Hawks Path to Victory: Defense, Turnovers, Guard Play
The Atlanta Hawks fourth road game of the playoffs will be played in Washington D.C. Previously, the Hawks have been underwhelming on the road, a meager 1-2 record as their defense has struggled for consistency, their intensity has waned and they have not looked like the Atlanta Hawks team that won 25 road games in the regular season.
Because the Atlanta Hawks lost the first game of their best of seven series, game 3 on the road in Washington D.C. is a pivotal match-up for a team needing to reclaim home court. There will be the usual obstacles of ball movement, energy and fighting through adversity. The Wizards have not lost at home this post-season and the crowd at the Verizon Center will be in full hysteria mode, expecting to see the Wizards mow down Atlanta with their perimeter shooting.
For their part, the Hawks identity of unselfishness will be on display but the question is for how long. The trend the Hawks have depended on is to come out full blast in the first quarter and then to ease up. By the time the fourth quarter rolls around, the game is up for grabs. The Hawks habitual scoring drought(s) and loss of leads has been one of their weaknesses in this playoff run and must be avoided in Washington. Otherwise they’ll get buried with long distance shooting by the Wizards.
After game 2, Paul Pierce huddled his team together and reminded them they are the best team in this series. It was a speech that reinforced a given. John Wall is the best player on the Wizards but Paul Pierce is their soul.
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May 5, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall on the bench against the Atlanta Hawks during the first half in game two of the second round of the NBA Playoffs. at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
As for John Wall, if he does play, his ability to handle the ball in traffic as well as how much velocity he can exert when penetrating through gaps as the Hawks defenders reach in, trying to create turnovers, will determine his minutes. If Wall doesn’t play, Ramon Sessions is more than ready to fill in, his confidence having grown substantially after his 21 point performance on Tuesday.
The difference between the Hawks winning and the Hawks losing comes down to three areas: Defense, Turnovers, Guard Play.
Perimeter Defense
The Hawks were hurt in game 2 by Bradley Beal, Ramon Sessions and Paul Pierce making perimeter shots, many of which were uncontested because the Hawks did a poor job of recovering off of double teams. It makes no sense doubling Nene in the post. In fact, Randy Wittman is counting on the Hawks double team to give his shooters wide open looks. Instead the Hawks need to cover the three point line and make Pierce put the ball on the floor and move to the rim. Same with Beal and Sessions. Turn then into drivers, then collapse the defense once you take away the perimeter shot.
Ball Control
The Hawks were able to win the regular season series against the Wizards because they forced turnovers which enabled them to get out in the open court and either feed the perimeter or their big guys down low. On the other end, the Hawks were careful with the ball themselves. The Wizards have young athletes who don’t need much when they have the ball on the break. As clichéd as it sounds, turnovers are the difference between wins and losses. In game 1, the Wizards turned the ball over 6 times. They won. In game 2, they turned it over 16 times. They lost.
Jeff Teague and Kyle Korver
The average to mediocre play of the Hawks backcourt is heightened by the fact that their counterparts (John Wall, Bradley Beal, Ramon Sessions) have been remarkable and at times unstoppable. Both Teague and Korver have room for improvement on the offensive end. They are missing wide open shots they usual make and on defense their mistakes have attributed to the Wizards uncontested perimeter shots that they are knocking down. Teague especially has to find a way to get into the seams for his floater and at the same time take the mid-range the Wizards are giving him and shoot it with confidence.
Korver is just missing open shots. The Wizards are not doing anything spectacular. The Nets were actually more physical than the Wizards bumping Korver as he ran east to west. In this series, Korver is just missing shots he normally makes. It makes you wonder about Korver’s legs. Is he tired? He’s played in 82 games this year, not including pre-season, a lot for a jump shooter who is forever running off of screens. Both Korver and Teague have to force Wall, Sessions and Beal to play defense and that will only happen if they make shots.