Here is what they said after the Hawks’ 92-91 win over the Celtics Tuesday afternoon:
“We were able to find a way to win a game when we didn’t shoot well from the perimeter, from around the basket, really from anywhere. Except for Paul Millsap. He put us on his back and was able to score enough points. Our defense kept us in it. Our defensive rebounding improved as the game went on. Our guards got in there really helping out. We went a little bit small with Mike and Paul so there was an emphasis on our guards rebounding. It’s a credit to our guys. It’s not the prettiest NBA game but we feel good about finding a way to win.”
- Coach Mike Budenholzer’s opening statement
“Keep staying with it. Keep fighting. We felt like we were getting a lot of good shots. If we just stayed aggressive and kept attacking that eventually our shots would go. That really didn’t happen. We stuck with the defense – our activity and our effort there and our contest without fouling. We just found a way.”
- Budenholzer on what he told his team when they trailed
“They were up on us 11 and to cut it four points, that’s a pretty good chunk that late in the game. Everybody feeds off Kyle. When he makes shots it picks up their spirit. That was a big play for us.”
- Budenholzer on Kyle Korver’s four-point play
“Cartier (is) familiar with playing on the perimeter. Mike Scott did a good job but it’s something that he is learning. It’s new to him. To put Cartier out there, who is more comfortable, we’ve been nursing his ankle and getting him back healthy. It felt like he could go and play and I think he really helped us. Pero is a smart player and gives us a little more spacing. Elton has been the spirit and the heart of our bench. To have him come off the bench, like he has been doing, it was a lot of little things like that.”
- Budenholzer on decision to start Cartier Martin and Pero Antic to start second half
“I thought Jeff was going to go up and lay it in the basket. I think he felt like he had Shelvin for an easier look. Sometimes in transition, your spacing and your decisions, everything is going so fast. You know how important that possession. We’ve actually been working on it and talking about and working on our offense in transition. It’s an area we really need to improve.”
- Budenholzer on Hawks’ failed 3-on-1 break in closing seconds
“I don’t know what to say about it. I was glad one finally went in. I had the whole section over there reminding me that I hadn’t made a 3 all night. It was a great look. It was a decent look. I was shooting the ball flat all night. I tried to put it up a little bit higher and I got the foul too.”
- Kyle Korver on four-point play
“We started off the game horribly. We couldn’t run anything right. We had that big hole. Then we made that run right before half. Cartier hit those big shots. We finally started hitting some shots. When you are not hitting shots then guys start trying to take over themselves. It snowballed on us. That’s what happened to us in the first half. We started connected a little bit and got a little momentum. At the end of the third quarter and beginning of the fourth quarter it happened again.”
- Korver on Hawks’ rally
“That is one of the things he does well. He shoots the ball, those long shots and those tough shots, he makes those. It’s the easy ones he might miss but it’s the hard ones I know he has a great chance of making. He is a talented player. … Shelvin Mack did a great job at the end in getting a big shot.”
- Jeff Teague on Jordan Crawford’s late shots
“Man, huge. We were down 11 and when he made that it was like a momentum swing for us. To get the three down for him as big, you know we had the streak going.”
- Teague on Korver four-point play
“We knew we had a chance to win. When we came in here and halftime we knew if we just played hard we had a chance to win. When they made their runs, we came back and played hard. We are one of those teams that at the end, we feel like we always have a chance. If we are right there, we know we have a chance to win. We did it again tonight.”
- Teague on pulling out victory
“We knew he was going to get the ball. He took their last three shots. Shelvin just manned up. He wanted the challenge after he missed the fast-break layup. He picked up the defensive effort and made a big stop.”
- Teague on Shelvin Mack’s late defense on Jordan Crawford
“I should have laid it up, honestly. I thought Jordan was going to take a charge. I was trying to move it to the side. He made a great play on defense and made us take a tough shot. I blame that on me. I put Shelvin in a bad position. I’m glad he got a good defensive stop at the end.”
- Teague on failed 3-on-1 break
“I knew with four seconds left it was going to be hard for him to make a play with someone else. I understood that he was going to try to take that shot. I did my best to contest it. With only four seconds it’s kind of hard to catch it and swing it without rushing it.”
- Shelvin Mack on late defense on Jordan Crawford
“It was important because, let’s face it, if I didn’t we would have been down by a lot more. Guys just told me to continue to keep going and eventually their shots would fall. In the fourth quarter, everybody started getting their shot up and we got into a little rhythm.”
- Paul Millsap on his 34 points
“I was just attacking the basket, getting in the paint and getting fouled.”
- Millsap on what was working for him
“I think the next few games and the ones we just played without him are crucial. Really trying to figure out where we are going to go and how we are going to do it. We are figuring it out now. We are a scrappy team.”
- Millsap on playing without Al Horford
“That is just when I put my head down and try to get to the rim and attack. I don’t think about it. I just play basketball. For me, it’s just getting out there and doing what I’ve been doing.”
- Millsap on pressure picking up for Horford
“The ankle is doing better. It’s coming along. It’s not quite 100 percent but I’m good enough to be able to go out there and be able to contribute whenever I’m called on. It’s one of those where you are not going to go through the entire season healthy. It’s part of the game. It’s our professionalism to fight through it.”
- Cartier Martin on sprained ankle
“It’s just a matter of being ready whenever you are called on. No matter if you are sore or hurt, when you are called on and they put you in the game, they expect you to produce.”
- Martin on two first-half 3-pointers
“I was pulling down some rebounds but my shot was not falling. I just tried to get defensive rebounds and let the game come to me.”
- Mike Scott on first start of season
“I think I had pretty good defense on (Brandon) Bass. He made some tough shots. He’s a good player but I think I handled it pretty good.”
- Scott on defensive assignment
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