The Atlanta Hawks treated fans to an exciting, 117-107 opening-night win, at home against the Houston Rockets.
This past offseason brought so much excitement with the arrival of All-Star guard, Dejounte Murray, and he did not disappoint in his Hawks debut. Murray finished with a dazzling 20 points, 11 assists, five rebounds, five steals and added a block, in 38 minutes of play. Murray used his long wing-span to pick ball handlers’ pockets, take away passing lanes and disrupt hand-offs on the perimeter. He also committed zero turnovers.
His All-Star running mate, Trae Young, finished with a breezy, 23 points while adding 13 assists. John Collins was unstoppable, as rookie Jabari Smith Jr., was no match for him in the post. “JC” scored 24 points on an efficient 9-12 from the field and 2-2 from three-point range. De’Andre Hunter, fresh off his four-year $95-million contract extension, added 22 points shooting an efficient 10-15 from the field. The Hawks had four starters score 20 points or more, that is a great recipe for success.
The Hawks struggled offensively out of the gate, falling down by six early. The Rockets started former Hawk, Bruno Fernando, at center, and he created momentum for Houston early. He blocked two shots in one possession, and the latter led to a ferocious fast break dunk for Rockets guard, Jalen Green. The athletic Green struggled with his shot finishing with 16 points on 7-20 shooting from the field. Murray made it tough for Green to get in a rhythm, playing physical defense all night. Houston’s Kevin Porter Jr., added 21 points, while Smith Jr. scored 17 points in his NBA debut. Alperen Sengun chipped in 15 points off the bench while adding nine rebounds, however, he did commit six turnovers tarnished his stat-line.
The Hawks went into the half with a nine point point lead, while forcing 10 turnovers leading to 17 points. This was largely due to their active hands defensively. Atlanta forced Houston into a total of 15 turnovers, including 12 steals. Justin and Aaron Holiday played significant roles defensively off the bench, creating deflections and fast break opportunities. To begin the fourth quarter, J. Holiday deflected a pass to Murray who pushed the pace to A. Holiday for a momentum fast break three. These hustle plays made all the difference, especially with the energetic crowd cheering and motivating the Hawks. Atlanta did only shot 28% from three, something that will definitely need to improve moving forward.
The defensive intensity the Hawks showed will have to be on display on a nightly basis if they want to get back into contention. Atlanta’s next chance to meet this challenge will come on Friday night at State Farm Arena, as they battle the first overall pick in the 2022 draft, Paolo Banchero, and the Orlando Magic.
