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NBA PLAYOFFS ROUND ONE: TRAIL BLAZERS vs WARRIORS

April 16, 2017

Draymond Green

Oakland, California: Game One

Trail Blazers - 109, Warriors - 121

Q. What changed in the fourth quarter for you guys, and what does it say that you guys were able to overcome the game that their back court had and still get a win?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Well, I think it started with our crowd, the entire game, kept us in it, because those guys were hitting shots that usually drains the life out of the building. Our crowd brought it from the beginning to the end. So we were able to feed off that until we were able to get our ground.

Then it started with the energy of JaVale there in that third quarter. And though they made a run at the end to close it out, our energy transferred over. Then David came in, and he was huge. He was huge on those ball screens. Damian couldn't get downhill anymore, CJ couldn't get downhill anymore, and we were able to get a grip, and then we went on a 15-2 run.

Q. Draymond, you mentioned the fans and their support. It seemed like there were a lot of times tonight where they got more excited about I a block of yours than that play when the guys were diving on the floor than hitting the three-pointer. Do you notice and appreciate that as a player?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Absolutely. You notice and appreciate it for sure. That spurs us as well. You get a play like that, and the entire crowd goes nuts. One of the worst feelings is when you do this and no one stands up. But they were there every time for us. It gives us energy as well to continue to do it and do more. All of a sudden, we hit a shot, and they're going crazy. We come back down and get another stop and they're even louder. That helps us out a lot.

Q. What does it feel like either emotionally or physically when you get the block by putting your hand directly on the ball, when you block them right at the rim as opposed to when you swat it out of the air?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I mean, when you block it at the rim, it's a little different because that's one of those plays where you're within a half inch to a centimeter of being dunked on. So when you actually come up with the block, you know, it's a bit more excitement. When you're coming across and you get a swat, that's usually weakside. You come across the top and you get a swat on a guy.

But at the rim it's mono-a-mono, man against man. Who is going to win the battle? It's just a different type of emotion.

Q. The one on Damian in particular, did you hear anything?
DRAYMOND GREEN: No, I didn't. I didn't hear anything.

Q. Your hand on the ball or his reaction or anything?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Oh, no. I heard the crowd. That's about all I heard. Everything else pretty much that's it.

Q. When it's Durant and Curry coming out in the start of the second, start of the fourth and you're in that lineup, do you know that has to be a defensive lineup?
DRAYMOND GREEN: 100%, and that was the whole thought about going behind that lineup for Coach Kerr. He said to me, he said the defensive intensity of this lineup could change the game for us. So we went to it earlier in the year when K.D. was still healthy and it started working for us and it was on the defensive end. Getting back to it at this point in the season, we knew the offense was there. We had 88 points at the end of the third quarter, but the problem was they had 88 points. So we knew we had to come out and get stops if we were ever going to pull away in that game and start that quarter off. That group did it, and then we were able to knock down some shots, but it started with our defense.

Q. Draymond, McCollum, and Lillard, in a game like this, is this where the teams just said, hey, it looks like they're going to get theirs, we just have to shut everyone else down because the rest of the Trail Blazers were like 12 of 39 from the floor? Was this one of those games where you just let them roll and make sure nobody else?
DRAYMOND GREEN: No, you don't let them roll because they can beat you. You've got to give them a lot of credit. They've got it going. When they get it going like that, they're two of the toughest guys in the league to stop.

You know, but at some point we knew that we had to make a defensive stand and that we would get some stops. It started there in the beginning of that fourth quarter. All of a sudden, they weren't getting a bunch of easy stuff.

Then, I mean, quite frankly, they were hitting some tough shots in the first half as well. Damian hit a bunch of floaters. CJ hit tough fadeaways and tough threes over contested hands. But we knew at some point you have to make them miss. You can do all you want and say oh, man, I got a great contest and he hit a tough shot, but at some point we have to make them miss. And we know if we continue to play tough defense like that on them and make them take tough shots for the entire 48 minutes, eventually they'll wear down a little bit and miss a couple.

Q. Steve talked last week how you're a guy who really needs stakes and the last few season games there weren't stakes. How anxious were you to get started in the Playoffs for this moment?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Very anxious. As I said, when you're out there playing for the last few games, there was no disrespect to anyone. They just felt like pre-season games. You're not playing are for anything. You're just out there trying to get through. It's tough to get going for that. But to start these Playoffs was very exciting. We know we have a tough team coming in here, a team that, quite frankly, probably shouldn't be the eight seed, but they had some bumps in the road early on in the season and that's why they're where they are.

We know it's not their typical 1-8, and where you don't have to play your best to win the games. We have to put great effort out there to win the games. It's very exciting to get into this game and get the playoff basketball back. It's a completely different season and completely different basketball out there. I've been looking forward to it for a couple weeks now.

Q. Was there any extra yapping going? It looked like maybe you and McCollum and Lillard and maybe another couple guys were getting into it. And did McCollum specifically say something to you after you missed that huge dunk attempt? Looked like he was gesturing to you a little bit?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Yeah, he told me I need to do more calf raises (laughing). No, we were talking back and forth the entire game, but that's just a part of the game. It's mutual respect both ways. We've played those guys last year in the series, but quite a bit over the last four or 5 years where you kind of know them, they know you.

But we all know each other off the floor as well. It's not like there's anyone out there being disrespectful towards another. It's fun. You hit a shot, he's talking to us. I hit a shot, I'm talking to them. I miss the dunk, he's telling me I need to do calf raises. It was good back and forth, it makes the game a lot more fun, that's for sure.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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