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NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: THUNDER v WARRIORS

May 29, 2016

Steven Adams

Oakland, California: Practice Day

Q. You're 5-3 on the road this postseason. You won twice in San Antonio, you've won in Oracle. Does that help?
STEVEN ADAMS: No, I don't think anyone's too concerned about what's already happened. Whatever's happened has already happened. It's good experience and stuff, but you've just got to let that go and just show up. Because whatever we did to win back there, it won't be enough really for Game 7. We have to be better.

Q. Did they do anything to surprise you yesterday or did they just make shots?
STEVEN ADAMS: No, they definitely made some tough shots and stuff. But there were just like a few mistakes early in the game that I felt paid dividends down the end. They made some tough shots, but nothing crazy surprising. Our team did a good job scouting them.

Q. You and Andre [Roberson] have been critical to the team all season. But what's it been like, him being your friend, for you all together to have your minutes increased and to have success in the postseason not just offensively but defensively?
STEVEN ADAMS: Yeah, it's just good. It's just like the rest of the team; we're just ready for whatever the team asks of us. Just willing to do anything to win. It's good that it went our way in some ways when we were asked to step up in certain areas. That's always been quite special. But, yeah, just staying prepared, because it could change either way.

Q. Coach was talking about the need to help each other so the offense doesn't bog down like it did down the stretch last night. What do you guys need to do to get back to that point where you win the last six weeks of the season and into the playoffs, where at any given time all five guys were dangerous?
STEVEN ADAMS: I guess it's just trusting the pass, just getting some flow. It comes with a lot of things. It isn't just passing the ball. It's more of our cuts, setting up your man so he can get an open catch, making sure that it's a 100% pass and you won't get turnovers. This team's good at forcing turnovers, playing the passing lanes. So it's critical to try to get open.

All of us have to do a better job in that. Then those passes can come, and we can say trust the pass and get all five players involved and whatnot.

Q. You know how tough it is to defend a guy like Andrew Bogut. What's it say about Andre when he can switch from a Bogut in the post to Klay Thompson. What's it say about what Andre does?
STEVEN ADAMS: It's amazing. Absolutely versatile player. He can guard all positions. He's just got a fire. He just doesn't want anyone to score on him. He's just defensively minded. It's amazing, honestly, what he does. He's helped me out so many times on the court.

Q. How does he help?
STEVEN ADAMS: If I overhelp or I don't see something, he's always there backing me up and cleaning up my mistakes, and vice versa. I've always got his back and he's got mine type of thing. Same thing with our whole team. But he always seems to be -- he's kind of like a Nick Collison. When I play with Nick, he's a vet and he's seen it all. He does exactly the same. Any mistake, especially in the rookie season, he was always there to help me out. The same with Dre. Dre's becoming that dude now as well.

Q. I know Game 6 was a disappointment, but can you put in perspective the opportunity that sits in front of you? One game away from the NBA Finals?
STEVEN ADAMS: Yeah, you just said it right there, mate. It's Game 7. Just got to come out and perform our best.

Q. When Kevin [Durant] has a shooting night like last night, do you just expect him to immediately bounce back big the next game? Do you worry at all?
STEVEN ADAMS: I don't know. How did he shoot?

Q. 10 of 31. Missed a lot in the first half?
STEVEN ADAMS: Oh, okay. Sometimes you make shots, sometimes you don't. It's just the trust. It's still always going to be there, especially with him. So, yeah, he can get up as many shots as he wants, really.

Q. Trust and selfless basketball, is that going to be the key to solving the problems in Game 7?
STEVEN ADAMS: Solving the problems?

Q. Or finding an answer to rally and get the win on the road.
STEVEN ADAMS: As I was saying about trusting the pass: Once you make all five guys a threat, then obviously the shots from Kevin and Russ [Westbrook], our superstars, they come much easier because it forces the defense to stay honest. They have to stay on the other guys, which frees them up to do their thing.

That's probably one of the keys. That will help out with one of many problems that we face.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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