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GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 28, 2015

Andrew Bogut

Oakland, California

Q. Last year you guys were in the first year of a new system. Obviously early on there were a lot of bumps, a few stalls and so forth, but it got better. The coaching staff was saying even last year that we can't wait to get to next year because we think they'll be so much better next year. What did you see last year that tells you you can be better this year?
ANDREW BOGUT: Exactly that. Early on there were some teething problems. It was adjusting to a new system and a new style of play, and I think we know what Coach Kerr expects. I think so far we don't have any two-a-days scheduled. We have just one a day. I think that's out of respect from Coach Kerr to say, hey, guys, I'm rewarding you a little bit. We're still going to do our work for the three hours that we're here, but I think we know how we play, we know guys' tendencies on the team, and we know a lot of it, to be honest, isn't something we're going to do at practice. It's just knowing that when we move the ball well, have more than three or four powers of possession and play defense, we're in almost 90 some percent of those games. That's kind of what we needed more mentally than physically.

Q. You guys know what it's like now to go through that grind to win a title. What do you expect to be the most difficult part of trying to defend that now?
ANDREW BOGUT: Look, I don't think it'll be as difficult as probably last season to be honest. I think last season was the Warriors are a regular season team, they're not going to do anything in the Playoffs, so we heard that all year. We went on a 20-game win streak, then we had to do that in the Playoffs. So we've had all these testing -- bulletin board material type things about other teams disrespecting us.

It's the same this season. All of a sudden we're not a top dog anymore, which is fine. I think it's better and more motivation for us.

But I don't think we can worry too much about the championship anymore. I think that's for you guys to talk about and for the organization to celebrate. I think it's October now. It's about to be October. I think our focus now is this season and New Orleans opening night.

Q. Coming off a championship year, I was wondering, you're a big car enthusiast; did you add any cars to your collection?
ANDREW BOGUT: I added a black Falcon, which is a car in Australia. Ford make it. They actually have a Ford Falcon in Australia, so you should get your own edition. Once you sign that new contract, we'll get you a gold-plated one. How about that?

Q. Following up on that, what was the highlight of your summer as an NBA champion, and also, how was the Olympic qualifying? You must be pretty fired up about how that went.
ANDREW BOGUT: Yeah, a whole lot of the summer from the championship was Las Vegas, and that's all I can say about that. Following up on that, it's busy for me personally. I had about two weeks to enjoy it. We started camp with the national team on the 10th of July in Croatia, and then went all the way until about the 15th or 16th of August. That was kind of my next focus to qualify for that, and then I took some time off after that and started working out again.

But it feels like the championship parade was last Tuesday. It's been a busy summer for everybody. Everyone has had a lot of things to do. But you wouldn't change it for the world.

Q. How much does not playing in those final two games and all the talk about small ball that you heard all off-season maybe light a fire under you, and also how much more assertive do you want to be on offense this year?
ANDREW BOGUT: Well, obviously I need to be more confident and assertive offensively. But I think we still won a championship with me playing a role, being a physical banger and defending.

The last two games, yeah, they were games that people didn't talk about during the regular season when we went small and I ended up playing 12 or 16 minutes, and I didn't mind it. We get that win at the end of a game, I'm not offended by it. I'm going into my 11th year. If I can get three more championships by not playing the last two games of the Finals' series, I'll shake your hand right now and take it.

I think the league, people say, oh, it's going small ball, it's going small ball. It's not going small ball, it's not going big ball. I think the smart coaches mix it up, and there's a right time to go big. The Memphis series, for instance, we couldn't go small in that series. Houston we did more because they only had one dominant big man, and the same with Cleveland.

I think there will be a good mix of both. There will be games where I play big minutes; there will be games where I play lesser minutes. But obviously I've accepted my role of whatever Coach does, and we have the utmost confidence in everybody that plays that whoever gets out there is going to play well for us.

Q. What was your first feeling when you won the championship?
ANDREW BOGUT: My first feeling after we won it in Cleveland was just relief, I guess, because a lot goes into the NBA regular season, and to get to that point of an NBA Finals and lose would be just horrible. You've gone that deep into the start of summer, and to come out and not win it I think would be the biggest feeling or letdown you can experience, so glad we didn't have to experience that. We were on the other side of it and got to experience the victory and celebrate it. Even though the next morning we woke up and still felt like you had a shoot-around or a practice or a flight because the NBA season goes so long, but it was a great feeling.

Q. Have you been following Jarryd Hayne's path at all, and have you met him yet?
ANDREW BOGUT: Yeah, I caught up with Jarryd last May. We went out for dinner in Walnut Creek, and he was very homesick at that point. I think I got three or four words in the whole dinner, so I just kind of let Jarryd talk because I know the feeling of what he was going through. He had a roommate in probably a small Marriott Hotel in Santa Clara or wherever they stay at in camp, so I just let him talk, and I think he genuinely liked hearing an Australian accent and all that and being able to talk about things back home.

He came out to a playoff game against the Pelicans, and I anticipate trying to get out to a Niners game and seeing him play. I couldn't be more happy or proud of what he's accomplished. A lot of people here don't realize he's the equivalent to our LeBron James our Kobe Bryant or Kevin Durant in Australian Rugby League. He's that big in Australia. He's the highest paid rugby league player, one of the highest in the world, and he's one of the best rugby league players in the world, so to give that up, it's the equivalent of the best player in a sport leaving and going and playing tennis or whatever. It's a huge story.

He's never played American football before. We don't even have a league in Australia. To come and do what he's done, he deserves all the accolades he's getting, and he's still learning the game. Even at dinner he was just telling me about the playbooks, and he's like, man, I just can't get my head around remembering all this stuff; it's just so hard. Every night before bed I study it and I feel like I'm back in high school.

Obviously he's put the work in, and I couldn't be more happy. I think it's the feel-good story of the year in my opinion.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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