The Hawks (4-7) registered 22 turnovers in their 128-112 loss to the Suns (7-4) Thursday in Phoenix.
Below are some takeaways from the loss:
1. This one got messy for the Hawks, with DeAndre’ Bembry getting ejected in the third quarter after back-to-back technical fouls and Cam Reddish getting ejected in the fourth quarter after his second flagrant-1 of the game. There were 10 offensive fouls called on the Hawks. With John Collins suspended and Kevin Huerter out injured, the Hawks were already shorthanded, so being down Bembry and Reddish put them further at a disadvantage. “They came in and started stepping in front of our rollers and apparently that’s an offensive foul,” Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce said. “But that changed the complexity of the game in our pick and rolls. But it’s a game of runs.”
2. The Hawks, who at one point led by nine points in the first quarter, fell behind as Phoenix picked up steam toward the end of the second. The Hawks’ last lead of the game (58-56) came at the 2:22 mark in the second quarter, before they went the rest of the quarter without a field goal to trail 67-61 at the half. Phoenix registered a 37-point third quarter. A layup by Trae Young cut the Hawks’ deficit to 99-90 at the 1:33 mark in the third, but the Suns responded with timely baskets, going on a 12-2 run to take their largest lead of the game at 111-92 about two minutes into the fourth. The Suns shot 38.5% from 3-point range (making 15 of 39 attempts). “Just didn’t have a great night defensively,” Pierce said.
3. Another game, another nutmeg for Young, who, at the 7:58 mark in the second quarter, dribbled through the legs of Ricky Rubio before finishing with a floater. In the third quarter of the Hawks’ win in Denver Tuesday, Young did the same to Will Barton before finishing with a baseline jumper. In his fourth straight game tallying at least 20 points and 10 assists, Young finished with 21 points and a season-high 13 assists in Thursday’s loss.
4. One game after center Alex Len came off the bench and registered a season-high 17 points, Pierce kept the same formula, starting Damian Jones and bringing Len off the bench. It worked well, with Jones scoring a career-high 14 points, to go with eight rebounds, and Len (facing his old team) scoring a season-high 21 points and 10 rebounds.
5. Rookie De’Andre Hunter had a solid night, registering 14 points and six steals. Five straight points by Hunter narrowed the Hawks’ deficit to 115-105 with 4:52 to play.
By the numbers
37 (the amount of points Phoenix scored in the third quarter)
Quotable
“We don’t have a lot of guys. When two of our other main guys go out, it’s tough.” (Trae Young on losing Bembry and Reddish in the loss)
