NBA FINALS: CELTICS VS. WARRIORS

June 12, 2022

Kevon Looney

Golden State Warriors

Practice Day

Q. Who is your model as a rebounder?

KEVON LOONEY: I would say nobody in particular I try to model rebounding after. It's something that, you know, I kind of always been pretty good at. Something that I like to do, and just picking it up and playing a lot of basketball all my life, learn -- a lot of little tricks I learn and talk to Coach Decky (Dejan Milojevic), got it down to a science. He says what I should do better off of rebounds and things like that, and we talk about body position, stuff we've been focusing on all year.

Not one person I model after, but you know, just watching a lot of film myself just trying to study and trying to see what I can change and do better.

Q. You've gotten better over the last few years?

KEVON LOONEY: Definitely got better, like I said, getting it down to a science. Knowing when to go and knowing when it's going to help my team, knowing when to get back on defense.

Just learning my body position, learning my strength and knowing, getting used to where Steph is going to shoot it from, where Klay is going to shoot it from and where misses are going to come off and different things like that. Coach Decky has been on me all year about different body position and different angles and how to use your hands in the post. Got a lot better this year.

Q. Dirty trick?

KEVON LOONEY: I wouldn't say anything dirty. I don't know, you have to have them if they think it's dirty or not.

Q. How do you look at this series now, 2-2, best of three?

KEVON LOONEY: This is what you live for. After losing Game 1, we knew we would have to get a game on the road, and now we come back, home court.

They are a team that I don't think they lost two in a row since (March) or something crazy like that. You know they are going to respond and you know they are going to come out hard and probably try to punch us in the mouth early, but we've got to be able to impose our will. And this is what we wanted. This is what we wanted home court for, best two-out-of-three, and we got two of them at home. Just protect home court.

Q. How do you look at it, they are 7-0 after a loss and you're 6-0 after a loss (in the Playoffs). How do you break that pattern?

KEVON LOONEY: You know, good teams got to find ways to win, put games together. We are both great teams, and I think we both been showing that all year; that whenever you lose or get punched in the mouth, we always come back and impose our will. We have to protect home court, and we know what they are built of and made of.

We know they are not going to lay down. It's going to be a physical game, and we have to execute our game plan for 48 minutes. There are games where you put it together for 41 or 42. This is going to take more than that. So we are up for the challenge.

Q. I know he has not played much this season, but what has Andre's presence been like since he came back?

KEVON LOONEY: His presence been huge, just another leader in our locker room. He's a guy that he's an extension of the coach on the court, and even on the bench. He's a guy that everybody can go talk to and get advice, from not just the young guys but to Steph and Draymond and to me. He's somebody that we all lean on him when things aren't going well. He not only has the right things to say, he knows the adjustments we need to make.

He has a lot of experience playing against them with the Heat a few times in the playoffs. He has been great for our locker room and our younger guys and veterans. He means the world to this team.