Court Vision: Hawks roll at MSG, complete mini-sweep of Knicks
Here's an inside look at the Hawks' 91-85 win over the New York Knicks on Monday -- Atlanta's first road victory of the young season:
THREE-POINT TAKE
1. There may be no greater NBA coup than winning on the road ... after an 'off' shooting night
Point guard Jeff Teague (three points, six assists in 25 minutes) didn't hit a single shot from the field. Kyle Korver (17 points, eight rebounds) nailed just three bombs from beyond the arc; and the starting frontcourt of Paul Millsap (19 points, four boards, three steals), DeMarre Carroll and Al Horford (12 points, six rebounds, two blocks) connected on only 13 of 30 shots from reasonable range.
And yet, the Hawks still walked out of Madison Square Garden -- a storied arena but not necessarily a den of torture for visiting clubs -- with a gritty win, which can never be underrated during this feeling-out stage of mid-November.
The reasons for victory, however, were also quite clear:
a) The Hawks were absolutely golden from the charity stripe, sinking 27 of 28 free throws.
b) Atlanta suckered New York into attempting 26 three-pointers, draining only six total.
c) With Teague sitting for most of the second half, guard Dennis Schroder dutifully picked up the slack, tallying 14 points, four assists and four rebounds over 28 crucial minutes.
To be fair, the Knicks are still enduring a transition phase of adjusting to coach Derek Fisher's version of the famed Triangle Offense, which calls for expert spacing, technically sound cuts off interior passes and side-to-side ball movement. So, sloppy play can be expected this early in the season.
Bottom line: On a night when the Knicks (losers of five straight) and Hawks were comparable with rebounds and turnovers ... Atlanta was simply cleaner and more proficient in the latter half.
It was a sluggish effort on both sides -- possibly the result of the clubs meeting twice in a three-day span.
But hey, the Hawks (3-3) will take the mini-sweep, which always looks good when settling tiebreakers after the regular season.
2. Dennis Schroder has apparently gained the full trust of the Hawks coaches -- thanks to his consistent play
On the surface, it's a modest accomplishment for a former first-round pick entering his second NBA season to post three straight games of double-digit scoring.
As in, Schroder (No. 17 overall pick in 2013 -- one slot of current Knicks guard Shane Larkin) should be contributing to a Hawks club that requires 48 minutes of solid quarterback play (among point guards) on a nightly basis.
And obviously, Teague (22 points, 15 assists Friday against the Hornets) would never survive a no-rest workload for 82 consecutive games.
But Schroder, who turned 21 just two months ago, has been making great strides on the court, displaying more confidence when engineering Atlanta's perimeter-oriented attack ... or simply slicing through harried defenders in open-court situations.
And man, can the kid wreak havoc on the defensive end, even though he still might have limited knowledge of the NBA's more seasoned lead guards.
When breaking down Schroder's Monday effort, two stats stand out: The perfect 6-of-6 tally with free throws ... and his team-high +12 with plus-minus ratio (a very underrated figure).
Put it all together ... and the Hawks should feel wonderful about Schroder's rapid development, so much that head coach Mike Budenholzer had no qualms with the Germany native logging crucial minutes down the stretch and being the go-to asset when the Knicks had to commit late fouls.
3. It shouldn't be required reading to study the Southeast Division standings in November
The above statement still would have applied here, even if the Hawks had squandered their five-point lead heading into the final quarter.
After all, Atlanta (2-0 at home) still hasn't lost at Philips Arena and touted rookie Adreian Payne (foot injury) has yet to log an official NBA minute with his new club.
As such, if Atlanta can go something like 27-14 or 28-13 at home this season, the team should genuinely contend for the division crown through mid-April.
That's the benefit of playing in a talented but overall balanced division, where Miami (5-2), Washington (5-2), Charlotte (3-4) and Atlanta are all prime candidates for a narrow range of victories (44- 50).
STATS THAT MATTER
10 -- The number of rebounds collected by DeMarre Carroll, his first double-digit outing of the season. Interestingly, Monday marked the first time all year that Carroll failed to score in double figures.
83 -- The number of shots attempted by the Knicks -- a staggering figure, considering the majority of possessions occurred in a half-court setting.
Here's something else to lament: Three other New York players logged double-digit shots ... on the same night Carmelo Anthony (25 points) made 11 of 25 field goals.
