Hawks at Wizards Live Notebook
The Hawks will visit the Washington Wizards Friday night looking for their ninth win of the season -- and their third in the last six games. Only the Brooklyn Nets have been worse, statistically, than the Hawks and Wizards since December 23 -- the game Collins returned -- and the two teams have the 27th- and 30th-ranked defense, respectively, in the NBA. That should lead to plenty of scoring opportunities on Friday night; the game could come down simply to who capitalizes on those chances.
Follow along below for live updates and insights from the game:
Pregame
The Hawks will stick with their small starting lineup against Washington, who lacks a center physically dominant enough to punish Atlanta's lack of size.
The unit of Trae Young, Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish, De'Andre Hunter, and John Collins has played just 23 minutes all season (the Hawks have outscored opponents by 19 points in that time) and are the five most central pieces of the team's future currently on the roster. It's likely in Atlanta's best interest to develop that core, and Lloyd Pierce has started that group whenever matchups allow for it.
The Wizards, meanwhile, will remain shorthanded as Bradley Beal misses his fifth consecutive game with a leg injury.
Washington will also be without Thomas Bryant, Rui Hachimura, Garrison Mathews, and Moe Wagner, all of whom have been important rotation pieces at various points this season. Therefore the offense will rely heavily on Dāvis Bertāns, Ish Smith, Troy Brown, and Isaiah Thomas against the Hawks.
First Quarter
Hawks Targeting Thomas With the Lob
When we think of offenses targeting defenders, the LeBron James- and James Harden-style mismatch-hunting typically comes to mind. But there are other ways of exposing a player's defensive limitations, and Atlanta has found an effective one in this game.
Rather than involving him in the pick-and-roll or simply giving his man the ball, the Hawks have tried to exploit Isaiah Thomas' lackluster defense by stationing his man in the left corner as Trae Young and John Collins run middle pick-and-rolls moving toward the right side of the floor. Thomas is the only weak-side defender on the play, so it's his responsibility to help on Collins' roll, but his physical limitations make him ineffective in preventing Collins from finishing at the rim.
The Hawks have thus far been unsuccessful converting in the pick-and-roll (Collins missed an open alley-oop and Gary Payton II deflected another lob attempt), but this is a tactic to which they'll return throughout the game.
Wizards Exploiting Lazy Transition Defense
Atlanta's offense is off to a slow start, but the Hawks have gotten better looks than their offensive efficiency would suggest. The far bigger issue has been their transition defense. Nearly half of the Wizards' possessions in the first quarter began in transition, according to data from Cleaning the Glass, which has bumped their offensive efficiency to 1.11 points per possession.
Lloyd Pierce called timeout after a recent leakout, but it's now Washington's halfcourt offense gaining steam as the Wizards hold a nine-point edge after one quarter.
Second Quarter
Goodwin Energizing Hawks With Young On Bench
Brandon Goodwin gave Atlanta a good five minutes while Trae Young rested. He was 0-for-3 from 3, but all three were fine looks, and he helped energize the offense by pushing the ball and making sound decisions in the halfcourt. Goodwin is a quick and stout defender, and has been good enough on offense over the last eight games to stay in Lloyd Pierce's good graces.
Offensive Rebounds Continue to Hurt Atlanta
In keeping with a season-long trend, the Hawks have been awful on the defensive glass tonight, allowing Washington to rebound 37 percent of its misses and punish the Hawks will second-chance points. On a related note, the Wizards have also shot 75 percent at the rim by cutting behind Atlanta's defense and scrapping their way to extra opportunities.
Reddish In Rhythm, Under Control
One of the most fascinating arcs of Atlanta's season has been Cam Reddish's development, particularly as a decision-maker. The NBA game was so clearly too fast for him at the outset of his career, and he still seems to struggle with the speed at which the game unfolds. But Reddish is slowly finding his way, and you can almost see him processing the game more clearly with each passing game.
Tonight, Reddish played one of his best halves of the season, tallying five points, four rebounds, and two assists while playing solid defense across multiple positions. His shot hasn't been falling in recent games, so Reddish has attacked the basket in this one. Rather than trying to go through rim protectors and help defenders, he has patiently gone around defenders at the rim. His drives have been aggressive, yet under control -- a rare combination for Reddish to achieve this season.
He capped off the half with a steal underneath Washington's basket and an easy dime to Alex Len on the other end. Reddish still has a long way to go, but he's already a solid individual and team defender, and his offense is slowly but steadily improving.
Third Quarter
Collins & Hunter Looking Sharper on Defense
John Collins can be an inconsistent defender, prone to occasional tunnel vision and mental lapses, but has been more engaged the last two games as a help defender. He's erased three shots tonight -- all results of quick reactions and rotations. That's the version of Collins the Hawks need to be effective with him at center, and he has been that player more consistently this season than he was in the past.
De'Andre Hunter, meanwhile, has looked like the solid defender he was at the start of the year. The rookie went through a defensive slump over the last week or so, but has been sharper on rotations and better in one-on-one situations in the last two games.
Both Collins (13 points, 5-of-9 shooting) and Hunter (11 points, 4-of-7 shooting) have also turned in solid offensive games, a big reason why the Hawks hold a two-point lead despite a subpar night from Trae Young.
Fourth Quarter
Young Starts Fourth Quarter On Bench
Trae Young takes his usual rest to start the fourth quarter, with the Hawks down 81-79. Atlanta has struggled mightily with Young off the floor this season, especially on offense, and the Wizards can be prone to explosive bursts. The hawks are also playing Collins and Len together for the first time tonight, which should help bolster the team's defense during this Young-less stretch.
If Atlanta can weather these first few minutes, it will set itself up to close the game out when its point guard returns. This, however, could also be a costly stretch of the game if the Hawks sputter.
Defense Powering Both Sides
Tonight was expected to be more of an offensive affair given that the Wizards had the NBA's seventh-best offense and one of the worst defenses in league history. But with just over seven minutes remaining, neither team has had much offensive success. The Wizards have shot just 33 percent from the field and 32 percent from beyond the arc while the Hawks, while shooting the ball accurately, have turned the ball over 17 times and missed half of their free throws.
As a result, both teams have scored under 1.02 points per possession in an ugly yet entertaining back-and-forth affair. Washington has been more effective creating quality looks in the fourth quarter, and with Atlanta struggling to generate offense, it could be Young's individual prowess that takes the Hawks home down the stretch.
Hawks Offense Melts Down in Crunch Time
Credit the Wizards for their work on both ends of the floor down the stretch, but Atlanta has self destructed on offense late. The Hawks scored four points between the six- and one-minute marks of the period and often didn't even get a quality look. Young has struggled all night and forced a couple of tough, unnecessary 3s. As well as he played earlier in the quarter, Goodwin forced a stepback 3 with over a minute left that seemed to take Atlanta out of the game for good.
The Hawks entered the fourth quarter down two points, eventually gained a six-point lead, and will lose this one by 10 to the Washington Wizards.
