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NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: CELTICS VS CAVALIERS

May 25, 2017

Tyronn Lue

Boston, Massachusetts: Postgame

Cavaliers - 135, Celtics - 102

Q. Ty, the situation you were thrown into last year and the whirlwind that you walked into going into The Finals, I wonder now that you've had a full year with this team and had your chance to put your stamp on it, for you personally how does this compare to last year at this point?
TYRONN LUE: I thought last year just everything had happened so fast. I really didn't get a chance to really soak it all in. It just happened so fast. You get hired, the next day you've got a game, and it just kind of went from there.

This year I thought the season really went by fast, the regular season. But you know, for me I thought that we stuck with it. We hit a lot of tough patches throughout the season, a lot of injuries. This team is a crazy team; they just stayed resilient all year, got to the playoffs, and we really stepped our game up. I thought defensively throughout this whole playoff run, we've been really good.

As far as the difference, you know, really no difference.

Q. Some people in your locker room downplayed the significance of a rivalry between the Cavs and the Warriors, but you embraced it, you accepted it. How much have the Warriors been on your mind, your coaching staff's mind, your mind as you go into the first ever trilogy in NBA Finals history?
TYRONN LUE: Well, like I said before, of course I watch every game because I'm a basketball junkie, and they've been playing great. But you can't get too far ahead of yourself. You saw that in Game 3 at home versus Boston. They're a tough team. They're greatly coached, and they have a lot of tough players. So you just can't look ahead and start thinking and game planning for Golden State, as great as they are. You still have to take care of your business. Now that we've done that, we can move on, turn the page and start focusing on Golden State and getting ready.

But to be honest, I didn't do not one prep for Golden State yet because I really believe that this [Boston] team is a good team and I didn't want to look too far ahead. As of tonight I'll get started.

Q. I was going to ask how long you enjoy this one before you look ahead to the Warriors.
TYRONN LUE: I enjoy everything. I enjoy every win. This is a big step for us, especially what we went through all season, and we were doubted throughout the regular season all year. To come back and do what we did, to go 12-1 in the playoffs, to be playing good basketball, I'm very happy and I'm going to enjoy it until we play Golden State. With that being said, tonight I'll start my prepping, and we'll see what happens.

Q. If I can go back to the previous game when LeBron got his fourth foul, comparing how you feel now, what were you thinking and were you worried about the resiliency of the team at that point and how it might all come out?
TYRONN LUE: No. I mean, we have two other All-Stars in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. Kyrie did a great job of scoring the basketball to keep us afloat, and Kevin rebounded the basketball and scoring, also. With LeBron getting three fouls, either he would have went out with 10 minutes to go in the second quarter or went out with six with four fouls, so the fourth foul was not really significant. He was going out either way. So you take him out with three, he's out with 10 minutes to go in the second quarter. You take him out with four, he's out with six minutes.

The way we were playing, the way Boston was playing, they were playing really well. I thought I should keep him on the floor, but when he got his fourth foul, our team did a great job of just showing confidence in themselves and holding it down until he got back.

Q. Could the Big Three be playing better than they are right now?
TYRONN LUE: Yes (chuckling).

Q. Ty, just wondering, Brad talked about how the shot making of Kyrie in the third quarter just ended him, ended the Celtics and essentially their playoff run. What were your thoughts of the shots he was making to start that second half?
TYRONN LUE: That's what he does. If you look back at Game 4, he did the same thing when LeBron went out.

The shots that he made, and to go one-on-one, being one of the best iso players that we have in this league, those are shots he can make and those are shots that he takes. We just need him to be aggressive at all times, whether he's being aggressive to make the right pass or being aggressive to score the basketball.

That's what we need him to do to be successful.

Q. What can you say about LeBron making seven straight Finals and also that streak and the amount of work that's gone into that, how does that cause you to manage him as a coach?
TYRONN LUE: I don't understand the question.

Q. Do you have to give him periodic rest throughout the course of a regular season in order for him to be able to perform to get back to the final stage?
TYRONN LUE: Yeah. Throughout the course of the season, just really rarely practiced anyway, so just getting days off of practice, certain games when it is four games in five nights we've got to be smart with that. He usually tells us when his body is not feeling right or Mike [Mancias] comes and tells us when his body is not feeling right. For the most part he's very durable. And when it's time to give him rest, we've got to give him rest, because like I said, these situations, seven straight Finals, playing into June every single season, you've got to be very smart about that.

Q. Did the play of Deron tonight characterize the way your veteran team and the championship quality of your team the way you challenge each other?
TYRONN LUE: Yeah, D-Will was great. Coming in off the bench and scoring the ball, the way he scored the basketball, shooting the ball well, and just playing confident. That's what you get from a veteran who's been an All-Star, been a max player a couple times. That's why we went and got him, for situations like this -- big stage, big moments -- and he produced. That's why it's great to have veterans like that on your team.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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