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NBA PLAYOFFS ROUND ONE: CLIPPERS vs WARRIORS


April 15, 2019


Steph Curry


Oakland, California: Game Two

Warriors - 131, Clippers - 135

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Professional athlete, you win and lose games, bounce back. Is this one going to be a little harder to bounce back from than most?
STEPH CURRY: No, it's just one game. I know the circumstances were tough with that big of a lead at home. Same mindset when you lose a game: It's 1-1. Got to go down to L.A., take two. We're starting on Thursday. Keep moving.

I think that's something about our team that we've been able to prove and demonstrate time after time. Our resiliency has to be there. It is tough. It's going to sting a little bit, just understanding how precious every game is in the playoffs series, for sure.

Q. In your mind what changed after you took that 31-point lead in the third?
STEPH CURRY: I think mainly just our aggressiveness definitely, our togetherness definitely. Lou Williams played amazing tonight. He had big shot after big shot. At some point, our collective kind of mindset, energy has to be there to just make it tough on him, get good shots on the offensive end as well. We turned the ball over a little bit too much.

I hated my fourth foul, almost eight minutes left in the third quarter. Our whole rotation changes. A lot of little things that end up giving them confidence. That snowball effect... Then it's just a make-or-miss situation the last six minutes. They made more shots than we did.

It's tough, for sure, considering how well we were playing up until that point.

Q. Sounds like DeMarcus is going to be out a while. If that's the case, how much do you feel for him, and what do you lose?
STEPH CURRY: It's tough, for sure. You feel for him considering what he's been through this last year. This is a big stage, the playoffs. He's been looking forward to this. I don't know the extent of the injury at this point. Hope he gets back sooner than later.

Just man-to-man in terms of him, what he's been through, it's tough for sure. There's no sugarcoating it at all. You hate seeing that opportunity again on this big stage taken away from him like that.

Q. You said when you picked up your fourth foul, it changed the rotation. When you got back in the game, did you feel different?
STEPH CURRY: It doesn't help, but I got to overcome that, for sure. It's not the first time I've been in foul trouble, had to come back. Rhythm, timing, whatever, you got to make plays. Eventually I made a big shot down the stretch. Wish I could have made one more, but...

You got to be just smarter, not put myself in a situation where a bang-bang call or a judgment call from the ref changes everything for us. That's on me.

Q. You've had some of these not good performances. Why do you think it's still happening in the playoffs?
STEPH CURRY: If I had the answer for it, a night like tonight wouldn't happen.

This game is tough. It's hard to win playoff games no matter what the matchup is, no matter what the history is, the regular season, team versus team. It's tough.

For six and a half quarters we played amazing. Had a 31-point lead. The wheels fell off. I know we can get it back. We obviously have shown that level of basketball is there for us. We got to put together 48 minutes of it, just a collective energy, positivity around everything we do.

Again, locker room was down, as it should be, because every game matters to us. We just got to bounce back.

Q. As the leader of the group, what do you feel like you have to do to keep everybody's spirits up?
STEPH CURRY: Just rely on experience, all that we've been through the last five years. We felt worse in the locker room before in terms of all the different playoff experiences we've had.

Again, that's the beauty of the playoffs. No matter what happens from game to game, it resets and you have another opportunity to build momentum between now and Thursday, be real honest about what went wrong in that second half, make adjustments, hold ourselves accountable. We get on that plane, it's a fresh start for us to take control of the series.

Q. Regarding DeMarcus' injury, the possibility of him being out, what do you need from the center spot?
STEPH CURRY: Exactly what they've been doing. They've been playing amazing the last part of the regular season and these first two games. Kind of interesting we signed them both when we did. Definitely going to help us, play obviously more minutes until DeMarcus gets back. Looney has been playing amazing. J.B. is going to get more opportunity. He's shown he can help us. They're going to do it by committee.

It may look a little different considering the skill and talent and level that Boogy can bring when he's healthy.

Q. You mentioned the locker room being down. Characterize what the huddles were like in the fourth quarter.
STEPH CURRY: You're locked in, still competitive during the game. It's not like any type of crisis situation. It's try to figure out how to win the game.

But afterwards, obviously you lose, it's a tough feeling. We're talking to each other, trying to figure out, again, how we're going to move on and use this as fuel for Game 3.

But other than that, it's just the playoffs, man. Everything is heightened. You got to really lock in on the fine details of what separates a winning team and a losing team in the playoffs. We kind of lost sight of that down the stretch.

Q. When you picked up your fourth foul, you pretty much had to sit out the rest of the third quarter. Do you think that changed your momentum, ice you down a little bit?
STEPH CURRY: Again, it's not ideal. But I know how to play. Should be able to pick up right where I left off no matter what's situation is. I missed a bunch of shots in the fourth. It happens. But I'll be smarter next game, for sure.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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