NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: HAWKS VS. BUCKS

June 27, 2021

Nate McMillan

Atlanta Hawks

Game 3: Postgame

Milwaukee Bucks 113, Atlanta Hawks 102

Q. How tough was it to try to stop the bleeding in that fourth quarter with Khris Middleton going off like that?

NATE McMILLAN: Yeah, it made it even tougher that we lost our timeouts early in that half or in the game, and really just didn't have a way of stopping that run. Middleton got hot and made some tough shots. We had open looks in that fourth quarter and just didn't knock down those shots.

Really they did what you need to do to win. When we got a rhythm and got a little momentum going, they were able to respond with some big baskets and big stops.

Q. What was your view of Trae's injury? And did you feel like that threw off your offensive rhythm? I feel like down the stretch you guys had something like three baskets in the final seven minutes.

NATE McMILLAN: Yeah, he tweaked his ankle and, of course, we had to go with some other options. Again, I thought we got some open looks in the fourth quarter; didn't knock down those shots.

They did a good job of making us pay when we didn't get a basket in that fourth quarter. Middleton seemed like he was hitting everything. Giannis did a good job of keeping that momentum for those guys.

Then when they missed, they got a couple offensive rebounds that were big.

Q. Did you feel like he was moving normally after the injury, or was he hesitant at all?

NATE McMILLAN: No, he was a little sore.

Q. When they get going like Khris did in that fourth quarter, is there anything you'd like to look back on to do differently, or it's like when someone gets going, it almost doesn't matter?

NATE McMILLAN: When a guy gets hot like that, you'd like to hit -- basically run a guy at him. I felt like we were trying to do that one or two times, and before we could even get a guy on him, he had released it. So he was really scoring from everywhere -- from the perimeter, in the post and off the dribble. But you would like to get the ball out of his hands in situations like that.

Q. We talked to you before the game about the size they have and the ability they have to attack. It seemed like for most of the game, before Khris started going crazy, it seemed like you did a decent job slowing them down offensively. Were you happy with the defense?

NATE McMILLAN: The main thing for us was to get off to a good start. I thought the first quarter we were able to do that and really try to keep this team in front. They were still attacking. It's really a three-headed monster over there with Antetokounmpo as well as Khris and Jrue. All of those guys are isolation players. They do a good job of spacing the floor. If you are committing to the ball, then they are more than happy to shoot the three ball.

So it really challenges your defense to try to cover them one-on-one and make them shoot tough shots, but they're capable of making those shots.

Q. Going back to Trae for a second, was there any consideration of (indiscernible)?

NATE McMILLAN: When he came back to the bench, I was told that he was available. Once he got out there, I saw that he wasn't moving well. When I took him out the last few seconds, he couldn't go back. I was basically looking to rotate him offense, defense, and he just couldn't go back.

When he came back to the bench [after sustaining the injury], basically I was told that he was available, he could go again.

Q. And there was a stretch where John sat 14 minutes after picking up his fourth foul. Is there anything you could have done?

NATE McMILLAN: No, he had four fouls. Early in that third quarter, Gallo did a good job of filling in. We were trying to buy as much time as we could. I thought O [Onyeka Okongwu] did a real nice job starting that fourth quarter. We were trying to buy as much time as we could.

Q. When you said Trae couldn't go back in there, was there any concern about him going forward?

NATE McMILLAN: I don't know right now. I think, when he returned to the floor, he was obviously limping on that, and when I subbed him, we decided just keep him out.

Q. For three quarters there, how did you see Trae, how he responded to Game 2? And did you really feel that he was on the verge of finishing out a special kind of game?

NATE McMILLAN: Yeah, I thought he was doing a good job. He was scoring for us. I thought he was great. Came out aggressive and was able to see the ball go in the basket tonight early. I thought that gave us a spark. He was his old self -- just being really aggressive, attacking the pick-and-roll. When they gave him space, he was able to knock down a couple of threes.

I liked the fact that he was aggressive and he was trying to establish that tempo that we wanted to play at.

Q. Did you two have a conversation at all after the last game? Did he articulate to you about how determined he was to sort of try to make amends for the last game?

NATE McMILLAN: No, I didn't talk with him. I think this is really a growth period for Trae. I don't think you just go to him every time he has a game like that. He needs to figure it out himself. He put the game on himself, our last loss, and my thought was to just leave him alone. Talk about the things that the defense was doing, the adjustments that they made, point those out. But this is a time for him to figure out what he needs to do. He knew that he needed to be aggressive. He had a bad game, and players have that.

So I don't just run to him every time he has a bad outing. I thought this was a time for him to just figure it out, and I thought he did. He came out very aggressive and was able to really establish that first quarter for us.

Q. How crucial was Gallo coming off that bench and keeping pace with what Milwaukee was trying to do?

NATE McMILLAN: He gave us a big lift. They were doing a lot of switching out there. They were giving us matchups on the post with John and Gallo, and those guys have been able to win their matchups down there. I think we need to be a little bit more patient and go to those matchups a little more. Gallo and John have shown that they can score against those matchups. Gallo, we needed him a lot sooner tonight with John getting in foul trouble.

So he's been doing this for us all season long, just bringing that scoring punch off the bench.

Q. Obviously, in the fourth quarter you had to change a little bit about your offensive style. What did you like there and what did you not like?

NATE McMILLAN: Their defense picked up. I thought we were able to get some open looks with some of our best shooters shooting the ball. It was just the ball didn't fall for us. Bogey had a couple open looks. Trae had an open look going down the stretch and just wasn't able to get the ball down for us. Scoring 17 points in that fourth quarter really was the difference.

Q. What did you see from Bogdanovic tonight?

NATE McMILLAN: He's getting better. Tonight he ended up playing 35 minutes. So health-wise, he's getting better. His shot has not fallen for him, but he's a guy who I believe that next shot is going down. He has some wide-open looks that I'm willing to trust that he's going to knock those shots down. It just isn't falling for him. It hasn't fallen for him this series, but health-wise, he's actually getting better.