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Who knew that playing with more effort defensively and better ball movement would lead to a win? Well, that is exactly what the Hawks did tonight, as they gained their fourth win of the season (3-0 at home) against the up-and-coming Washington Wizards.
Following an absolute routing by the Philadelphia 76ers, Atlanta needed to come out and set the tone and set the tone they did. During the first six games, it was clear that the Hawks starters came out lethargic and would typically give up a pretty sizable lead right out of the gate. That was certainly not the case tonight, and while Atlanta may not have blown the Wizards out of the water, there was never a definitive point in which you could’ve logically predicted the Wizards would come back. The final score was 118-111; however, it was easy to be distracted from the score with the Hawk’s finally seeming to get back to their old ways, you know, the old ways that got Atlanta to the Eastern Conference Finals this past year. It’s clear that when the Hawks play fast, they play better regardless of who is on the court.
Across the board, the Hawks were stellar, with seven players scoring 10+ points. John Collin’s had his playmaking breakout game, putting up six assists with a couple of admirable flashy passes. Bogi also got to show off his dimer skills, putting up six assists as well. If it wasn’t readily apparent before, the Hawks need to move the ball to get good shots, as we have some great shot creators, but passing talents like Trae are best utilized with shooters who are willing to find the open man if they get run off the line.
The Wizards put up a good fight, as even De’Andre Hunter’s stellar defense couldn’t keep star Bradley Beal from getting to his season average, but in the end, the Hawks’ depth once again helped secure the victory. One stat that caught my eye was our FTA; for just the second time this season, the Hawks led the game in free throws. The NBA made it clear that they were trying to move in a different direction with foul calls this year, but it honestly seemed as if the referees did not want to call fouls for Atlanta through the first six games.
The Hawks also got back to their bread and butter, the three point shot. The past two games, the Hawks were barley able to eclipse 20 threes, a pretty abysmal statistic in the modern NBA, but were able to get up 30 threes tonight, around their season average. This past year, the Hawks were towards the top of the league for both of those statistics but have struggled to get open shots the first six games of the season. For Hawks’ fans who were craving a 2020-esque performance, this was certainly the night for you. The Hawks travel up to Brooklyn on Wednesday to play the Nets at 7:30pm EST on ESPN.
