Instant Takeaways From The Atlanta Hawks' Bounce Back Win Against The Washington Wizards

The Hawks bounce back from a rough three game losing streak with a win.

Dec 6, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards forward Kyshawn George (18) drives to the basket as Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) defends in the first half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Tonight, the Hawks came into this game on a struggling stretch, losers of their last three games. This, however, would end as the Hawks went on to close the deal and get a much-needed win against a young, struggling Washington Wizards team.

Back in the W column 😎 pic.twitter.com/r9f64NW3Ph

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 7, 2025

1. The Hawks offense dominates the paint

Not exactly the best response for the Wizards after giving up 145 to Boston, 70-55 at halftime to Atlanta.

Hawks had 70 despite going 3/18 from three. How? They have 29 rebounds compared to just 13 for Wiz and are shooting 72.7% in the paint.

CJ has 14, Johnson w 16 for ATL.

— Varun Shankar (@ByVarunShankar) December 7, 2025

In this game, the Hawks placed significant emphasis on attacking the paint, finishing with a near-season high 70 points in the paint, their season high being 77. In the first half, the Hawks struggled from the three-point line but made up for it with scoring inside, totaling 48 points in the paint and 20 second-chance points. In the game, the Hawks finished with 36 assists, 19 fast-break points, 53% from the field, and seven players scoring in double figures, showing how much of a team effort this win was.

2. Jalen Johnson back to back triple doubles

JALEN JOHNSON TONIGHT:

30 POINTS
12 REBOUNDS
12 ASSISTS
10/18 FG
8/8 FT

BACK TO BACK TRIPLE DOUBLES. (via @realapp) pic.twitter.com/OYYJGQjFtb

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) December 7, 2025

In his second night in a row, Johnson finished with another triple-double, this one in the second half, compared to last night's in the first half. It was a more complete performance, as the Hawks got the win, and Johnson was more efficient. Johnson was efficient from the field (55%) and from the three-point line (40%), both better than the previous night, and brings his last 14-game sample size to a near triple-double with 25 points,11 rebounds, and nine assists.

3. Rough third quarter again

The Wizards have cut what was once a 20-point Hawks lead to 6. Quin Snyder calls timeout with 1:49 to go in the third.

— Bijan Todd (@bijan_todd) December 7, 2025

This season, the Hawks' apparent Achilles' heel is the third quarter; in most games, they seem to check out and slow down, which has led to them blowing leads and losing games. In the third quarter, the Hawks allowed 38 points to the Wizards, who shot 70% from the field. This happened last night, when the Hawks came out slow on defense, which led to teams getting back into the game.

4. Luke Kennard and Vit Krejci

10-2 run by the Hawks to push the lead out to 13 with 6:26 to go.

Krejci and Kennard have both been quite good tonight, combining for 29 points and 7 threes.

— Brad Rowland (@BTRowland) December 7, 2025

Atlanta didn't have its best night shooting from three-point range. The main contributors in that department, however, were both Kennard and Krejci, as they both hit the ball very well, with Kennard shooting 75% from three-point range and Krejci shooting 50%. This was a huge bounce-back performance from Kennard, as he finished with 15 points, his most since the beginning of the season, when he scored 17 against the Brooklyn Nets, and an off night, when he had just two points against the Denver Nuggets on two shot attempts.