Recap: Hawks 136, Cavs 119 (or, the Fulcrum)

The Atlanta Hawks had been hyped as another potential superpower in the Eastern Conference, but in February they in reality they were a sort of equivalent to the Minnesota Timberwolves: marginally functional as a unit, almost lucky to be playing .500 basketball, probably destined for the Play-In Tournament and at best a first-round exit. Firing the coach well into the All-Star Break was a kind of chef’s kiss: Could this not have been done earlier? And thus, as the Cavs arrived in the Georgian metropolis of Atlanta for a game at Emory University (an institution which was occupied by the Union Army during the Civil War), the Hawks brass were talking to Donovan Mitchell’s former head coach Quin Snyder about taking the job. But opponent drama makes no guarantees about on-court performance, and the Cavs were in danger of falling prey to the bounce in fortunes that teams with new coaches (in a league with billionaire owners, perhaps “player empowerment” is a term which can still be used without irony?) can sometimes summon. The Cavs were on the second half of a back-to-back after a rare home loss to the top team in the Western Conference, trying to end a mini-losing streak of two games stretching back before the All-Star Break. The Cavs were also trying to notch their first win since Kevin Love had had “gone out for milk and cigarettes” in Jarrett Allen’s memorable phrase and turned up, oddly, in the starting lineup of a team in South Beach, Florida.

First Quarter

Feeling good in the South even without Collin Sexton leading the charge, the Cavs jumped out to an early lead, thanks to a couple of Allen and Mobley dunks and the Cavs’ center making good to his trips to the foul line. Jarrett Allen was perfect (6-6) from the stripe in the quarter and paced the Cavs with 10 points in the frame; he also led the Cavs in the minutes played and sweaty jersey metrics, resting for all but 90 seconds of the quarter. The Twin Towers gave the Cavs a 6-0 lead.

Atlanta’s front line was thinner than usual, given the absence of John Collins, but Hawks forward D’Andre Hunter started acting as the fulcrum for the home team’s attack. Hunter, who was drafted fourth in 2019 one slot in front of Darius Garland, sidestepped Mitchell for a long two, and then beat Mitchell down the floor and needed to be fouled under the basket. Mobley was matched up against Saddiq Bey, the newest Atlanta acquisition, but was oddly passive as if he had done little scouting and needed a few moments to gather this thoughts before being called for a travel. Bey promptly beat him down the floor for a transition dunk, and the score was tied at 6-6.

The Cavs guards started off cold — Mitchell shot a couple of threes that both spun out of the cylinder with an identical trajectory, made a breathtaking move to get to the backboard but missed, and slipped on another possession. Trae Young started sniffing out his opportunities, running the two-man floater/alley oop game to perfection with Clint Capela. Garland finally got on the board with a defensive three-second call on the Hawks (fans conditioned to see the bench erupt in ironic applause at these calls were left waiting), the beginning of what would end up being a productive evening for the Cavs point guard.

Halfway through the quarter, interim Atlanta coach Joe Prunty shimmered slightly and made the first move in the chess match, showing considerable alliterative acumen by subbing in three players: Bogdan Bogdanovic, Onyeka Onkongwu, and the Jalen Johnson, a lanky and vertical second year player from Duke by way of Wisconsin. Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff rode his starting lineup for another sixty seconds or so, and the Cavs immediately opened the gate, allowing Johnson a quick bucket. Mobley then muddled defensive assignments getting back after a long missed Garland stepback three, and Bey sank a ridiculously open shot as Mobley did his best 2020 Kevin Love impression and stayed obliviously anchored in the paint.

J.B. subbed in Rubio, LeVert, and Wade, none of whom had a strong evening, and none of whom could stop the Atlanta tide from rolling in. LeVert’s twitchy defense bit on too many Trae Young fakes, giving the Association’s most annoying player a clear path to open threes. The quarter ended with the Hawks up 32-23. Trae had a dozen points, and the Cavs were 0-7 from three.

Second Quarter 

Trae Young was quiet in this frame, getting his only points from the free throw line. Unfortunately for Cleveland, shooting guards Dejounte Murray and Bogdan Bogdonovic took turns as the fulcrum for Atlanta’s increasingly likely win. Murray went 7-7 in the quarter, warping and manipulating the defense with skill. Bogdonovic erupted for ten straight points, oblivious to Rubio’s length and Garland’s much-improved defense. Mitchell finally decided to impose himself into the Atlanta paint but gave back his points by mixing up a defensive switch with Allen and allowing Okongwu an open dunk. Atlanta was up 55-33, and Murray made himself look foolish with a ‘he’s too small’ taunt at Garland after the Cavs guard had attempted to take a charge which wasn’t called.

With the Cavs down 22 points, J.B. looked at his bench and sent in Neto, Denny Green, and Lamar Stevens. Mitchell and Garland (particularly Darius, who scored 14 in the quarter) started clawing out of the depths in terms of offensive production, but their threes were matched by Saddiq Bey. The Hawks did not miss a shot for nearly the first nine minutes of the quarter. Neto managed to sink a running long-distance three at the halftime buzzer, but that must have been a quiet locker room — the Cavs had given up 81 points in the first half.

Third Quarter

The Cavs cut the lead to 22 thanks to a Garland run, forcing an Atlanta timeout. A new fulcrum for Atlanta emerged — Clint Capela, who had three blocks in the quarter and several good defensive sequences resulting in Mobley misses. Garland got frustrated after a turnover and took himself out of the defense resulting in another open three for Atlanta and the home team notching 101 points about halfway through the quarter. Cedi Osman had gotten 2:40 of run in the first quarter and, now that it was 101-69, J.B. now unleashed him on the Atlanta squad. Cedi was far from perfect but he did give the Cavs more zip, as Darius Garland continued to stuff the stat sheet with another 14 point quarter and a couple of steals. Unfortunately, leaning on Okoro and Lamar Stevens (no Dean Wade or Rubio appearances for the entire quarter) meant that Cavs not named Darius Garland shot a combined 3-15 in the quarter — not a recipe for an exciting comeback. Okoro at least sank one three and kept Murray from wagging his finger at Cleveland players picking themselves up off of the hardwood.

Fourth Quarter

Murray would return in the fourth quarter to pierce any Cleveland hopes for a comeback. J.B. pulled Garland (33 points for the night) a couple of minutes into the quarter, conceding to garbage time for the last 3:30. LeVert and Wade didn’t participate; each of them got about 9 minutes on the night. Donovan Mitchell ended up with 19 but had an off-night, going 2-10 from distance and picking up four personal fouls. Cedi dominated for a couple of mini-stretches, ending up with 10 points (2-3 from three), 4 rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot in the quarter but never quite willing the Cavs near the double-digit deficit barrier. Cedi, the fulcrum of comebacks past (and surely future), could not quite bring the Cavs back to life on this night in Atlanta.