Instant Takeaways From The Atlanta Hawks' Loss Against The Los Angeles Clippers

The Hawks get another abysmal loss.

Dec 3, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (7) dribbles against LA Clippers forward John Collins (20) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Tonight, the Hawks came into this game looking to bounce back after a tough loss to the number one-seeded Detroit Pistons. However, that would not be the case as they looked even worse at home and were without many of their scoring leaders in tonight's matchup with the Clippers.

Final pic.twitter.com/7hdlngwzC1

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) December 4, 2025

1. Offensive struggles

Nine steals in the first half 👀🍪

James Harden drivin' thru! pic.twitter.com/AoUctGQZ2p

— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) December 4, 2025

To start this game, the Hawks looked out of sync offensively as they couldn't get shots to fall and turned the ball over eight times in the first quarter. This would continue into the second quarter, as the Hawks would fall behind by 14 points after giving up a 15-3 run and shot 38% from the field in the first half. This would continue as the Hawks finished the game shooting 40% from the field and 33% from three-point range, turning the ball over 16 times, and being held under 100 points as a team.

2. Nickeil Alexander-Walker

Nickeil Alexander-Walker has scored 20+ points in a career-long four straight games.

— Hawks PR (@HawksPR) December 4, 2025

Alexander-Walker was honestly Atlanta's only consistent two-way player tonight, as he finished with a team-high 21 points, five rebounds, three assists, and one steal. He would lead the Hawks tonight in scoring in both halves of play, but that was to be expected as the Hawks didn't really have many scoring options available outside of him.

3. James Harden dominates

James Harden in the 1st quarter: pic.twitter.com/JV3UOsEfhW

— KB 🐺 (@KBProps) December 4, 2025

James Harden tonight:

27 Points
9 Assists
4 Rebounds
3 Steals
37 Minutes

Clippers get a much needed Win. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/cF4ykPoXqO

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) December 4, 2025

Harden tonight had one of his vintage performances against the Hawks as he dominated from the start of the game, finishing the first quarter with 13 points. Harden would continue this into the second half, as the Hawks had no answer for him defensively, and he finished with a near double-double of 27 points, four rebounds, nine assists, and three steals.

4. Absence of Hawks stars is concerning

41 points on 49 first-half possessions for the Hawks.

Looks a lot like a team missing its top 3 projected scorers from before the season started. https://t.co/7rDGeIHbqe

— Brad Rowland (@BTRowland) December 4, 2025

While the Hawks played as a team that looked lethargic, to say the least, the biggest eye-opener for me and others was the amount of time Porzingis is missing and how much wasted potential this team has right now. Coming into the season, this Hawks team was considered a hit-or-miss squad with dark-horse potential for a deep postseason run. Even though that's still possible, the Hawks' roster has been a disappointment at times because of injuries. As of tonight, Young and Porzingis have missed half the season and have been brought up in trade talks recently, which is not a good sign for a team with such high expectations to start the season. It is still early, and hopefully, it is not too long for the Hawks to have their full squad together to make a run.