The Atlanta Hawks used their five-game homestand to get players such as Kevin Huerter out of their slump and back into some tremendous shooting form. They also got their offense going so well that they had tremendous production from their big men.
Then the Hawks went on the road and took care of the San Antonio Spurs in a relatively easy manner. They then destroyed the Memphis Grizzlies who were not helped by Ja Morant going off in the first period with a knee issue.
While Clint Capela had a really nice game on defense against the Grizzlies, it was their offense that was humming. The Hawks scored 43 points in the third period to take any fight out of the home team, given that they lost the quarter by 25 points, scoring only 18 themselves.
There is no rest for the Atlanta Hawks as they take on the New York Knicks
Now the Hawks have to return home to face the New York Knicks for the first time since the first-round playoff series from last season. That loss seemed to hit the Knicks hard and they went out over the offseason to find veterans to help improve their offense.
Unfortunately for the Knicks, Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier are good offensive players who hurt their defensive chemistry. So needless to say, it is not working out as expected for the Knicks who, after a promising start are now half a game behind the Hawks in the standings.
They are also on the second night of a back-to-back, having lost convincingly against the hottest team in the NBA right now, the Phoenix Suns. The big difference is that the Hawks were able to rest their starters for the entire final period while the Knicks played theirs trying to get a result.
Still, the Knicks are going to be looking to come hard at the Hawks, given that they were knocked out of the playoffs last season by the Georgia franchise. As shown by his game against the Milwaukee Bucks, Trae Young is not going to back down from a challenge and he knows that the Knicks will be coming for him in particular. Strap yourselves in for this one, it is going to be a battle.