NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: HAWKS VS. BUCKS

June 27, 2021

Khris Middleton

Milwaukee Bucks

Game 3: Postgame

Milwaukee Bucks 113, Atlanta Hawks 102

Q. Bud talked about how you had four fouls on you in the third. Things were sliding in a negative direction with the foul calls. And then to come back in the fourth to heat up the way you did, did you have to collect yourself at all and refocus? What flipped there for you?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: I definitely disagree with the foul calls I got. But you know, it is what it is. They called the fouls. Just got to move on from it. That's all I did. Came out, just took it as a normal rest and just be ready to go when I came back in.

Q. We've seen you get hot like that in the regular season, but sitting here now, does it feel different knowing the stage and the stakes of what it meant to do that?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: No, I don't think about the stage at all when we're playing. I just try to stay in the moment, stay in the possession, not worry about the playoffs or regular season or must-win. Just appreciate the game, and I try to play everything the same way.

Q. You're a guy that's looked up to Kobe throughout your career. You are now a postseason closer. What does that mean to you? What does it mean to be the guy that gets the ball in those moments?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: It feels good, I will say that. I think our team is so unselfish, if anybody has it going, the ball goes to them. Some games it's me, some games it's Giannis, some games it's Jrue. We all have a great feel about who has it going, who has the best matchup and who can create the best looks. When it's my turn or my time to have it, I'm thinking the same way: just try to get the best shot up for everybody.

Q. P.J. has an open corner three. We know how good he is in the corner. But he gets it to you. What was it like for you to know that he's got that trust?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: He's one of the most unselfish teammates. He puts his body on the line every possession. He talks to everybody about playing the right way. He talks about the extra passes, moving the ball and stuff like that. He doesn't care about shot attempts or any shot attempts. He just wants to find a way to win.

Q. Was there a moment or a shot that it was like, all right, this is going to keep going in now?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: I can't think of one specifically. I think once I realized two in a row, I just told myself to keep trying to find a shot to get up, knowing that I was going to have a good chance of getting it in. That's all I was thinking at that time.

Q. I know you're not one to pat yourself on the back even when you're teammates are, but do you allow yourself to be proud of putting up a 20-point fourth quarter?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: I'm proud of myself no matter what. Second-round pick, worked my way into the rotation after I got traded. To me, that's a win. Every time I'm out there, I play with pride. Doesn't matter if I play well or I play bad; I know I'm giving it my all out there. That's what I'm most proud about.

Q. [Inaudible question.]

KHRIS MIDDLETON: During the postseason, we realize that each game is a different game and each game matters. You can't look ahead or behind. You have to move on, even in the possession. So that's all I try to talk to the guys on the bench about during timeouts and during the game is just mistakes happen, stay with it. We always say, never too high, never too low.

Q. You don't seem like the type to let frustration build. But is there frustration when you're supposed to get to the Finals and you don't and you know these opportunities are precious?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Yeah, those frustrations come after the season and offseason when I'm at home watching guys play. But on the court, I don't think about those things too much even if we lose. It's all about moving on to the next one and find a way to get better and win the next game.

Q. Is your elbow okay?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Yeah, it's good.

Q. The team that you're playing is different. You won the first two games of the Conference Finals two years ago. You are two wins away from a Finals again. Does it feel different this time?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: I couldn't give you -- honestly I really don't think about the past too much. We have a whole new team. I feel like I'm a better person and our team has gotten better all around -- like I said, more experience. We're just taking it one game at a time and we're not thinking about two games away from the Finals that you guys keep saying. We're just thinking about this next game before we go back home.

Q. That stretch in the fourth quarter, does it feel different when you're going through it or does it feel like a normal stretch of basketball?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Feels like a normal stretch of basketball to me. There's tons of possessions in games. Yeah, it felt normal.

Q. You mentioned you were a second-round pick. When people think of the Milwaukee Bucks, the first person that always would come to mind is Giannis. And here you are scoring 20 points in the fourth quarter of one of the biggest playoff games in franchise history. What is it like to have that journey to go from second-round pick to playoff closer breaking records in franchise marks?

KHRIS MIDDLETON: It's great. It's a career I've wanted since I was a kid, to be a professional basketball player, to have a huge impact on my team in any way. Each day, my dream is reality, it feels like. I'm out there just playing hard, trying to find a way to win, but also enjoying it and having fun in the moment.

Q. What's the biggest reason why you have a team, what you have, and that you're able to do these kind of things in games this big.

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Just trust in my work. That's what it comes down to, the work in the offseason, during the season and learning, just learning the game at each step.

Q. Why do you think you were able to handle going down the way you did in the first quarter? It happened in Game 1 and it got away from you, but tonight it didn't.

KHRIS MIDDLETON: Main message was stay calm. We were going to get punched. They were at home. They were feeling good; they got one on the road against us. That's what it is, back home you feel good about yourself.

So I think we definitely didn't start the way we wanted to, but just go ahead and take that hit, rebound, regroup, stay calm knowing that there's a lot of game left.