Brooklyn Nets vs. Atlanta Hawks: Postgame Grades and Analysis
The Atlanta Hawks continued their streak of dominance, beating the Brooklyn Nets, 113-102, at home behind strong performances from the entire starting lineup.
With the victory, Atlanta has now won 17 straight—a franchise record that has allowed them to emerge as the East's top team to date.
It wasn't a terrible performance from Brooklyn, who managed to hang around until the very end. It found offensive success from a number of outlets. However, Atlanta's routine dominant scoring attack ultimately paced the Hawks to another big win.
| Al Horford | A |
| Jeff Teague | B+ |
| Paul Millsap | A |
| Kyle Korver | A- |
| Rest of Team | B- |
| Joe Johnson | A- |
| Mason Plumlee | B+ |
| Jarrett Jack | B- |
| Brook Lopez | B- |
| Rest of Team | D+ |
Atlanta Hawks
Al Horford: A
Al Horford scored 20 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out five assists, and he managed to do it all very quietly.
It was Korver's three-pointers that got the crowd on its feet, Teague's constant attack mode that sparked beautiful ball movement and Millsap, who seemed to carry the entire squad on his shoulders. Yet Horford was incredible as well, posting a balanced stat line while shooting an efficient 10-of-13 from the floor.
Even if he didn't make too many big plays, his under-the-radar contributions helped solidify the win. He was a reliable target on drive-and-kicks and proved to be a matchup nightmare for Brooklyn even if he didn't stand out overall.
Jeff Teague: B+
Atlanta suffered a scare when Jeff Teague went to the locker room in the middle of the opening quarter with an apparent hand injury. However, he returned shortly after and immediately began spearheading the Hawks' surging offense.
Despite logging less playing time in the first half than the team's other starters, Teague managed seven points and seven assists before halftime, setting the pace for the game and fueling the Hawks' stellar ball movement that led to 29 assists on 38 field goals.
He certainly struggled with his jump shot but nonetheless scored 13 points, putting points on the board as he got to the rim consistently, creating opportunities for both himself and his teammates.
"Hawks with 20 on 25 made baskets RT @peachtreehoops: 10 assists for Jeff Teague in 21 minutes.
— Kris Willis (@Kris_Willis) January 29, 2015"
Though he was the only Atlanta starter to have an inefficient shooting game, his 11 assists proved crucial to the team's ultimate victory.
Paul Millsap: A
On any given night, a different Atlanta player can emerge as the team's leader. Wednesday night, it was Paul Millsap's turn. He finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds in the first half and 28 and 15 in the game.
The versatile power forward didn't establish himself as a go-to offensive option immediately out of the gate, which was reflected in Brooklyn's early lead.
However, as the Hawks went on their mid-second-quarter run, it was Millsap who carried the offensive load. Constantly in attack mode, he found himself at the charity stripe consistently and took advantage of the opportunities. He went 8-of-8 from the line in the first half and 15-of-16 overall.
On the glass, he set the tone for the entire matchup by nearly out-rebounding the entire Brooklyn team in the first half.
The second half featured much of the same, as Millsap offered one last standout performance before All-Star reserves are announced.
Kyle Korver: A-
With Kyle Korver, you know what you're going to get. He's lethal from three-point range and occasionally adds a few more points by slashing to the rim.
Against Brooklyn, he did more of the former, shooting 5-of-8 from deep and scoring 17 points. His only non-three-pointer was initially ruled a trey but was eventually overturned.
It wasn't that Brooklyn did a particularly bad job defensively with him. Though he did get a few open looks, the bulk of his success came when contested, as Korver built upon his already career year.
Rest of Team: B-
In the starting lineup, Demarre Carroll continued to be the glue capable of hitting big shots—he went 2-of-4 from three and 4-of-4 from the line—while also adding perimeter defense.
In the second unit, only Dennis Schroder emerged as a consistent threat, as the backup point guard scored 13 on 5-of-8 shooting while holding his own during Teague's absence.
It was a starter-fueled win, but the key role players came through when needed.
Brooklyn Nets
Joe Johnson: A-
He may have been completely useless as a passer, rebounder and defender, but Joe Johnson kept Brooklyn in the game with his scoring. He posted a team-high 26 on an efficient 10-of-19 shooting.
Though there were certainly other players capable of putting the ball through the net, Johnson was an instant source of offense and was instrumental as Brooklyn attempted to keep up with Atlanta's pace.
He was an effective momentum killer, hitting big shots at the right time. However, in the end, Atlanta was simply too good. Johnson's big salary is the product of his offensive contributions, and Brooklyn's loss can hardly be contributed to bad offense.
Mason Plumlee: B+
Mason Plumlee is a tough NBA player. He banged with the Hawks' talented interior tandem down low. Though he only grabbed seven rebounds, he seemed much more active on the glass than any of his teammates.
He had a solid night offensively, going 7-of-12 for 14 points, and he didn't look nearly as inept on defense as some of his teammates. He had three blocks and positioned himself well, though, his efforts couldn't change what was a poor defensive night for Brooklyn.
Jarrett Jack: B-
All in all, the Nets didn't play a bad offensive game. Though a handful of their scores came from Joe Johnson in isolation, the team's ball movement was responsible for the vast majority of their points. Twenty-six of their 39 field goals were assisted, and no individual player played a bigger role in that than Jarrett Jack.
Though Jack struggled with his shot—he scored 14 on a 5-of-13 clip—he played a major role in the offense with 13 assists and just one turnover.
Of course, a higher shooting clip would have been welcomed, but his distributing salvaged his night.
Brook Lopez: B-
You can't criticize Brook Lopez for what he did on offense. However, he's about as one-dimensional as center can be in all the wrong ways, and his poor off-ball defense and rebounding struggles were on full display against Atlanta.
Though he finished with seven rebounds, the vast majority were uncontested. Though he certainly can't take all the blame for the 45-35 discrepancy on the boards, he played a major role.
Defensively, he failed to anchor Brooklyn as Horford scored 20 points—the vast majority of which came rather easily—while Millsap dominated the Nets from the free-throw line. Lopez's only non-garbage-time block came against the 6'2" Schroder.
His offensive contributions keep it from being a bad game, but Brooklyn lost the game because of its poor rim protection. Lopez badly needed to step up and didn't.
Rest of Team: D+
Outside of the standouts, only Alan Anderson had a noteworthy night. He added 15 points on 50 percent shooting and dished six assists—the only Net not named Jarrett Jack to log more than two.
It is worth mentioning that Korver was his defensive assignment, but his opponent's success wasn't nearly indicative of a bad defensive effort.
The rest of the team was nearly invisible in all facets of the game, with Cory Jefferson showing up for a short stretch when the game was close, though, he ultimately was a non-impact player.
Coming Up Next
Looking to avoid losing their fourth-straight game, the Nets will host the Toronto Raptors on Friday. The two Eastern Conference teams last met in mid-December when Toronto handed Brooklyn a 16-point loss behind Kyle Lowry's 20 points and 12 assists.
The Raptors will enter the game with four consecutive wins. They'll look to tack on one more against their struggling Atlantic Division opponent.
Meanwhile, Atlanta will look to continue its streak on Friday against the Portland Trail Blazers—the team with the third-best record in the entire Western Conference.
However, the Blazers will enter the night having lost six of their last eight games. They've struggled against playoff teams thus far into the season, and Atlanta—having already beaten Portland on the road in January—will be the favorite as it looks to defend its home court.
