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NBA PLAYOFFS ROUND ONE: CLIPPERS vs WARRIORS

April 13, 2019

Steve Kerr

Oakland, California: Game One

Warriors - 121, Clippers - 104

Q. What can you say about the way you guys finished the first, second and third quarters in particular? You guys had runs at the end of each quarter to get control of the game.
STEVE KERR: Yeah, it's important to close quarters strong and keep the momentum going, so I was pleased with that. I think all in all, we played really hard, which was great. We didn't play that well or that smart, and this is a way -- what we've got to think about is are we going to let down because we've won a game? No, we've got to keep playing hard, and we've got to play smarter than we did tonight.

So good start, but a long way to go.

Q. What did you see from Draymond in the first quarter on both ends of the floor that you think helped set the tone for everything?
STEVE KERR: Well, I mean, he was so competitive and emotional, and that's why he made brilliant plays and he made some not-so-brilliant plays. I think he had four turnovers in the first half. He's throwing the ball all over the place, but he was playing so hard. And that's what makes Draymond who he is.

We're always willing to live with some mistakes because he -- the positives far outweigh the negatives with Draymond, as we know.

But we've got to come in in Game 2, whenever that is, and take care of the ball. We had 22 turnovers, I think, 21 turnovers. Many of them just mind numbing. So we've got to clean that up, and we'll be in better shape.

Q. Warriors pulled down 53 rebounds, you have four players, seven more rebounds. Curry pulled down 15 himself. Can you talk a little bit about that and what contributed to him getting those high-volume --
STEVE KERR: Steph is a tremendous rebounder. He's just got a knack for being in the right place at the right time. He's quick to the ball, great hands. He's one of the better rebounding guards in the league. That's a pretty high number, though. But I think we forced a lot of tough shots from them. Our defense was good, and as a result, there were a lot of rebounds to be had.

Q. You kind of mentioned the turnovers in your last answer a couple answers ago, 21. How important is it to -- obviously it looks like guys played hard and the effort was there, but like you said, some of those turnovers, mind-numbing. How important is it to cut those turnovers out and just kind of engrain it in your team to protect the ball?
STEVE KERR: Well, we talk to our team all the time about if we win the possession game, if we get more more shot attempts, more possessions than our opponent, we're awfully tough to beat.

Sometimes our guys are so passionate and competitive and they want to go, but they started passing that emotion and getting away from themselves, almost like a quarterback running from pressure and throwing it long down the middle. It's like center fielders are out there waiting to pick those off.

That's great. That was a baseball and a football metaphor in one answer. So now we've just got to keep going.

Q. Do you think Kevin kind of took the bait a little bit with Beverley tonight?
STEVE KERR: Oh, sure, we took the bait. He took the bait. That's two technicals. You get seven technicals, your seventh one is a suspension in the Playoffs. Whether you play four playoff games or 24, seven is the magic number. He's got four to play with. After one game.

But that's what Beverley does. We talked about it for the last couple days. He's a hell of a defender. He plays hard. Got a lot of respect for him.

We already talked about it for two days. That's one of our keys, don't take the bait, and we took it, so you just can't do it. But sometimes you have to feel it before you can follow through and execute on that. So we're going to have to be really solid.

Q. Putting in the Hamptons five death lineup, whatever you want to call it, six and a half minutes into the second quarter, what was your thought process behind that, and what did you get from that?
STEVE KERR: That's our best lineup. Somebody told me today it's the best five-man lineup in the league from a numbers standpoint. That's our best lineup, so in the Playoffs we'll play that lineup more often than we would in the regular season. So we're going to go to it a little earlier. It's not exactly rocket science.

Q. Is Steph Curry playing as well right now as you've ever seen him play, and do you have any reflections on the new career post-season three-point leader for the NBA?
STEVE KERR: Yeah, Raymond told me that on the walk over. That's remarkable, given that he's kind of right in his prime. He's got a lot of years left. But Steph has played in a lot of playoff games, and he's come through so often, and I get asked that a lot, is this the best he's playing. It seems like every year that's the question: Is this the best he's playing, is this the best he's playing. He's been playing his best for about five years, as far as I can see.

Q. DeMarcus got his playoff feet wet tonight. I'm sure he didn't put up the type of game that he expected, but what did you think of his performance and what do you say to him after a game like this?
STEVE KERR: I don't need to say anything to DeMarcus. It was a frustrating night for him, fouling out, a couple tough calls. But it was important for him to get his feet wet and feel the Playoffs, feel the energy, and I have no doubt he'll come back and play a lot better in Game 2.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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