Out Shot. Out Rebounded. 7 Reasons Why Atlanta 113 NY 96 in Game 4

May 31, 2021 LouV 2020-21 0

The Atlanta Hawks out shot and out gunned the Knicks in an easy 113 to 96 victory on a Sunday afternoon in Atlanta. Atlanta scored 18 more points from 3 — shooting 15-39 from 3 vs 9-29. Every time the Knicks tried to make a run in the 2nd half, Atlanta hit another 3.

1. Bogdanavic, Gallinari, Collins Kill Knicks

Trae Young led Atlanta with 27 points but it was Bogdan Bogdanovic, Danilo Gallinari, and John Collins who killed the Knicks. Looking at the boxscore, it’s hard to believe Bogdanovic only scored 12 points — because listening on the radio, it seemed every time the Knicks were making a run in the 2nd half, you heard “Bogdanovic for 3 — good”. Or “Gallinari with the drive, he’s fouled and he’ll go to the line”. Or “Collins inside for 2”.

Bogdanovic shot 4-11 (4-9 from 3) for those 12 points for a team high +29. While Bogdanovic was shooting 3’s, Gallinari was driving to the hoop and scoring or drawing fouls; he scored 21 off the bench on 6-9 shooting (1-4 from 3, 8-8 from the free throw line). And then there was John Collins inside: 22 points on 6-10 shooting and 10 rebounds.

Young instigated a lot of that action, getting 9 assists along with his 27 points.

2. Randle Played Better

Julius Randle had a better game than the previous games — he shot better and made much better decisions moving the ball when double and triple teamed. He had 23 pts on 7-19 shooting (2-4 from 3 — it’s not been his 3 that has been off this series, 7-9 in free throws), 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals.

“I liked a lot of the plays Julius made today,” said coach Tom Thibodeau afterwards. “That is part of Julius’s makeup; as he goes thru things, he always gets better and better. As long as he’s making quick decisions, good things are going to happen. I thought he did a great job with that. I liked a lot of the looks we got, particularly in the 1st half.”

 

3. Barrett Came on Strong

RJ Barrett had a good game — strong and aggressive from the start, and shot well. he had 21 points on 8-15 shooting (2-6 from 3, 3-4 from 3), 6 rebounds, and 4 assists.

4. Toppin Stars

Obi Toppin was a bright spot again, in the second half especially. He was aggressive and confident, especially in the half court. He finished with 13 points in 19 minutes on 5-8 shooting (1-3 from 3).

5. Rose is a Rose

Derrick Rose started and played well again; 18 points on 7-15 shooting in 33 minutes.

6. Out-Rebounded & Lacked Interior D with Noel Hurt

Clint Capella and the Hawks outrebounded the Knicks 48-39. Nerlens Noel continued to play on his sprained ankle and looked not 100 percent in his 15 minutes. That hurt the Knicks as far as interior defense and rebounding.

A lot fell on the shoulders of Taj Gibson — who played 24 minutes (and had 6 pts, on 3-4 shooting, 3 rebounds).

7. Backcourt Could Not Match Hawks Shooting

Immanuel Quickley was scoreless in 13 minutes (0-3 shooting). Reggie Bullock was also scoreless in 34 minutes (0-4 shooting).

Thibodeau wasn’t concerned with Bullock’s scoreless game: “He only took 4 shots. We’re asking him to do a lot. He’s in a lot of action offensively, but he’s guarding Trae and he has to expend a lot of energy there.”

Alec Burks came on late and it was too late — he shot 4-12 (2-6 from 3).

The Boxscore

https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401327883

 

 

 

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