With the Atlanta Hawks playing some of their best basketball of the season, the Denver Nuggets visited Atlanta on Thursday night in an attempt to steal a game. The Hawks, however, had other plans, beating the Nuggets 116-98 in a game that they led for all but 19 seconds.
Before the game, Coach Mike Budenholzer talked about starting guard Tim Hardaway, Jr., who stepped in for the injured Kent Bazemore. Budenholzer considered Bazemore’s injury to be “short-term.”
“With Dennis [Schröder] on the perimeter, I feel like [the bench is] in a really good place,” Budenholzer said. “So let Tim start with that starting group and have a lot of shooting around Al [Horford], Jeff [Teague] and Paul [Millsap]. I think the way Thabo [Sefolosha] is able to come in and maintain our defense — I feel like we come with a defensive punch off the bench.”
The Hawks started the game with a 31-15 run, taking a lead they would give up only once for 19 seconds in the second quarter.
“[It was a] good win; it was great to see Tim Hardaway in the starting lineup step up and have a good game, and then obviously Thabo off the bench was great,” Budenholzer told reporters post-game. “Coming out of the second half, we had a little bit better focus and concentration.”
In Hardaway’s first start of the season, he showed glimpses of the talent that prompted the Hawks to trade their 2015 first round pick for him. In addition to a characteristically solid defensive performance, Hardaway finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
“[Hardaway] stepped up to the call with Bazemore being out,” Hawks center Horford said after the game. “I know he scored a lot of points, but defensively he was the key. If he can play defense at that level, it just makes us a much better team.”
Hawks forward Kyle Korver celebrated his 35th birthday on Thursday with 11 points and four rebounds while going 3-3 from three-point range.
Millsap put up another solid performance, posting a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds to go along with four blocks.
“I think we’ve been trying to find a way to get to this place where we are right now,” Millsap said after the game. “We are here now. We want to continue to build off everything we’ve got right now.”
Defense was the major factor in the Hawks’ victory. The Hawks were able to hold the Nuggets to a 27 percent night from beyond the arc.
The Hawks are playing some of their best basketball of the year. Their defense has been there all year, but only recently has their offense caught up. The key to their offensive resurgence has been their excellent passing, both along the perimeter and into the paint.
The Hawks have now won four straight games and nine of their last 11. With the win against the Nuggets, the Hawks vaulted themselves a half game ahead of the Boston Celtics for third place in the Eastern Conference.
The Hawks hope to build off the momentum and look to extend their win streak to five when they host the Houston Rockets at Philips Arena on Saturday, March 19.
