NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: ROCKETS VS WARRIORS

May 2, 2025

Steven Adams

Houston Rockets

Game 6 - Postgame Media Conference

Houston Rockets 115, Golden State Warriors 107

Q. What is it about your defense on the court, especially in the zone?

STEVEN ADAMS: Me? What difference do I make? I'm not sure. I just follow the game plan, defensive game plan, read, communicate.

Yeah, I think we do well. I don't know how to answer that question, mate.

Q. Not a lot of people play zone against the Warriors. Why is it a success?

STEVEN ADAMS: I think it's just due to the instincts of the players, honestly, because like we do such a good job at making sure we know where the threats are and also just making up those windows.

Again, the thing with the zone is that there are windows to attack, weak spots, obviously. We just managed to scramble and get to those spots like pretty good, you know what I mean. So the window for error, we keep it very tight.

On top of that, too. We do a good job rebounding and keeping them to one shot, you know what I mean. That's a key weakness with the zone. Because usually you're out of place to rebound. It's good, Bro. It's a weird zone. Yeah, it's not like a -- yeah, I don't know. It's just like a bizarre one but it works.

Q. Do you believe in the concept of a playoff riser, and do you think Fred has kind of found that mode these last few games?

STEVEN ADAMS: What is it, a playoff riser?

Q. If someone find a playoff mode they can rise in the postseason specifically.

STEVEN ADAMS: Are you asking, do I think it's a thing? It's one hundred percent a thing. It could be any player. Other players, like you've got to look at the strategy of playoffs. It comes down to a lot of numbers game.

So if someone in the regular season, they mainly attack, say they average X amount of points, if you blitz them the whole game, you force the ball out of their hand.

Obviously their volume of shots is going to go down. So their points per game is going to go down.

So you still don't judge them on like, Oh, that person is not a riser, no. It's what the defense is presenting. You're enough of a threat that they are taking that away, you know what I'm saying. So you just have to find a different way to attack, which means that there's other players that may be, quote, unquote, a riser, depending on how you value them. They might score more. So you're like, wow, this guy scores more points now. He's a riser.

It's up to you. It's all up to you, individual, whatever you guys put value on. But you know what I mean? Yeah.

Q. I remember in Utah you told me in the playoffs it's important for everybody to know their exact role and perform their role at the highest level. How have you seen this Rockets team do just that?

STEVEN ADAMS: Again, yeah, at this point, it's just like -- it's just trusting the system, trusting each other, and yeah, I think the boys are doing a really good job. They are honing in on exactly that. Because again, these possessions are very, very crucial. Even previous games, it's basically a one-possession game before it gets away but like one-possession game.

So a lot of them if you stick to your role, not trying to do too much outside of that, and what I mean by that is like you don't want to surprise your teammates by doing stuff that we haven't actually gone over and stuff like that, you know what I mean. Sometimes you're forced to but you want to stay within the certainties of our system.

Q. You've been aggressive, a lot of blocks. Where does the energy come from the last few games? Much respect.

STEVEN ADAMS: Thank you, Bro. Was that a question?

Q. Where does all this energy come from the last few games with all the blocks?

STEVEN ADAMS: Look, it comes down to the defensive system, Bro, you know what I mean. It's not like I'm going every time, you know what I mean.

But like the boys on the ball is going a really good job making sure the guys throw up the off-balance shot. Those are the ones you can go after, like the blocked shots, you know what I mean.

You have to be there. If I'm the low guy, which I try to be, for most of the time, I try to be the low man so I can come over and contest the shots and stuff. Sometimes you get blocked and sometimes they just throw up something else but it's just the job, yeah.

Thanks, Bro. What a nice man.

Q. Been a while since the Rockets won a playoff series. What do you expect the atmosphere to be on Sunday?

STEVEN ADAMS: Yeah, should be good. The fans have been showing up. Should be good atmosphere and whatnot. Game 7. So yeah, I'm sure they will be as they are, very excited and whatnot. Should be good.

Q. I think you played over 30 minutes today for the first time since 2023 maybe.

STEVEN ADAMS: Yeah.

Q. Does that take anything out of you? How are you feeling?

STEVEN ADAMS: No, no. It's good, Bro. Again, I'm just out there for as long as he needs me for, Bro. Just doing the job. Again, I think it just comes down to one of these things. If I end up dipping in quality of impact-wise, then obviously yeah, get me out.

But whatever, man. I just do whatever Coach says, Mate. Good stuff.

Q. You've been in a lot of these playoff battles. When you guys are down 3-1, what was the mood with the group and what was the mood?

STEVEN ADAMS: You don't want to make it too -- like put too much extra stuff on it. Because again, like, for our games, they were really close games, very one-possession games and maybe we missed some free throws, and we could have won those games or attacked properly, appropriately, we could have won those games. It's very marginal.

It's not like you need some big hoorah speech about digging deep. It's like, brother, we're right there, you know what I mean. So since you're right there, you just make slight adjustments, attack more, be more confident with your stuff and that's what's happening, you know what I mean. Being more deliberate and intentional with our stuff, and it's working in our favor.