Center Andray Blatche, fresh off an excellent defensive performance in a game he’d guaranteed his team would win, left the locker room before the rest of his Nets teammates. Maybe he was looking to sneak out without speaking with reporters, as he was in the hallway heading out while Jason Kidd gave his post-game press conference. Maybe he just got dressed and was ready to leave.
Either way, Blatche was caught by a few media members on his way out, giving a post-game interview not in front of his locker but in front of Barclays Center’s white brick hallway directly outside the Ortsbo Interview Room.
Sure enough, after guaranteeing a Game 6 victory, Blatche called it one more time.
“Yeah,” he said, speaking casually, with a hint of realization. “Yeah. We guarantee it. We’re going to go there, take care of business, and go to Miami.”
Blatche dominated the game for stretches at a time, controlling the glass and hitting four of eight shots en route to a bench-high eight points, seven rebounds, and two surprising blocked shots, both coming in the first quarter. In typically enigmatic Blatche fashion, he was most effective at his most boring, and wildly inconsistent when he tried to stretch the boundaries of his ability.
“I was just staying around the rim, being aggressive,” Blatche reeled off. In his best moments, he floated from block to block, setting screens, looking to attack the glass on both ends, and playing within the team’s defensive scheme.
Game 7 is in Toronto on Sunday.