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NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: WARRIORS vs ROCKETS

May 21, 2018

Kevin Durant

Oakland, California: Practice Day

Q. I'm curious about -- we all know Andre [Iguodala] does so many things that maybe we don't recognize on first glance, but when you look back on the film, he was totally locked in yesterday. What's that do for the team and how do you make sure that maintains in Game 4 after a 41-point win, that you guys could let your guard down won't be an issue for this team?
KEVIN DURANT: I wouldn't say it's an issue. But it could happen here and there for us, and if it happens at the wrong time, that's when it becomes a huge issue.

When we tend to just focus in on each possession, there are going to be times when we make mistakes. That's just part of the game. But when we focus in and we're flying around and playing extremely hard, anticipating really well and seeing things before they happen, we're a really good team.

Andre is a guy that does that night in and night out for us. We feed off his energy. We feed off his athletic plays, his team plays. Whether it's getting steals, getting deflection, getting a hockey assist. That stuff makes us feel good.

Q. How do you prevent a letdown after a 41-point win, and make sure what happened in Game 2 doesn't happen tomorrow?
KEVIN DURANT: Well, we've just got to play good, play hard, play better. Just know where we are in the season. It's the Western Conference Finals. You have an opportunity to be on the home floor, being up 2-1. So it's pretty easy at this point in the season to know what you're doing out there. I expect everybody to just be on point, be focused.

Q. Draymond [Green] said last night that Steph's three can bring down the house the way many guy's dunks can. What is your take on that, and what is the best celebration you've seen him do?
KEVIN DURANT: Oh, yeah, when Steph knocks down a three at the crib, it's just like, just him shooting a three at the crib is just as impactful. They've been around, and Steph has been doing it so long and made so many timely shots here, so many shots here, when he goes up to shoot, especially when it's open, you hear the crowd is just roaring. And that energy right there is good for us and we feed off of that as well. It might not even be a make, it's just he gets a shot up and so many people are excited about it so that shows the love that the fans have for the game and Steph in particular. It just does so much for us at home.

Q. Before Steph broke open you guys were incredibly supportive of him. It was just a matter of time and you had full confidence. Is this one of the most supportive locker rooms that you've been in?
KEVIN DURANT: Every locker room I've been in has been supportive. You want to see your teammates do well, especially this time of the year. I didn't think we were over the top with anything with Steph. We treated him the same. I didn't think we went overboard with the encouragement or the talks or the calling late nights or the texts and stuff. In my opinion I feel like it would have made him feel like something was wrong. I didn't think anything was wrong with it.

He competes all the time, and everybody doesn't make every shot they put up, but that's a great expectation to have for a player, but it's not realistic. So I just knew it was a matter of time for him to be able to find a rhythm and get going.

Q. You guys, like when he drops an F-bomb on occasion, is that so out of character for him?
KEVIN DURANT: [Bleep] yeah.

Q. The Warriors haven't lost a home playoff game since you've been here the last two years. What do you guys do so well at home that maybe you aren't able to quite do on the road?
KEVIN DURANT: I think our game travels. I think no matter what arena, no matter what time of the day it is, we just try to be the same solid basketball club. I think if we look at it from that way, it really doesn't matter if we're at home or on the road. I feel like definitely with a 6-0 run, it could turn into a 12, 14-0 run at home, that's just for any team, but I think if you play solid throughout the game, no matter where you play, I think that puts you in a good position to be successful and be consistent no matter what. Our focus really is trying to play as best as we can, no matter what.

Q. Steve [Kerr] said he thought you guys played with more pace at home and played faster. Do you see that?
KEVIN DURANT: No, I don't really see it because, like I said, I don't want to make this a home and a road thing. I think we lock in and play our brand of basketball in any city at any time. But when we lock in, really lock in every possession, it really doesn't matter who we play. But when we come out there and too relaxed and too satisfied, that's when teams usually creep back in. That usually happens a little bit too much for us as a team. So it doesn't matter who we play, but we've got to be on every possession.

Q. On Draymond's defense.
KEVIN DURANT: Draymond's attention to detail, his athleticism, long arms, his communication, he's kind of playing the back line of defense and talking everybody through stuff, especially when playing a perimeter oriented team. You've got to guard stuff at the three-point line, and it's hard to kind of get into help position and slide over and take a charge or get a blocked shot because you're playing to the perimeter, and Draymond's behind you just kind of telling you what to do knowing that he's at the rim to help you on the back side. It gives you more confidence with the ball.

Q. What impresses you most about how Kevon Looney takes advantage of every minute and every chance he gets?
KEVIN DURANT: Just excited that Loon comes in and works on his game every day. When his opportunity comes, he knows that the work that he puts in -- we know the work that he puts in on a day-to-day basis. We trust him that when he gets the opportunity. I'm just proud that he comes in and works as a true pro every day.

Q. Is this the series a lot of people expected it to be? I mean the two best teams in the Western Conference. Are you surprised there hasn't been a game yet where both teams haven't played their best basketball, there have been no games that have been in single digits in this series?
KEVIN DURANT: I just think that the style of play the NBA is in right now, there are a lot of three-point shots and a lot of space. So close games, especially in the Western Conference, because we have a lot of teams that play small and play fast, it's going to be a game -- it might be a 10, 15-point game. But throughout the meat of the game it's always pretty tight.

So a team that shoots a lot of threes, us, Houston, New Orleans, even San Antonio sometimes they're making threes, Utah, you talk teams in the playoffs, the three-pointer's such a huge part of the game now that it could easily go from 6 to 16 or 17 in a matter of seconds in the game. So I wouldn't say it's just not -- the games aren't good. It's just the fact that the style of play causes teams to pull away a little faster.

Q. Steph has been so deadly from five-feet and in in this series, 19-for-24, why has he had so much success taking it to the hole?
KEVIN DURANT: Because he's getting lay-ups. In the paint, they're trying to force him off the three, and he's taking his time. He's patient at the rim to finish the shots. So we'll need him to continue to do that, and we've got to continue to keep playing and moving off the ball.

Q. Steve said they're going to take that up with the league, the double tech. You were right close around that point. Do you agree with him?
KEVIN DURANT: I don't even know. I mean, two guys are fiery and want to win. Two guys like Trevor [Ariza] and Draymond are just the ultimate competitors. Stuff happens out there. They've both got enough money to pay for it.

Q. When an offensive player starts to see the ball around the basket, can he be helped by having a whole bunch of good defensive possessions?
KEVIN DURANT: Yeah, it just keeps you engaged mentally. It's easy to get out of it mentally when you miss a shot, especially when you've worked so hard. Those are your shots. It's hard to kind of stay in it. But as you get older and more experienced as a player, you know exactly what it takes to just stay in the game, stay locked in, stay focused. It makes the offense come around and gives you more confidence. Allows you to play more free. You're okay with missing shot. If you miss a good look, you know if you get that same look and you trust in your work, that it will go down.

Q. How important is it -- how do you see the team's defense throughout this season?
KEVIN DURANT: I think we had some stretches throughout regular season where we weren't at our best. I think that's just part of the game. Every other day, traveling, not being able to really focus on the opponent and taking away what we want to take away from the scouting report. It's hard to do that every game of the season because they come around so fast.

But I like our attention to detail. I like how we have each other's backs and we're communicating. If we want to continue to keep winning, we have to do it even better.

Q. Is this a must-win game in your eyes?
KEVIN DURANT: Must-win? We want to win.

Q. Is it a must-win?
KEVIN DURANT: I don't even know what that means.

Q. When Steph's going and the crowd's going like that, is there a carry over affect into practice after?
KEVIN DURANT: I think everybody here has their own taste of swagger, I guess. Lot of guys accomplished a lot in this league already, so they're confident in who they are as players. When you win a basketball game, you just kind of want to fight that, actually.

You don't want to come in here and have too much swagger and not put in the work you need to put in and not focus on what you need to focus on. So we want to come in, treat it like another day in practice, get better, and see what happens the next game.

Q. Steph said sometimes you have to be your own biggest fan out there if things aren't going exactly how you like. Do you take that same approach sometimes of I'm going to do my thing, regardless how it's going?
KEVIN DURANT: Yeah, I try to be my own biggest fan at all times of the day, and be my realest fan as well. I think I understand what Steph's saying with that, because so much that goes into the game is going to come out of that. It's really relying on confidence in yourself and abilities and your hard work. So I feel like every player is a huge fan of what they do, and know exactly what they do at the same time.

Q. What does it mean when Steph unleashes a F-bomb like that?
KEVIN DURANT: I've heard him curse a couple times. But when he releases the F-bomb, of course, I like it. No, I'm just kidding.

That word is an important word when you're playing basketball. It means so much. But I just like his excitement for the game and his intensity. The crowd feeds off of that, and we feed off our crowd.

Q. Why does it mean so much when you're playing basketball?
KEVIN DURANT: Because you can just say [Bleep] when you miss a shot or [Bleep] yeah when you make a layup.

Q. Have you ever shaken your booty like that?
KEVIN DURANT: No, hell no.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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