Too Many Mistakes: Atlanta Turns It Over 23 Times In 119-110 Loss to the New York Knicks

After their upset of Boston on Saturday night, Atlanta moved to 6-1 against the top three teams in the Eastern Conference, which are Cleveland, Boston, and New York. The Hawks were 2-0 against the Knicks coming into today's game, but a mistake filled performance and poor second half defense caused those record to slip to 6-2 and 2-1.

It was pretty easy to determine why the Hawks lost this game. They turned the ball over 23 times and were outscored in the second half 65-48. The third quarter in particular was poor for the Hawks on defense, allowing 40 points and 63% shooting from the Knicks. The offense was not really the problem for Atlanta, as they shot 47% from the field and 43% from three, but too many costly mistakes on the offensive end cost them the game and allowed the Knicks to battle back in the second half.

Trae Young did what he typially does in the Garden (27 points and six assists) and De'Andre Hunter had 22 points off the bench, but the Hawks could not get any other players going. Onyeka Okongwu got the start today, but failed to get a double-double for the first time in the last four games. While Dyson Daniels has given Jalen Brunson trouble this season, it was Brunson who won that battle today and decisively. He had Daniels frustrated from the outset of the game and he eventually fouled out of the game.

The big worry from this game if you are the Hawks has to be the play of Bogdan Bogdanovic. Bogdanovic has not been shooting the ball well this season and has been hard to keep on the floor when that is happening because he is not a strong defender. Bogdanovic had made a three in 110 straight NBA games (5th longest in NBA history), but that ended today. Bogdanovic 0-4 from three and only scored one point. One of Atlanta's biggest issues is that they lack shooting and without Bogdanovic, that is a glaring issue and will make winning consistently tough. Atlanta needs Bogdanovic to get back to the level he was playing at last season when he was arguably the best bench player in the NBA.

It was Brunson who was the big star today. He scored 34 points on 12-18 shooting and was able to frustrate Daniels. He got to his spot early and often and the Hawks could not stop him. Mikal Bridges scored 26 points and shot 12-17 from the floor. Both Bridges and Brunson have struggled in matchups with Atlanta this season, but they came up big today.

This loss ended the Hawks three game winning streak and leaves them at 22-20. They have a three-game homestand that begins on Wednesday against the Detroit Pistons, a big game when it comes to the standings in the East.

Jan 20, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic (13) is guarded by New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

There of course was a noticeable shift in the Hawks starting lineup today. Onyeka Okongwu started in place of Clint Capela at the center position. The rest of the Hawks lineup was the same, with Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Vit Krejci, and Jalen Johnson. The Knicks starting lineup remained unchanged, with Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Karl-Anthony Towns the first five on the floor for New York.

The start of the first quarter went about as well as you could ask for Atlanta. Johnson drew an and one to start the game and then Young hit a three for the Hawks to go up 6-0. They continued that by hitting two more threes and taking an early 18-8 lead. Early on, Towns was the only source of offense for the Knicks, scoring six of their first eight points, but once Daniels was called for two early fouls, that allowed Jalen Brunson to get going. As well as the Hawks started, they played poorly down the stretch of the quarter.

The Knicks turned it up on the defensive end and started forcing Atlanta into turnovers. The Hawks led 27-26 after the first quarter, but it was an ugly stretch for them on offense. They had eight turnovers total in the quarter, with most of them coming in the final mintes. They were shooting 50% from the field and 60% from three, but the turnovers got in their way.

It was a similar story for the Knicks. They shot 50% from the field and 57% from three, but they had six turnovers in the quarter. Brunson led all scorers with eight points.

Same spot as the first one pic.twitter.com/pjHcbSLczK
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 20, 2025

The Knicks carried the momentum over into the second quarter and got their first lead of the game. They started the quarter on a 9-4 run and grabbed a 35-31 lead with 8:54 left to go. The turnovers were still an issue for the Hawks, but the second quarter soon turned into a battle between two of the league's best point guards. The Hawks climbed back in the game and tied it with 5:45 left in the first half and the two teams continued to go back and forth. Young added 12 points to his total in the second quarter, while Brunson had 11 and was really carrying the Knicks. Bridges shot 4-5 from the field in the quarter, but the rest of the Knicks were struggling. Atlanta kept battling and finished the half on a 7-0 run to end the half, capped by a buzzer-beater from Okongwu. Atlanta led 62-54 at the half.

If not for the 13 turnovers, the Hawks had a very good half on offense. They were shooting 53% from the field and 60% from three. Young led the way with 18 points and was 5-6 from three and Krejci was 3-4 from three and had nine points.

The Knicks were shooting 51% from the floor and 50% from three, while also having 10 turnovers. Brunson led all scorers with 19 points.

Big O beats the buzzer! pic.twitter.com/wzIPN13nFP
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 20, 2025

The Knicks started the third quarter on a 7-0 to cut the lead to one point and it was Bridges who was carrying New York. Bridges has struggled in the previous two matchups vs the Hawks this season, but he played well starting in the second half. New York's offense could not be stopped in the third quarter. Despite going just 1-7 from the three-point line, New York shot 63% from the field and scored 40 points in the quarter. Bridges scored 14, Brunson had 12, and Hart had 10 in the quarter for New York. The good news for Atlanta was that they were also shooting well, especially Hunter, who had eight points off the bench in the third. Atlanta went on a 6-0 run near the end of the half and it looked like they were only going to trail by two going to the final period.

The Hawks defense played better in the fourth, but the offense could not get going enough to make a real run at winning the game. They were 1-8 from three in the quarter and had seven turnovers. While the Knicks were not great from an offensive perspective, they only had two turnovers. New York scored 11 points off of the seven turnovers from the Hawks and that was the deciding factor in the 4th. Too many mistakes in the biggest moments of the game cost the Hawks another shot at beating the Knicks in the Garden.

Related Links