Three Big Takeaways From Atlanta Hawks 121-98 Loss to the Los Angeles Clippers

The Hawks had their four-game winning streak snapped last night in a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers

Mar 14, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; LA Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) dribbles against Atlanta Hawks guard Terance Mann (14) during the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Hawks saw their four-game winning streak go up in smoke last night at the hands of the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers completed the two-game season sweep of the Atlanta with their second blowout win of the year over the Hawks. What are the biggest takeaways from last night for Atlanta?

1. The Third Quarter Cost the Hawks The Game...

Sometimes it is an overreaction to point to one quarter as the main reason that a team loses a game, but that was the case last night for the Hawks. After taking an eight point lead into halftime, the Hawks just utterley collapsed in the third quarter. The Clippers outscored the Hawks 35-8 in the quarter, Atlanta was 4-23 from the field (0-8 from three) and had eight turnovers. It was by far the worst quarter of the entire season for the Hawks and the first one in which they scored in single digits. The Hawks trailed by 19 going into the final quarter and it was too late to make a run at that point.

2. Trae Young had one of his worst games of the season...

Young salvaged the night somewhat in the fourth quarter by scoring nine points, but in the first three combined, he had only eight. It was not the kind of game that you would expect from a player like Young and while he was far from the only reason that the Hawks lost, he played poorly. After the game, Young revealed that he was dealing with an injury from the previous game:

Trae Young says he re-aggravated his left shoulder when he was fouled by Jusuf Nurkic in the first quarter last game. Young said he took the sleeve off because of his shooting struggles and doesn’t plan to wear it moving forward.

— Caleb Johnson (@ATLjohnson18) March 15, 2025

3. Turnovers were detrimental yet again vs the Clippers...

The Clippers have an elite defense and are excellent at creating turnovers and creating opportunities for themselves on the other end of the floor. After the Clippers were the turnover prone team in the first half, it flipped in the other direction and in a big way for Los Angeles. The Clippers only committed four turnovers in the second half, compared to 10 for the Hawks, which led to 16 points LA. Turnovers have been a problem for the Hawks this season it got in the way of them winning their fifth straight game last night.

Additional Links

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