Instant Takeaways From the Atlanta Hawks Season Finale Loss Against the Miami Heat

Coming into this game, the Atlanta Hawks had officially clinched a playoff spot with their win against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, and as a result, decided to sit their starters for rest tonight. Tonight, the Hawks took on the Miami Heat in their last game before the NBA Playoffs next weekend, a game with no real implications for the Hawks' playoff seeding.

However, the real implication came from the matchup between the Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics tonight, as the winner of that matchup dictates who the Hawks will play in the first round of the playoffs.

1. Defense out of sorts

KJ cleans up with authority 💪 pic.twitter.com/OgyRwLCKEm
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) April 12, 2026

In the first half, the Hawks' defense was a bit questionable as they allowed the Heat to score 70 points on 59% from the field and 43% from three-point range. The Hawks would go on to allow 73 second-half points due to their inability to take care of the basketball, with 17 turnovers leading to 22 Miami points and 80 points in the paint. The Heat finished the game making 15 three-pointers and scoring 143 points while shooting 56% from the field.

2. Buddy Hield

Buddy is on a heater ♨️♨️♨️

3 threes already pic.twitter.com/DhdWIgMlpv
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) April 12, 2026

Coming off the bench, Hield was scorching hot as he was able to make his first three-pointer as a Hawk to go along with four made first-half threes and 16 points in the first half. In the second half, Hield would follow up his hot shooting with another 15 points and three more triples as he finished the game with seven three-pointers and a season high 31 points on a fantastic 66% shooting from the field and 63% shooting from three.

3. Zaccharie Risacher

Zaccharie Risacher clamping up Tyler Herro. pic.twitter.com/0WWPMDjPzp
— Kevin Chouinard (@KLChouinard) April 12, 2026

Risacher showed his ability to play well on both ends of the court, as he played some solid minutes for the Hawks tonight, specifically, with his defense on Tyler Herro. While playing just 23 minutes, he showed encouraging signs of playability heading into playoff time, and it will be interesting to see how he performs. For the evening, Risacher finished with a near double-double of 11 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and one steal on 62% shooting from the field.

4. What's next?

WIth the Celtics beating the Orlando Magic tonight in an upset, Atlanta is going to face the New York Knicks in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. This is going to be a tough matchup for Atlanta, but it is not one that they cannot win.