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NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS: ROCKETS vs WARRIORS

April 28, 2019

Kevin Durant

Oakland, California: Game One

Warriors - 104, Rockets - 100

Q. How would you compare [inaudible]?
KEVIN DURANT: It's hard to compare. Each stop along the journey has been -- I don't know, it's just been tailor made for the moment. You learn a lot so far as a player up to this point. So I think I'm starting to put everything together out there on both sides of the ball. And I'm not looking at points or shots that I get up, just how focused I am at each possession.

Q. Stylistically, the Warriors, it seems like you're at your best when the ball moves and zips and all that stuff, and there's a real flow to the game. Do you guys, at this point with the Rockets, just know that's not what it's going to look like because of the fouls and the way they play? And how comfortable are you in that style?
KEVIN DURANT: I think I disagree with you. I think we're better as a team when we focus on defense. On offense we kind of play real unpredictable. We don't have a set way we're going to play; we just try to move the ball and find cracks and openings.

But if we're on the defensive side of the ball, if we're locked in, if we're all on one string, I think that's when we go to another level as a team.

Q. What are the things you liked about this game and maybe some things that you didn't like so much about this game, your general impressions?
KEVIN DURANT: I liked everything about the game. It was a fun game from top to bottom. Each player that stepped on the floor brought that intensity, brought that fire. And as a basketball player, I mean, that's all you can ask for.

Obviously it's never going to be a perfect basketball game, but I think one thing we can correct is turnovers. I had six of them myself trying to be aggressive in crowds. I gotta watch film and see how I can be better at that.

Outside of the turnovers, I think both teams came out and played with championship-level intensity. And I think it's going to happen for the rest of the series.

Q. How impactful was the hustle game today -- rebounding, defense, loose balls, things like that?
KEVIN DURANT: They feed off of our offensive rebounds. They had three of them. We outrebounded them by 12. But like I said the turnovers is really what kept them in the game.

We had 20 of them to 24 assists. But our hustle game and getting to loose balls and being there for each other on the drives, and just playing hard every possession, I think if we continue to do that and have that approach every night I think we're in solid shape.

Q. Late in the game there was a point where the Warriors, you guys locked down Eric Gordon on a double team. He didn't get the shot off; he turned it over. In the next sequence, you prevented Clint Capela from getting the dunk, tied him up, got the jump ball. Can you talk a little bit about the defense late in the game?
KEVIN DURANT: I think this team is so explosive on the offensive side of the ball that each time down we have to talk to each other, communicate and let guys know where the help is coming from. And we've got to finish each possession with a rebound.

So whatever happens in the possession, I think we've got guys that can do multiple things. Andre, who tied up Capela, I think -- somebody tied him up, Draymond, maybe. Just being in the right spot is the reason that happened, and contesting shots and, like I said, boxing out and seeing where our men are coming from on the perimeter.

Because they get a lot of long rebounds off the 3-pointers they shoot. So next game we've got to be prepared to box out even better and rebound even more.

Q. How much did those two technicals late in the third kind of give you guys some momentum going into the final quarter? And also to see Klay come out there warm up and play on a pretty sore ankle, what did that do for you guys?
KEVIN DURANT: I never doubted Klay was going to play. He has that toughness that he does that in the regular season. So I knew at this time of year he would tough it out. Hopefully this early start gives him a lot of time to kind of recover a little bit.

What was the first question?

Q. The technicals.
KEVIN DURANT: I don't think that gave us any momentum. I think if anything that definitely lit a fire under their group and they ramped up their intensity after that as well. So I think both teams are not worried about letting the refs get involved or letting anybody else get involved in the game.

We're going to play this ourselves, and I think that's the beauty of having us two teams on the floor.

Q. There's a lot of noise coming out of Houston. They feel like they got fouled on a lot of 3s tonight. What's the challenge of defending them, under them at times?
KEVIN DURANT: I think James is really good at getting a nice step-back, getting some space. So I think our guys tonight did a solid job of not lunging towards them, just getting a hand on the contests.

We try not to focus on what the refs are going to call. But we know that's what James does is he gives you a nice little move, gives you some space. He creates some space for himself and then knocks that -- and shoots that 3. So we've just got to contest the shot without fouling.

Q. Clint says he has to look at the tape, but what did you guys do differently maybe this game that limited his effectiveness on both ends?
KEVIN DURANT: I think we ran back on defense a lot when he was in the game because he's such a good runner; he gets a lot of transition buckets from off turnovers. I think on their live game, we tried not to come off of them too much, but be on the drives as well.

So we got our work cut out for us because we know he's going to come back and try to impose his will on the game. And we've got to step it up another notch as well.

Q. KD, when Klay is out there and you guys are switching on the perimeter and you know he's got, like, I guess a balky ankle, how tough is it for him to do what he does even if he's got an okay wheel?
KEVIN DURANT: I don't think Klay's -- he's only focused on what's in front of him at the time. And if I can get inside his head right now he probably wasn't even thinking about his ankle. He was just trying to play his hardest for the team. We definitely appreciate Klay for that, because his ankle, that twist was pretty bad. But he came out and played with great focus all night.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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