The Atlanta Hawks suffered their third consecutive loss on Saturday evening. Operating without Trae Young, the Hawks stumbled badly out of the gate, trailing by 24 points at halftime after one of their worst defensive quarters of the season in the opening period. From there, the Hawks’ performance improved after halftime, but the damage was done and the ultimate result was a 16-point loss that made the game seem more competitive than it actually was.
Atlanta’s defense struggled badly against Memphis. The team’s general theory when playing without Young is that the defense should be stronger, but that did not materialize. Atlanta allowed more than 1.2 points per possession in the competitive portion of the game, and Memphis posted 63 percent true shooting despite an ugly fourth quarter in relative garbage time. The Grizzlies did make some contested looks early, but Atlanta’s defense was not as sound as its been in recent weeks and the results were dismal.
On the other end, the Hawks struggled badly to sustain offense without their leader. For the season, Atlanta has a 100.2 offensive rating in more than 400 minutes with Young on the bench, and the team’s backup point guard issues were clear in this spot. Bogdan Bogdanovic was also a relative non-factor, and the Hawks failed to generate quality looks while committing 25 turnovers in 48 minutes.
A bounce-back spot
The Hawks are home underdogs to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday. At the time of this newsletter, Trae Young and Bogdan Bogdanovic are listed as questionable for the game. If neither can play, the Hawks will be scraping to find offensive creation, though a return for Young would be huge in that regard.
Moreover, Atlanta will aim to return to the .500 mark and avoid a fourth straight defeat. While Minnesota is a reigning conference finalist, the Wolves have struggled compared to preseason expectations, and the Hawks have home-court advantage in this matchup.
