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NBA FINALS: CAVALIERS v WARRIORS

June 16, 2016

Stephen Curry

Cleveland, Ohio: Game Six

Cleveland 115, Golden State 101

Q. Steph, can you just go through what was in your mind while you were picking up that sixth foul and then obviously throwing your mouthpiece into the crowd? Do you regret anything you did there?
STEPHEN CURRY: Yeah, I've thrown my mouthpiece before. I usually aim at the scorer's table. I was off aim. I definitely didn't mean to throw it at a fan, but it happened. I went over and apologized to him because that's obviously not where I was trying to take my frustration out.

But the last two fouls I had I thought were -- I didn't think I fouled either Kyrie or LeBron. That's just kind of my perception of the plays and I had a reaction to it. It was obviously frustrating fouling out in the fourth quarter of a clinching game and not being out there with my teammates. So it got the best of me, but I'll be all right for next game.

Q. Kerr said he was actually happy that you showed that emotion. Do you think you're funneling this energy? Do you want to be angry going into Game 7? Do you want your teammates to be angry? Do you want Kerr to be angry?
STEPHEN CURRY: No, I mean, we have to show some fire for Game 7. It's a great opportunity for us at home in front of our fans to, again, try to win a championship. So we're going to need some emotion and some grit and toughness for that game.

I had some stuff I wanted to get off my chest tonight after the way the game went and that was it.

Q. Steph, what were you feeling as you walked off the court? It looked like you maybe kind of had a smile on your face at the ridiculousness of the whole thing. But I was curious what was it like making that walk all the way back here, and what did you do in the locker room afterwards?
STEPHEN CURRY: Thankfully I didn't have much time. I just sat in my chair. I've never been ejected before, so it was a weird feeling. It was just frustration and also kind of, like you said, I thought it was kind of hilarious the way the last two fouls and me blowing up kind of unfolded, and some of the things that were said out there. So it was just kind of, like you said, it is a long walk because, one, you don't want to foul out, you don't want to be ejected, you want to be out there with your teammates. But I immediately kind of started thinking about Game 7 and just the opportunity we've got one game to win it all, and got to take advantage of it.

Q. When you guys go 73-9, obviously there isn't a whole lot of adversity in a season like that. It wasn't easy. You guys made it look easy, but it obviously wasn't. The adversity you guys are going through now though, the frustration you've talked about, can that fuel you almost going into Sunday or is it best pushed to the side and try to get ready for Game 7 with a clearer head?
STEPHEN CURRY: No, that's why we're in The Finals. We were in adversity the last series down 3-1, and had to rattle off three straight wins. So things haven't gone our way despite how the regular season went. The Playoffs hasn't been easy. Hasn't been a breeze. Hasn't been anything perfect about it. So, yeah, it's frustrating, but the work we've put in and the opportunity we've given ourselves with a Game 7 to win The Finals at home, you've got to be excited about that regardless of how these two games went.

Obviously we've got to figure it out and make the necessary adjustments to slow them down a bit and get our offense going so that we can take advantage of our home court, but nothing about our playoff run has been perfect and that's kind of the consistent thing right now, and we've got another opportunity on Sunday.

Q. The last two games LeBron has really controlled the game both scoring and passing, getting out in transition and creating opportunities for himself and other people. What has he been doing the last two games, and how do you get in front of him and try to keep him under control?
STEPHEN CURRY: He's playing great. He's doing things that are game-changing and helping his team win. He's been more aggressive, I think, shooting the ball. We've had some breakdowns, but he's played well. There's no two ways around it.

So tip your hat to him and come out Sunday with aggression to hopefully clog some driving lanes early, not let him get a rhythm, try to make him as uncomfortable as you can. Force him into as many tough shots as you can. Live with the results. You just play with toughness for 48 minutes while we're out there, and we can do it. We've shown we can do it, and excited for that opportunity.

Q. What did LeBron say to you after he blocked your shot? It seemed you were kind of smirking on the way back to the bench. And how do you explain what happened in the first quarter?
STEPHEN CURRY: They fed off their crowd's energy, and it wasn't all that bad like the first six minutes. We didn't score for like the first three or four minutes of the game, but it was like 6-0, so that's nothing for us. But at that point they hit some open threes, we turned the ball over. They got in transition, and obviously foul trouble changed our rotation.

So they pretty much won the game again in the first quarter, like they did in Game 3. We made plenty of runs and clawed our way back to within 8, I think, twice. Gave ourselves a chance. But on the road we've learned that lesson before and we learned it again tonight. When you get down that much in the first quarter, it takes so much and so many things have to go right to get back into the game. So just didn't go our way.

Q. What about LeBron, the block when he was obviously woofing at you?
STEPHEN CURRY: What did he say?

Q. Even if it's not specific, just the general gist of his message?
STEPHEN CURRY: Nothing.

Q. Just to follow up, it seems like LeBron has taken a particular delight to blocking your shot tonight, blocking your lay-up after the buzzer, after the whistle the other night. He seems to be really kind of targeting you in some ways. Have you felt a little bit of his juices sort of directed exactly at you in this series?
STEPHEN CURRY: He's made two good plays on the fast break, and obviously tonight on the block, made great defensive plays. However he wants to celebrate or whatever he wants to do to kind of take in that moment, it is what it is. I stay aggressive. Don't let that try to get in my head. Obviously, he's pretty athletic, so he's capable of doing that, and we've got to make adjustments.

Q. How would you explain the dynamic between you? You're two of the players that are considered in the debate of the best player on the planet. What's been the dynamic as that has unfolded here in this series?
STEPHEN CURRY: I mean, he's had two great games to keep his team alive. You know, that's what he's supposed to do. I'm out there trying to do the same for my team. We don't go one-on-one at each other a lot, but it's a pretty competitive feeling out there with the situation of playing in The Finals and playing for something special.

So at the end of the day, seven games to figure out who is going to be holding that trophy on Sunday, you've got to love that kind of environment and that battle. So haven't enjoyed it much the last two games, but there are 48 minutes left.

Q. What has changed that any team would beat you guys three games out of four, and mostly convincingly? I don't think anybody would have seen that the entire season, including the Playoffs. What are you guys not doing so well? What is Cleveland doing so well, what has changed and what needs to change for you come Sunday?
STEPHEN CURRY: The last two games obviously not having Draymond was different for us, not an excuse for us losing, but different because of rotations and whatnot, and we kind of stalled down the stretch of that game offensively. And we haven't gotten enough stops in the last two games consecutively to build momentum at any point in the game, so that's the biggest thing, I think. The first quarter tonight, didn't give ourselves a chance in that first 12 minutes, and Game 5 at home just our defense didn't show up.

So both of those kind of factors, how we start and how we defend will determine Game 7.

Q. If I could follow that up, you and Klay were kind of struggling early. You guys seem to have found yourselves or rediscovered yourselves. It's the rest of the team that seems to be struggling. What do you have to do to get those guys going?
STEPHEN CURRY: Nothing. Everybody's got to stay confident, stay in the moment. Have confidence in themselves. All across the floor, when you step foot on the floor, you have a chance to impact the game, and it hasn't gone our way the last two. I like our chances in Game 7 to have everything click at the right time and win this thing.

Q. Cleveland has the momentum with two straight wins here. How collectively do you guys keep doubt from creeping into your mind?
STEPHEN CURRY: We know what kind of team we are, what we're capable of, what we've accomplished so far, and how together we are. We haven't splintered at all. I think we're more mentally tough than letting two games not go our way kind of put any doubt in our heads.

So like Coach said, if you started the season in October and said you'd be at home Game 7 with a chance to win the NBA Finals, you've got to love that kind of opportunity regardless of how it happened.

Q. Last quarter of Game 5, you guys really struggled offensively. First quarter again tonight. Do you feel like you got in any rhythm in the middle of this game that kind of helped you break out of that and that might carry over to Game 7?
STEPHEN CURRY: Yeah, I think it's just a focus on not turning the ball over and setting better screens and moving bodies better on the offensive end. The fourth quarter of Game 5 we didn't move at all. There were a lot of isos, but nobody was moving around the perimeter, and tonight we just turned the ball over too much early and gave them run-outs. And they're setting up their defense. Their crowd's into it, and it's just a bad situation.

So those two things we have to clear up and understand how we start the game in Game 7, how we set the tone, and hopefully build momentum and just keep it the entire game and bring that effort that it requires to win a championship.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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