Wizards 119, Nets 99
Q. Alex, second fewest points allowed tonight all season. A lot of that was because of your paint presence. When you have it going in the paint like that, how much do you think it helps the overall team defense?
ALEX SARR: I think it helps us being more aggressive on the ball, knowing that either me or Bags can clean it up or be vertical in the back end of the defense. So when we're doing a good job like that and that's the whole team protecting the rim, we're hard to beat.
Q. Justin Champagnie had 20 points off the bench; that was a season high for him. Can you talk about his contributions? Obviously he rebounds and he defends, but when he scores it also opens a lot of things up. Talk about how he impacts winning on this team?
ALEX SARR: Yeah, J.C. is very efficient. He plays in short stints, and he really makes a big difference. I'm kind of used to it because I seen that last year from him. He had like some crazy games. I remember a game he had like 31. So I know what he's able to do.
But yeah, I'm just glad to be playing with him because he brings us so much energy, whether it's during hustle plays, grabbing offensive rebounds, blocking a shot, hitting the three, dunking on someone, anything he can do. So it's great to have him out there.
Q. Alex, can you talk about how Bub -- obviously he's been playing very well recently after not so well at the beginning of the year. Talk about what you've seen from him, his growth, both on and off the court during that time?
ALEX SARR: Yeah, I feel like Bub just found his space. Like he knows what he's very good at, and he works around that very well, and he's been very efficient for us right now, and he really settles us down, organizes the offense for us.
I feel like when he's on the floor, we're pretty efficient offensively as a team.
Q. Same with Tre; obviously he's been back for a few games after being out with an injury. Obviously you've played games with and without him this year. Obviously he has a lot of gravity on offense, but is there anything else that's stood out about him so far since he's been back?
ALEX SARR: Just how serious he takes it. He's really hard on himself. You can see if he makes a mistake his reaction because he knows exactly what to do, but he's been great. I feel like the game is slowing down for him, too. He's just being very aggressive and doing what he does out there, and he's just got to keep doing that because he's great for us.
Q. Speaking of Tre, he's proven that he's a threat from unusually deep, can take really long threes. What has that done for your offense?
ALEX SARR: Yeah, like we said, he just has a lot of gravity. He pulls defenders. They have to respect his shot, so he opens driving lanes for us and just a lot of other stuff.
Q. Tonight you guys had a disparity in free throw attempts, probably had more turnovers than you'd like. Sometimes team might get frustrated in a game like that. How were you able to overcome those things?
ALEX SARR: I feel like just our defense because no matter what happens, whether we turn the ball over or anything like that, if we get stops, it's going to give us a great chance to win, so that's really what we've got to focus on.
Q. This is your sixth game in a row now with two and a half blocks. What kind of mindset do you have down low to know, okay, I can go get the shot, but I'm still not going to draw the foul here?
ALEX SARR: I would say just the timing of when to go and when not to go, and my teammates do a good job of walling up and allowing me to just go and get the ball. So yeah, just learning that and not trying to be out of position for rebounds.
Q. I don't know if you pay attention to the All-Star voting whatsoever. First result of the votes came back, you weren't in the top 20 even though you're playing like one of the best centers in the NBA right now. What would be your one message to the NBA fans to help you get to LA for the All-Star Game?
ALEX SARR: I just think we've got to keep winning. I think that's the only thing we can focus on really. Just keep winning.
Q. You mentioned winning. In this stretch when you've won four of five, what have you been most pleased with at both ends of the court?
ALEX SARR: I feel like just the effort and how serious everybody takes our defense. I feel like everybody plays with a sense of urgency down that end, and that's just good to see.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports