Daniels, Risacher, Young make history as Hawks down shorthanded Sixers

1. Hawks guard Dyson Daniels became the third player since the 2000-01 season. Daniels picked off Sixers wing Justin Edwards with 11:17 to play in the third quarter jumping as Edwards tried to make the pass and grabbed the ball. He then found Trae Young, who hit Mouhamed Gueye with an alley-oop from half court.

Daniels picked up his fourth steal of the game 18 seconds later.

The Hawks guard became the youngest player in the NBA since at least 1973-74 to have 200 steals in a single season. Daniels, who turned 22 last Monday, is the fifth player to have 200 steals in a single season before turning 23, joining Magic Johnson, Chris Paul, Isiah Thomas and Dudley Bradley.

Daniels finished with five steals and now has 202 for the season.

“It’s cool, obviously, hitting that milestone, but yeah, I mean, there’s more work to do,” Daniels said.

2. Hawks rookie Zaccharie Risacher flashed all the skills that convinced the team to select him first overall in the 2024 NBA Draft. With 2:54 to play in the third quarter, Risacher caught a pass from Young on the wing. When he saw a defender in front of him, he dribbled toward the paint, dribbled the ball behind his back to avoid the defender, then dunked.

It sent the Hawks’ bench into a frenzy as they celebrated the rookie’s dunk.

“So, first of all, I was looking to shoot the ball,” Risacher said. “Then I realized I had like, a gap to be aggressive and the defender was trying to steal the ball and, naturally, the best way to protect it was behind the back. And I was open for a layup or a dunk. So, I dunked it.”

3. The rookie though didn’t just attack the basket, though. Like the Hawks’ win over the Hornets last Tuesday, Risacher shot the lights out of the ball in the third quarter. Risacher hit all three triples in the frame to help propel the Hawks on an 18-5 run.

With 8:53 to play, he hit an open 3 off a pass from Onyeka Okongwu from the right corner. He made his second, his 100th career 3, from the right wing off a sideline out-of-bounds pass from Young 52 seconds later. He scored another jumper from the right corner that put the Hawks up 86-65 with just over five minutes to play in the frame.

But Risacher won’t put limits on his game, especially when it comes to finishing at the rim.

“I don’t want to have no limits in my game and since I was pretty young, I figured that using his left hand can be really useful and just being able to switch hands every time you just read, when you see a defender, just react and see what he’s going to do,” Risacher said.

4. Hawks guard Trae Young set a new career high for total assists in a single season (742). Young did so on his first assist of the game finding Risacher for a layup 13 seconds into the game. Young finished with 12 assists on Sunday all while being more selective with his shots.

But with new additions, Young hasn’t had to carry as much weight of distributing the ball.

“Man, I would love that,” Young said. “As long as we score, I’m happy. There’s definitely times in the game where I love being a distraction. I love being out there on the floor where somebody’s out there worrying about me and my teammates can eat.”

5. The Hawks have won three straight games and it has given them a two-game cushion over the Magic, who do not play until Monday night. The Pistons also won their game on Sunday night, maintaining their 4-1/2 game hold on the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference.

The Hawks currently have the sixth-easiest remaining schedule, according to Tankathon. The Pistons have the second-hardest remaining schedule.

Stat to know

Dominick Barlow became the first player in the NBA this season to record a double-double on a perfect shooting from the field (4-4 FGM), three-point line (1-1 3FGM) and free throw line (4-4 FTM).

Quotable

“I think it’s a way of showing respect to my defense. They don’t want me taking it from to be quite frank.” -- Dyson Daniels on coaches’ game planning for his defense.

Up Next

The Hawks head out on a three-game road trip beginning with stop in Houston against the Rockets on Tuesday.