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NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: TRAIL BLAZERS VS. WARRIORS

May 14, 2019

Draymond Green

Oakland, California - Postgame 1

Golden State 116, Portland 94.

Q. How are you able to come out defensively and kind of keep those guys [Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum] in check?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Obviously they are the focal point of our defensive game plan, and I think we just, we did a really good job of sticking to that game plan. You know, you can play that same defense and they can really get it going. We have to make sure we stay locked in on the details moving forward and understand that Damian is not going to have the game that he had the rest of the series and neither is CJ but we have to do whatever we can as a team to try to continue to force them to have those type of games.

Overall I thought our defense was really locked in. We had a few mistakes that we can kind of fix, and also I think we can rebound the ball a little better. You're going to give up some of that when you play them the way we're playing them but we are still clean that up.

Q. Steph tonight, how much of that was the way they defended them?
DRAYMOND GREEN: When you're guarding like that, you're obviously going to get cleaner looks. The Rockets were switching everything, so it was -- Steph got downhill quite a bit, but it's good to see Steph have a game like that at a time that obviously we need it most. It was really big for us, and I expect him to continue to play that way.

Q. We saw the bench come up big in Game 6 against Houston. Steve [Kerr] says this series bodes well to play more reserves, but how did you see that game bleed over into this one with big games from [Jordan] Bell and [Jonas] Jerebko tonight?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Steve told us a couple days ago, or yesterday, that "everybody be ready because this is a series that everyone could possibly play in." You know, those guys, we've said it over and over again, they are professionals. They stay locked in. You know, every day I walk into the gym and Jonas is in there shooting, waiting for his opportunity. He's played big for us the last two games and we'll need him to continue doing that moving forward.

It was a great effort by everybody who came off the bench. JB was huge. Jonas like I said was huge. Quinn [Cook] gave us great minutes. Shaun [Livingston] gave us great minutes, [Kevon] Looney. Everybody who stepped out there was ready to go, and you know, this series is going to get tougher and tougher. Contrary to what every headline will say tomorrow, we know how tough it will be. We need those guys to stay locked in and continue to give us what they have been giving us these last two games.

I also think that Game 6 helped confidence-wise, as well. You're talking about guys who had not really played the entire playoffs. So to have the Game 6 they had against Houston, I think it boded well for us tonight.

Q. You guys know as well as anybody, it doesn't take much to get Steph rolling, but you just mentioned Game 6. How much of what happened in the second half for him do you think carried over into the way he produced tonight?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I think it had a huge impact. You know, just has -- you know, as a player, you want to keep that roll and you try to feed off the momentum for the last game and carry it over. You know, he came out from the gate aggressive; also understanding that Kevin [Durant] is out, and our offense going to be even -- you know, he's going to be even more important in our offense, and he came out with that mindset. You know, he got it rolling from the gate.

Q. You know, Damian is from Oakland and loves the city, and probably spent a lot of time watching games here when he was younger. What type of player is he to you in your mind playing in the NBA?
DRAYMOND GREEN: I mean, he's a great player, one of the best guards we've got in this league. He carries a chip on his shoulder, and it's boded really well for him throughout his career. He's been able to accomplish some things that great players are not able to accomplish their entire career, you know, in a 15-year career.

Obviously a special talent. I know he's excited to be back home playing in this series with -- you know, this being the last year of the Oracle, he grew up not too far away from this arena.

So it's a special thing for him, but that don't mean nothing to us. We've got to come out and try to stop him, which is a tall task. So we've got to keep our same mindset. We're not really focused on the stories, you know that, builds this thing up. That has nothing to do with us. It's all about what we do out there off and on the floor.

Q. Can you speak to the focus of the team the last two games? You never want to see a great player go down like Kevin, but it seems like you're stepping up more; Klay, Steph, you guys are really embracing the challenge.
DRAYMOND GREEN: I mean, you know, it makes everything tougher for sure, when you lose a guy like Kevin. He's important to things we do on both sides of the ball. But we also know one guy is not going to step in and makeup for what Kevin brings up to the team, so it's up to everybody to step their game up a couple notches, and for the last two games, we've done that.

Like I said before, as the series goes on, it's going to get tougher and tougher and that's our understanding moving forward, but we'll need guys to continue stepping up when Kevin's out, and also when he comes back, continue to play with that same aggressiveness.

Q. To see Damian Jones make his first playoff appearance? Seeing what he's been through, can that add something?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Yeah, it's great. I also, you know, as we said earlier in the year, Damian adds something to this team that we don't have, which is a lob threat. You know, when you have a lob threat like Damian, what he does for your floor space, it's very similar to what you -- putting a shooter on the perimeter will do for your floor space.

It was good to see him get back out there. We've seen all year since the Detroit game in the weight room rehabbing for this entire season, and to see him get out there and get an opportunity to play tonight was key, and I wouldn't be shocked if sometime in this series, he's thrown out there for some real minutes. Because like I said, he adds something that we don't have, so I'm happy for him. Kind of caught me by surprise. I saw him in the layup line, he looked at me like, yeah.

It's good to have him back out there.

Q. You and Jordan bell shared a moment in the midcourt in the third quarter. What do you think about Jordan's ability to bounce back from a turbulent season and stay in the rotation as of late?
DRAYMOND GREEN: Once again, true professional. He's a young guy and you usually don't expect that from a young guy. Young guys, they tend to -- "Oh, man, I'm not playing." And they sulk and they complain. I have not seen him one time sulk and I have not seen him one time complaining.

He's stayed upbeat and he's stayed in the gym working on his game and he's gotten his opportunity the last two games to show what he's capable of doing. He's given us some big minutes. That moment there in the third quarter, I honestly don't remember. So, yeah, great to have him playing the way he's playing, though.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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