Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch acknowledged the team’s struggles in Wednesday’s 126-102 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. “We just looked slow everywhere. They gave up eight offensive rebounds in the first quarter… they were beating us to every ball,” Finch said.
Finch credited Atlanta’s effort and recognized the context of the game. “They came out, they were on a tough losing streak and they took it to us,” he said, noting the Hawks’ energy and execution.
The coach reflected on recent challenges and how to motivate the roster. “We’ve played good basketball most of the season. We’ve got another tough game coming up against a team that plays really, really hard and runs full court… a lot of basketball left to be played,” Finch explained.
When asked about balancing criticism and encouragement, Finch said, “Ripping into them… that’s pretty self-evident,” regarding the performance, while also noting players’ responsibility. “He’s obviously frustrated with the performance, and rightfully so, but he needs to stay on the floor and root for his team.”
Finch addressed whether rotation changes could help. “We’re not… we’ve been flipping rotations around all season,” he said, indicating that the current situation did not call for major lineup shifts.
He also highlighted key areas of focus. “We have been rebounding the ball pretty well… this was just a night we looked slow. We were trying to rebound on the ground, not up in the air. They were long and athletic and went above us and got a bunch,” Finch said about the Timberwolves’ struggles on the boards.
Transition defense and offensive spacing were also issues. “Some of our transition… we didn’t have great spacing on offense and were off balance,” Finch said, noting how these factors contributed to Atlanta’s dominant second quarter.
Finch concluded by emphasizing team cohesion. “Every team goes through stretches like this. They’ll hang together,” he said, signaling confidence that Minnesota can recover from the defeat.
