The Atlanta Hawks were eliminated from the 2022 NBA Playoffs, following their road-loss against the Miami Heat on Tuesday night. The Hawks fell to an under-manned Heat squad, with Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry, both riding the bench for this game with various ailments.
This game came down to the final possession with Atlanta inbounding the ball under their own basket. Hawks forward, Danilo Gallinari, received the inbound pass and was immediately trapped in the corner by two Heat defenders. As a result, Atlanta failed to even get a shot up as the game clock expired and securing a 97-94 Miami victory. Miami advances to the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals awaiting the winner of the Philadelphia 76ers/Toronto Raptors series.
Game 5 had the same feel as the other Hawks’ losses in Games 1, 2 and 4. Incredible defense, pace and effort by Miami, had them in control of this game for most of the entire game. The Hawks trailed by 11 heading into the fourth quarter but attempted one last run to salvage their season. They were spear-headed by an unstoppable version of De’Andre Hunter, who had 19 points in the final frame alone. Hunter did his best to keep the Hawks in this one, hitting shot after shot but fouled out with under two minutes remaining. He finished his night with a playoff-career high of 35 points, and also 11 rebounds for the double-double.
Trae Young was largely ineffective once again, against a stout Miami defense. Young shot the ball 2-of-12 from the field, and finished the night with 12 points and 3 assists. A series to forget for the young superstar, Young will head into the offseason knowing what he will need to work on to compete with the likes of a team like Miami. Young ended the series averaging, 15.4 ppg and 6.0 apg, a far cry from his 28-point and 9-assist average in the regular season. His shooting splits were also down across the board, shooting only 31.9% overall an abysmal 18.4% from three-point land, and 78.4% from the free-throw line.
This ends a roller coaster season for the Hawks. The team was just never able to find that magic they had for last year’s playoff run. It was a constant battle to get above .500, the stress of the play-in tournament, multiple Covid outbreaks, were just a few things that prevented this Hawks team from reaching new heights. After this display against the Heat, Atlanta’s front office will presumptively be busy this summer and exploring ways to improve this ball club.
Stay tuned for a full post-season review and recap. The good, the bad, and the ugly…Hawks 2022 Season Recap…Coming Soon
