Q. The game continues to kind of change and evolve, teams that you have to deal with change and evolve. Where do you think this team kind of got better over the course of the year, and any initial thoughts on some things that you guys can pour into and invest in over the summer and try to get better?
LU DORT: Something we got better at, coming from a championship season, this season was a tough one obviously with the short amount of rest that we had last summer.
But, you know, we came back, and we had a great mindset throughout the season. You know, we still always had the same coach every game. And just stuff we got better. We tried our best to stay consistent throughout the whole season, and I feel like just doing that is big.
When you start with what we can get better at, it's just that feeling of what we had after last night, just carrying it on next season and just having that in the back of our head that obviously we're a really good team and we can go really far, but the whole goal is to go all the way through.
Q. Obviously you have a team option next year that will be part of the decisions Sam has to make. What do you expect out of that this summer? What do you want to happen?
LU DORT: Obviously the conversation is going to happen. It hasn't happened yet obviously. We just lost last night.
I have a lot of trust in this organization and in Sam. I'm really grateful for all the stuff that he did for me to this point and obviously I want to stay here. This organization and this city have really shaped me as a person and as a player.
So the conversation is going to happen, and obviously my main goal is to stay here. This is like a home to me.
Q. You had a tough season with the injuries you all have dealt with, but Shai was talking about how you remained the same through all of this. Is that something as you look back something you have pride in throughout the season?
LU DORT: Yes, just knowing that we had so many guys out and we were still able to do what we did throughout the season, I mean, it's different lineups on the court, different starting five and stuff like that. It's not easy when you have some guys out, and the fact we're still able to approach the game with the same ability to win the game with the guy we had available was big. It just showed the growth and how ready the whole team was this year.
Q. You've been around long enough to see both Mark and Shai (indiscernible). Can you talk about the relationship between the two of them, the star player and the coach? They seem very cohesive.
LU DORT: Sure, I love to see it. I remember the early days here when Coach had the job and Shai was coming from another team and everything was so new, and the fact they were able to grow that way where obviously Shai is the best in the league and Mark is one of the best coaches in the league, it's amazing to see it.
Obviously I'm glad to have seen all this stuff from the beginning and to be part of it.
Q. You mentioned this place has become home for you. Obviously you talk about guys growing on the floor, but a lot of guys also coming in late teens, early 20s. How much have you grown as a person during your time in Oklahoma City?
LU DORT: A lot. Just imagining me at 20 years old when I came here first and the person I am today is totally different. Just the way that this organization shapes you on the court and off the court as a man, how to be professional, and also just the love that we get from this city and our fans, there's nowhere I would go around the city where I don't get reminded that I'm a Thunder player and people are so happy to see me.
It's been amazing, and I'm still enjoying it, yeah.
Q. From this season to last night, what are the things you want to work on, and how eager are you to get to work and get better?
LU DORT: At the end of the day, I love basketball. I love working on my game. Even though we lost last night, I haven't really put in a thought of how my training is going to look this summer yet. I'm going to just be in the gym.
Obviously I'm always watching film to see how I can impact the team and some of the stuff that I can go out there and work on.
Summertime, I know a lot of people work on a couple specific stuff. Some of the stuff, I have to look and see which one of those it's going to be, but at the end of the day, I'm going to be in the gym and have fun working on my game as always.
Q. Shai mentioned how he learns something watching film and seeing the things he struggled with during the series and will use that in the off-season to try to get better? Is that something familiar to you?
LU DORT: Obviously, not only through the series, but through the entire season. My thing is to be more efficient, and that's going to be the biggest thing through the rest of my career obviously.
So how I set up my training and to put myself in the position to be more efficient throughout the whole season as a whole would be like one of the big goals.
Q. You were in a similar contractual situation four years ago with the team option, and you eventually agreed to an extension. You're a more established player now, different agent, but does that give you comfort heading into whatever talks may be during this off-season?
LU DORT: The fact that that happened was really good, but like I said, I have the trust in this organization and the relationship that I have built with them. The situation may be different. You never know how it's going to be.
Like I said, like my main goal is to be here and whatever we got to do to get it done.
Q. As you look at your unknown future, despite the loss, when you look at this group, this core, what is ya'll belief that you've got a long runway of years ahead...
LU DORT: Yeah, if you look at the background, we had the highest seed for the last two or three seasons now. We've gotten better every season. Obviously got a championship last year.
I feel like what happened this year, it comes with the process. You're not going to win all the time, and you've got to go through those type of phases to grow and get better again.
Like I said, there's a future here, and all the guys here are bought into that. Now we've just got to see what's going to happen. But whatever group is out there, they'll be ready to go and compete for the long run.
Q. (Indiscernible.) Obviously you had a big part in that. Do you want to talk about I guess how it feels to be...
LU DORT: It's huge. It's huge. You never know where you can find talent. Obviously there's a lot of guys in Montreal that know how to hoop. To be a guy that represents them is huge. I've always got a lot of love for my Haitian community. Being able to represent them is amazing. I'm pretty sure we'll see a lot more of Haitian community players coming up that's in college or the NBA in the future.
Q. Any thoughts on how your role has evolved since you've been here? Thoughts on how your role has evolved?
LU DORT: It's been good. If I look back at rookie year Lu, I wouldn't expect to be where I am today. Like I said, I love the way that they helped me being the player I am today, and on the minutes, it starts with my working on my trust with Mark.
If it wasn't for him, I probably wouldn't be here right now speaking to you all. I really trust him with every move that he makes. He always makes the right decisions to put the guys on the floor that he knows can go out there and win the game.
You know, that's what it is, it's your role. So whenever they call my name, I'm always ready to go. To see my name in the Playoffs, I'm really happy.
Q. Last year to this year; you win last year and didn't this year. Just how hard it is to actually win this championship?
LU DORT: It's hard. It's hard. The biggest thing is the rest that you get in between a championship season and the next season after that. That's a learning process, the way we've got to take care of our bodies to be able to play that many games in a short amount of time.
It comes with the sport, you know what I mean? Injuries and stuff is going to happen. You've just got to deal with it and go out and fight with the guys you have available, but it's tough to get to this point.
We got so close to making it again to The Finals, but it's not easy.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports