Two Eastern Conference teams end their road trips on a high note in the latest TNT Thursday night doubleheader.
Hello and welcome to another edition of Thursday Night Thoughts (TNT) on Friday! In this space I will give my takes on both games of the NBA’s premiere weekly broadcast. Do you have any thoughts on last night’s doubleheader? Hit me up on Twitter and let me know!
Milwaukee Bucks 120, Atlanta Hawks 109
This matchup saw the fourth-best team in the Eastern Conference host the third-best, and marked the return of both team’s star players. Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo returned to the lineup after missing six games due to left knee soreness. Atlanta’s Trae Young was back after being out for two games with a left calf injury.
If you take a quick glance at the box score, you would think this game should be closer than it was. However, the Bucks held a massive advantage on the glass and in turnover capitalization. Milwaukee out-rebounded Atlanta 52-39, logging a 28.6% offensive rebounding rate and a 79.2% defensive rebounding rate. By contrast Atlanta secured 16.7% of their own misses and a 63.6% of Milwaukee’s. The Bucks also beat out the Hawks 21-9 in points off of turnovers, outclassing them 18-2 through the first three quarters.
Atlanta also didn’t get much help from their returning star. Trae Young went scoreless in the first half on 0-of-6 shooting. He finished the evening with 15 points on 3-of-17 shooting from the field and 9-of-9 shooting from the line. Instead, Bogdan Bogdanovic was the one to pace Atlanta with a game-high 28 points on 10-of-20 shooting, including 6-of-12 from three-point range. Solomon Hill backed him up by going 6-of-8 from beyond the arc for 18 points.
Giannis wasn’t his sharpest tonight either, but he still had a decent night. Antetokounmpo ended the evening with 15 points, five rebounds, and three steals. For Milwaukee, this was more of a team win. Seven Bucks finished in double-figures to Atlanta’s five, with Jrue Holiday’s 23 points and seven assists leading the way. The bench obliterated the Hawks 44-16. Milwaukee’s ball movement was exquisite in the first half, with 73.9% of their made buckets coming off of assists. The 64-52 lead they held at the half set the tone for the rest of the game. Atlanta could never make a big enough push to close the gap, only winning the second half by a 57-56 margin.
Milwaukee makes a clean sweep of their three-game road trip, and will return home for a four-game homestand that begins on Saturday. Atlanta’s loss drops them to 30-26, tied with the Boston Celtics. Luckily for them, they won the season series against the C’s 2-1, so they will remain the East’s fourth seed for now.
Boston Celtics 121, Los Angeles Lakers 113
I just want to start this section discussing the sartorial choices in the NBA’s oldest rivalry. This evening the Celtics wore their white City uniform while the Lakers wore their purple Statement unis. I hated it.
When it comes to Celtics/Lakers games in Los Angeles, I wish that both teams would just agree to wear their Green and Gold icon jerseys, respectively. Generally, I really like alternate jerseys and don’t mind their proliferation in the league. However, I feel that when the Lakers host the Celtics, that is one small opportunity for the league to recognize its history and keep a tradition alive. Of course, this doesn’t dampen my enjoyment of the actual game, but I truly hope that this is something the league will consider for future meetings at Staples Center between these two teams.
As far as the game goes, the Celtics never trailed. However, the Lakers did a good job of putting a little fear in the C’s down the stretch. After Boston went up 113-86 with 7:01 left in the fourth quarter — a game-high 27-point lead — LA flipped the script and went on a 24-2 surge. This closed the gap to 115-110, Celtics, with 1:18 left in regulation. Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart re-entered the game and put up the points necessary to keep the Lakers at bay and secure the win.
Speaking of Brown, he had a monster night, finishing with 40 points on 17-of-20 shooting and nine rebounds. This includes a stretch where he made 11 consecutive baskets for 23 points. The streak was only broken because he took a halfcourt heave at the end of the third quarter.
Like Milwaukee, Boston finishes their three-game road trip 3-0. Their 30-26 record ties them with Atlanta, but they stay in fifth place in the East due to losing the season series 1-2. However, if they keep competing like this, they will surpass the Hawks in no-time.
The Lakers, meanwhile, continue to compete for 48 minutes, but that only gets them so far without Anthony Davis and LeBron James. Tonight, their effort was also hindered by the absence of Andre Drummond and Markieff Morris. Fortunately, Davis could be returning very soon and LeBron’s return might be right around the corner as well. Until then, however, the Lakers are going to have to just keep competing as best they can.
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