A lackadaisical effort early in the first quarter resulted in a hole that the Hawks could not free themselves in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference playoff series against the Celtics Sunday at State Farm Arena. The Hawks fell, 129-121, and trail the best-of-seven series 3-1. An elimination Game 5 is Tuesday in Boston.
Here are five observations.
1. Despite their best efforts, the Hawks just struggled to get any sort of traction down the stretch. The Hawks came within two possessions of the Celtics five times in the fourth quarter. Back to back jumpers down the lane from Dejounte Murray and then Trae Young got the Hawks as close as 111-106 with 3:31 remaining.
The Hawks just could not generate enough defensive stops and the Celtics snuffed out every chance they had to get all the way back from an early deficit. The Hawks trailed by as many as 14 points.
Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and guard Jaylen Brown combined for 28 of Boston’s 37 points in the fourth quarter. Both Tatum and Brown ended the night with 31 points a piece.
“They were on the rim a lot,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “We started scoring the ball more, but we weren’t able to get us stops. They were quicker, some loose balls. We just couldn’t make a play it felt like on the defensive end.”
2. The Hawks opened their last game aggressively and kept themselves within striking distance early. But on Sunday, they came out slow despite a 3-pointer from De’Andre Hunter to open the game. The Hawks ended up missing their next three shots before Young (35 points, 15 assists) found Dejounte Murray (23 points, nine rebounds, six assists) for a 3-pointer to stop a Celtics’ 9-0 run.
The Hawks ended up making just nine of their 26 attempts in the first quarter. The Celtics jumped on those early mistakes to get out to a 10-point lead, 35-25, by the end of the frame.
3. The Hawks have needed big performances from everyone in this series. With the Celtics posing such a threat from across the floor, Hunter’s energy has been maxed out on the defensive end slowing the Tatum and Brown down.
But on Sunday, Hunter clicked on both ends of the floor and powered the Hawks through the much of the game, leading the team through the first three quarters.
Hunter has struggled to find his spots in the series but has worked with Snyder over the course of recent team’s practices. The two have gone over film one-on-one this week and Hunter came into the matchup with an aggressive mindset. He scored 27 points Sunday after averaging 13.3 points per game in the previous three games in the series.
“Just like footwork things,” Hunter said of working with Snyder. “He’s always encouraging me to shoot, no matter how many I miss. That’s the biggest thing.”
4. With the Game 4 loss, the Hawks have backed themselves into a “win or go home” position. The Hawks head to unfriendly territory at TD Garden, where they struggled to find their footing in the first two games of the series.
“We got to play well for 48 minutes against this team,” Snyder said. “And that’s harder on the road. But that’s a challenge and it’s one we have to embrace because that’s what it’s gonna take.”
5. The Hawks may be in danger of missing Murray for Game 5 after he bumped an official and got in his face at the end of the game. On his way to the locker room, Murray walked up to official Gediminas Petraitis, put his chest to his shoulder and said something to him.
As Murray walked away, he then pointed at something else, with teammates and team security pulling him away from the fracas.
In the past, the NBA has suspended players for making contact with officials during the game. Since the incident occurred after the final buzzer, the league could just issue a hefty fine.
During the game, Tatum bumped into Petraitis after drawing a foul that was eventually deemed a Flagrant-1 on Young. Tatum could also receive a fine for making contact with an official.
Stat to Know
Trae Young recorded his ninth playoff career point/assist double-double, the second-most such double-doubles in Atlanta playoff history.
Quotable
“It’s win or go home for us from here on out. So if we can’t come to play now, I don’t think we ever will.” De’Andre Hunter on how they match the Celtics’ intensity in Game 5.
Up Next
The Hawks head to Boston in a win or go home Game 5 against the Celtics on Tuesday.
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