The Atlanta Hawks put together their biggest win of the season with a 121-116 win over the New York Knicks on Wednesday night at State Farm Arena. De’Andre Hunter was questionable leading up to the game but got ruled out a few hours before tipoff; therefore, Zaccharie Risacher continued starting at small forward. After struggling with his three-point shot coming into the contest, the first-overall pick broke out in a huge way with 33 points (11-18 FG), six triples, seven rebounds, three steals, and two blocks.
After the game, I asked Risacher how Head Coach Quin Snyder instilled confidence in him, despite some early shooting struggles.
“He basically tells me to shoot the f**king ball,” Risacher said with a smile. His blunt, but funny response, was received with laughs around the press room. He also talked about how his teammates have done a great job of encouraging him to let the ball fly.
Risacher played great defense and matched the Knicks’ physicality, even blocking Karl-Anthony Towns as he drove hard to the rim. Towns did all he could for his squad with 34 points, 16 rebounds, and three blocks. Dyson Daniels had a rough shooting night (3-16) for six points, but he was a driving force why the Hawks held Jalen Brunson to 21 points on 8-18 shooting.
While Risacher had a monster night, the Hawks had many great performances to send their fans home happy. Jalen Johnson put up another huge stat line with 23 points, 15 boards, and seven assists. Trae Young, after a slow start in the first half, caught fire in the second for 23 points, 10 assists, six rebounds, and two steals. Clint Capela shot a perfect 8-8 from the field for 18 points and hit two huge free throws to give Atlanta a 112-111 lead with one minute left. The Hawks got three consecutive stops and stretched their lead to 118-111 with 22 seconds left to put the game away.
Even though the Knicks made 22 threes and shot 48.8% from the field compared to Atlanta’s 45%, they turned the ball over 15 times. 12 of those turnovers resulted in Hawks’ steals, leading to easy transition buckets. With the Knicks’ three-point marksmanship and the Hawks’ active hands, both squads scored a whopping 39 points in the second quarter. Neither team held a double-digit lead in the contest, but Atlanta’s defense inside the final minute held the Knicks in check to secure the victory.
After an impressive win, the Hawks will look to keep up the momentum when they face the Detroit Pistons on Friday night at Little Caesars Arena.
