A look inside the Hawks’ 109-98 loss to the Wizards Wednesday:
Five observations
1. No rest
The Hawks gave serious consideration to resting players in the regular-season finale. However, the team chose to skip a morning shootaround and start the game with their normal unit. The Hawks did have something to play for as they could have moved back into the No. 3 seed, with a win and Heat loss, and avoid a potential second-round matchup with the Cavaliers.
“I think it would be good to keep a rhythm, compete and see how we do,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said before the game. “I think this time of year, it’s the fourth time we’ve played them and we played them relatively recently. (Skipping shootaround is) a way to conserve a little bit of energy. They are playing with a lot of energy so we are going to have to be able to match that or be better. That’s one small way to do that.”
The Heat did lose – by blowing a 26-point lead.
2. And Hawks still lost
The playoff eliminated Wizards played without four starters. The Hawks had plenty to play for and used their normal rotations. The loss was reminiscent of the loss to the Heat the game after the All-Star break. The Heat played without Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Hassan Whiteside and still scored a 115-110 win in Miami. Two losses to depleted teams turned out to be the different between finishing third and fourth in the Eastern Conference. Thabo Sefolosha referenced the loss to the Heat in a post-game interview.
3. Hardaway Jr. injured
Tim Hardaway Jr. suffered a right hamstring strain late in the third quarter and did not return. He limped straight to the Hawks’ locker room after the injury with 28 seconds left in the period. Hardaway had 13 points, including going 3 of 3 from 3-point range, and four rebounds before being forced to leave. Budenholzer had no update on Hardaway’s condition or status following the game.
4. Wizards make run
The Wizards led by as many as 15 points after a 21-3 third-quarter run. The lone basket for the Hawks was an Al Horford 3-pointer. The Wizards led 82-67 before the Hawks stormed back and pulled within a point, 84-83, early in the fourth quarter. That was as close as they would get. The Wizards went on a 19-4 run to put the game away as they led 103-87 with four minutes left.
5. So many free throws
The teams combined to take 34 free-throw attempts in the first half – with 25 coming in the second quarter. Ugly. The shooting was not pretty either. The Wizards were 8 of 15 (53.3 percent) and the Hawks were 14 of 19 (73.7 percent). The final numbers weren’t much better. The Wizards were 16 of 30 (53.3 percent) and the Hawks were 23 of 31 (74.2 percent). In other words, the Wizards missed 14 free throws and still won by 11 points.
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