LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS MEDIA CONFERENCE

June 6, 2021

Paul George

Postgame Press Conference

Los Angeles Clippers 126, Dallas Mavericks 111

Q. You guys are obvious the fifth team in NBA history to come back from being down 0-2 at home to start the playoffs and you set the record foremost threes in Game 7 ins had Toro. What's going through your head and what's your reaction to everything and this series finally ending?

PAUL GEORGE: Great team win. I think we showed great resilience. They pushed us. You know, they definitely got us war-ready. It's a great team we played. Unbelievable superstar in Luka. They pushed us. They played really well. They challenged us. But you know, we stuck in there. We hung in there. We played for one another. We played hard and you know, we continue on our season. Onto the next.

Q. What goes into you playing this many minutes the last couple of games here? I don't know how many times you even came out of the game, but what does it take for you to get ready and now turn around and go play in Utah in just 36 hours?

PAUL GEORGE: It took a lot, especially the late game at Dallas, and then the early game today. Kind of was a tough turnaround.

But you know, I continue to just heal myself, and at this point everyone has something going on. I just try to get to a mindset to go out and perform and just help my team keep the series and the season alive. Yeah, so you know, at this point, it's just all-in. It's just all-in, committed to doing whatever it takes, and you know, help try to keep us going.

Q. Ty praised you for your rebounds after game 6. You had six more rebounds; the team only had one in the whole first quarter. I'm sure you talked about turning that around, but what did you talk about when it came to getting shots in these possessions defensively?

PAUL GEORGE: I mean, they are a big team. You know, especially we're going small; they are a lot bigger than us. So we had to make an emphasis to rebound, get to the paint. You know, they have crashers who are crashing all night. So you've got crashers along with the big fella, Boban down there. It's a big emphasis to try to get those possessions and keep them from getting second ones.

So you know, we talked about it. That was definitely an adjustment that we needed to go after them, box out, pursue the boards, and ultimately that's when we are playing well when we can get in transition. You know, try to get mismatches by pushing the ball and playing faster offensively.

Q. What did you learn the most from last year's Game 7 that came through today that you had to go through to kind of grow and improve and go through the fire of winning a Game 7 like today?

PAUL GEORGE: I think just playing a full game. I think that's really what it came down to. And this team forced us to play on a nightly basis a full 48-minute game. You know last year -- let's not again even get into last year. We're on to a whole other season. We hung in there and stuck together and knew what it took to win tonight.

Again, Kawhi stepped up big for us. Reggie stepped up huge for us, Marcus, I mean, everybody just brought it and played for one another, played hard, and we collectively got the win.

Q. Your consistency, you had seven straight games over 20 points, so kudos to you for your consistency. What do you attribute most to the win? You guys had 30 assists. You won the rebound battle in the third quarter and that seemed to change the tide for you. What do you attribute your win to most tonight?

PAUL GEORGE: I think contributed to I think our pace. I think we played faster. You know, that was really the key, just our pace, moving the ball. We got guys great shots, great looks. You know, they got the big fellas out there. We've got to force them to try to contain the ball instead of just sitting in the paint clogging it up, and so I thought our pace was everything. We played faster. And you know, we forced rotations; we won it, and you know, we got the ball to the guys that had the hot hands.

Q. If you would, would you talk about Terance Mann how he come off the bench the last couple games, bringing that spark, that energy, and what you saw from that.

PAUL GEORGE: Yeah, T-Mann has been great all year. He's been bringing the energy all year. You know, young guy stepping up, playing huge for us. Again, he's just another guy you can plug in there and play multiple positions for us.

He's just playing with a lot of confidence. His ceiling is off the charts. The kid can do just about everything on the floor, and so it's definitely a luxury to have, especially when there's -- there's just no liabilities when he's on the floor. He can guard, he can ready, he shoots the three, he finishes with -- amongst the trees. He can do so much, and so he helps us big-time when he's on the floor.

Q. I wanted to touch on Terance, after Game 5 when he passed up on that lay-up, you tapped him on the head when he seemed a little upset. Did you guys have a conversations about that at all? He was a young player in a big game. I saw you give him some words of encouragement.

PAUL GEORGE: Just next play, you know what I mean, just tell him next play. He was playing too well to be hung up on one play. Just tell him next play.

Q. You guys finally got a home win. I saw your parents were here. Last year you didn't get to play in front of fans and this year you did. What was it like to play in front of fans and get a win in front of fans and your parents, as well?

PAUL GEORGE: It was amazing. You know, definitely we've got to protect our home court, claim our arena. It was great to get a win for Clipper Nation.

Q. You were pretty clear that this series hinged on the defensive end of the floor. Now that it's over, what's your impression of Luka and his game? You played him in the playoffs last year, and he seemed more dangerous this time. How can this help you guys against the Jaz?

PAUL GEORGE: I mean, well, he was the star last matchup, too. He played off the charts last year in a playoff. And to be honest, you don't get to age like that -- you knew he could get better, you knew there was room for improvement, of course, but it was even more awesome. He just plays with so much confidence, and his game is just so beyond his age. He pretty much can pick up and read almost any defense. We threw a lot at him, and he was still able to, you know, keep his team afloat and just improvise.

He's going to be great. He's got a big, huge future ahead of him. But you know, I think just the mindset of having to sit down and guard, help, rotate came into play again this series and it's definitely what we are going to have to do going into the next one.

Q. Ty and some of the guys mentioned you and Kawhi have been vocal this series. What's the message and what are you telling them and are you happy with how they are receiving it?

PAUL GEORGE: Yeah, it's mostly we just had conversations, really at the very beginning just to get on the same page. Some things we were doing great; some things we weren't doing great. We just had conversations about it.

You know what I mean, at the end of the day, you've got guys like Kawhi who has done it, Rondo who has done it, just to keep the team kind of even-keel and in a good place, and it's a marathon. We're not worried about how long it takes to get to what we want to get to. We've just got to get it done. We've got to be the best team in any seven-game series. That's just what it comes down to. It's not going to be easy, and I think they did a great job of reiterating that; that this isn't going to be easy, but, you know, we're prepared and we're ready for what it takes.