Three Big Takeaways From Atlanta's Embarrassing Loss to Brooklyn

The Hawks went on the road and lost to the Brooklyn Nets last night in what might be their worst loss of the year

Mar 16, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) scores absent in front of Brooklyn Nets guard Keon Johnson (45) during the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Down the stretch of the season, the Atlanta Hawks were looking to take care of business against one of the easier schedules remaining in the NBA, with several games against teams that are more worried about their draft position than wins at this point. One of those games was last night against the Brooklyn Nets, but instead of taking care of business, the Hawks instead dropped the game against the Nets and fell to 32-36 this season.

So what are the big takeaways from the loss?

1. This was the worst loss of the season for the Hawks

This is not an exaggeration, this was probably the worst loss of the year for Atlanta when you consider the circumstances surrounding the loss. While Atlanta has lost twice to Washington this season, blown a big lead vs Portland, and lost both games to the Spurs, this loss tops those. Brooklyn was on the second night of a back-to-back giving Atlanta the rest advantage, and Brooklyn was without their top two guards. Cam Thomas was ruled out for the season over the weekend and D'Angelo Russell sat out the game. That did not matter though. Cam Johnson stepped up and scored 28 points, Keon Johnson had 22 points, and the Nets shot nearly 50% from three. While Atlanta still has control over the No. 7 seed, this is not the kind of game that they can afford to lose.

2. Onyeka Okongwu was the lone bright spot for Atlanta

If there was one player who played really well last night for Atlanta, it was Okongwu, who continues to show his capabilities as the starting center. Okongwu finished with 21 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks, and three steals, as well as being a team best +9 when on the floor. Not only that, the Hawks defense was noticeably better with Okongwu on the court.

the hawks had a 107 defensive rating with okongwu on the court tonight

the hawks had a 157 defensive rating with okongwu off the court tonight

(i promise i'm not trying to pick on dom, who i like) https://t.co/gJOfnnFZWf

— Brad Rowland (@BTRowland) March 17, 2025

3. The bench had a bad night

The Hawks were without their top bench scorer Caris LeVert last night, but they should still have enough to beat this Brooklyn team. However, their bench was pretty terrible for most of the night. Dominick Barlow has been thrust into the backup center role in the last few games with Clint Capela out and Larry Nance still injured and while he has had nice stints, last night was tough for him. He was a team-worst -17 in 15 minutes and the defense was pretty poor. Georges Niang had a rough night shooting, going 2-9 from three, and Terance Mann was 5-12 from the field and -15 in the 25 minutes that he played. Vit Krejci was probably the best bench player last night, but he was not enough to change the course of the game. The bench has been a strength for the Hawks, but not against the Nets.

Additional Links

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