NBA FINALS: BUCKS VS. SUNS

July 17, 2021

Devin Booker

Chris Paul

Phoenix Suns

Game 5: Postgame

Milwaukee Bucks - 123, Phoenix Suns - 119

Q. That second quarter, how killer was that for you guys?

DEVIN BOOKER: It was tough. We came out and did what we intended to do, get off to a great start and we let it go. They stayed resilient and they kept playing through. So, tough loss for us.

Q. You talked about learning, what you learned in the playoffs -- that it's a series, that it's not just one game. So, just speak to that mindset of going back to Milwaukee knowing you get that one you'll be back here for a Game 7?

DEVIN BOOKER: One at a time. Our focus is Milwaukee right now. That is how have you to do these series, one game at a time and yeah, that's that.

Q. Book, I wanted to ask you about the play you guys were down one, you were coming down the court, you picked up your dribble around the foul line and then Jrue comes in. Just what were you seeing on the court in that moment and when you kind of had a little bit of a transition opportunity, what were you seeing as you surveyed the court?

DEVIN BOOKER: I was just trying to score the ball, he was behind me. I turned and he was right there.

Q. Devin, obviously you had a great night but it seemed like a lot of times that there was a lot of isolations, there wasn't a ton of ball movement. I know you talk about point-five, and there weren't many of those possessions. Did you think things got, and maybe this for Chris too, that things were just too isolated and stagnant on offense for too long during the night?

DEVIN BOOKER: Yeah, the whole third quarter was pretty much that. We were trading basket for basket for I think five minutes straight. But we're at our best when we get stops and get out in transition, so that's what we hang -- I always say we hang our hat on the defensive end and that's where we have to be better.

Q. Chris, what did you think about the ball movement and did you feel it got a little stagnant at times?

CHRIS PAUL: Yeah, it definitely did, especially in that second quarter when I was out there and we talk about it all season long, we have been a ball-movement team and sometimes the switching can cause you to do that. We exploit it at times and sometimes we don't. We'll go back and look at the film and see what we could have did better.

Q. You haven't lost three games in a row in six months, since January, and haven't really faced a must-win as far as an elimination game situation all playoffs. I know how much you guys pride yourself on resilience and fighting back, so what do you hope to see from you guys and your teammates the next two days to get ready for Game 6?

DEVIN BOOKER: Just embrace it.

CHRIS PAUL: Yeah. We knew this wasn't going to be easy. We didn't expect it to be. It's hard. Coach said it all year long, everything we want is on the other side of hard and it don't get no harder than this. So, we got to regroup, learn from this game, but it's over, we got to get ready for Game 6.

Q. Chris, from your perspective what happened in that second quarter and do you feel like that's where you guys lost the game?

CHRIS PAUL: It's a 48-minute game. I'll go back and look at it and see, but we got to play the way we started off the game, we got to put a full game together like that, especially going there. We got to win a game in Milwaukee, so that's all that matters right now.

Q. Obviously a really tough loss. Devin, how frustrated are you for Chris right now?

DEVIN BOOKER: Next question, please.

Q. They obviously shot the ball from three well, was that just a matter of them making shots or what did you feel like the defense -- was it more them or was it more of how you guys were defending the three tonight?

CHRIS PAUL: I think we got to impose our will. I think in that third quarter, I remember there was a timeout and guys said they hadn't missed a shot that whole quarter.

Like I said, we come straight here from the game, we ain't looked at nothing yet. So, I think we'll go home, look at it, watch it tomorrow, we'll see what we need to do better for Game 6.

Q. There were a couple miscues when Giannis was at the free throw line, they got the offensive rebound a couple times. Is that a matter of just the ball bouncing a certain way or do you think you guys can do something differently on those situations?

DEVIN BOOKER: I would have to go re-look at it, but he is a -- he's a freak of nature. He's a different-sized dude. So he, even if he's boxing out, getting a hand on it is tough. So, you just have to put a body on him.

CHRIS PAUL: Everybody's out there anticipating a miss, hell, even he is, you know what I mean? So, we got to keep trying to box out. And with his length, he tipped the ball up in the air, ain't too much you can do.