LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS MEDIA CONFERENCE

June 6, 2021

Rick Carlisle

Press Conference

Q. You've been part of Game 7s but I think only two of your players have. What, if anything, have you done in your messaging to prepare them for the fact that it's a different animal?

RICK CARLISLE: Well, it's a great opportunity. That's the number one thing. You want to keep things simple. The important thing is that we have fun, that we attack, that we keep putting pressure on these guys and that we have fun doing it together. That's how we've got to approach it.

Q. What has been the differentiator in your experience of the Game 7? Is it experience? Is it heart? Is it commitment to the squad? In your experience what's been that differentiator in Game 7s?

RICK CARLISLE: You know, I've been a part of a lot of them, as a player, assistant coach and a head coach. There's a pretty wide variance. I've been involved in wins on the road, wins at home. You know, the thing about a Game 7, it's a one-game situation, and anything can happen. That's part of the anticipation. It's part of the fun. It's part of the privilege of having the opportunity to play on that stage.

Q. Other than the blowout in Game 4, the bench has kind of gotten less impactful as the series has gone along. Is that maybe to be expected or just since you shortened up the rotation a little bit, or how do you foresee them maybe having a bigger impact tonight or today?

RICK CARLISLE: I guess I'd disagree with that because I thought in Game 6 that they had a pretty good impact. We were able to get Luka, I think, four minutes of rest during each of those stretches.

In the first stretch I think we ran the lead up to seven or nine. In the second stretch we had opportunities that we didn't catch in on but we still scored and were doing some good things.

Listen, it's just one game. It's today. Anything can happen. We've got to go into this thing with a clear mind, play our game and play together and play as hard as we can.

Q. Both teams have to deal with it, obviously, but how worried or how do you see the 36-hour turnaround of these two games affecting today's game?

RICK CARLISLE: It's a hard question. I mean, you have to really analyze every little thing about travel and all those kinds of things. But I think the bottom line is it's the same amount of time for both teams. We throw the ball up and we play, and that's the beauty of it.

Q. Your team hasn't played many of these afternoon tip games, two of them against the Clippers, the first game of this series and obviously the game in December, and your team has been stressful. What can you draw from those experiences about preparing for this game tonight or today?

RICK CARLISLE: It's Game 7. We don't give a s--- what time it is. We're excited to play and looking forward to it. You know, you guys are all asking questions that are really good, interesting questions, but it all comes down to the same thing: It's a one-game situation.

We're excited, and we're looking forward to it.