The Atlanta Hawks have a record of 9-11, yet they’ve managed to beat the top two teams in the Eastern Conference three times.
Recent Victories:
In their recent NBA Cup game, the Hawks triumphed over the Cleveland Cavaliers with a score of 117-101. This marked Cleveland’s third loss of the season, and interestingly, two of those losses were back-to-back defeats by Atlanta. During this game, Trae Young shone brightly with his playmaking skills, dishing out five assists in a high-scoring third quarter where seven different Hawks players contributed. Over his last six games, Young has been on fire as a passer, averaging an impressive 15.3 assists per game and leading the league with an average of 12.4 assists.
Assist Dominance:
Atlanta’s success against strong defenses like Cleveland’s might be due to their superior ball movement. In their last two matchups against the Cavaliers, they accumulated 72 assists compared to Clevelandโs 52. A similar pattern was seen when they took down the Boston Celtics earlier in November during another NBA Cup clash; they led in assists by a margin of 35-28.
Defensive Highlights:
Dyson Daniels has also played a crucial role defensively for Atlanta. Known as one of the best at stealing balls in the league, he’s averaging 3.1 steals per game and even racked up six steals when they surprised everyone by defeating Boston.
Key Contributions:
Atlanta’s performance has improved partly because they’ve become healthier recently and are getting significant contributions from Zaccharie Risacher, their No.1 pick. Against Cleveland this week alone, Risacher scored 28 points while shooting an efficient 10-for-18 from the field.
Risacher fakes out 2 defenders ๐ฅ๐ฅ
๐ East Group C | #EmiratesNBACup
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๐ฑ— NBA (@NBA)
We think fans are excited about how well these young players are performing together!
Despite being seventh in the East standings now and having more losses than wins overall (9-11), reaching quarterfinals shows that nobody should underestimate them!
