Why Quin Snyder Closed Hawks’ Loss to Heat With Kingston Flemings Over CJ McCollum

Kingston Flemings checked in with 7:36 left in the third quarter Wednesday night and played the final 19:36 of the Atlanta Hawks’ 129-117 loss to the Miami Heat. CJ McCollum checked out at the same stoppage and did not return.

Flemings, the eighth overall pick in June, scored 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting in 28 minutes. McCollum played 20 minutes and scored 13 on 6-of-9.

Hawks coach Quin Snyder said communication with his players is essential, and McCollum is someone he wants to talk to all the time.

“Kingston did a terrific job,” Snyder said. “I think this is part of the process for him. This is a long runway, as I’ve said. And CJ’s been — it’s not about any one player. It’s really not. Tonight, Kingston gave us a lift. He was pushing the ball, and he made some good things happen.”

“We talked about it as the coaching staff. CJ knows how we feel about him,” Snyder continued. “He’s crucial to us being who we want to be.”

Flemings went 0-of-5 from the field in 15:14 off the bench in his NBA debut at Orlando on Oct. 21. Snyder said afterward that Flemings competed and would keep getting better.

He scored 5 points at Charlotte, 2 against Houston at home, and 6 at Houston on Monday. That was 13 points across four games before Wednesday. He has appeared in all five of Atlanta’s games.

Against Miami, he made 3 of his 5 3-point attempts and also had 5 rebounds and 5 assists, plus a steal and a block. He scored 14 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, and with 9:53 left he turned a steal into a breakaway dunk. Less than a minute into the second quarter, he blocked a Giannis Antetokounmpo drive. His 23 points tied Nickeil Alexander-Walker for the team lead.

Atlanta was outscored by 4 with Flemings on the floor and by 8 with McCollum on it.

Who starts and who finishes is not something Snyder wants to fixate on. Snyder said McCollum played well.

“It felt like we were throwing CJ in a tough situation, putting him in cold at that point,” Snyder explained. “So, as I said, CJ is all about the team and the team winning.”

“I think CJ more than anyone understands, with his professionalism and his career, but our whole team — that’s part of having depth on any given night,” Snyder continued. “Hopefully you have guys that can lift your level. Tonight was Kingston and other guys as well. That’s how we can be a good team, having that depth and versatility and guys getting behind one another. You saw that tonight. Nobody’s more supportive of Kingston than CJ.”

McCollum is in his 14th NBA season. Portland drafted him 10th overall in 2013. He scored 19 on 7-of-9 shooting in the opener at Orlando.

Teammates have been giving Flemings the ball and telling him to push.

“Otherworldly, to be honest,” Flemings said. “Him and Nickeil, I work out with them almost every single day, taking bits and pieces. For CJ to be playing this long at this high of a level, it’s not easy to do. You see a lot of players doing it. You don’t even see a lot of players doing it.”

“But just CJ, the things he’s done. He’s in my ear all the time,” Flemings continued. “Every timeout when he’s on the bench, just telling me what he sees, offense, defense, helping me in those ways. So just invaluable having players like him on the team. I’m grateful for it.”

Those are the two veterans Flemings has worked out with most since the draft. McCollum missed the preseason opener against Memphis with a nose contusion and rested against Oklahoma City on Oct. 12, and Flemings started both games.

Snyder has been telling Flemings to be aggressive, and so has the rest of the team.

“To be honest, I don’t really try to look too much at the rotation,” Flemings explained. “As long as I’m on the court, just do what I do to help the team win. I think some possessions kind of mess up on the defensive end. Just trying to be more physical. I think we got to definitely do that. I think they were just killing us in the paint, so be more physical.”

“But as long as I stayed in the game, I’m not going to look at the sideline to come out. I’m just going to continue to do what I do,” Flemings continued. “Coach makes great decisions. He’s a great coach, so I trust what he does. But as long as I’m on the court, I’m going to try to do what I do.”

In the first half, Flemings drove on Antetokounmpo and put his arm out wide to finish the layup.

“The game is still super fast. I think it’s definitely slowing down for me,” Flemings said. “I think for me, it’s just being aggressive. I see a lot of the plays throughout the court, like nothing really changed. It’s just when the defense knows I’m going to pass, my passes aren’t going to be there. So coaches talk to me about that.”

“Everyone’s talking about that. So putting the ball on the rim, I’m going to continue to do that,” Flemings continued. “Just put the ball up, make some shots. And you play like that, makes the defense second guess. So doing that, just constantly trying to gain confidence.”

The Hawks drafted Flemings on June 23 out of Houston, where he spent one season. He averaged 16.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 5.2 assists for the Cougars. He was the first freshman in program history to earn All-America honors.

Flemings’ force stood out to Alexander-Walker.

“I just work with him every day,” Alexander-Walker said. “So seeing his mindset, seeing his aggression, the way he competed tonight was amazing. He provided energy, came in aggressive, played to his strengths, got the team within striking distance in multiple ways, and his force and everything was amazing.”

Alexander-Walker also scored 23 on Wednesday, making 5 of 9 3-pointers.

Atlanta plays the Cleveland Cavaliers at State Farm Arena at 8 p.m. ET Thursday. The Cavaliers also played Wednesday, beating Washington 121-111 at home.