The Hawks are more comfortable without Tree Young

To like it Trae Young yes Hawks raises more questions… While his return to action started a seven-game losing streak, his new stint in the infirmary has resulted in two straight wins, including one a surprise victory for the Hawks in New York ! Certainly, the Nix they were down, but Quin Snyder found defense and ball sharing among his players, and perhaps that had to do with the absence of his All-Star leader.

This season, the Hawks have a dismal 2-8 record with Tree Young in uniform.

“Above all, I think we played in a style that suits us. We have to defend” insists Quin Snyder, while his players received only 99 points. “Looking at the rebounding stats, I especially felt like we really struggled to get the ball, and that gives us an opportunity to run in transition. We have players who really like to move the ball, which allows us to generate good shots. But more than anything, we defended well.”

Without Trae Young, the Hawks have won 15 of 26 games, and when he’s gone, the Hawks run more. Provided, obviously, that they defend well, because their offense thrives on defensive “stops”.

A team that plays fast, releases the ball quickly

“When we didn’t do that and became static, that’s when they came back” notes the Atlanta coach. “When you’re playing in transition, the passes become a lot more obvious. We also have to learn to play through the physical impact. I thought we let them get too physical with us, which threw us out of our rhythm a little bit on offense. Again, for this team, like many others, there’s a huge correlation between what we do offensively and our ability to get stops defensively.”

What Quin Snyder also appreciated was his players’ composure in the final quarter, when the Knicks pulled a goal back. “I don’t think we panicked, although that might not be the right word. We kept running.” he insists. “Sometimes when the tempo slows down or a team comes back, we usually want to play slower. It was important for us to keep our foot on the gas, to keep the offense going. But most of all, the defensive stops made the difference. We made too many mistakes giving up the 3-point shot because of too many assists. Players like Brunson and Bridgeby draw and the A-Bridge defense draws close and forces them to contest 2-point shots.