Hawks' 1st loss of 2024-25 season offers telling glimpse of what can go wrong

After three quarters, the Atlanta Hawks’ 128-104 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder looked very different. The Hawks trailed 89-86 after 36 minutes of game time. But the Thunder poured it on in the fourth quarter even after head coach Quin Snyder waved the white flag.

The Thunder are the best defense in the league, and the Hawks’ 104 points are the most that they have allowed in 2024-25.

However, the Thunder were also on the second night of a back-to-back.

As the Hawks prepare their first back-to-back of the season – a homedate on the front end of a home-and-home against Alexandre Sarr and the Washington Wizards – it is important and informative to note where the Hawks fell short.

They took a 92-91 lead on a Daniels layup with 10:31 to go in the game. The Hawks shot 30% overall and were 0-for-6 from downtown from that point on.

OKC shot 60.9% from the floor and went 4-for-3 from 3-point range. There's your loss.

Hawks could be in trouble when Trae Young has an off night

Hawks star Trae Young -- one of our highlighted X-factors -- finished the game with 24 points and 8 assists. But he shot 2-for-7 from beyond the arc and committed 10 turnovers.

Compounding the issue, while Young shot 50% from the floor, only three other Hawks players – Zaccharie Risacher, David Roddy, and Mouhamed Gueye – met or surpassed that mark. Only Risacher and Roddy were key contributors to the contest.

Risacher had 13 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal in his first career start.

But young veterans Dyson Daniels and Jalen Johnson – both of whom have been highlights of the early season – were a combined 6-for-24 from the floor for 14 points.

Starting center Clint Capela – whose range is essentially limited to the restricted area – was 3-for-8. Key reserves Onyeka Okongwu and Vit Krejci also had an off shooting night. Johnson and Garrison Mathews were in foul trouble.

The point is, nights like this could be more common than the Hawks would like.

Young’s production is going to be what it usually is. But his supporting cast cannot stumble en masse as they did versus the Thunder.

Hawks will experience the growing pains of a young team

Aside from Capela and Mathews, all of the struggling Hawks are 24 years old or younger. So it is not surprising to see struggles occur, especially when it comes to efficiency. The first two games also showed that, while exciting, this team is far from stout defensively.

It did not help that the Hawks were without a starter in De’Andre Hunter and their sixth man in Bogdan Bogdanovic, both of whom missed the game due to injuries.

Both players have fairly extensive injury histories, though.

Add Capela to that list too, underscoring just how precariously the Hawks’ setup is. It was built to rely on Young. And the loss to the Thunder highlighted a lot of the reasons why the Hawks went and traded for Dejounte Murray in 2022.

Without him, those younger players – namely Daniels and Johnson – must become more consistent even when their vets return.

Fortunately for the Hawks, this was Game No. 3 and not No. 83 as in the Play-In Tournament.