run. Offensively, we started off well. It is great to start off that way. Shooting comes and goes. If we can keep our defense the way it was today, I think we have a good chance of doing well. They are a tough team. They showed today that they never give up. They are going to keep fighting and try to get the win.”

On guarding Vince Cater:
“He is just a tough and incredible offensive player. He makes all types of incredible shots. He is definitely going to come with a different approach on Tuesday, so I am going to have to be ready for the challenge. I knew I was going to be chasing a guy around and that was going to tire me out. I don’t mind though. I’ll do anything to help this team win.”

On the play of Dwyane Wade:
“Tonight was one of those games where he just really got himself going.”

HEAT Forward Udonis Haslem

On the game:
“We knew that they were going to be explosive on the perimeter with Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Jason Kidd. They are a very explosive team offensively. We just talked about packing it in when they go one-on-one. We wanted to make it tough on those guys to make shots. Damon has been knocking down shots all year, and there is no reason to think he will not knock them down for us in the playoffs. Dwyane is one of the best players in the league. He just came out and did what is expected of him every night. We need to focus on our defense. It is easy to play a game when you are knocking down shots. The tough part is when you are not making shots. We need to focus on defense for when we are not making shots.”

HEAT Center Shaquille O’Neal

On the game:
“We are playing good team basketball, and we played pretty good defense. That is what it is going to take. I was not able to have the explosiveness that I usually have. Even though I did not have that, I missed a couple of [easy shots] that I usually make. I woke up this morning and I was able to walk, I was able to run. I said to myself [that] I can’t leave my guys hanging. I came here and I gave it all I have. I play on a great team. I think I made the right decision coming here [to this franchise]. Guys stepped up today. On any good team, you are going to have games where certain people step up. There was no Diesel explosiveness. Today, I had the Firecracker explosiveness.”

On his expectations on the next game:
“They [New Jersey Nets] are going to come out and play a little bit harder. They are going to be hitting some more shots, and we have to be ready for that.”

New Jersey Nets Head Coach Lawrence Frank

On the game:
“You have to give Miami allot of credit. Obviously it is going to be hard to win giving up 116 points. They shot the ball extremely well. We made too many mistakes on the defensive end. Wade [Dwyane Wade] and Damon Jones were really, really special; and because of the attention Shaq demands, we have got to go back to the drawing board. There were definitely many correctable mistakes that we made.

When a team shoots 59 percent and scores 116 points, very rarely do you win a game like that. Our guys continued to compete. We played hard, we just have to do a few things better. As coaches the decision is to stay with what we do and do it better, or change a scheme and maybe do something different. That is something we will have to evaluate over the next 24 hours. It is one game and we are down 1-0, but that is why it is the first one of four.”

On Damon Jones:
You have to tip your hat when a guy goes 7-for-9 from three, Damon Jones. You have to give him credit. [Statistically over the course of the season] 70 percent of his shots are from three and he makes 43 percent. He did not surprise us at all, but I guess 7-for-9 is above 43 percent. He got those shots many times because of a Shaq post up or a Wade pick-and-roll.

On Dwyane Wade:
“Dwyane is a real special player. He is a guy that is one of the top players in the league. He plays with a great deal of confidence and has the ability to use the dribble to get to places where he wants to go. He has been doing it all year.”

On Richard Jefferson:
“It was a real positive sign for Richard [Richard Jefferson] to be able to comeback. I thought he would play around eight to 12 minutes, but he was fine and I think that is a positive.”

Nets Guard Jason Kidd

On the game:
“Anytime you play a Shaq team, you always have to address that and you can’t forget about the other guys. Wade and both Jones’, they were great tonight. Playoffs are about adjustments and hopefully we can make the right adjustments.”

“We just need to be on the same page and not have any mental breakdowns. We struggled in the second quarter with scoring. We have to get back to the basics of playing defense, but we felt we achieved some things that will hopefully work in game two.”

“Our role is to try to find a way to win and to make this a series by splitting. We have a game on Tuesday and hopefully we can achieve our goal.”

“Damon (Jones) is very talented. He loves to take the big shots and tonight was no different. He took a lot of big shots. When we had a run, he hit a three. The biggest thing is for us to learn from our mistakes.”

On Dwyane Wade:
“He was great. He was doing everything he was doing all season. He finds open guys and knocks down shots.”

Nets Forward/Guard Vince Carter

On the game:
“For us, we just wanted to come play our game. We knew they could score a lot of points if we didn’t defend the three-point shot and just left them open. He (Shaq) attracts a lot of attention. We have to do a better job of running them off the three a little bit.”

On Richard Jefferson:
“I think he brought a lot of energy and he was excited to play. We are expecting a lot from him. We are going to need him to be RJ.”

Nets Guard/Forward Richard Jefferson

On the game:
“I wouldn’t say that they sealed the deal in the first quarter. They just got out with a run and we couldn’t adjust to that. They had a run in the third quarter and we started to adjust. That’s all the playoffs are. It’s about change and adjustment. In Game 2 we’ll adjust and see how they adjust.”

On his first game back from injury:
“I feel fine, surprisingly. I didn’t have my lateral quickness. It’s tough trying to guard an All-NBA player like Dwyane Wade when you don’t have that. Offensively, it’s fine, but defense is what I focus on. That’s what our team is about, so that’s an area I need to continue to work on.”

“I played well in the first half, so Coach gave me some extra minutes in the second half. I have no problem earning every minute I get, and I think I’m going to get better. I think I surprised a lot of people by the way I played, considering I had only practiced for two days with contact. I haven’t really been able to do anything for a month and hadn’t played a game since January 8.”

On this series:
“[The HEAT] are a very talented group, so at some point in time they’re going to get hot. We’ve been to the Finals before and deep into the playoffs, so we’re aware that one game is just one game. We’ll just continue to move on.”

Nets Forward/Center Jason Collins

On the game:
“They were knocking down shots from the perimeter. Basically, it was catch and shoot. We were paying a lot of attention to Shaq. There was some miscommunication out there. Things that we should know better. We made a lot of mistakes defensively, and they converted on those opportunities.”

On guarding Shaq and covering the perimeter:
“That is a dilemma, but we are capable of providing help on Shaq and getting out to contest shots. We were able to do that on a few occasions, but not on a consistent basis. So, we will have to make that adjustment. We just need to have better communication out there.”

On Game 2:
“We’ll come out with a much better effort on both ends of the court especially on defense. If we want to be successful against this team we’ve got to come out with a better effort on the defensive end of the court, and we will on Tuesday night.”