OAKLAND--A few seconds after checking in for his first game with the Hawks, guard Kirk Hinrich took a pass from Joe Johnson and made a 3-pointer.
In making it look easy, Hinrich was just following the lead of his new teammates. The Hawks did just about everything right in dominating the Warriors for a 95-79 victory on Friday.
Atlanta ended its three-game losing streak in impressive fashion. The Hawks slowed Golden State's fast-paced offense, scored in the open court and controlled the paint with Josh Smith and Al Horford.
The Warriors couldn't keep up and were booed regularly by their fans. The Hawks improved to 2-3 on their season-long road trip, which concludes with games at Portland on Sunday and Denver on Monday.
Atlanta rallied from 18 points down to tie Phoenix late in Wednesday's 105-97 loss. This time the Hawks overwhelmed the Warriors from the start.
"I think coach really challenged us that we have to give a little bit more," Horford said. "We have a good effort against Phoenix and we were real close and we had to make a little push at the end. Tonight that was the big emphasis: everyone dig down deeper and get the job done."
Facing an opponent lacking size in the front court, Horford and Smith had their way. Horford finished with 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists while Smith had 26 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Atlanta took control with a 19-7 run to close the first quarter. The Hawks led 40-21 in the second quarter and, after turning back a 10-0 Warriors run, were up 55-33 at the half.
"I thought we really showed up tonight," Hawks coach Larry Drew said. "First half we were about as good as we have been all season. We were relentless defensively."
Atlanta led by as many as 29 in the second half. The Warriors rallied to within 91-79 when Atlanta's reserves got sloppy in the final two minutes but the starters returned to secure the victory.
Atlanta held the Warriors to 37 percent shooting (33 of 89) while recording nine steals and scoring 27 fast break points.
"The minute we get the basketball we have to race the lanes and get down the floor," Drew said. "When we do that we are a pretty good ball club. We've got enough offense in the half court; what we've been lacking is stops so that we can run."
Hinrich joined the Hawks in a trade with Washington on Wednesday and played 17 minutes in reserve. he had eight points, three assists and three rebounds while shooting 3 of 6 from the field.
Hinrich played with the benefit of only an impromptu walk through at the team hotel the previous night and the team's light practice session on game day.
"I felt so-so," he said. "I'm just trying to get familiar with everybody, the plays and all of that. It wasn't too rough. The good thing is we did such a good job defensively we weren't forced to run a lot of sets. We were able to get offense from our defense."
Hawks forward Hilton Armstrong, who also was acquired in the trade with Washington, played one minute.
Coach Larry Drew said Hinrich eventually will start for the Hawks but his backup, Jeff Teague, has looked rejuvenated while starting both games since the trade. Teague helped hold Golden State's Stephen Curry to 2 of 7 shooting while recording six assists and three steals in 26 minutes.
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