Atlanta Hawks: 4 Takeaways From Close Loss To Raptors in Toronto
The Atlanta Hawks fell to 12-28 on the season as they suffered a hard-fought 104-101 loss to the Eastern Conference-leading Toronto Raptors.
On Tuesday night, the Atlanta Hawks fell to 12-28 on the season as they suffered a hard-fought 104-101 loss to the Eastern Conference-leading Toronto Raptors.
The game represented many things, but two particularly things in the big picture:
- It represented what could Vince Carter‘s last game in Toronto, against the franchise that had the first seven wonderful seasons of “Vinsanity”
- A chance for the young Hawks to show growth against one of the most complete teams in the NBA
Atlanta went into the half up by one point, mostly behind the scoring efforts of John Collins and Jeremy Lin, who combined for 23 first-half points. But Atlanta got incredibly sloppy in the second half, and continued to have no answer for Kawhi Leonard (31 points) on defense.
Hawks head coach Lloyd Pierce turned in yet another solid coaching performance. He stuck with what was working, using Lin-Collins pick-and-rolls to the tune of great success for both players. He stuck with DeAndre’ Bembry in the starting lineup (though he didn’t have many other choices) and overall coached a solid game against one of the best teams in the league.
There was nothing Pierce could’ve done to slow down Leonard besides maybe playing Justin Anderson and Daniel Hamilton more, and neither of those players would’ve provided a tougher challenge for the overpowering Leonard.
Although the Hawks coughed up this one late, their were some great things to gather from this contest. Here are some takeaways from Atlanta’s close loss in Toronto.