Atlanta Hawks: Takeaways from streak-snapping win

Looking at some key takeaways from the Atlanta Hawks’ win over Golden State Monday night.

Hey! The Atlanta Hawks won a game.

For the first time since their November 12th upset victory  in Denver, the Hawks were victorious on Monday night, snapping a ten game losing streak.

It was a fairly breezy one, with the Hawks taking and keeping the lead early in the 2nd period. At one point, they led by 28.

Takeaways:

1. Defense:

During the team’s 10-game skid, they allowed an average of 128.1 points per game. Two teams reached 150 or more in that window.

Tonight, was  a welcomed far-cry from that, as the Warriors managed just 79 points, including the 13 points third quarter. The Dubs made just 39% of their shots, compared to the 50% average for the opponents through the losing streak.

Yes, part of this is the Warriors’ ghastly offense, but you can’t allow fewer than 80 points in today’s league and not have it be a defensive win – no matter the team.

2. De’Andre Hunter

The rookie, who had been playing some good ball of late, dislocated his finger in the 4th quarter of the win.

The injury occurred on the forward’s 22nd birthday, and it’s unclear as of now if he’ll be able to go on Wednesday against the Nets. If he does miss time, it should be no longer than 1-2 games at the most.

He was the Hawks’ 2nd leading scorer when he left, finishing the night with 18 points.

3. Damian Jones‘ Revenge

Damian Jones spent the first three years of his career on the Golden State Warriors, before being traded to Atlanta in the off season.

He must have marked this game on the calendar, because he showed up in a big way.

The big man scored a career-high 16 points on 6/8 shooting, grabbing 8 rebounds along the way.

This poster was the cherry on top:

4. All-around Bembry

Deandre’ Bembry stuffed the stat sheet on the night, collecting 3 steals, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, a block, and 5 points in 28 minutes of play.

It was a nice get-right game for the struggling Hawks, who really didn’t need much from Trae Young (24 pts, 7 assists) to get the job done.

The supporting cast stepped up for one of the first times in a while, and that’s a key reason they came away with a win.

They’ll look to make it two in a row Wednesday night vs. the Nets. We’ll have the recap right here.