After a tough week that saw the Atlanta Hawks drop two of three games, the injury-riddled team bounced back in a significant way. They are now above .500 and hold the sixth seed in a competitive Eastern Conference.
From strong individual performances to team-wide improvements, fans could see the Hawks grew a bit more last week. Here are three things we learned about the team.
Trae Young is still that dude
Behind pivotal scoring performances of 20, 38 and 43 points, Young’s play was crucial to establishing a three-game winning streak for the Hawks.
His leadership is also starting to take shape, and down the stretch, his clutch shots and decision-making are proving vital for his team.
If Young can continue his stellar play and excellent decision making, the Hawks will have many more winning streaks ahead and top the season-high three straight from last week.
Mr. Consistent dominance strikes in historic fashion
After a stellar week before, Clint Capela answered the bell again and has continued to dominate opposing frontcourts on both offense and defense.
In a game where the Hawks found themselves depleted against the Detroit Pistons, Capela scored 27 points, grabbed 26 rebounds, and had five blocks. His historic performance made him the first player to put up at least 25 points, 25 rebounds and five blocks since Shaquille O’Neal in 2004.
Capela recorded a triple-double against the Minnesota Timberwolves two days later on Friday to follow that phenomenal effort. He finished with 13 points, 19 rebounds and 10 blocks in the first triple-double of his basketball career, going back to his childhood.
Again, Capela etched his name into the record books. He recorded the third 10-block game in franchise history and the first points-rebounds-blocks triple-double in franchise history, which last happened in 2018. Aside from Davis and Capela, there have only been 32 other such stat-lines in history.
Capela has given something to the Hawks they haven’t had in a long time: a consistently dominant big man.
Atlanta is a resilient bunch
The Hawks were on a two-game skid and struggled shooting from the field. They didn’t have that zest or energy seen earlier in the year.
In years past, Atlanta would have folded and probably extended the losing streak. But this is a different team. Even with key players out of the lineup this week in Cam Reddish and De’Andre Hunter, Kevin Huerter and John Collins stepped up to support Young and Capela.
Lloyd Pierce’s guys play for one another and have emphasized they want to be a playoff team. While the Hawks can score in bunches, their path to the playoffs starts on the defensive end, led by Capela’s dominance.
Atlanta is not the same team as last year. They showed that this week by starting a winning streak this week. If the Hawks can get healthy and get key players back, the eastern conference may have another team rising the standings.
