NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: HAWKS VS. BUCKS

June 25, 2021

Khris Middleton

Milwaukee Bucks

Game 2: Postgame

Milwaukee Bucks 125, Atlanta Hawks 91

Q. Khris, do you feel like you're working through something right now offensively with the ball in your hands?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: No. Simple as that, no. Make some. Going to miss some. Sometimes more than others some nights. But just keep playing my game plan. Continue to trust it, whether it's a shot, whether it's a pass, whether it's a drive.

Q. A lot more aggressive on defense tonight -- how tremendous was that and how do you feel that paid off?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Yeah, that was a huge key from Game 1 to Game 2. Game 1, they were able to get whatever they wanted on the court. Trae was getting in the paint, throwing those lobs, and then getting everybody else involved.

So tonight, we wanted to set the tone. Just make sure they weren't going to be comfortable. We wanted to be physical with them, do it without fouling, of course; that was just the main message tonight, the aggressiveness that we didn't have from Game 1 needs to be here in Game 2.

Q. Have you gotten a chance to go against Brook doing what he does, like in practice, have you had a chance to go against that?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Yeah, for sure. I hate it. People don't realize how massive that guy is. I mean, he's a seven-footer, but you feel him around when he's around the rim on the court, even when he's on the perimeter sometimes. I don't think people realize how big he is, how athletic he is, how much ground he can cover, and he's athletic. So that's why I love it when he's on our side during games, and not in practice and whatnot.

Q. With him doing so much, how did it kind of feel for you guys to be able to help him? Like you guys in the driving lanes like helped out, what is your mindset?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: We tell him we want him to be aggressive and for him to be aggressive we have to have his back. We have to make life as easy as we can for him because his job is hard. He's got to cover so many mistakes and he has to be able to guard the pick-and-roll, and then somebody drives, he's got to have our back.

So at the same time we have to have his, and knowing that we maybe show a crowd a little bit more, stand at the ball a little bit more also, and makes his job a lot easier to retreat and get back to his normal spot.

Q. From a shooter's perspective, when the shots finally go in, what does that mean in that moment for guys like Bryn Forbes and Pat Connaughton?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Yeah, it definitely feels good, you see one or two go in, gives you the confidence to fire the next one in without hesitating or thinking. We are definitely going to need those guys. They are both great shooters and they are both great players. The more they hit shots, the more they take shots; it's going to open up for everyone else, so we need them to stay aggressive.

Q. Mike says you don't really talk about turnovers or forcing turnovers, but tonight there was over a dozen in the first half that led to 20-plus points. Did you guys notice something going in that you could take advantage, or was it just seeing and being more active?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: No, it wasn't -- you know, talked about creating more turnovers. Just we wanted to put pressure on them, be aggressive. Those ended up being turnovers, being steals, getting out in passing lanes, making them make bad decisions with the ball, basically. That's what we are trying to do, just be aggressive with our pressures.

Q. Committing to Team USA while you're still in the playoffs and you very well could end up in the Finals, how hard was that for you to have to think about something like that and committing to something like that while you were also in the middle of something so serious like a playoff run?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Yeah, it's interesting. Like you said we're in the middle of a championship run, but to take a second to think about something outside of this season, it was a little tough to think about it but it was an easy decision for me to go ahead and commit.

Everybody wants to be an Olympian and everybody wants a chance to win a gold medal but as far as the choice it was easy, but trying to distract myself from that was a little bit challenging. But to get refocused and focus on the task at hand right now is the most important thing I need to do.

Q. Jrue said he felt overall he just played smarter tonight when he was defending Trae. When he's balancing being physical but playing smart, how does that kind of set the tone for the rest of the team's defense and elevate you all?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Gives us the confidence to do the same. We see him working hard and pressuring Trae Young who is so good at drawing fouls and whatnot, it gives us confidence to do the same. Not saying he's going to put in all this hard work, and it's going to be easy for somebody else. We see him pressuring, so it tells everybody else, we have to be up with him. We have to be there talking for him and we have to have his back.