What they said after the Hawks’ 126-115 loss to the Raptors Wednesday night:
Mike Budenholzer
Opening statement: "I think they deserve credit. They made a lot of shots. They made a lot of plays. Defensively, we'd like to be better. We'll continue to get better. Tonight is a night that tests your mental toughness, that tests your physicality. For a lot of the night, we were good but you've got to do it for 48 minutes against a team. So a test like tonight is good for us and we'll get better because of it, we'll enjoy our Thanksgiving and get ready for Friday."
On whether team took a step back defensively: "What did they have 126 points? It's hard not to consider it a step back defensively. I think they played well. They executed well. They made some tough shots. The got to the free-throw line, which is a strength of theirs. If they do it night after night after night, you have to be aware of it. You have to do a better job of keeping them off the free-throw line. But our defense was not where we need it to be but I think they played very well also."
On play of Lou Williams and Greivis Vazquez off bench: "A couple times they got loose and a lot of the shots were contested, tough shots. They got a huge boost from those two guys coming off the bench. They had a big impact on the game. Some of them were random plays and some of them were in the flow of the offense. A little bit of both. Again, give both of those guys credit. Our defense can get better."
On never being able to take lead after falling behind: "I think it was a 10-point game at the end of the first quarter. I felt like they got to the line a lot in the first quarter. That was a point of emphasis going in. I think we tied it up but we could never change it where we had a lead or get some separation."
Jeff Teague
On Raptors depth: "They made plays. They made some tough shots. They got some key offensive rebounds. It's not what they did. It's what we did. We could have played a lot better. We just didn't. Every mistake we made, they capitalized on it."
Al Horford
On whether team took a step back defensively: "Yes. It is. It's too many points. You have to give them credit. They shot the ball real well but that is not very good from our end defensively."
On why Raptors were successful: "They were hitting shots. They were getting a lot of good looks, tough shots. The fast breaks were a big part. They outscored us on the break. We didn't do a good job on the fast break. That was one of the differences."
On Raptors getting to free-throw line: "That too, but I think the fast break was a big, big part. They just hit tough shots out there."
On Raptors bench: "Lou Williams and Vasquez were great. Those guys came out with a lot of energy, very confident, and they hit some tough shots. I mean, we were defending them and they just made shots.
On Raptors getting to free-throw line: "They are crafty players. Lou is a guy who knows how to play. He knows how to draw fouls. Kyle Lowry is a guy who is relentless. He is going to go hard. That makes them tough to guard.
DeMarre Carroll
On whether team took a step back defensively: "Yep. I think we just have to go look at film and get better. The last two games we have been playing great defensively and that's what has really been getting us win. We just have to go back and look at the film and see what we didn't do right and what we did wrong."
On whether Raptors did something right or Hawks did something wrong: "When we did get stops, I think the biggest thing was we didn't get the rebound. We gave them second and third chances. A good team like that, they are number one in the East for a reason. You can't give them two and three looks. We just have to get better. That gives us a measuring stick and see where we need to get to."
On whether Raptors are best team in East: "They are pretty good. I think they are disciplined. They kind of gel with each other and know where he other are going to be in spots. They've got a great bench. When you have all those components, it makes you a great team."
Lou Williams
On victory: "It was a good win for us. We have some road games coming up so it was a good test for us. We have a lot of depth, which shows the quality of our basketball team. Three nights in a row it's been somebody different stepping up. I had 36 (points) in Cleveland, then it was (Jonas Valanciunas) at home the other night and now it was Greivis stepping up. It just shows the depth and character of this team."
Dwane Casey
On Lou Williams: "He's a scorer. He's a born scorer. When you get 21 and 22 (points) from your (backup) guards, that's big time. It wasn't anything forced. It came within the offense."
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