RECAP: Hawks 95, Hornets 86

FINAL

(7-24) 86 – 95 (20-10)

Key Performers:

J. Smith (ATL): 23 pts, 13 reb, 7 asts, 3 stl, 4 blk
G. Vasquez (NO): 17 pts, 9 reb, 10 ast
[FULL BOX SCORE]

The Hawks apparently didn’t know if they were supposed to guard Ryan Anderson or not, but they were extremely aware that you should attack him in the post. The three Hawks bigs all had great nights, highlighted by the “OH MY GOD!” line by Josh that you can see above. Atlanta only had five turnovers, shot 40% from three, and improve to 7-1 on the 2nd game of back-to-backs. They are also only half-game behind the Knicks for 2nd place in the East.

Reaction Grades: [assessed 0-10]

Josh Smith: Just look at Josh’s stat line and absorb that for a minute. The last two players to do that were Tim Duncan in 2008 and Shaquille O’Neal in 2001. He was doing most of his work in the paint, and really only took one jumper that he shouldn’t have. Usually this type of game would be worth a 10, but he was a little slow getting back on defense a few times in the first half; you can’t do that, Josh. 9.75/10

Al Horford: Some might point at Al’s lack of rebounds as a lack of effectiveness, but Josh and Zaza did most of the rebounding work, and you can only grab so many rebounds. On offense, he was great, going 10-17 with 20 points and three assists, including several shots down the stretch that helped seal the game for the Hawks. 8/10

Lou Williams: The officials let the guys play for the most part, meaning Lou wasn’t able to really get much off of driving in the lane against Lopez and Davis. He was able to facilitate, though, which helps cancel out the 4-13 shooting night… a bit. 6/10

Kyle Korver: I can’t stress how much Korver helps the Hawks. He spreads the floor so much on O, and then is extremely active on defense. He finished with 14 points on only eight shots, with the only non-three being a runner in the lane that was ambitious, but terrible. 7/10

Jeff Teague: There was a lot of “YIKES!” coming from me on Teague’s shooting, but he did a lot in other places, including passing, and a few hustle plays on defense. Vasquez was able to rip him a bit early in the game, which is still something Jeff needs to work on at times. He did shore up his defensive efforts later in the game, which included a stretch where he fouled three times in about a minute. 5/10

Zaza Pachulia: Even with Josh’s game, Zaza is probably the reason the Hawks win this game. He did work on the boards when no other Hawk really wanted to, including six offensive rebounds. He didn’t do much in his last eight minutes on the floor, but the 12 & 9 in his first 12 were huge for the Hawks. We also got to see some driving layups out of the Georgian Michael Jordan. 9/10

John Jenkins: Johnny J is continuing to play well in the playing time he is getting, and is obviously becoming more comfortable on the floor. The only “drawback” is that he does appear a little hesitant while shooting, which is something that should remedy itself with more playing time. 7/10

Anthony Tolliver: Tolliver’s hustle has been great off the bench lately ever since the long benching he had. I’m not sure why Ivan didn’t play tonight, but Tolliver was a great substitute for that tonight. 6/10

Larry Drew: The Hawks are still right behind the Heat and Knicks, and Larry Drew is a big part of that. With a lot of new pieces, Drew has been able to keep the Hawks at a great pace, and it seems as if he is getting the most from his players. He also is still drawing up great plays out of timeouts, and is falling in love with the extremely effective Smith/Horford hi-low game. 9/10

The opposition: Vasquez was great for most of the game, but it seems like he just ran out of gas in the fourth. Ryan Anderson was knocking down shots, and Davis and Mason (!) made some great contributions, but no one else for the Pelicans really did much, spear-headed by the awful, awful offensive night from Eric Gordon. 5/10

Next: Atlanta at Detroit, Friday, January 4th