he Atlanta Hawks performed well in their first postseason game against the Indiana Pacers. Despite the loss, Atlanta shot way above their average and even above Indy's percentages. So what exactly happened in Game 1? Here is a lowdown of what went wrong and what the Hawks should work on for Game 2.
It's almost hard to pin point what exactly went wrong for Atlanta in Game 1 of their playoff series against Indiana. The Hawks shot 50% from the field (38-76), 41.2% from beyond the arc and 50% from the free throw line. However, even with its remarkable shooting, the team still lost to the Pacers by 17 points. The reason? Too many easy shots for Indiana.
The Hawks gave out too many fouls in the game--totalling to 26. And as for the Pacers, they made 30 of their 34 free throw shots at an amazing 88.2% from the line. While a team can't stop Indiana from shooting well from the line, they can stop them from making the trip to the line. It's all about smart defense. Atlanta needs to work on defending without fouling.
In Game 1, Paul George also posted a double-double with only 23 FG%. Did he attempt to shoot 50 shots? No. But again, it all boils down to Atlanta's foul numbers. George scored 23 points in 3 of 13 shooting and missing all of his 5 three point attempts, but he went to the stripe 18 times and only missed once. If the Hawks limit their defensive mistakes and George continues to shoot terribly in Game 2, the Hawks may win the game.
Another factor that had affected the Atlanta Hawks and will continue to affect them come Game 2 is Josh Smith's injury. The star player has been nursing a right ankle injury, obviously affecting his game last Sunday as he limped from one end of the court to the other. If Smith's foot gets better come Game 2, he could put up those numbers for the team again.
Just as well, Al Horford's shoulder injury is expected to affect the team's production if he doesn't get better by Wednesday night's game.
Game 2 between the Hawks and the Pacers is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 24, at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The game will be televised live at NBA TV and online at NBA League Pass (https://watch.nba.com/nba/live).
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