The Hawks downed the Magic 106-104 on Wednesday at State Farm Arena.
Here are five observations:
1. The Hawks had to capitalize on every shot as the Magic held them to 39 made field goals. But their efficiency paid off with Dejounte Murray knocking down a midrange jumper with 0.4 seconds left to play.
After Magic guard Paolo Banchero knocked down a 3 from the wing to tie the game at 104 with 9.2 left, Murray inbounded the ball and got it back while Hawks coach Quin Snyder signaled for a timeout. None came and Murray continued to dribble it up court with Magic guard Markelle Fultz picking him up.
But Murray, who had 26 points, five rebounds, five assists, as well as two steals, dribbled past, initiated a little contact and pulled up to drain the shot.
“That’s always the debate,” Snyder said. “You call timeout, the defense gets set, substitute. DJ rewarded that with confidence, happy for him. It was contested, that’s a shot he can make and he did.”
2. The Hawks could not keep the Magic off the offensive glass early, as Orlando pulled Clint Capela away from the basket. It left room for the Magic to get a running start to grab the rebound and find an open man.
Orlando outrebounded the Hawks on the offensive glass 11-3 in the first half, scoring 15 second-chance points, the average the Hawks allow per game. The Hawks have struggled to finish out defensive possessions this season, giving up 15.7 second-chance points per game.
The Hawks did adjust in the second half and boxed out to hold the Magic to just five offensive rebounds.
3. On top of losing the the battle of the boards early, the Hawks struggled to take care of the ball. The Magic used their length to get into the Hawks’ passing lanes and tipped the ball away to force turnovers.
It also took away some early possessions, with the Magic holding the Hawks to just 37 field-goal attempts in the first half. Coming into the night, the Hawks led the league in first-half field goal attempts with 48 per game.
The Magic, who rank second in the league in points off turnovers with 18.6 per game, capitalized on the Hawks’ miscues. They scored 28 points off of 23 turnovers by the end of the game.
4. Part of what led to the Hawks having so many turnovers was their aspiration to play unselfishly and move the ball. The Hawks ended up with 21 assists, with six players in their eight-man rotation ending the night in double-figures.
The Hawks made quick decisions, like a couple of dump-off passes to Capela, which he finished with authority. Trae Young, who scored 18 points and had 12 assists, as well as Murray, found Capela with a couple of alley oops.
They also fed Onyeka Okongwu late in the game, taking advantage of Young’s ability to operate in the pick-and-roll.
“Trae found (Okongwu) on the roll,” Snyder said. “He’s got really good hands. You throw it up. So even if he doesn’t dunk it, he catches it, comes down, goes up strong.”
The Hawks ended up outscoring the Magic 58-52 in paint points, as they focused on attacking the rim with their 3-point shots not falling.
5. The Hawks have lacked depth as of late coming off the bench. But in the third quarter, the reserves provided a little bit of a lift. They outscored the Magic 10-5 in the quarter, which helped get the Hawks rolling and gain a 78-76 lead by the end of the period.
Okongwu led the reserves with 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting, with much of his contribution coming in the fourth quarter. He closed out the night in place of Capela, on the court with the rest of the starters.
Stat to know
25 -- Dejounte Murray has 25 games with 20-or-more points.
Quotable
“I mean, it’s a make or miss league, you’re gonna make or miss shots. But with me, I always feel like I’m gonna make the next shot if I miss a shot.” -- Dejounte Murray on what was going through his mind on the final play.
Up next
The Hawks head to Miami to face the Heat on Friday in the first of back-to-back games.
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