Official Playoff Game Thread: Hawks at Celtics -- GAME 2

[lethalweapon3]

'I'm Gus Johnson.'

'I'm the Boom Goes the Dynamite Guy.'

"And you are LOOKING LIVE!”

 

I absolutely adore the fact our Atlanta Hawks dragged the great Boston Celtics down to NBATV.

The NBA has come a long way from first-round Hawks-Whomever action being aired on Fuse TV. Or CLEO. Or on Discovery Family, immediately followed by a very special re-run presentation of Blossom.

Sure, the Celts ice-blasted their visitors in Game 1 of these Eastern Conference quarterfinals. Nonetheless, heading into Game 2 at Boston Garden (7 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, NBC Sports Boston, NBATV), it is nice to know it’s Atlanta’s team, not the legions of fans of Team Green around the world, that drives the TV scheduling decisions.

Atlanta is running circles around Boston, lately, in the media market department. Long situated between #8 and #11 among the USA’s top TV markets, the ATL has surged past Boston, the Bay Area, Washington, and even Houston since 2021 to entrench itself at #6 in the NBA’s top American markets (#7, if you include Toronto and North America).

The rub is that our intown professional sports teams, from the front offices down to the fields of play, have gone out of their way to render themselves unwatchable to international audiences, or at least, vigorously channel-changeable.

For now, NBATV it is, and I am satisfied that, in this day and age, that’s as low as we’ll go. In any case, thank goodness we still have Bawb and Nique on Bankrupt Bally Sports to share our mid-game sorrows for now.

Me, I always enjoy weekly evenings of Crunch Time featuring some washed ex-pro, or a Hall of Famer who wants nothing more than for MJ to like him, commentating on games and highlights alongside some former Hawks head coach, or perhaps a coach recently deposed from afar, who needs a side hustle on Techwood Drive to continue justifying an Atlanta residence.

If I have one request, NBATV, please do not have LP at the postgame-show desk, where he was perched just last week, tsk-tsking everything the Hawks did and didn’t do. The notion alone makes me queasy and, like Mr. Orlando Brown, I just had breakfast.

Gosh, though, do I have visions of the day Atlanta’s NBA team does what the Bay Area’s did in the past decade-plus, and Boston’s did long ago. That is, building a franchise, and a brand, that everyone and their mamas want to turn to, pressing no more than a couple digits on their remotes to watch ball games. “Siri, find me the Hawks game!”

Perhaps the first step along that journey was taken when the lower-seeded Hawks overachieved and sent teams from the big-time New York and Philadelphia markets packing, with bigtime road playoff victories, just two seasons ago. The immediate next steps, though, are to shoot something a little better than 0-for-11 on threes (ATL 1-for-16 in the first half of Game 1’s 112-99 loss) to start games, and for Trae Young (1-for-7 FGs, zippo assists and 3 TOs in the first quarter) to quit shifting from headliner to head-scratcher while pressing to execute plays that clearly aren’t there.

The ghosts of TD Garden are more in the minds of Atlanta’s playmakers and defenders than in the stands. The Hawks will point to holding Boston to 38 points in the second half on Saturday, as the Celtics let their foot up a bit more gently than Draymond, as evidence that they have exorcised those phantoms. They also have the benefit of game tape, plus an extra-off day to review and adjust schemes ahead of Games 2 and 3.

But whatever the explanations, Atlanta’s approach going forward in second quarters (45-25 in Game 1; minus-5.7 2^nd quarter Net Rating since March 1, 25^th in NBA and lowest among Playoff participants; NBA-low 52.3 team 2^nd quarter Assist% since March 1) will be the telltale sign of whether coach Quin Snyder’s mid-game instructions are sinking in.

Snyder relies heavily on either Young or Dejounte Murray (team-high 24 points but 0-for-6 3FGs in Game 1; thank goodness for the mid-rangers) to guide the backcourt while the other rests between the midpoints of the first and second quarters. Doing so allows any pairing of Marcus Smart, Derrick White and sixth-man Malcolm Brogdon to double-down on defense at the points of attack, creating easy opportunities for themselves and others in transition off Atlanta’s turnovers and clunky misses.

As lauded as the Hawks’ key bench contributors have been in helping lug the team into the postseason, none of the reserves Snyder fielded in Game 1 are bona fide secondary playmakers. With a whopping one assist between De’Andre Hunter, John Collins and Clint Capela (just 2 TOs tho! Boston’s Al Horford doubled that assist tally by himself), none of Atlanta’s other starters have shown themselves worthy of such labels, either.

Coach Quin will need to consider lengthening the time between the Trae-Off and DJ-Off phases with intervening minutes from Aaron Holiday (team-best 40.9 3FG% in the regular season), a light backup participant back in 2019 when Nate McMillan’s Pacers were swept by the Celtics in Round 1 (memo to NBATV: please keep Nate away from the desk this week, too). On a team with few hot hands, Snyder won’t find one by keeping both Holiday and rookie AJ Griffin cooling on the bench for entire games, particularly as the lead guards struggle to make cotton touch leather.

As much as Young must avoid forcing square Plan A pegs into round holes, Plan B plays must also involve the Hawk bigs, the forwards in particular, doing more than just hunting for lobs and catch-and-shoot threes. Dishing the ball cross-court off drives and post-ups from the paint can keep Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown (team-highs of 11 and 8 D-Rebs, and 25 and 29 points, respectively, in Game 1) engaged as more than cherry-pickers, opening up opportunities for open Hawks across the floor. Dribbling aimlessly into the teeth of double-teams in hopes of favorable whistles will invite more of the same punishment Boston defenders and their referee friends are experts at dishing out.

There may indeed come a day when Trae and the Hawks become that darling of Joe Sixpacks around the globe, steadily featured on TNT and ESPN by popular demand. But, even in defeat, even on NBATV, we cannot just be caught out here, in prime time, scaring the Joes.

 

Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Despite Jaylen Brown's finger threatening to look like an over-boiled hot dog, no Celtics aside from Gallo on on the Boo-Boo List. No Hawks, either. With the key injuries piling up in other series, I shall thank my lucky stars for that.

~lw3

[Spud2nique]

5 minutes ago, lethalweapon3 said:

over-boiled hot dog,

 

[lethalweapon3]

"My Kind of Coach, MAZZULLA is..."

~m@rcussm@rt

[Spud2nique]

12 minutes ago, lethalweapon3 said:

LP at the postgame-show desk, where he was perched just last week, tsk-tsking everything th

Why he was goo…d 

 

13 minutes ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Let’s Go Hawks!

Thank you sir. @lethalweapon3 2K upcoming last I checked Vegas had Celts -10. 
 

GO HAWKS!!!!

ps I’m still on a high for Huerter klaying Klay if you will. 
 

I miss K Von. Say what you want, but Nique loved his baseline jumper when he posted small dudes up and he’s smart, shares the ball and is a team dude. We fcked up Huerter was a keeper. I dunno about the tax thing but Huerter should still be a Hawk. 

[Spud2nique]

Just now, lethalweapon3 said:

"My Kind of Coach, MAZZULLA is..."

~m@rcussm@rt

I’m kinda mad that this dude and Jaylen Brown are Celts. I like the Mazzulla Bruce Lee action and his humble coach and his hard work. Dang it! I like those kind of people in our organization. Korver is one. 

[djjob23]

The fix is in! Another uphill battle tonight…

Refs assigned for tonight’s Hawks @ Celtics game and their their team records since Trae's been in the league (% rank vs 30 teams | % rank vs other refs for same team) when reffing for either team:

James Williams #60: BOS 14-7 (5th | 37th), ATL 9-14 (24th | 51st)
Mark Lindsay #29: BOS 16-7 (3rd | 29th), ATL 6-11 (27th | 61st)
Karl Lane #77: BOS 16-7 (4th | 31st), ATL 12-15 (21st | 40th)
 
Based on the assigned refs, ATL has a 15% chance to win tonight. We’ve won only once in 12 games this year when when the refs have been more lopsided than tonight.


GO HAWKS!!!

[JayBirdHawk]

T-Minus 6 hours!

Things I would like to see:

Whatever we did in the first half of G1 to be down 30 points - Don't do that!

Pace - pick it up, if they are only going to play 7.5 players, we gotta run, run, run.

More ball and player movement, get it to the bigs.

Rebound and play some defense.

Play with toughness - force the ref to blow the whistle (they're gonna blow it any way, so might as well make it a good one).

Dislodge these guys - the first half was like practice for them. They got whatever and wherever they wanted and more.

Press Jalen Brown's injured hand on catching and dribbling.

[JayBirdHawk]

I need our guys to run through these kinds of screens if the refs are not going to call these moving screens.  It's not football.

 

 

[benhillboy]

Down 0-1 ain’t nothing, I think the Hawks got some bounce-back in em.  I won’t throw in the towel until 0-3.

[dalamchops]

got to make the open shots

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[AHF]

30 minutes ago, benhillboy said:

Down 0-1 ain’t nothing, I think the Hawks got some bounce-back in em.  I won’t throw in the towel until 0-3.

Exactly.  Series moves the first time you lose a home game.  Until then it is the home team holding serve.

[Spud2nique]

2K Trae through the first half 62-41 Hawks Trae blew up. He’s gonna come back big tonight. 

[JayBirdHawk]

We need to come out and play with purpose!

 

 

[JeffS17]

We've got to let Clint help in the paint tonight and learn to scramble to cover shooters (particularly Horford sitting in the corner), or at least get better feinting the help inside to panic the ball handlers.  Dre has to show me some energy tonight and play physical.  Trae needs to let the game come to him and let the bench RUN.  Boston has a tight rotation and plays their guys a lot of minutes -- make old ass Horford sweat.  He shouldn't be able to keep up if we're running.

[Spud2nique]

2K Hawks by 14.

Trae 47/5/4 

Cap 14/19/6 blocks

Hunter 14/5/5

 

LETS GET A SPLIT!!!!

GO HAWKS!!!

 

[JayBirdHawk]

Let's Go Hawks!

 

 

 

 

[SalvorMallow]

1 hour ago, Spud2nique said:

2K Hawks by 14.

Trae 47/5/4 

Cap 14/19/6 blocks

Hunter 14/5/5

 

LETS GET A SPLIT!!!!

GO HAWKS!!!

 

That's the superstar Horford line that I've been hearing so much about lately! Thanks for sharing @Spud2nique

[Peoriabird]

Maybe the Hawks are uncoachable on Defense.