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NBA FINALS: CAVALIERS v WARRIORSJune 6, 2015Andre IguodalaOAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: Practice Day Q. Andre, what's it like when you guys put together a defensive sequence like you did at the end of the game and really shut a team down? You do that periodically in games. ANDRE IGUODALA: I think it just shows kind of how we felt threatened a little bit, and we felt like we were in a situation where we were desperate to get a win. I think all our minds are in that mode, we start to get stops. I think Festus did an excellent job stepping in and just being ready to do his job and fill that role that we needed him to be in. It was good for us. Q. Did you see a different Klay Thompson in the second half as opposed to the first half the other night? What sort of momentum does that give him going into Game 2? ANDRE IGUODALA: We're always looking for that moment where Klay kind of just gets in that crazy zone where he can just get hot really fast. I think in the playoffs we haven't had it yet, but I feel like it's slowly, but surely getting there. What I saw him do was get to the line, which is key for, I think, him and for Steph. Steph did it in overtime, but once he starts understanding that when he's not making shots, get him to the line, get him in a good rhythm, that will really start for him. Q. Also, Kyrie not being in the game anymore, that was his assignment. How much more energy will that allow for Klay, maybe, on offense? ANDRE IGUODALA: Klay's a great on‑ball defender. You always have to be careful not to relax if a guy goes down. It's an unfortunate situation, but the task gets tougher mentally in not letting your guard down. I feel like Dellavedova has some really good games for his team when Kyrie's been down, and the ball will be moving a lot because they don't have that play maker in Kyrie, so they're going to rely on each other. So Klay's going to have to really lock in. He's a great on‑ball defender, but he's going to have to have the same type of energy level and focus of being off the ball a defender as well. Q. What was the adjustment like for you after all those years starting in the NBA, and coming off the bench this year? Was it hard to sort of get into that rhythm as a reserve? ANDRE IGUODALA: As far as coming off the bench, it's not that hard. But just finding your rhythm. Finding the rhythm is the hardest part. You go through stretches where you're playing well, and then you go through stretches where you're not playing well. Usually you can let the game come to you starting. You don't have to force any shots. I know I'm going to get my shots here. I know my rhythm will come to me. I know I'm always going to be loose. But coming off the bench, you're a little stiff. You want to make an impact when you're in the game, so you have to pick and choose when to force up a shot, when to let the offense come to you, when to be aggressive. That is probably the hardest part. But this year's experience has been great and finding that. Q. I think there have been five games in the playoffs where you guys have dropped behind by about double digits. How much pride does the second unit have that in those games you typically come in and settle things or regain the lead? ANDRE IGUODALA: Well, we learned‑‑ we've learned that we play a huge role on this team besides just coming in and scoring or looking to be individually effective. We've learned that our unit and our flow in the game can have a carryover to our first unit once they come back in the game and finish out the half or finish out the game. That's been really important for us. We've seen it happen a few times early in the year, and then it started to be a trend for us. You know, we see the game not starting off the way we want it to, and we kind of give each other that look like in three or four minutes, let's turn it up. Now we don't even have to speak or look at each other, we just know. So that's really key for us. Practice has really been great all year as far as first unit versus second unit, so that prepares both teams. Q. Looking back on the film Game 1, what did you feel and how did you guys decipher the pace of the game? Were you comfortable with it? Do you want to push it more or calm it down a little bit? ANDRE IGUODALA: We saw we were a little stagnant there in the first quarter. The ball was sticking a little bit. We didn't quite have our flow. That came with just being in The Finals and dealing with everything that comes with being in The Finals and adjusting to that. But once we got settled in and realized the game is the game once the game starts, we found our rhythm and I feel like that should help us going forward. Q. You started to talk about it on Scott's second question, but it is kind of human nature to let down when an opponent is missing a key guy. Is that something you guys have talked about? How do you defend against that let down? ANDRE IGUODALA: Well, we've seen it this year a few times. We had some games where we didn't play up to our level of talent because a guy was out. It snuck up and almost bit us a few times. You know, Steph saved us. We've been through it and we've experienced it, so hopefully experience will help us with that. But at the same time, like I said before, they're going to make some adjustments. They play well with Dellavedova in there in the Chicago and the Atlanta series, so he's going to find a rhythm because he's going to be in the game more. He's made some huge shots for them. So we're going to make some adjustments and we're going to be prepared. We're not going to lay down for it just because their great player is out. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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