Official Game Thread: Hawks at Bucks (The Big Payback!)

[lethalweapon3]

“While your team had a bad loss, my team had a…”

 

Eh. What’s up, Doc?

There was reason for us Atlanta Hawks fans to hope, with the Philadelphia 76ers trying to avoid losing their fourth-straight game without an ill Ben Simmons, and catching their second-straight L over three days in Milwaukee, that they’d at least put up enough fight to wear down the Bucks’ starters yesterday, maybe even force some overtime. That might have ushered Mike Budenholzer to sit his top-line starters for tonight’s game at State Farm Arena (7:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, BS Wisconsin, NBATV elsewhere), this being the back end of a back-to-back.

Alas, Doc Rivers was a bad bunny. Our old friend valued MVP leader Joel Embiid’s right shoulder over whatever cushion the Sick-sers held over the Bucks (37-25, 2.5 games behind MIL, 1.5 behind PHI) for the second seed in the NBA East. With Embiid in absentia, Philly had Mike Scott on the floor, and poor Anthony Tolliver and Dwight Howard subbing in for Tobias Harris, while ex-Buck George Hill did his worst Simmons impression.

None of the Sixer bigs were any match for Giannis Antetokounmpo (24 points in a light 24 minutes, 14 rebounds, 7 assists), who cruised yesterday into second-place behind Kareem among all-time Bucks scorers. Losing 132-94 before a national TV audience, Philadelphia put up no more resistance than the lowly Timberwolves did on April 14, the last time Milwaukee had to play the afternoon before traveling down to Atlanta with rested starters.

Despite the Greek Freak being restrained to 25 minutes and 15 points (plus a game-high 3 steals), Trae Young, Clint Capela and the Hawks found themselves overtaxed on April 15. In that game, the Hawks were playing without John Collins and Danilo Gallinari, on top of their more usual suspects. Ten days later, Collins and Gallinari are suiting up for the rematch, but Young (out, sprained ankle) and Capela (out, sore back) are not.

Then with the Bucks, Geo-Hill officially led the NBA with a 46.0 3FG% last season, despite taking three shots per game as a reserve. That’s a good sign for Budball bench beneficiary Bobby Portis (48.1 3FG%, 3rd in NBA, on 2.5 attempts per game), the Bucks big who is mere percentage points behind higher-volume Joes Ingles and Harris for the top spot in the league.

Portis will work with bench mate Pat Connaughton (4-for-11 3FGs, 7 rebounds vs. ATL) and center Brook Lopez (3-for-6 3FGs, 12 rebounds vs. ATL), to lighten the loads of Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and Giannis by securing defensive boards and hovering the offensive perimeter line. Young had himself a bad-hair day in the last outing with the Bucks, but just as telling of the Hawks’ woes on that evening was a lack of help rebounding and defense to support Capela.

Milwaukee outrebounded Atlanta 14-8 on offensive boards, 37-31 on defensive ones, without Antetokounmpo having to do much heavy lifting. It’s unlikely the Hawks, today, will get the reprieve MIA’s M.I.A. Bam Adebayo (zero first-half rebounds vs. ATL) gifted them on Friday.

Especially without Capela available, John Collins (20 points and team-high 8 rebounds in Friday’s pleasant 118-103 win over MIA) will need to have a monster day on the glass, as will Danilo Gallinari and Onyeka ("BIGGO!" There! A compromise!) Okongwu off the bench. But even Trae’s rebounding (5^th on team in D-Rebs/game) will be missed unless Bogdan Bogdanovic (3.2 D-Rebs/game) and Kevin Huerter (2.8 D-Rebs/game) do their parts to get inside and help limit Bucks possessions to one-and-done.

With JC shaking off any post-injury rust and 3-for-6 in his past two games beyond the three-point arc, he and Gallo will want to fight fire with fire and draw Milwaukee’s bigs out of the paint more frequently. Pick-and-pop actions featuring Bogdanovic (6-for-12 3FGs, team-high 28 points, 7 assists, 0 TOs vs. MIL on Apr. 15) and Brandon Goodwin (5-for-5 2FGs, 17 points, 4 assists off-bench vs. MIA) could do the trick, also forcing rotations that could free up teammates for open shots.

The Bucks committed only 8 turnovers in their last visit here, and just one among the reserves, namely the suddenly springy Jeff Teague (5 assists, 1 TO vs. ATL on the 15^th; 8 assists, 2 TOs in 15 minutes vs. PHI yesterday), who checked in for Holiday (7 assists, 2 TOs vs. ATL). Active wings in Huerter and Bogdanovic, along with Solomon Hill, forcing Giannis and others to take extra dribbles on drives into the paint, will create more opportunities for live-ball turnovers, and for Milwaukee fouls and Atlanta buckets in transition.

If the curtain was about to open on Atlanta’s highly anticipated season, and I swooped in from the future to tell you, with no context, that 60 games in, the Hawks were a Top-5 team in the East, winners of 55 percent of their games, a break-even road record, and first place in the Southeast Division, with wins over the Nets, Sixers, Celtics (twice), heat (twice), Raptors (thrice), Nuggets, Lakers, and Clippers in their pocket, you’d rightly ask, “What are we waiting for, then? Let’s get this show started!”

It’s why I’d be pleased with any Top-6 finish the Hawks (Magic Numbers: 4 w/ CHI & TOR to ensure a Play-In, 10 w/ CHA & MIA to ensure Top-6) would be able to achieve, especially with the coaching shift and the myriad of injuries serving as the backdrop. No matter the outcome today, it may turn out that, maybe, Milwaukee isn’t the eventual 3-seed the Hawks are chasing in their closing run. Perhaps, instead the North Star is the team that has dropped four in a row, the one Atlanta, after flying to Detroit tomorrow, pays a visit for two games toward the end of this week.

I don’t know how much more incentive Coach Doc needs to go ahead and secure a top-2 seed in the East. Somebody, throw that man a few carrots.

 

Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[Dnice]

 

[Spud2nique]

7 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Onyeka ("BIGGO!" There! A compromise!)

better check with nickname police Stu... I kid calm down Stewart.

 

7 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

throw that man a few carrots.

nice thread and a beautiful wrap on the . 
 

Go Hawks! 

[Spud2nique]

Capela is a go!  

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[Marvin24Williams]

Goona need a steady dose of Bogi pick and rolls with either Clint or JC tonight 

[Spud2nique]

It’s game time let’s eat y’all! Buck is served!  

[Carmine]

F__*K THE BUCKS!

[Dnice]

Stop letting SoLow shoot,  maybe they'll learn. 

[Dnice]

They might want to guard them on the 3point  line, while they shoot awful outside of Kevin and Bogey.  This is why they are losing. 

[TheNorthCydeRises]

[Lurker]

Kevin Huerter may actually be good.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Solo on fire tonight.

 

[JayBirdHawk]

We're gonna need point from Lou and Goody.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Bogi had Solo wide open in the corner, but elected to try to hit Lou.

At least Solo contributed on the next possession.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

2 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

We're gonna need point from Lou and Goody.

 

0 - 9 so far for those two

 

[JayBirdHawk]

15 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

 

0 - 9 so far for those two

 

Only Gallo has scored from the bench.

[Dnice]

They ain't doing too much of anything,  probably a loss...