3 Takeaways: Atlanta Hawks ice-cold 2nd half offense leads to loss to Raptors

The Atlanta Hawks came into their Thursday night matchup with the Toronto Raptors flying high, but an ice-cold offense in the 2nd half resulted in an 18-point loss at home.

The Atlanta Hawks were coming off of a seven-game road trip that saw them go 4-3, and over that seven-game span Atlanta had the fifth-best offensive rating in the NBA at 116.6.

And against the Kawhi Leonard-less Raptors, the Hawks made sure to get off to a fast start in this one, taking a 11-point lead into the 2nd quarter.

But that is exactly when the Raptors woke up on offense.

The Raptors—who rank 7th in the league in offensive efficiency—put up a huge 38-point 2nd quarter that got them back into the game after the Hawks torrid start. Their big quarter was fueled by the uber-athletic Pascal Siakam, who continues to show massive strides in his game this year.

But the Hawks defense was an issue all game, even when their offense was firing on all cylinders. And when the Atlanta Hawks offense fizzled out in the 3rd quarter, it was easy to see to where the game was headed unless a big, momentum-shifting play was to occur.

Predictably, the cold 3rd quarter shooting carried over into the final frame, and the Atlanta Hawks ended up mustering a measly 33 points in the 2nd half. Trae Young continued to showcase how much the game is slowing down for him, as he collected a team-high 19 points on 7/14 shooting from the field.

Toronto continued to get out in transition and get to the free throw line in the 2nd half, getting the road W over a Hawks team that once held a 17-point lead in this game.

But just as the one-time, 17-point lead suggests, there are definitely some positive takeaways from the Hawks tough loss to the Raptors.