Three Takeaways From Hawks Loss to Toronto

Atlanta has now lost five straight games and will face the Raptors again on Friday

For the first time in two seasons, the Hawks are on a five-game losing streak. 

Atlanta continued their mediocre play tonight across the border in Canada and it was more of the same that we have seen from this team this season. Yes, De'Andre Hunter and Jalen Johnson are injured and that hurts the team a lot on defense, but the problems do extend beyond the defense. 

So what are the takeaways from tonight's loss to the Raptors?

1. Toronto shot well above what they are used to

Pascal Siakam vs the Hawks / Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Toronto came into the game as the worst team in the NBA in three-point percentage, but they had the benefit of going against one of the NBA's worst defenses tonight and they took full advantage. 

Toronto shot 57.5% from the field and 52.9% from three in this game. Pascal Siakam had a good night with 33 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Scottie Barnes had 27 points on 11-14 shooting and OG Anunoby had 22 points on 10-13 shooting. 

With Hunter and Johnson out, I thought Toronto would have a size and athleticism advantage over the Hawks, but I did not envision those three having that kind of a night. Hawks head coach Quin Snyder talked about this after the game: 

.@BrianOliver1313 asked Snyder about Barnes backing posting Hawks guards.

"They're going to make some shots over us when we're 6-1, 6-4, 6-5. I want to give our guys credit for competing...We're helping each other more, and that's one of the reasons they were getting some 3s."

— Kevin Chouinard (@KLChouinard) December 14, 2023

2. Aside from Young and Bogdanovic, the rest of the Hawks were fairly disappointing tonight

When you are down two starters like the Hawks were, it is hard to expect the bench players to come in and replicate what they can do. That was certainly the case tonight for Atlanta. 

Young had a great performance with 35 points and 17 assists and Bogdanovic had another 20-point game. 

But the Hawks could not get much from any of the other starters. Murray hit two late shots to get himself up to 20 points, but it was not a great night for him. Murray was a -17 when on the floor tonight, tied for the worst on the team with Clint Capela. Wesley Matthews was -11 in 14 minutes. 

I thought the Hawks might give Seth Lundy his first minutes tonight with Hunter and AJ Griffin both out, but Lundy did not play at all tonight. 

3. The season continues to trend in the wrong direction

Trae Young vs the Raptors / Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

I wrote on Monday night that the loss to the Nuggets felt like a loss that might send the season teetering in the wrong direction and I still feel it is heading that way. 

Missing both Hunter and Johnson is tough because of what they bring to the floor that nobody else on the Hawks can, but it is still fair to say that this team does not look like it is well constructed and that the pieces fit together. Even with both of those players, the Hawks still had a hard time defending.

It is still early in the season and things can get turned around, but it is feeling less likely with every game. 

Atlanta faces Toronto again on Friday night for their next game. 

Toronto's Three-Point Shooting Sends the Hawks to a Fifth Straight Loss

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