Here is some of what Paul Millsap had to say before the Hawks hosted the NBA-best Warriors Monday:
Q. What are your thoughts and the mindset of the team going into this important game?
A. We need a win. Big time. Everybody is saying it's Golden State. We don't care. We are desperate for a win. We need one badly.
Q. They like to run. You like to run. Can you run with them?
A. We'll see how the pace of the game is going. We know we like to push the tempo and get our pace up. They like to do the same thing. Good thing is, we have home-court advantage.
Q. Do you have to stay with your personnel? Or do you have to watch how often they change and how different they are almost every possession?
A. I think we don't want to get ourselves into trouble playing their type of basketball. I think we stay with what we do, who we have and go with that. We have to be confident in who we have and what we've got.
Q. What is your strength in a matchup against them? What is something you'd like to play up?
A. They like to play really small, Draymond (Green) at the 5. We want to try to exploit some mismatches but not get too carries away. Continue to play our style but make them work on the defensive end with us trying to exploit some of those matchups.
Q. Will you guard the 3-point line against them even more so than normal?
A. Even more so. We'll pick them up coming out of the locker room.
Q. Were there takeaways against Miami or Milwaukee? Things you saw that you want to change?
A. You know what? I think we played a solid game against Milwaukee. I think they hit some tough shots. They did everything possible to win a game. They got the loose balls. Some things went in their favor. They won a game because of it. We keep that same mentality, that same intensity, and hopefully get a win tonight.
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