RECAP: Hawks have Tough Night on Offense, Drop Second Preseason Game 104-89 to Philadelphia

Atlanta had a tough night shooting the basketball and it was a big reason for the team's first preseason loss. They will be back on the court Wednesday vs the Miami Heat

Oct 14, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) reacts after an offensive foul against the Philadelphia 76ers in the second quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Atlanta, GA- After an eventful first preseason game, it was not quite the same for the Atlanta Hawks tonight, though it was not all bad.

Atlanta played their starters, plus main bench players, through three quarters, but in a losing effort to the Philadelphia 76ers, who won the game 104-89.

It was a rough night shooting for the Hawks and that will be one of the main takeaways from this game. Atlanta shot 37% from the floor and 30% from three and some of their best shooters had real off nights. Bogdan Bogdanovic shot 2-11 from the field and 2-8 from three, Dyson Daniels and Zaccharie Risacher combined to go 2-10 from deep, and Kobe Bufkin was 0-5. Is this an outlier performance or a warning sign for the Hawks on offense? It is the preseason and just one game, but this was not a good offensive performance from the Hawks.

Arguably the biggest bright spot in a game that did not have many was the play of Risacher. His shot was not falling, but Risacher still managed to score 14 points and grab eight rebounds. It was another solid effort from the No. 1 overall pick.

Overall, the positives in this game were the early defense from the Hawks and the play of Risacher, while the shooting was definitely the biggest negative. Atlanta is back in action this Wednesday at Miami.

Let's recap the night.

The Hawks kept the same starting lineup as the last preseason game. Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, De'Andre Hunter, Jalen Johnson, and Clint Capela were the first five on the floor for the Hawks. Onyeka Okongwu, Dominick Barlow, and Seth Lundy were inactive tonight.

While they did not have their superstar MVP Joel Embiid, the 76ers did not rest any other players. Tyrese Maxey, Eric Gordon, Kelly Oubre Jr, Paul George, and Andre Drummond were the starters for the 76ers.

The Hawks got off to a great start, in particular on the defensive end of the floor. Daniels was very active guarding Maxey and the offense was flowing nicely, though the three point shooting was struggling. Atlanta led 11-3 at the first timeout with 7:06 left in the first quarter and held the 76ers to 1-9 shooting from the field.

After the timeout, Kobe Bufkin and Bogdan Bogdanovic checked in for the first time in the game and it was the first time that Bogdanovic checked in for the preseason.

After the timout though, the 76ers got right back in the game. It was a 13-6 run for Philadelphia and it was the 76ers two star players, Maxey and George, that was doing the scoring. After a timeout with 3:25 left in the quarter, the Hawks only held a 17-16 lead and No. 1 pick Zacchari Risacher was checking in for the first time.

Risacher was the star of the first game, but he did struggle to start the game tonight. He started 1-5, but Young found him for an easy basket right before the buzzer sounded. It was a tied game after the first quarter 23-23. Both teams shot poorly from three, with the Hawks going 1-11 in the first half and Philly only doing marginally better at 3-11.

It was not as good of a defensive quarter in the second. A balanced effort from the 76ers allowed them to shoot 50% from the field and 44% from three in the quarter. They outscored the Hawks 31-25 in the second, but the Hawks shot better from three, going 6-9 in the quarter, including a pair from Bogdanovic.

Philadelphia led 54-48 at the half.

Some notable lineup things in the first half were Bogdanovic coming off the bench and the Hawks running a pretty normal nine-man rotation. Young, Daniels, Hunter, Johnson, Capela, Risacher, Bufkin, Nance, and Bogdanovic are all players who are going to be major rotation players this year for the Hawks and it looked like Quin Snyder was using what might be his normal rotation, at least to start the season.

The third quarter saw Snyder stick with his starters, except for Hunter, who did not come back in the game. Young, Daniels, Risacher, Johnson, and Capela were the first five on the floor in the second half.

Paul George did not come back in the game for the 76ers and the team later said he suffered a left knee hyperextension in the first half.

The Sixers have ruled Paul George out for the rest of the game with a hyperextension of his left knee after an awkward plant in the first half of tonight’s preseason game in Atlanta.

Joel Embiid was ruled out for the rest of the preseason Sunday with left knee injury management.

— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) October 15, 2024

The third quarter was a dreadful quarter for the Hawks on the offensive end of the floor. Atlanta shot 28% from the field and 14% (2-14) from three. One of the questions about this team coming into the season was shooting and tonight presented a bit of a worst case scenario when it comes the shooting. Bogdanovic went 0-4 in the quarter and Daniels was 1-3.

The 76ers were not much better on that end of the floor, shooting 30% from the floor and 14% from three (also 2-14). Maxey and Oubre, the two best offensive players on the floor at that point for the 76ers, combined to go 2-9 in the quarter.

Vit Krejci did not see playing time in the first half, but got his first minutes with 4:18 left in the third.

The 4th quarter is where Snyder pulled his starters. Young, Johnson, Risacher, and Capela played to start the quarter, but were pulled. For a little bit, Snyder opted to have Bufkin, Krejci, Matthews, David Roddy, and Larry Nance on the floor, but Mouhamed Gueye replaced Nance with around five minutes left in the game.

The 76ers would continue to score well and won the game 104-89. Atlanta has two more preseason games, both on the road, and then the season opener next Wednesday vs Brooklyn.