We could very well be witnessing the early stages of another midseason run from the Atlanta Hawks (20-25). Following their subpar start, they have managed to take the last three games in a row. They’ve snapped a 10-game losing streak at home as well as a five-game skid overall along the way.
If they are going to make it four in a row, however, they are going to have to take down another one of the hottest teams in the NBA in the Charlotte Hornets.
Charlotte has also won three straight.
They are 7-1 in their last eight games and have won 10 of their last 13 games to position themselves as the current seventh-seed entering play on Sunday and could take the sixth-seed with a win and a Philadelphia 76ers loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
The Atlanta Hawks will be tested in transition by the Hornets
On the season, the Hawks rank second in the NBA in offensive rating. The Hornets are right behind them. That rating has dropped to 10th during their impressive run and is 22nd since they dropped 140 points on the Detroit Pistons. Atlanta has fallen as well but still ranks eighth in the league.
Like the Hawks, the Hornets push has been keyed by an improved defensive effort. They have the Association’s best defensive rating since their win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Hawks are still just 26th in defensive rating in their last three outings. Their transition numbers are even worse, with them allowing an absurd 1.23 PPP. and 67.2 percent effective field goal percentage.
Charlotte leads the league in transition offense and frequency.
It doesn’t help that they are also one of the drive-heaviest teams and knocks down catch-and-shoot opportunities at a 38.4 percent clip; sixth in the NBA. Atlanta is second in catch-and-shoot efficiency but, just as is the case with their transition offense, they don’t take advantage nearly enough.
Switching it up could be the key.
The Hawks have benefited from taking the fight to their opponents in their winning streak and have seen their leads threatened when they become lax.
That cannot happen if they want to get a win over a very confident Hornets team. It’s a squad that was also seventh last year around this time when their star point guard, LaMelo Ball, went down.
He missed the game the Hornets won but was one rebound short of a triple-double with 15 points, 11 assists, and nine rebounds in the game the Hawks took.
The Hawks starters actually outscored the Hornets first five in the last matchup 104-98 behind big games from John Collins, Kevin Huerter, and Trae Young But the bench got outdueled as the Hawks dealt with a depleted roster.
Will that be the difference this time?
They still rank 20th during their streak. But the Hornets bench is 23rd in that span. This could all come down to keeping Ball in check on his drives and watching out for Miles Bridges trailing to catch a lob, a la Collins and Young, or waiting to catch-and-shoot.
The Hawks allowed the Hornets to shoot above 42 percent from downtown in both of their previous meetings.
Collins has had rough outings defensively in both games but has generally been one of the better defenders this season. It will be incumbent upon him to try limiting Bridges this time out to help make life a little easier for the Hawks. They still have to worry about Terry Rozier and Cody Martin, the twin brother of Caleb of the Miami Heat.
That’s where Huerter — who popped up on the injury report Saturday — and De’Andre Hunter come in
Clinging onto fourth-quarter leads is no way to make a living, but it does get the ball rolling in the right direction.