Finalist in the Eastern Conference last year, stopped by future champion Milwaukee, Atlanta emerged victorious from its play-in against Cleveland (107-101) this Friday. After dismissing Charlotte on Tuesday at home (132-102), the Georgia team, which finished 9th in the regular season, went to win in Ohio.
And, as so often, Trae Young was decisive. Sleeping, even in perdition in the first period (6 points, 3/11 on shots), he woke up suddenly in the second act (32 points, 10/14). “I felt like I was letting my team down. I missed a few shots, but I knew I had to insist on helping my teammates. I know what my job is, the confidence that is mine”he commented.
Untenable, impregnable, the leader of 1.85 m straddled his moped, slalomed in the middle of the traffic and had fun putting his “teardrops” (lobed baskets with one hand), above the giants opposite. And he found the target, far behind the arc (4/7), even marking the Cavs logo in midfield, not without depriving himself of a shoulder dance to kindly chamber.
He thus air-conditioned the room of Cleveland and its white-hot fans, because their favorite team led three-quarters of the game, counting up to 14 units in advance before the break, before Atlanta took for the first time the advantage just before the last quarter.
Capela’s injury
So far everything was going well, in the wake of Finnish winger Lauri Markkanen (26 points, 8 rebounds) and point guard Darius Garland (21 points, 9 assists), especially as pivot Jarrett Allen (11 points) returned after missing 18 matches with a broken middle finger in his left hand.
The Cavs even thought they were having a quieter evening, when Hawks insider Clint Capela had to leave the game after hyper-extending his right knee, committing a foul on Evan Mobley (18 points, 8 rebounds) which fell on his leg.
This twist of fate actually gave Atlanta some extra soul. “We were more motivated. We wanted to win for him. We know how hard he worked all year to make the play-offs. We hope he will be able to recover quickly.”said Young, who found important relays in Bogdan Bogdanovic (19 points) and Danilo Gallinari (14 points).
Facing Miami, a finalist beaten by the Lakers in 2020, and its very close-knit team around Jimmy Butler, the task will be tough for the Hawks, who will not start as favorites. For the young formation of Cleveland, who has not tasted the spring games of the play-offs since 2018, it is therefore the holidays, certainly having some regrets, but also the experience stored for the future.