AJC: Hawks 100, Bulls 88

[Hawksquawk]

Save for the nitpicks of a few blown transition chances, a handful of fumble-fingered turnovers and some missed Js from Smoove (before he started beasting) and some shots Al passed up (before he started dunking), what was there not to like about the Hawks tonight?

• They shared the ball. They defended. They rebounded. They competed. They didn’t allow D-Rose easy passage to the basket. They finished furiously as their fans roared and the Bulls faltered.
• “I think we played like a desperate team,” L.D. said.
• It was a fine team effort with lots of standout individual performances.
• J.J. decisively danced through Chicago’s defense and may not have made a bad decision all night. Al finally got physical with Noah. Teague looked like a seasoned pro. Jamal didn’t force it against double teams and made just enough key baskets to keep the Bulls honest.
• And in the second half Smoove showed how he can control a game by defending, rebounding, running and attacking the basket.
• Josh had …

View the full article