	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: THUNDER v MAVERICKS

May 21, 2011

Kevin Durant

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA: Game Three

DALLAS MAVERICKS Â– 93
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER - 87

Q. Kevin, how do you explain the start? Can you explain it?
KEVIN DURANT: Oh, man. Frustrating. It's tough to start a game, make shots, and you give teams easy baskets. That's like a back-breaker. They did a good job of making it tough for us, man. You've got to give those guys credit. We couldn't make shots, but I thought we kept fighting, and that was one positive thing out of it, but we've got to do better.

Q. Did they do anything different defensively against you guys that they didn't do the first two games?
KEVIN DURANT: They doubled a lot more off pick-and-rolls, post-ups. They did a good job of doubling and making us pass the ball, me, James and Russell, and just made it tougher on us, man. They did a good job. We've got to adjust, and I'm confident we will. We've got to figure out ways to have a better start. You know, it happened like that the last three games, so we've got to be better.

Q. I don't know if a guy like you ever suffers from a lack of confidence, but your last two games from three you haven't made one.
KEVIN DURANT: Oh, I know.

Q. Do you suffer at all from that?
KEVIN DURANT: No. I was telling myself after the game, I'm like, it's not like me to miss 13 -- 12 or 13 threes in a row. I get them up every day. I work on it every day. It is just a matter of me being confident. I can't come into the game and, you know, pass up on wide-open shots. I got three or four wide-open threes tonight that looked good; just didn't fall.
But I've got to stay confident, stay positive. I know my teammates are going to pick me up and encourage me every time I step on that floor, so I am in good hands. I feel good.

Q. Dirk was struggling a lot with his offense most of the night, as well, but they got him the ball. They went to him and milked him in the fourth quarter for big baskets. Were you disappointed, frustrated at all that you didn't get those opportunities so much in the fourth quarter?
KEVIN DURANT: No. I mean, I felt that we got back into the game. We was running the offense pretty well. Everybody was touching the basketball. We was playing team ball. You know, Russell had it going, so you had to go to him. He was making his plays to get back into the game.
We got some good looks. Down six and we missed two wide-open threes, so we was right where we wanted to be after being down 20, fighting back in three or four minutes left. So we fought hard.
But as far as myself getting the ball, I think that Russ had it going and Daequan came in the game, so we was looking for him and James, and everybody was being aggressive. It wasn't just about one guy getting the ball. We were down, so we can't just throw the ball to me in my spots and me go to work. We had to get quick points.

Q. You guys fought so hard to get home court advantage with that win in Game 2 and now you lose it so quickly in Game 3. How disappointing is that for you?
KEVIN DURANT: It's very disappointing, but we know what we had to do. First we have to take care of home floor next game, and then we've got to go back on the road. We've won there before, so we've got to come back and bring a different mindset. We know it's going to be tough. The rest of the series is going to be tough. But if it was easy, everybody would do it. So we've got to come out and play Thunder basketball from the beginning.

Q. Some of your best plays in the game offensively were some of the great cuts and dishes from Russell to you going to the basket. Is there anything you think in retrospect you could have done better offensively, moving maybe without the ball to get yourself more free for more open looks?
KEVIN DURANT: Don't get me wrong, I missed a lot of chippies. I missed three or four wide-open jump shots, three or four wide-open threes. But when I'm not going, I've got to try to get to the rim and get some free throws. I think I did that.
But yeah, I've got to cut a little bit more without the basketball because they're not leaving me at all. They're doubling if I catch the ball; pick-and-rolls, they're doubling. So I've got to move without the basketball and do a way better job. Just got to watch film and see how I can adjust.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297