Tony, unfortunately, the playoffs are over now after falling 99-91 vs Memphis…
It’s a huge frustration. It hurts to leave the playoffs in the 1st round. But sports is tough. We played a very good Memphis. We got to give them credit, they did a very good series. Zach Randolph’s been very impressive again tonight.

5 minutes to go, you’re leading 80-79 and you could have taken over the game.
I really thought we could. We know how to deal with these situations, our playoffs experience should have make the difference and give us the advantage. But Zach Randolph took over the game and got impossible shots. Congrats to them.

For the time since 2001, you’re on vacation in April…
It feels really weird, especially when you’re leading the Western Conference. You can only hope to reach the Conference finals after such a season. Now I’m going to be off for 2 or 3 weeks. I need to rest both physically and mentally. Then, I’ll go back to work out to be ready for the French National team. But three months to wait it’s a long time.

Even though it’s too soon to think about the future, how do you see next season ?It’s gonna be hard to improve the team, especially because we have the 29th position at the draft. We’ll have to strike hard like we did with Gary Neal. Then, I guess the staff will work on it very soon.

Tony, thanks to this victory over Memphis, San Antonio is still alive…
It was hell of a game, a real ball game, a game in which the players didn’t want to die. Just crazy with many turnarounds. A struggle for 2 and a half hours! It’s even bigger that Memphis was leading 15sec before the end. A real crazy night with Manu’s shoot 15sec before time expires and then OT thanks to Gary Neal’s 3-pointer. It’s the magic of basketball.

And at that moment you took over the game…
What happened in these 5 minutes was really important to me. I wasn’t that good since the series started, nothing was going the way I wanted. I didn’t let go even though it was hard to live and understand. But the tables turned, I scored when I had to. It felt so good.

So one can easily think confidence is back for Game 6 on Friday.
I can now tell you for sure we’re going there as warriors. Memphis caused us big problems. There’s a good reason they’re leading the series. But tonight confidence is back. We can turn the situation around and win on the road.

Tony Parker : « What’s happening is weird. I was far from thinking we would be in this situation. Memphis is having a perfect series while we’re playing our worst basket of the season. How could we lose Game 4 by 20 points while we lost the game before and  thus knew winning was mandatory ? It’s pretty unexplainable. Now we’re just one game away from elimination and we have no choice. We have to use our experience to reverse the trend. And it requires a victory on Wednesday if we still want a chance. Now it’s simple, it’s a do or die situation. »

How do you explain the Spurs success today ?
We play like we did last year.The only difference  is that the whole is in a good shape, which was not the case last season.  It changes everything. Besides, Richard Jefferson is at his best, the bench is successful, like Gary Neal yesterday vs Phoenix (22 points). Gary is a good draft. Gregg Popovich knew immediately it was him at the Summer League. He ‘s making a very good start. But sometimes, it’s Matt Bonner, McDyess, Hill…

Could you break Chicago’s record of 72/10 ?
No, it’s impossible to reach. The Bulls’ record will remain unbreakable for a long time. It’s huge.

Do you think about the  title ?
It’s been the same thing for years. When you’re a Spurs, you play to win the title. Even last year but with all our problems, we couldn’t play our cards. But you have to go step by step. The most important is to win games and improve to go all the way to the playoffs.

What’s your personal balance after 27 games ?
I feel great. I got my legs back. I’ve known a pretty difficult time in November regarding my private life. But I got back on the horse, I had to be at my best for the Spurs. And it paid back : I was the best Western Conference player of the week. I’m very happy, it shows I’m in good shape.

Are you satisfied of your 18 points average, (50%) and 7 assists ?
I wish I went on like this. When you play in San Antonio, you share the ball with Duncan, Ginobilior Jefferson. You can’t shoot 25 times per game, it’s impossible. I’ve had 50% scoring for years, I don’t want to go under this percentage. As for assists, it is thanks to Manu, Richard or Matt scoring success. That’s how I reach an average of 7 assists. Unlikely some people may think, my assist figure hasn’t improved, I just have a better reading of the game.

San Antonio has played on a half court for years and has now totally changed its game becoming the 4th best offensive team of the League. Do you enjoy this game system ?
Of course, but there’s one important thing to keep in mind. You have to play defense to win. You don’t win because you play offense.  And it’s been true for years. So we’ll have to improve our defense if we intend to be in the first places of the regular season. We are aware of the importance of the floor advantage in playoffs.

Are the Spurs in the favorite teams to win the title ?
Yes, but the Lakers and Boston are before us. The Lakers are champions so they are candidate to their own title. I put Boston second because they’ve always been there for years. They play really well. And then the Spurs.

Tony, you won the Clippers (107-95) and with it your 5th win in a row. You couldn’t dream of a better start…
It is a very good start. We rely on our shooting skill so far. However, I think our defense can be better. But it’ll come. We ruled the Clippers game. Even though they got closer in the 4^th, we’ve never been really worried. We scored when we should so we couldn’t be surprised.

The biggest difference lies on Richard Jefferson.
We found the player who rocked the Nets or Milwaukee. Richard is making an impressive beginning of season. He’s not only talented (59% with 53% 3 points), but also very aggressive. Given all this, he’s a real asset for the team. The difference comparing to last year is unbelievable. He’s doing so much good to the Spurs.

As for you, your role slightly changed offensively.
When Ginobili or Jefferson score everything they shoot, you rely on them. Just got to enjoy it. That’s one the reason why I’m back a little offensively comparing to the previous years. But on the other hand, as they are hot, my assists average is increasing. This point-guard role suits me just fine.