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NBA PLAYOFFS ROUND ONE: CLIPPERS vs WARRIORS

April 26, 2019

Kevin Durant

Los Angeles, California: Game Six

Warriors interview

Warriors - 129, Clippers - 110

Q. Was this the best game offensively you've ever had?
KEVIN DURANT: I don't know. I scored 50 points but I missed some good shots tonight. I feel like I could have made a few more. But I felt great. I felt great. It was a fun game, for sure.

Q. Seattle, on the 13th of May, is having a meeting to try to bring back the Sonics. Would you lend your name to any or give any support to that effort to bring the Sonics back to Seattle?
KEVIN DURANT: Since I've been in the league, since we left I've been screaming that team needs to go there. So, yeah.

Q. That's perfect. We'll reach out to you.
KEVIN DURANT: I'm sure somebody is just seeing that. I appreciate that. I like that question. It's good for the city like that.

Q. I saw you play up there, 2008 I guess it was, before you guys left. So that will be good to get the Sonics back to Seattle. I'm going to hold you responsible for that.
KEVIN DURANT: I'll take it. (Laughter).

Q. The point you made earlier this week about all the work you do behind the scenes to stay at this level consistently, what do you think's key in that routine and what is kind of the day-to-day with that?
KEVIN DURANT: First, it just starts with mentally preparing to work on my skills on a day-to-day. You can ask any NBA player, it's tough, especially when you've been here for so long, to keep doing the same things over and over again.

But those are what brings results. It's just pretty simple. Get up, get shots up, focus on the game when I'm at home. See how I can be better throughout the game. Just always just trying to be a student, to be honest. That's just been my approach.

Q. Obviously you had a good offensive game. Let's talk about the defense. Could you talk about how your defense flew around today? I know there was one possession where they doubled, you turned it over, you sprinted back and blocked Gallinari. Can you talk about the effort, not just you but all your guys defensively today?
KEVIN DURANT: Pat Beverley with another 14 rebound night. That's crazy. But I think we held them to 39 percent shooting which is a win for us. They outrebounded us, but I think we just made them miss tonight. We made them miss.

We made Lou Williams 3-for-21. Damn, I didn't know he was 3 for 21. That was a great job by Klay, Andre, making them see bodies and hands. But we just try to -- we just try to make everyone of their looks tough.

I think last game, they were just a little too free in their movements and their actions that they called, coming downhill, not really a body on them, shooting open 3s because we're leaving guys. I think tonight we just locked in more so more individual game plan for each player.

Q. Since you joined, the Clippers are one of the teams to push you to six wins. What would you say when they were predicted to get swept by most?
KEVIN DURANT: Anybody who predicts anything about basketball -- you can't predict this game. You can try to make assumptions but anything can happen and we expected that especially with this group. They might not have the huge names, but they've got great -- they've got players that can play on any team in this league from top to bottom -- from Gallinari, to Pat Bev to Lou Will, who was an all-world scorer, to Montrezl Harrell to -- down the line, they got just solid players.

We knew we had to play our A game for us to have a chance because they're well-coached. They're not going to stop playing. And they have fun playing with each other.

Q. Some of your teammates did not have great series or particularly great games. When that happens on nights like tonight, do you recognize that very early on and take it upon yourself to compensate for that offensively?
KEVIN DURANT: I just keep on humming no matter what. I just play my game through it all. I definitely don't want to go away from my teammates if they're struggling to shoot the ball. Still keep them in the game. But at the same time be aggressive and try to win the game as well.

But we trust in all our guys, and -- like, Klay, Steph, if they're not making shots early, we're still going to try to find them and get them going. I think they do that with everybody.

If I'm not going to start the game we're all trying to look for each other. We play a team game. When everybody touches the basketball, we're in good shape.

Q. You guys only have one day until your next game against the Houston Rockets. How do you recalibrate for a team that is as well-rested as they are?
KEVIN DURANT: In the NBA, we're pretty used to this schedule. We play a game, a day off, another game. We pretty much do that all year. It's pretty -- it's just our routine. Hopefully we come to play.

Q. You sort of touched on this a moment ago but this team has some high-powered scoring, obviously, some of your teammates. How do you balance that, when do you know -- you talked about when to be aggressive. Is it a feel? Is it how the defense is playing you, maybe the team needs it? How do you find that this is my game; I need to be the one to take those shots instead of Steph or Klay?
KEVIN DURANT: I just never know until the game starts. It's just a flow. I can't really explain it. If the game is -- I mean it's just a perfect balance we have. We've been playing with each other. We know each other. We have good chemistry. I know when Steph is going and he knows when I'm going and Klay and Dray, all the way down the line.

We sacrifice shots for each other. We sacrifice opportunities for each other. And I think Coach and everybody on the team kind of knows how the game is being played and who needs to touch it and what we need to run the offense through. I think everybody has a good feel and IQ for the game each night.

Q. I know you said you were lost in the game thinking about possessions, just getting the next possession, the next possession. When did you realize that things were going pretty well for you, especially in the first half?
KEVIN DURANT: I feel like every night goes well for me that I'm healthy and I get to play. And I get to just dive deep into the game. Misses and makes, they happen. But usually when I'm in it it's when I'm following a defensive game plan to the T, flying around on the defensive side. When we're all in one string, I think that's usually when I'm in the game.

Q. Coach Kerr mentioned that the Clippers brought the best out of the Warriors team. Can you mention what they brought out of you?
KEVIN DURANT: Well, their physical defense was one of those things. They've got multiple guys that don't give up on plays, especially with the movement that we have and the shooters, the guys around the 3-point line. They really didn't give up too many easy shots. And it starts there with them.

I've seen them all season. They play everybody tough. They get into everybody. They pick a full court. They're into your hip on pin-downs. They're going over the game plan. They're adjusting throughout the game. They're well-coached.

They play extremely hard. And they put together a good group of guys that can do multiple things. Lou coming off the bench, never complained about minutes or anything but knows he's going to play and play his game. So he's the guy that's kind of the head of the snake, and Montrezl Harrell as well.

Those two guys had phenomenal seasons and definitely -- I was always a huge Lou Williams fan but even more of a Lou Williams fan after this series and Montrezl Harrell, and the whole team. But those guys really stood out to me.

Q. You know James Harden's games over the years. What does it take as a team to minimize the fouls and get to go the free-throw line and what does he do to make that difficult?
KEVIN DURANT: I think even more important than the free throws just -- that's not his whole game. He can do everything. He can -- if you're not focused he can drive past you, hit you with his shoulder because he's a strong finish either hand. He shoots floaters now.

Obviously the step-back 3-pointers is one of his staples, but I never really believed he was just free throw guy. He can score in a variety of ways, so we have to be locked in from the beginning. You can't fully stop a guy like that; you've got to be ready to play him tough all game.

Q. When you're going into the playoffs, would you prefer playing a series where you know it's a 4-0 sweep, a little bit easier for you, or would you rather have a series like this where you were tested and you're battling?
KEVIN DURANT: Obviously we would love to win 4-0 every series. That would be ideal. But we know in the playoffs it's not really going to happen that way.

But I think just everybody in this locker room has been through every type of series. So we just prepare for anything. But definitely we would love a sweep for sure.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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