NBA FINALS: BUCKS VS. SUNS

July 11, 2021

Cam Johnson

Phoenix Suns

Game 3: Postgame

Milwaukee Bucks - 120, Phoenix Suns - 100

Q. I saw you go down, obviously ice on the knee. Can you take me through what happened on that play?

CAM JOHNSON: I took a shot to the rib, kind of knocked the wind out of me and in the process my ab cramped up. So that's why I was down on the floor. If any of you all had an ab cramp, you know it's just kind of tough to move. So I was okay, I just needed a second for it to calm down so I could get up. But, yeah, it was a shot.

Q. This was the first game this postseason that Deandre had five fouls. Curious how that affected you guys in the second half when he wasn't out there on the floor and they went on that big run?

CAM JOHNSON: It was big time because they crashed the glass so hard and they're big and they really emphasized physicality this game. Deandre does a really good job of bringing that presence to our paint, rebounding the ball, being physical, so it's tough to have him in foul trouble, for sure.

Q. You guys had that run in the third quarter, you were a big part of that to get it down to four points and then they kind of responded to that. Just maybe what was missing to kind of continue that run and to maybe push it even further?

CAM JOHNSON: If I can remember correctly, they got a couple offensive rebounds in subsequent possessions. So those are tough and those kill momentum. Offensive rebound two or three especially. And that's kind of where they were thriving all night and kind of living in our paint. So we need to definitely cut down on that and take advantage of those runs. But it's the Finals so you're going to expect team's best shots. You're going to expect physicality, you're going to expect them to respond.

Q. How does the previous experience of bouncing back from losses like this in the playoffs help you the next couple days get ready for the next game?

CAM JOHNSON: Big time. Big time. We have shown we can do it. It takes poise. We knew this one wasn't going to be easy. We knew none of these were going to be easy. Can't expect them to be. This is a team that's desperate, that wants to fight, that brought the fight today. We got to be the desperate team next game. We got to bring the fight to them. Now this one's over, we’ve got to take what we can from it, learn from it, come back and execute better and play with more physicality next time.

Q. Just early in the third quarter when y'all were able to cut that deficit down, obviously you made a lot of shots at that point but what was said at halftime and how were you able to kind of turn things around from the end of the second to the start of the third there?

CAM JOHNSON: They did what we expected them to do. Part of it is just basketball. Teams make shots, go on a run. Teams miss shots, go on a run. The big thing is taking advantage of those opportunities, extending those opportunities, extending those runs.

But they did what we expected them to do, that was the talk at halftime. And we were due for some runs, we were due to get back in the game, just capitalize on it more and make that a four-point lead, get down to two or even and it's a different outlook on the game. They started playing a little different, it gave them confidence, let them build that lead back to double digits, it makes it a lot tougher on you.

But we know we got to be better. There's a lot of frustration anytime you lose. It's a group of guys that absolutely hate losing and you can see it on everybody's face, me included. It's a terrible feeling. So that feeling is going to motivate us to get back out there, get ready for the next one and go right back at them.

Q. I know you're not going to want to talk about this after a loss, but that dunk was pretty sweet. Just, can you take us what you saw on that play that made you say, okay, I'm going to go up here and just take us through that play?

CAM JOHNSON: Well, Pat jumped Chris in the back court, which kind of left me a lot of space before the next defender. So that's probably the most time I've ever had to think about what I might do with the ball in my hands in a long time. And just take advantage of opportunities, really. I saw nobody really stepped up until PJ did at the end, but just hoping they wouldn't overturn it and call it a charge.

Q. It's back-to-back 40-point games for Giannis now. Can you just verbalize the challenge of going up against that guy on this stage?

CAM JOHNSON: He's physical. He's physical. When he gets downhill, gets to the basket, gets to the free-throw line, it encourages him to keep going. And he was hitting his free throws tonight and that just kind of opens up his whole game. So it's on us to stop him, give him more resistance. It's tough when Deandre goes out with foul trouble and then I pick up five, Jae picks up four or however many he had, it's tough. It's tough to balance that physicality aspect of the game, especially when he's coming at you so hard. But you just got to do it. You got to do it, we're capable of doing it, we know that. We'll go back, look, see what we need to change and change it.