Atlanta Hawks: Rapid Reaction to a Streak-Busting Win vs. Hornets

A breathless rapid reaction to the best game the Atlanta Hawks have played this season – a one-point victory over the Charlotte Hornets.

The Atlanta Hawks came into tonight’s tilt against the Hornets as the losers of 10 straight games, but the team came out with a lot of energy and looked far better than they had in many recent contests.

That energy showed through throughout the game, despite the team giving up yet another 40-point quarter to one of their foes—though they were only outscored by 11 points after the 1st quarter.

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Kemba Walker was an absolute beast early, and he started the game off with a virtuoso showing of 10 points and 6 assists in the game’s first 12 minutes. The Hawks were able to flip the script in the 2nd quarter by outscoring the Hornets 33-23, mostly on the back of the newly bolstered bench unit that consists of Kent Bazemore and a rejuvenated and fully healthy Jeremy Lin and DeAndre’ Bembry. All three of those players played a huge role in this victory for the team.

The Atlanta Hawks also played well as a unit overall, as the defense looked far more connected and motivated, and the team’s ball movement had me flashing back to the glory days of Coach Bud’s 60-win team of 2014-15. The Hawks finished with a season-high 34 assists on 50 made baskets.

The final two plays of the game were easily the most exciting segments of any Hawks game this season. First, on offense, Kent Bazemore knifed his way to the lane with his fluid combination of size, speed and length to drop an easy layup in to give the Hawks a one-point lead. He also had this terrific sequence in the 4th:

Then, on the other end, the Hornets had about 4.3 seconds left to get the final shot off.

Everyone knew the ball was going into the hands of Kemba, but in a wonderful moment for Hawks fans, promising sophomore John Collins met him at the rim and swatted his shot for the game-winning erasure. Hawks win!

We have much more to come on this victory on Soaring Down South, so stay tuned for more on this streak-busting victory.