Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, Hawks’ Nation!
Yesterday marked the Hawks first Christmas day game since 1989, and it was a bit of a letdown especially considering the opponent, the New York Knicks. The Hawks rivalry with the Knicks began this past playoff when Trae Young and the young Hawks lit Madison Square Garden on fire with their antics and play on the court. However, since that thrashing of a series in which the Hawks won in 5 games, the Knicks have had the better of the Hawks, winning the last two.
However, it’s tough to put any weight on this previous night’s loss, as most of the players playing for the Hawks were either not on the team or were with the G-League Affiliate this time last week. The recent COVID outbreak has ravaged the Hawks, with TEN players in health and safety protocols. That’s right; basically, two rotations of players stuck on the injury report, most notable of which is the man who has been stuck in New Yorkers’ heads for the better part of this year, Trae Young.
As far as this past game, that outcome was expected given the circumstances. The Knicks, while they have had a challenging last 15 games, had a relatively healthy roster, while the Hawks have no roster continuity. Surprisingly the Hawks kept the game relatively close despite all of this, and if it weren’t for such a slow start, they could have perhaps won the game.
John Collins had a solid showing, once again proving that he must be regarded more when Coach Nate McMillian is considering the offensive game plan. Outside of that, it was a pretty collective effort, with the only other player with 20 points being Delon Wright.
The final score, 87-101, seems like a bit of a blowout, but given the situation placed on McMillan and the team, I thought the Hawks played exceptionally well. Atlanta will pick up their play tomorrow night at 7:30 ET against the Chicago Bulls.
