Jalen Johnson had 21 points and the Hawks had five players to reach double figures Wednesday, but it wasn’t enough as they finished on the short end of a 120-111 loss to the Heat in Miami.
The Hawks will play their final exhibition game Thursday in Oklahoma City against the Thunder. The Hawks will host the Nets in the 2024-25 regular season opener on Oct. 23.
Johnson scored all of his points in 17 minutes of action in the first half, and the Hawks led 69-66 at intermission. The third quarter was decisive -- Miami outscored Atlanta 37-15 -- and the Hawks couldn’t erase the large deficit in the final 12 minutes.
The Hawks held several players out of the game -- including No. 1 draft pick Zaccharie Risacher, Onyeka, Bogdan Bogdanovic and De’Andre Hunter -- and center Clint Capela exited with apparent ankle soreness after playing seven minutes.
David Roddy had 15 points in 33 minutes for the Hawks, who also received 15 from Kobe Bufkin, 13 from Kevon Harris and 10 from Trae Young. Jimmy Butler had 24 points and Tyler Herro 19 to lead the Heat.
