The Hawks picked up their sixth straight win, downing the Lakers in overtime 134-132 at State Farm Arena on Friday night.
Trae Young hit the game-winner, scored 31 points and had 20 assists after going 1-of-6 from the floor in the first half. Young becomes the first player in franchise history to have at least 30 points and 20 assists in a single game. He’s the first player in the NBA since at least 1979-80 to have 30+ points and 20+ assists while making at least five 3-pointers.
Here are five observations:
1. The Hawks put up a fight until the very end with Young delivering the game-deciding blow. Off an inbound pass from Jalen Johnson, Young dribbled around the perimeter before pitching the ball to De’Andre Hunter. That shook Lakers guard Gabe Vincent, who went to help teammate Anthony Davis. With the double on him, Hunter quickly passed back to the open Young, who knocked down the 24-footer.
“Those guys really trusted each other, Trae and Dre to find him,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “So, Trae’s catch and shoot 3s are something that we’ve really tried to emphasize, and he’s really worked on. So for it to be that shot tonight was affirming in that regard.”
With the Hawks hitting shots, they had plenty of threats on the floor that could make those shots, which has taken the pressure off of Young.
Young also had four rebounds and two steals.
2. The Hawks got plenty of big shots from players up and down the rotation, some of which came from Hunter. With 27 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Dyson Daniels grabbed an offensive board and kicked it out to Hunter to give the Hawks a 119-117 lead.
“How about DeAndre Hunter? That dude been playing really well,” Young said. “He’s been really leading us and coming off the bench and just being ready to play these last six games.”
Hunter has continued to put up some of his best basketball, scoring 20 or more points in five of his last six games on some efficient shooting from 3. That ability to hit shots from deep has helped the Hawks have one of the most productive bench units in the league.
Hunter has shown his passionate side and hasn’t shied from verbalizing frustration like in the fourth quarter after a hard foul from LeBron James.
3. On Friday, James came into State Farm Arena on a shooting slump, going 1-of-23 from deep in his last five games. He finished 6-of-11 from 3 against the Hawks.
He finished with 39 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists, two steals and three blocks in an attempt to help the Lakers avoid a third straight loss.
James did have some help from Davis, who chipped in 38 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.
4. With the Lakers breathing down the Hawks’ necks, wing Bogdan Bogdanovic’s shooting came alive. He tied his season-high in 3-pointers made, knocking down four of them with just under six minutes to play in the game. On that fourth 3, Young put up his hands in celebration as it gave the Hawks a 108-104 lead.
Bogdanovic scored a season-high 20 points, grabbed six rebounds and provided a deep threat for the Hawks that stretched the Lakers’ defense.
4. The Hawks had to get creative when Jalen Johnson picked up his fourth foul just 46 seconds into the third quarter. Without Johnson on the floor, the Lakers rushed out on a 13-2 run to pick up a 77-66 lead.
Johnson’s foul trouble forced the Hawks to run a series of lineups they have not run in a game so far this season. They ran a combination of Young, Bogdanovic, Daniels, Vit Krejci and Onyeka Okongwu.
The Hawks did not play sophomore guard Kobe Bufkin and instead tapped Krejci, who provided them with more length and size. But at moments, the Hawks just didn’t have enough rebounding and the Lakers jumped on them.
5. Daniels had four steals to continue proving why he is the reigning defensive player of the month. He picked off a pass intended for James. Though James blocked Daniel’s dunk in transition, it sparked the Hawks’ pressure the rest of the way.
Stat to know
100 - After making his first 3-pointer on Friday, the Hawks’ Bogdan Bogdanovic joined Stephen Curry (twice), Damian Lillard and Kyle Korver as the fourth player to make a 3 in 100 consecutive games.
Quotable
“I think that’s the challenge for us going forward is how do we continue to do what we’ve been doing, getting stops and letting the offensive side take care of itself.” -- Trae Young on how he feels the Hawks’ defensive identity is coming along.
Up next
The Hawks host the Nuggets on Sunday evening at State Farm Arena.
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