NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: HAWKS VS. BUCKS

June 27, 2021

Kevin Huerter

Atlanta Hawks

Game 3: Postgame

Milwaukee Bucks 113, Atlanta Hawks 102

Q. How tough is it for you guys when Trae is not all systems go?

KEVIN HUERTER: Yeah, obviously there are times when he carries us, but we've got to pick up the slack a little bit. Just couldn't make shots down the stretch there. Trae obviously wasn't the same. Just kind of a freak thing -- he rolls it on the ref. Some things are out of your control, but we've got to be there to pick him up a little bit, and we didn't tonight.

Q. Seventeen points in the fourth. Was it one of those times you hit a cold stretch as a team, or what changed out there?

KEVIN HUERTER: I feel like there was a stretch where guys got good looks -- my transition three, Bogey and I think Gallo might have had one. Shots didn't fall, and Middleton obviously got it going on the other end. They just closed better than we did. Seventeen points in the fourth. I think for the most part we got good looks and tried to attack matchups like we have in the past, and just weren't as successful at it.

Q. What were they doing to be so impactful offensively And what do you guys need to do to change it?

KEVIN HUERTER: Really it's got to be team defense. They've got a guy, one-on-one matchups in the lane, Giannis getting downhill. He's tough to stop one-on-one. He shoots a high percentage when he gets in the lane. He's the head of the snake, so our defense starts with him and trying to keep him out of the paint.

Limited Jrue tonight, and obviously Middleton got it going. He made tough shots in the fourth. Credit to him. He got it going and found a rhythm.

But it's got to be team defense. I felt for the most part tonight we were good. Got to be better in transition still. But it just is what it is, a guy got hot.

Q. When a guy like Khris gets going in the fourth quarter like that, is there stuff you look back on that you wish you'd tried differently to go at him, or is it just one of those things where some of the shots he made you just tip your cap?

KEVIN HUERTER: Probably make him put the ball on the floor a little bit. Some of those threes, catch and shoot transition, catch and shoot jab in the half court, the scouting report says that's a shot he likes. Just try to make it a little bit tougher on him. Hits a late pull-up. Hits a late baseline jumper on Bogey after he found a rhythm.

He's a good player, a really good offensive player. We've done a decent job limiting him up to this point in the series, but we've got to do better.

Q. When Trae is limited in that fourth quarter, how do you feel it changes how you guys want to play offense?

KEVIN HUERTER: A lot of times, fourth quarters we're looking at matchups, trying to detect matchups, getting switches and letting him play downhill and find guys. If he doesn't have the same explosiveness, those matchups become a little bit tougher for him to beat his guy.

We felt like all night we had a pretty good matchup posting guys. Gallo got it going. John is effective when he gets in the post. We've got to find different areas, but I think we'll learn from it.

We'll see how Trae is moving forward, but there's a lot of stuff we can learn from from tonight, for sure.

Q. Onyeka seems like he's giving you guys good minutes lately. What are you seeing from him? It seems like he's growing defensively but also good energy.

KEVIN HUERTER: Playing with energy. That's really the key with him. We've said it before -- I guess as a rookie, he's a high draft pick, but still in these playoffs, playing and learning from Clint. We just tell him he's got to have effort, he's got to come in the game and be the guy outworking people. He's been great. He's been great the last two series. He had some key plays on Giannis. Just guarding him, making it tough, blocking shots, being bouncy. He's playing with confidence. That's what we've needed him to do, for sure.

Q. How big was it to have Gallo coming off the bench like that with John in foul trouble?

KEVIN HUERTER: It's huge. Gallo, he's been someone that's produced all year when he gets the minutes. But in a lot of ways, we need John out there. I think we're a better team when John is on the court, with or without Gallo. Gallo offers a different look. But it stinks -- I don't think John was able to find his rhythm tonight. He kind of got in foul trouble early, some questionable ones. But like I said, we're really good when John is on the court. Gallo gave us a big lift tonight.

Q. You were just mentioning the word "learning," so what would your overall evaluation of this game be, and what are the main adjustments that you think would be necessary to work on in order to get that Game 4 win?

KEVIN HUERTER: Today we've just got to close better. I think Game 2 is a throw-out game. We didn't do much good in that game at all. Ugly film. Game 1, did some great stuff. Really I still don't think we've played great so far in this series. In a lot of ways, Game 1 we stole, I thought. Game 2, got beat up. Tonight, just weren't great in the fourth quarter.

I think there's a lot of areas for us to improve on, and we'll look at the film and obviously do that for Game 4.

Q. There was a play in the second quarter where you shoot a three and then Trae is already running back to defense celebrating before the three even hits the net. That chemistry, can you talk about the character arc that the chemistry has seen with this team, and also the role that's going to play in bringing in victories further down the series.

KEVIN HUERTER: Yeah, just confidence in each other. It's a wide-open look; I think people expect me to make that. Trae has seen it go in enough the past couple years. Just confidence in your teammates. That's how we've got to play. That's how we played this whole postseason. For us to continue and advance past this series, we've got to keep playing that way.

Q. How tough was it to play without Trae tonight?

KEVIN HUERTER: I think the time he went out, it might have been his usual rest time, start of that fourth. Obviously, he wasn't himself. He wasn't explosive when he came back in. It's tough. Obviously, he's our leader at this point, our best player. He's carried us in a lot of games up to this point, and he's a big part of our success in what we do. Any time he's limited, everybody has to pick it up, and that's tough.

Q. How do you think the team will respond in Game 4?

KEVIN HUERTER: We were in the same position last series and won it in seven. I wouldn't say we're in a great spot. Obviously, we'd rather be up 2-1, but it's not a spot that we're not familiar with.

Q. You've been able to provide three-point shooting and running the floor and helping the cause. Can you just talk about what you envision in the next game in helping this team win ball games?

KEVIN HUERTER: Everybody has to step up. I think a lot of guys can play better and will play better moving forward. Still got a long series ahead of us, first to four. That was kind of the message in the locker room. We've got to stay together, and we will. Like I said, we've been in this position before last series and figured out a way to get it done. So we've still got a lot of basketball left to play.