LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS MEDIA CONFERENCE

September 13, 2020

Paul George

Postgame Press Conference

Nuggets 111, LA Clippers 98

Q. Yesterday Marcus had told us that after Game 5, players immediately began kind of discussing what went wrong and trying to fix it in the locker room. How would you describe the mood and discussion in the locker room after this one?

PAUL GEORGE: It's positive. This group's staying together. We still in the driver seat. It's not a panic mode. We have a Game 7. I like our odds with our group. We put ourselves in this position and it's on us to get ourselves out of it.

It just comes down to what we do on Game 7.

Q. When you sense a collapse kind of like you guys had, what can you do as an individual and as part of the team to kind of take action to make sure it doesn't happen in the course of the game?

PAUL GEORGE: You've just got to look at it on film and just see what changes we need to make that we are not doing. To this point, it's happened twice now, last game and today's game, so look at film and see what changes we need to make to finish the game and keep the same intensity and pace that we have in the first half.

Q. You were just talking about schematically and strategically what you can do to prevent what's happened the last two games. Mentally for the whole team is there something that's been happening, that's been a common thing in these last two games as these leads are slipping away?

PAUL GEORGE: No. No, no, no. It's nothing that -- you know, it's nothing that's within our team. They are just coming out and give them credit. That's what they have to do. They have to fight to get back in the games, and they are doing it. They are not quitting. It's us to put the games away more than anything, and it's their job to continue to keep fighting and they are doing it. It's on us just to put these games away.

Q. After Game 4, you said that you guys really wanted to put them away and not give them any life. This is doing to be Denver's fourth great Game 7, two of which they have won. Curious how much more dangerous are they going into this game and then I guess level of confidence for you after these couple games?

PAUL GEORGE: I mean, it's not that we don't respect them. We respect the opponent. They got this far for a reason and they have been together for a while, so they are a connected group.

They have been here. Like you said, they have been a part of a lot of Game 7s. This team, they fought -- they have been fighting all year. They have been fighting for a while together. This group's been together. So we know what we are up against. Again, we have the utmost respect for them as opponents, but I like our chances. I like our odds. I like what we have. Again, it's on us to finish this out.

Q. Denver had great defense, especially Gary Harris. How difficult was this to deal with?

PAUL GEORGE: I mean, they play a great team defense. From standpoint they help -- they load the paint. They help each other, and they play with their hands. You know, they rely on each other. They help each other out and they have got each other's back defensively. They are constantly in rotation and scrambling around. It's more so their team defense.

Q. Inaudible.

PAUL GEORGE: Just it's pace and tempo. It's pace and tempo. They play at a higher -- they are playing at a higher pace in the third and fourth quarters than we are. Simple as that. We have got to match that on their end, and we have to find our pace and tempo on our end. It comes down to two different games. They are playing at a high level on their offensive end, and we are not playing at a high level on our offensive end. So that's just what it comes down to.

Q. Inaudible.

PAUL GEORGE: No, it's elimination. We understand that. We are trying to put them away. No tricks. It's a battle. And like I said, we've just got to go back to the film and see what we are doing, and why aren't we matching them. I think that's the only question that needs to be answered is why aren't we matching them.

Q. Obviously Denver has shown a lot of fight and keep fighting back in all these elimination games. Is that even more impressive considering the environment that you guys are in? And sort of this bubble environment, when things start going or the of the wrong way, does that sort of intensify that? Does it seem even more difficult for you guys?

PAUL GEORGE: You know, at this point I'm not sure. I'm not sure. I will say, anything can happen here. At this point, I'm not sure. I'm not even going to put nothing on it's the bubble or it's not the bubble. Fact of the matter is, they are fighting and they are keeping their season alive. I think to this point, we have allowed them to do that.