Vit Krejci is finding his groove.
The Hawks wing player has put up double-digit scoring in five of his past six games, notching 14, 13, 12, 15 and 11 points. He’s averaged 11.4 points all while knocking down 50.9% of his overall shots and 47.1% of his 3-point attempts.
“He’s been doing a hell of a job for us being able to come in,” Hawks guard Trae Young said after Tuesday’s game. “It’s kind of crazy. As much as y’all think he’s being aggressive, I feel like he can be more aggressive.
“And I tell him that, I think he turned down the layup and threw it out to Bogi (Bogdan Bogdanovic) tonight. And those are some that, I mean, when your shot’s not going, you can get easy ones. I feel like the easy ones are free throws and layups. So anytime you get easy ones, you want to take those all day.”
It’s all a part of his work to take a step back from being too unselfish. His teammates have encouraged him to stay aggressive so that he doesn’t pass on the high-percentage shots.
“No, it’s definitely helping,” Krejci said. “Every time I pass up a shot or something, my teammates always help me, like ‘Hey, man, like you got to take that’ and, you know, ‘We believe in you. We want you to take those shots.’
“So that helped me in just trying to be more and more aggressive, and knowing that my teammates got my back. So I think that’s what the team is about. And it’s really nice to see.”
For Krejci, the past 12 games have come with an increase in minutes with players in and out of the rotation because of injuries. The Hawks bumped Krejci into the starting rotation and he has started the past five games with Jalen Johnson sidelined with a right shoulder injury.
The additional responsibility has helped Krejci’s confidence.
Growing up, Krejci never really saw himself as a score-first guy. He focused on his ability to pull the team together when he played in Spain.
So, the Czech guard has gone through an adjustment period over the past three seasons in the NBA, as he works toward unlocking his full potential.
“It’s a little different type of basketball,” Krejci said. “And coming up, I was never really the guy that scored 30 points. Most of the guys in the league that makes it before they got to the league averaged 30, and I didn’t never average that.
“So, I was always more the team guy, the glue guy. And yeah, sometimes it’s for the good, but (others) it’s for the worst. So, it’s good to have teammates that kind of encourage you to be aggressive, to take more shots. And, like I said, especially today, like guys like Larry (Nance), Trae, I mean, all of the guys, really, just keep trying to, tell me to be more and more aggressive.”
But Krejci’s offensive surge complements the defensive skills that he has continued to hone since coming to the league.
Krejci drew praise for his defense on Celtics wing Jayson Tatum in the Hawks' two regular-season upsets of the eventual NBA champions last season.
That defense popped again against 14-time All-Star Kevin Durant in the second half of the Hawks' win over the Suns on Tuesday.
“Well, he’s big,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said of Krejci. “He’s all of 6-7, and your height on KD, you’re not going to be as tall as he is. But I do think he’s quick, and what that allows you to do at times is, make the catch a little harder, push him off his spot a little bit more.
“Those things incrementally kind of add up. We didn’t foul either. Like, that was one of the biggest things. It’s hard not to foul when you’re that focused on trying to stop somebody. But he did a good job against him. He’ll probably tell you, it wasn’t easy.”
With Krejci catching a rhythm and his confidence growing, he continues to show why the team remains invested in his development.
“I was 0-for-3 from 3 (at the half) and I came in here (the locker room), and the guys just keep telling me, like, ‘Hey, keep shooting. Keep shooting, you’re getting good shots, keep shooting,’” Krejci said.
“So, I had the confidence that the next shot, if I had it, I’m gonna take it. So, I was glad that the first shot went in and I was able to be 3-for-3 in the second half. So, like I said, it just goes with the things that the guys just saying and helping me just like keep being aggressive, you’re gonna knock down shots so you can go 0-for-3 in the first half but you can go 3-for-3 in the second half.”
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