The Atlanta Hawks (31-33) should be all sorts of fired up to play the defending champion, Milwaukee Bucks, on Wednesday. Their 113-110 loss to the Detroit Pistons was their first overtime game of the season and spoiled John Collins’ return to the starting lineup. They could have jumped up a couple of spots with a win but are still the current 10-seed in the East.
This is supposed to be the second-easiest remaining schedule in the NBA but Monday’s defeat was a reminder of the uneven nature this team has shown all season.
They are 5-5 in their last 10 games but could get Kevin Huerter back for this one after he was listed as probable on the most recent injury report. He’s missed Monday’s contest and wasn’t playing particularly well before going down but he’s still integral to their success.
One thing we shouldn’t see, though, is the kind of lethargy that led to Monday’s defeat.
The Atlanta Hawks should be fired up from the start versus the reigning champs
The Hawks have played down to their competition all throughout the season. Wins over the Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, and Phoenix Suns are offset by losses to the Pistons, New York Knicks, and Houston Rockets. The Hawks unsurprisingly have the worst road record and are tied for the fewest wins against teams with a .500 record or better.
They are owners of the NBA’s second-best offensive rating but, also, the 26th-ranked defensive rating.
Talk of sacrificing and not getting up for lesser games or opponents was addressed directly by Trae Young who said back in November that games in the regular season were “a lot more boring than the playoffs” following a 116-98 loss to the Utah Jazz.
The Hawks were 4-5 at the time.
Players from Bogdan Bogdanovic to Clint Capela and Danilo Gallinari have spoken about the Hawks not maintaining the same level of effort, sometimes, from quarter to quarter, let alone game to game. And Nate McMillan has spoken of staying locked in on the defensive end of the floor and finishing but the results just haven’t consistently been there.
That shouldn’t be an issue Wednesday if what they have said is true.
Nate McMillan said that tonight's result was about finishing. pic.twitter.com/k3tEFVMWtT
— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) March 8, 2022
Both previous wins over the Bucks came with both teams shorthanded. The Hawks were without De’Andre Hunter for the first game and Clint Capela in the second.
The Bucks were without Khris Middleton and then Jrue Holiday. They are 33-11 with those two in the lineup this season and come in riding a five-game winning streak with consecutive victories over the Heat, Bulls, and Suns in that span.
Of course, the Hawks have beaten all of those teams this season. Just two games from knocking the Bucks out of the postseason, the Hawks really do have the talent to compete with anyone on a nightly basis. For whatever reason, as Peachtree Hoops contributor Glen Willis pointed out, they settle far too often for what they think will be good enough.
Far too often, it hasn’t been. But the fact is, if they cannot come out firing and showing intensity on defense, then the issue was never just getting up for boring regular-season games.