Unbelievable comeback puts the Hawks in the driver’s seat

For three quarters, the Hawks looked like they were sleepwalking against the Bradley Beal-less Wizards. They trailed by three at the half, and Washington, who is 1-9 in games without Beal this season, extended their lead to nine at the end of the third quarter. They weren’t done either. With ten minutes left in the final period, a Davis Bertans three-pointer stretched their lead to 13.

It looked like the Hawks were well on their way to their first home loss in their last nine home contests — and an excruciating one at that with playoff seeding on the line. But as has happened so many times under Nate McMillan, a flip switched down the stretch.

Bogdan Bogdanovic immediately answered Bertan’s three-pointer with one of his own, cutting the lead back to ten. Shortly after, the Hawks would go on a 9-0 run, leading to a Wizards timeout with just over seven minutes to go. Washington would extend their lead back to seven, but the final four minutes — the most crucial part of nearly every NBA game — belonged to the Hawks.

Bogdanovic cut the lead to two with another three. Then the teams would go scoreless for more than two minutes before John Collins hit the biggest shot of the game — a wide-open three-pointer from the corner to give the Hawks their first lead since the second quarter. Following a timeout, Raul Neto missed a floater that would have given the Wizards the lead, and Solomon Hill grabbed the rebound. He was fouled and sank both of his free throws, giving the Hawks a three-point edge. Bertans attempted to tie the game on the next possession, but it was to no avail, as Atlanta was able to escape with a critical 120-116 comeback in remarkable fashion.

Trae Young was once again the star of the night, finishing with 33 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds. Bogdanovic also continued his scorching hot shooting streak, making four threes and ending the game with 20 points. Clint Capela added his nightly double-double, finishing with 17 points and 11 rebounds on a perfect 7-7 shooting, and John Collins chipped in 18.

The win puts the Hawks in the driver’s seat for the 4th seed. They currently sit 0.5 games ahead of the Knicks and Heat, with two games remaining on their schedule. They face Orlando tomorrow and end the season on Sunday versus Houston. Those just so happen to be two of the worst teams in the league, and both games take place at home, where the Hawks have won nine in a row.