NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: WARRIORS vs KINGS

April 20, 2023

Moses Moody

Media Conference

Warriors 114, Kings 97

Q. Moses, in Game 1 you didn't play any; you got about eight and a half minutes in Game 2. Steve said that you earned your way into the rotation tonight. Was there any conversations especially with Draymond out, Gary out, as far as what your role would be going into tonight?

MOSES MOODY: We know nothing is necessarily certain going into the game but Draymond did came to practice the other day and really talked to everybody saying everybody going to have to step up, play more minutes, take on some of his role, and the GP thing was last minute, too. Nothing was set in stone beforehand.

Q. What did you think about your guys 'energy right from the start tonight?

MOSES MOODY: Yeah, it was great. Some of that has to go to the fans. It was a great turnout. They came out and they gave us energy. We fed off that all game.

Q. Yesterday Bob Myers said the attitude has to be, can't complain. Was that easy to do, to say, you know what, it happened and now we just have to go win a basketball game?

MOSES MOODY: Yeah, you know just like is anything in life, you can't really, once the decision is made and it's set, complaining about it don't really do you that much good, especially when you have a must-win game coming up. We had to deal with it and we got the job done.

Q. When you're getting regular minutes and don't know when you're going to go in, when you get into the game it might seem natural to try to feel it out and see how the game is going, but on this team, if you get an open shot, you've got to take it. How do you prepare for coming into a game and not necessarily being in the flow and having to be ready to shoot?

MOSES MOODY: I don't necessarily get regular minutes. All year, it's been the same situation, same circumstance, coming in, you don't know if you're going to get two minutes or 25 minutes.

So I've had a lot of practice at it, and so at this point, you know, it's the playoffs so it's obviously a different circumstance but just come in there and do what I've been doing.

Q. Second straight year, you've been injected into the rotation during the playoffs. What do you like about playoff basketball and what do you think your game translates well to, like this type of basketball?

MOSES MOODY: Humbly speaking, I've always been a winner. Like throughout, since I was a kid playing, my team was the Magic. We won the Pennant Boys & Girls Club championship, so I've always been in winning situations and playing for a lot to lose, must-win situation, must-win games and had a lot of practice at it.

I'm not going to act like I've got the ultimate poise or anything or any of that but I like the moment. I like the situation. High intensity basketball, everybody -- every possession means a lot. That's how I've always play.

Q. You got these important minutes and Kuminga is playing big minutes in the fourth quarter. We talk about the young guys coming on; some pride that you two guys did do it in this game?

MOSES MOODY: Yeah, I don't even necessarily feel that young guys versus old guys or any of that. I feel like it's must-win game. So everybody's got to handle their own and do their part to do a must-win.

Q. All your teammates have won for a long time. How do you think the history motivates you guys?

MOSES MOODY: Yeah, I feel like winning is a skill. Some people coming up as a kid, you might not have been on a good team. Then you go to college, and college, might not have been that good or high school, you might have been the best one but your team doesn't win. You come to the NBA and you might go to a team that's not that good. So you've never really been in that circumstance coming up.

So I feel like that's really a positive when you can and you're used to not necessarily winning by fighting to win or sacrifice to go win, all the things that go into winning.