LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS MEDIA CONFERENCE

June 18, 2021

Quin Snyder

Press Conference

Q. Obviously a couple players had big games in Game 5, Reggie Jackson, Luke Kennard, you can go down the list. What do you think you can do to limit those guys' success?

QUIN SNYDER: I think those guys are really good players and they are proven players in the league. You know, I think there's things that you adjust to without -- without Kawhi out there that we'll try to do more of tonight. You know on the way in that they are going to find production from other places. I think, you know, some subtle or not-so-subtle things we can do to make it harder on them will be important.

You know, we'll have some mismatch situations as we've had but they are different situations that I think require a little more focus and urgency for us because they are different.

But I think we're ready, ready to go. A lot of times when a player like that is out, as you said, other guys raise their level and I think that's to be expected. But they are playing a little more free. They know that a team need their production, and you know, give them credit. They did make plays.

I thought as much as anything, you know, the way the game changed also with Mann playing the five, they really hurt us in transition. Us being able to really get back and protect the paint and not let those guys -- you know, Jackson got to the rim a lot early, and we have to take those easy ones away as much as anything.

Morris hurt us a lot, picking-and-popping. We hadn't seen that as much as in the series because they are playing through Kawhi and PG more and now they are playing through him, and that just, again, becomes a little different. You know, you adjust for that.

Q. How does it feel now going into Game 6, seeing them now without Kawhi, do you have maybe the best game plan because you're so familiar with them? Is this going to be the best one you have all series? Does it work that way?

QUIN SNYDER: I think you have a game plan. You know, sometimes you adjust your game plan during the course of the game and we have done that. We have done that some. We did that in Game 4. You know, and then obviously with Kawhi out, typically when a player of that calibre is playing the whole series, your game plan probably gets adjusted but it doesn't change as dramatically as it would when you lose someone like that.

I wouldn't evaluate it on that continuum as much as I would, say, that I think our execution and our focus on what we are trying to do and hopefully some of the things that we can do as a staff to help our guys put them in positions where we can be even more effective.

Q. I think you kind of addressed this already as far as like seeing the Clippers team that didn't have their main piece or one of their main pieces for a game. But Paul George is still there.

QUIN SNYDER: Yes.

Q. And from your perspective, how do you kind of affect what they are trying to do a little more after seeing what he's capable of doing with Kawhi off the floor?

QUIN SNYDER: Yeah, you know, you go back and watch film of games they have had earlier in the year, and see some of those tendencies, I think, you know, the ball is in his hands even more. One of the things, because of his height, he's really able to attack our bigs at the rim. You know, there are certain lineups that he can have success doing that. So being -- being mindful of that, guarding his pick-and-roll.

The other thing, because he's 6-8, he's also able to shoot it off the dribble in the pick-and-roll. So he's going to attack you in both those situations. That's something we have to be able to -- be able to handle or at least impact, and then, you know, also in isolation situations, I think there's just a higher volume of those things where, you know, his ability -- he's such a good ball handler, his ability to create space with his dribble and get his step back is something that I think has given teams trouble and becomes a real matchup challenge.

If we can make it harder for them, and we need to utilize Rudy from a schematic standpoint. Most of what we do involves trying to figure out ways to have Rudy be able to impact the game. That's not a secret to anybody. But again, just us adjusting the personnel situations. You know, closing out on Terance Mann, having him drive the ball, things like that that we have to be really conscious of.

And then I also think with Paul, he'll be even more aggressive in transition before a defense gets set, and that's something that we've seen really from their whole team, but from him in particular. Us getting back and not just being back, but really closing off driving lines to the rim when we're not in half-court is something that's really important. And then, you know, he's going to get by and he's going to make plays, and we're going to be in rotations at times. That's what a great player does to you, and hopefully we can dictate those rotations more and get to some of those guys a little sooner and not give them as clean of looks.

Q. My question for you is about the others; is it incumbent upon you to run plays to get the others involved, or do you ask them to kind of get themselves involved and step up and play better basketball?

QUIN SNYDER: A little bit of both. I think there's opportunities when we have matchup situations that we can take advantage of, and you try to. When a team is switching the way that they do, they are really trying to build the perimeter. And the biggest thing for us is the guys that are able to get by and get into the paint at various times, you know, what ends up happening is hopefully we can create close-out situations for those other guys with our ability to isolate and play matchups with some of our other guys as you're mentioning, whether it be Bojan or George, when they are switching pick-and-roll and they are getting under Rudy, it's a physical game like that and he can't put pressure on the rim with the roll, we have got to figure out ways to break the paint and then make him effective around the basket on the boards and with later looks after he gets to the rim.

So I think to involve other guys for us is really more of a collective things. It's one of the reasons I've mentioned it's so important for us to get out and run because that really gives guys some opportunities where they have space in transition.

But in the halfcourt when they are switching pick-and-roll and when they are switching screen actions, when they are small, they are taking some of those things away, what we need to do is to break the paint with penetration and that's when it will really open things up for other people.

Q. I know we're waiting on an update with Mike and with Donovan based on how they warm up, but if you do have more and more of them available, what goes into your thought process in terms of how you will handle their minutes, and I guess if you could just describe even if they are not as 100 percent but you're confident that they can be out there without further injury, how effective can those guys be in your mind?

QUIN SNYDER: I think the biggest thing is they won't be out there if there's any risk of something more substantial occurring when they are playing.

Donovan's been playing through -- playing through pain from the beginning of the playoffs. Mike's had a situation where he hasn't been able to be out there. So whether it be minutes restrictions or maybe a little less effective from an athletic standpoint, both those guys are the two guys that particularly in this series allow us to break the defense down and it's kind of what I was saying before; that they create offense for other people.

So they may not be able to finish as well as they can normally, but just their presence on the court and their ability to handle the ball really impacts our team. Our team is built that way. So when you remove those guys, it has a big impact on how we play.

So I think the impact that they have even if they are not at their best is still substantial, particularly in this series the way that the Clippers guard us and the fact that they are playing small and switching so much.

Q. You all started this series off strong, up 2-0 and we have seen a turnaround midway in the series. What's the feeling like in the locker room and what lasting words did you leave with the players going into a game that could potentially close out the series?

QUIN SNYDER: Well, I think our guys know what's at stake. You know, to the extent you continue to focus on the things that you think you can do or need to to be successful, and then also, you know, whatever adjustments that you need to make, those things happen throughout the series, and in particular when the Clippers lose a player like Kawhi; it changes what you do from a game plan standpoint.

So the main thing is I'm confident in our group. We have been through a lot for a while. I can't remember a team that I've been associated with that's had a flock of birds hit the engine on their airplane and everything that we've been through over the course of the year with guys being a little banged up. We've always had kind of a Next Man Up mentality and that's something that our guys really pride themselves in.

So I think they are ready to go and ready to compete, and obviously know what's at stake.