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NBA FINALS: CAVALIERS v WARRIORSJune 7, 2016Richard JeffersonCleveland, Ohio: Practice Day Q. What is the mindset coming in here? RICHARD JEFFERSON: Protect home court. We're looking forward to that opportunity. We're home. We're rested. We've got a little bit of our legs back underneath us after the long flight, and we had a good practice today. We look forward to playing in front of our fans and trying to continue our streak at home. Q. Do you anticipate any kind of changes personnel-wise? RICHARD JEFFERSON: No, not that I've been informed of. Sometimes it's not a personnel change; it's just you've got to do things a little better, do things a little more efficiently. You have to play well when it's needed. Q. Do you guys talk it over much either among yourselves or with the coaches about what you've got to do now? Or is it pretty much business as usual? RICHARD JEFFERSON: It's business as usual. We're not excited about our performance on the road. But at the same time, they protected home court. They did a very good job and did it in spectacular fashion. But we're at home. We haven't lost at home [in the playoffs]. Even if we protect home court throughout this series, we're going to need to win at Golden State, so that's something that will be addressed when it's needed. But the way we view it, and the veterans we have in this locker room understand that we have to win two at home starting with Game 3 and we go from there. Q. What is your thought of potentially not having Kevin Love? RICHARD JEFFERSON: You always approach everything like you're going to have a full roster. Until we've been told otherwise, Kevin's going to be there and he's going to be playing and doing what he needs to do. Q. You've been through some big moments. There are some young players on the team. Do you see yourself as a role model for the young players coming into the game? RICHARD JEFFERSON: I think a lot of guys on our team have played in The Finals before -- Delly, Kyrie, Shump, Tristan, they were in The Finals last year. So as much as I can give them a little bit of stuff here and there, these guys have been in some big moments. This is a unique situation where a lot of the young guys actually have a ton of experience. Q. The next game is always the most important one. Being down 0-2, just how important is this one? RICHARD JEFFERSON: Game 3 is very, very important for us. But it's about protecting home court. It's one of those things that had we won one there, then Game 3 here and trying to protect home court becomes crucial. So the focus doesn't change. You have to try to protect home court, and they did a very good job of it. Had we lost by one point here, one point there, it still wouldn't have changed the fact -- there is not a better psyche. It's like, hey, if they win every home game by one point, they win the series. So our job is now to protect home court and to focus on that. Q. Channing mentioned in the Eastern Conference Finals that you're a player who helps keep players locked in. How do you do that now given the situation? RICHARD JEFFERSON: I just make sure everybody knows that we didn't play well in two games, but if we had lost both those games in double overtime by one point, they protected home court. There is no moral victory. "Oh, you only lost by one, does that give you encouragement?" No. "Oh, you lost by 30, does that mean you feel defeated?" No. Either way, you know there are things that you can do better and more efficiently. We haven't lost at home, and we have to try to play well and win these games at home. Q. You're one of the more seasoned guys on the roster, yet you were the one who seemed to provide the energy boost. Where are you getting that energy from? RICHARD JEFFERSON: If you can't clear your mind and give your best at this stage, then I don't know what to say to you. There are not words, there is not encouragement, there are not speeches, there is not anything inspirational that you can give. This is the biggest stage that all of us have dreamed about our entire lives. I was fortunate enough to have a halfway decent game. It didn't really impact the game because we still lost. But I look at it as, at the end of the day, I want to know that I gave it all. I didn't struggle mentally. I don't care if I make shots, miss shots; I'm just going to play my hardest. In that sense, I just try to be an example for all my teammates, and hopefully they can feed off me, because there have been plenty of games where we fed off of other guys. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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