Atlanta Hawks Beat Charlotte Hornets 125-106
Summary
Despite having the league's worst record, the Charlotte Hornets entered Friday night's game against the Atlanta Hawks as slight favorites. Of course, Atlanta was without three starters; Dejounte Murray, John Collins, and Clint Capela.
With so much firepower sitting on the sidelines in street clothes, Atlanta needed a big game from its playmakers - and they delivered. Trae Young tallied 31 points on 44.4% from the field and 40% from deep. Additionally, Young dished nine assists to his uncharacteristically hot teammates.
While Young works his way out of a slump, Bogdan Bogdanovic remains on fire. The veteran shooting guard knocked down 7-10 three-point attempts and finished the game with 28 points.
Atlanta jumped out to a 24-point lead in the first half before Charlotte stormed back to within two points in the third quarter. Minus the first six minutes of the second half, it was one of Atlanta's more complete games of the season. A 125-106 victory is the best the short-handed Hawks could have envisioned.
In his fifth game of the season, LaMelo Ball continued to impress. Charlotte's All-Star guard scorched the nets with 27 points on 50% shooting, including seven made three-pointers.
Unfortunately for Ball, his team remains deeply flawed. As head coach Steve Clifford said during his post-game press conference that went viral on Wednesday night, Charlotte does not care about defense.
Atlanta is now 15-15, with an easier stretch of their schedule coming up. As the roster gets healthier, now is the time for Atlanta to make up the ground they lost over the past month. Stay locked into AllHawks.com for news, highlights, and analysis.
Stats
Hawks Leaders
Trae Young - 31 PTS, 9 AST
Bogdan Bogdanovic - 28 PTS, 9 REB
AJ Griffin - 13 PTS, 2 REB
Hornets Leaders
LaMelo Ball - 27 PTS, 3 AST
Terry Rozier - 16 PTS, 6 REB
Nick Richards - 13 PTS, 11 REB
