The Raptors had a little extra motivation heading into their big win in Atlanta. Speaking after blowing out the Hawks, several players spoke about how the previous loss in Toronto had them geared up for this one.
Lou Williams on how much the win meant:
A lot. Any time you lose to a team, especially the way we did lose to them. We lost to them big at home.
It was one of those games where we felt we were embarrassed on our home court, so we wanted to come out and play with that on our minds.
Amir Johnson on whether this win meant a little bit extra:
Absolutely. They’re at the top. We beat them a couple times already but we definitely wanted to pay back for that time they beat us in our house. Feels good, feels good every time.
DeMar DeRozan on the win:
It means a lot, especially against the #1 team in the Eastern conference, and the run they’ve been having. And especially after how they beat us last time we played them. So it definitely meant a lot, and we just tried to come out and be aggressive.
The Raptors are now 3-1 against the league-leading Hawks this season, and remain 5 1/2 games back in the East.
