Shaun Livingston has become a big part of the Warriors. (USATSI)
Shaun Livingston has become a big part of the Warriors. (USATSI)

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Away from the massive media scrums surrounding Golden State's stars, the media-savvy Steve Kerr, the Golden Boy Stephen Curry, the loudmouth Draymond Green, Shaun Livingston was still practicing free throws. The Warriors' backup point guard was locked in the day before his first Conference Finals appearance. It's his first time this deep in the playoffs after 11 years in the league.

Livingston came to the Warriors after a great year with Brooklyn in 2014. He's quietly been one of the best backup point guards in the league over the last four years, improving with every season since... the injury. Livingston is most well-known for the horrific knee injury he suffered in 2007. His even playing was supposed to be an accomplishment, but instead he's turned into a key contributor on the best team in the league.

I snagged him for a few minutes after Warriors practice Monday to talk about the Western Conference Finals, the sneaky Pablo Prigioni, and if his post-game can be more effective in this series.

Q: You've been in the league 11 years, this is your first conference finals. Are you nervous? Is there a different energy.

Livingston: Yeah, I'm just going with it. We believe there's more work to do. It's a great opportunity, but we're in attack mode. It's all about being aggressive.

Q: Draymond said that Coach Kerr told you guys this series could feel a little bit like "getting out of jail" after the Memphis series. Does that resonate with you?

Livingston: It's like anything where you get restrained, you gotta be a lot more disciplined (when you get out). With Memphis, they make you pay. There's a little more rope I think with Houston just because of the style that they play, there are more possessions in the game. We still have to value possessions, but it's definitely contrasting styles between Memphis and Houston.

Q: Your post game is so good (20 percent of his points this season came from post-ups, via Synergy Sports), but last time out you had big strong guards defending you. With Houston's guards (Jason Terry, Pablo Prigioni) being shorter, is that an opportunity for you to look to the post more?

Livingston: Absolutely, being aggressive. Obviously they're going to be worried about our shooters, Steph, Klay (Thompson), Andre (Iguodala), so I've got to stay aggressive and look to make plays for my teammates.

Q: How do you look to try and contain James Harden in the pick and roll? (More on that here.)

Livingston: He's one of the best pick and roll players in the NBA. We have one too, but he's going to score points. It's limiting his options, and how he's able to score those points.

Q: Pablo Prigioni is so sneaky. He snuck up right behind Chris Paul and took the inbounds away in Game 7, he's been doing that his whole career. Is he a guy you have to always be on guard about when he's on the floor?

Livingston: He preys on that lack of focus. There are times in the game when you have lapses. It just means you're not as locked in as when you first get in or at the end of the game. He's always lurking. You just have to have awareness and keep that high at all times when he's on the floor.

Q: Are the emotions different when you get to this point, when you're four wins away from the Finals?

Livingston: I think you get more confident, when you win these series. You learn how to win, and how to play together. The more games, we feel more confident, we get more rhythm.

Q: All that stuff from the regular season, the Rockets saying you weren't that good, winning 67 games, how much does that play a part in where you're at now?

Livingston: Nah, it's different teams, we're in the playoffs. Obviously they played well enough to get to this point. We're just game-planning for one another. All that stuff was great, but this is about right now.