Cavaliers VS Hawks (Game 1)

Cavaliers Lead Series 1-0

The Cavs played good overall, but this was not what the Hawks can do. They had a very poor performance. I really was surprised on just how poorly the Hawks played.

The Hawks shot just 37.9% from the field. Not something that they are known for at all. Some people might argue that the Cavs defense was great, but I have to disagree. The Hawks shot more uncontested shots than contested shots. The problem was, they weren't hitting their open shots. In fact, they hit just 37.5 of their uncontested shots. They shot 48 of them! It seemed like Horford and Millsap just couldn't hit a post shot. They did a great job; they just couldn't get the shots to fall.

Dennis Schroder kept the Hawks in the game. He finished with 27 points in the game, leading points for both teams. They could really use another good performance from him in game 2. The Hawks need their starters to produce more though. Teague finished with just 8 points. Korver had 3 points in 37 minutes. Horford had 10. The Hawks just need to hit more shots.

The Cavs were very tough to defend in the game. Everyone was hitting 3's with really spaced the floor. J.R. Smith, Kyrie, Richard Jefferson, and Kevin Love were all hitting 3's. This really opened up the paint for LeBron. It really helped that LeBron was hitting outside shots as well. This forced the defense to guard him at the 3-point line which enabled him to get into the paint easily.

The Hawks really just need to hit shots. They didn't in this game. I expect them to heat up and the Cavs to cool down. If this happens, we will have some close games that might make this the series we've been waiting for.

Hawks VS Wizards (game 4)

Final Score: 106-101



Series tied 2-2

This was a crucial game. A must win for the Hawks. They needed to win or else, elimination could have been right around the corner. How did they win, and what do they need to do next game. Let's take a look.

Jeff Teague hit a very clutch 3 pointer. Teague just had a great game. You could tell, he didn't want to lose. He hit shots, but he also found his teammates open in the lane and on the perimeter. Dennis Schroder did a great job of attacking the rim. I was very impressed with that. This Hawks team needs to play better perimeter defense as they are allowing too much on the inside and from 3. The Hawks had a total of 30 assists and it wasn't just one person contributing to that. 3 people had at least 6 assists. One thing that they should do is try to get Kyle Korver involved in the offense more. He has been horrible this series and they need to get him going. The thing I loved the most was how they got Horford involved in the offense. Horford had a total of 70 touches and he got off 18 shots.

The Wizards are suffering without John Wall. They miss the passing effect he has had on the game. If someone was open, he would get them the ball. Without him, it's tough. Ramon Sessions doesn't have nearly the offensive or defensive game that Wall has. Players have stepped up though. Will Bynum has played great and he had 10 points off the bench in the last game. Bradley Beal played a great game but he couldn't carry his team. He 34 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and a big block on Schroder. He needs others to make shots though. Without John Wall, that's hard to do. Can they win without John Wall? Tell me what you think.

Hawks VS Wizards (game 3)

Final score: Wizards win 103-101



Wizards lead series 2-1

Paul Pierce wanted to win more than anybody else. He wanted to make that shot. He had to fade-away just to get up a shot. And he made it. Pierce lied on the floor as Marcin Gortat and Bradley Beal came running toward him full speed. Of course, the Hawks made a great run to get the game tied up. Let's take a look how they managed to do that.

The Hawks had a great 4th quarter. Dennis Schroder had 16 points in just the fourth quarter. Al Horford, Paul Millsap, and DeMarre Carroll didn't really even play in that quarter. They relied on their bench for the whole 4th. In the first 3 quarters the Hawks only scored 66 points. In the 4th they had 35. A big factor was that they shot just 25% from 3 in the first 3 quarters. Kyle Korver made just 2 shots in the entire game and he ended with 6 points. That can't happen. He needs to get into the game more. Jeff Teague shot 33% from the floor and missed both the 3's he attempted. Their starters just did play well. They played bad transition defense and didn't close out. They need to change a lot and get off to a great start next game.

The Wizards had an extraordinary game. They had great ball movement and had a total of 340 passes as the Hawks only had 270 passes. You know your passing well if you out pass the Hawks. Bradley Beal did great on offense having 17 points and also 8 assists! Otto Porter had 17 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists off the bench. After having no field goals in the first 2 games, Nene had 17 points shooting 7-9 from the floor. Will Bynum had a great game as he shot 2 very important free throws and made them both. He also knocked down a three and had a nice layup in transiton as it was an and-1 opportunity. Paul Pierce. Well, he just won the game, that's all. Marcin Gortat had 13 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks as he shot 6-7 from the field. This team had great individual and a great team performance. If they keep this up, they have a good shot of moving on to the next round. The only thing that they need to work on is transition defense. They didn't do too great and really need to just get back. A casual jog isn't good enough. You need to beat your opponent back on defense. Otto Porter really went after the ball and went for everything. He had great hustle at both ends. Like I said, the Wizards have a great shot at making it to the next round. Let's see what they can do.