The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
4. Rough stretch for the Hawks
Three consecutive defeats don’t bode well for postseason.
The Hawks (32-26) have lost three straight games by a total of 53 points. They are 10-10 over the past 20 games and 23-24 since a 9-2 start to the season. Both games since the All-Star break saw starting point guard Dennis Schroder on the bench for disciplinary reasons. And tonight they play at Boston, the No. 2 team in the conference.
BOSTON — It was not a good two days for the Hawks. They dropped weekend games to the Heat and Magic, teams that were a combined 46-70 and 24 games under .500.
“All of us collectively need to find a way to be better,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said after a 105-86 loss in Orlando on Saturday night. “It’s important that it starts quickly.”
The recent trouble has not been isolated to one weekend. The Hawks (32-26) have lost three straight games by a total of 53 points. They are 10-10 over the past 20 games and 23-24 since a 9-2 start to the season.
“We don’t want to be a .500 team,” Budenholzer said. “You have to go out on the court and execute on both ends of the court. At the end of the day, if it’s 20 games and we are .500, we have to be honest with ourselves and find ways to improve whether it be small things or big things.”
Discipline involving Dennis Schroder has been central to the two most recent losses. The starting point guard was suspended for the game against the Heat, the first game back from the All-Star break. He failed to return to the team on time due to a visa issue after spending the league hiatus at home in Germany.
Schroder was then a late scratch from the starting lineup against the Magic after it was revealed postgame that he was late for the team bus to the arena.
Schroder started the second half after the benching and finished with 11 points, eight assists and five rebounds. He refused comment on the incident following the game, leaving his coach and teammates to address the issue.
“We continue to hold our entire roster, all of our players, accountable,” Budenholzer said. “Our culture is important to us. Respect for your teammates is important to us. That’s our job and that’s our organization’s job is to continue to build on our culture.”
“It hurt us (Friday) night not to have him,” Paul Millsap said. “It hurt us (Saturday) night not to start with him. Those decisions are left up to the organization. We have to accept what it is. Dennis is sorry. I think he wants to be on the court. It’s something we have to get over. These two games we have to put behind us.”
The Hawks are still fifth in the Eastern Conference but are 21/2 games behind the fourth-place Raptors and 21/2 games ahead of the sixthplace Bulls and Pacers. The prospect of hosting a firstround playoff series is rapidly slipping away.
Just two seasons ago, the Hawks won 60 games and made it to the conference finals. They were eliminated in the second round last season. Now they appear in jeopardy of a first-round exit this season.
The Hawks want to be playing well down the stretch. It’s not happening.
“We have to get it together,” Dwight Howard said. “It ain’t on the coaches. It’s on us. The coaches are not out there playing. They’re not making decisions for us. So, it’s on us.”
The Hawks have added several new pieces and Millsap cautioned it will take time to come together.
“It’s not going to happen overnight,” he said. “We are trying to do the right things. We just have to be patient with it. We have to build up to it. I think we can turn it around.
“I trust the system that we have. I know if we do it right — and I’m a witness to it — if we do it right, we’ll have success. It’s just about trusting the system.”
After playing tonight at the Celtics, who are second in the conference, the Hawks return to Atlanta for a season-long six-game homestand. Those games, crammed into 10 days, include the Cavaliers, Warriors and Raptors. A twogame road trip to Memphis and San Antonio follows.
Tough times behind. Tough times ahead.