Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker just served up a reminder of the Atlanta Hawks true potential. Yes, you read that correctly. The Hawks went into the All-Star break riding a two-game winning streak to bring their record to…28-30. Okay, it hasn’t been the smoothest but there have been some trends that point to another turnaround.
The Suns own the NBA’s best record at 48-10 and took a seven-game winning streak of their own into the break.
They had an 11-game streak prior to that with a slight interruption.
What does all of this have to do with the Hawks? They were that interruption thanks to their 124-115 triumph over the red-hot Suns on Feb 3. That was one of just four wins (compared to four losses) for the Hawks so far in February.
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Atlanta came at home meaning they took down the best team, with the best road record, at a place that had been a problem when it shouldn’t have been. The Hawks went on to lose the next two games putting a strong performance in the midst of a 2-5 stretch. However, as we pointed out, most of those losses came against strong opponents.
Trae Young recorded one of his 40-point outings in the victory, notching 43 points on 64.0 percent shooting and going 6-for-10 from three-point range with five assists. It was also just one of three games this season that he’s finished without a rebound.
It was a team effort though.
The Hawks got 19 points and 10 boards out of John Collins who is currently dealing with a strained foot. But they also got 19 points from Kevin Huerter as well as double digits from Bogdan Bogdanovic, Danilo Gallinari, and De’Andre Hunter. Only Huerter and Hunter finished the outing with negative plus-minuses.
— Book (@DevinBook) February 18, 2022
That win was actually the second meeting between the two teams. Phoenix won the first tilt 121-117 in one of the few fully-healthy games the Hawks have had this season.
Young led the way with 31 points and 13 dimes while Collins chipped in 26 points and 10 rebounds as the Hawks won the battle on the glass but lost the war in the boxscore as Phonix outscored Atlanta 35-19 negating a 90-86 Hawks lead through three quarters.
Booker scored over 30 points in both games going 1-for-8 in the Hawks win and 5-for-9 in their loss. But, as the emoji he put on the tweet shows, the Hawks got the greater prize taking the win and earning a split of the season series. And that it is the most recent result, breaking up a would-be 19-game winning streak, possibly adds a little extra enjoyment to it.
It served as a reminder of what this team can do then. Booker’s tweet does the same thing in letting everyone know the Hawks can play with and beat anyone.