The Atlanta Hawks secured a 109-108 win over the New York Knicks in Game 3 on Thursday, April 23, and head coach Quin Snyder pointed directly to execution in the closing seconds.
“Yeah, I think we guarded multiple actions and helped each other too and didn’t foul,” Snyder said. “That was a huge part of it.”
Atlanta held firm on the final defensive possession, protecting a one-point lead after CJ McCollum’s go-ahead jumper with 12.5 seconds remaining.
“I thought showed his hands, JK pursued. Dyson got knocked down and got back up and I think was shifted and really made it congested in the lane,” Snyder said. “So a lot of good things happened on the possession.”
Snyder emphasized collective discipline rather than individual stops in a playoff setting.
“It’s one of those where all five guys did their job,” Snyder said. “And then the loose ball at the end, I think we can do a better job with those, but we got one that really mattered.”
The Hawks improved to a 2-1 series lead behind balanced contributions, including Jonathan Kuminga’s 21 points off the bench.
“Jonathan’s just been all in, whatever that looks like on a given night,” Snyder said. “Tonight he did some things that really gave our team a lift.”
Snyder highlighted Kuminga’s defensive impact as the foundation of his performance.
“The biggest thing he’s done is he’s just defended,” Snyder said. “Another guy that’s in there competing and defending.”
Atlanta’s rotation decisions were fluid late, with Dyson Daniels briefly sitting during key fourth-quarter minutes.
“There’s a lot of things that go into those decisions over the course of the game,” Snyder said. “You’ll second guess yourself.”
Snyder pointed to trust and adaptability within the group when managing minutes.
“That to me is what it takes to win,” Snyder said. “That’s being a teammate in a lot of ways and everybody has their moments where they have to give themselves.”
The Hawks nearly let the game slip after leading most of the night, as New York briefly took a late lead.
“That happens,” Snyder said. “You’re in fight or flight mode for a couple hours every night.”
He stressed the importance of responding to adversity in playoff games.
“The important thing is that we kept grinding,” Snyder said. “You’re going to have adversity in every game in the playoffs. How you handle it is the main thing.”
Snyder also credited the home environment at State Farm Arena for energizing the team during key stretches.
“I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about the emotion of our crowd,” Snyder said. “It’s unbelievable.”
He described the connection between team and fans as a factor in sustaining effort.
“It’s a unique thing to have fans and a team that are connected and kind of battle through together,” Snyder said. “That’s how it felt to me tonight.”
Snyder praised CJ McCollum’s late-game execution but pointed to leadership beyond scoring.
“On the last possession, CJ can create a shot and that’s a unique thing,” Snyder said. “I have a ton of confidence in him being able to make those plays.”
He added that McCollum’s willingness to defer also stands out.
“Knowing that he can do that and also being willing at a given time to defer to one of his teammates says a lot about the leadership that he’s given us,” Snyder said.
Looking ahead, Snyder acknowledged areas for improvement despite the win.
“We’ve got to secure the defensive glass,” Snyder said. “There are some moments with those 50/50 balls that we have to come up with those possessions.”
He also pointed to execution under pressure.
“The last thing is taking care of the ball,” Snyder said. “We just weren’t precise enough with our execution.”
Atlanta will host Game 4 with a chance to extend its series lead, but Snyder made it clear the margin for error remains thin.
“We have to keep grinding,” Snyder said. “We’re going to need to be better than we were tonight in a lot of areas.”
