The Atlanta Hawks snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the Miami Heat 106-82 on Sunday at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
Trae Young finished with 19 points while handing out two assists. John Collins also posted 13 points and 13 rebounds for his 14th double-double of the season.
Miami center Hassan Whiteside had just two points in the night’s loss, along with a disappointing seven from James Johnson and a mere trey from Rodney McGruder. Soon to be retired Dwyane Wade came off the bench to contribute his 11 points.
It wasn’t the prettiest win but a win’s a win, and they needed that win to snap that losing funk the club had been in. Although Atlanta faired on the winning side, both teams struggled immensely. The Heat shot 33% and went 1 for 16 from the 3-pt line. The Hawks shot 31% with an epic 13 turnovers. With numbers like that it shouldn’t be a surprise that the halftime score was 38-37 (and yes I did say halftime).
As fans know, this is definitely a rebuilding season for the club so there’s no cause for alarm. To be honest, it’s going to be more like a re-build over a few seasons. The team is starting to form a bit of an identity and when they start to flow, they do get a pretty good head of steam going.
Aside from the names of Tre Young and John Collins, Hawks forward DeAndre’ Bembry had 17 points, two rebounds, and two assists. Jeremy Lin has also been a steady contributor with 15 points and five assists.
The Hawks start a three-game road trip Tuesday starting with Toronto Raptors. After that, they’ll travel to face the Brooklyn Nets and the Philadelphia 76ers. They’ll return to State Farm Arena Sunday, Januar 13 to host the Milwaukee Bucks.
-Jon J.
Photo: Hakim Wright