The Atlanta Hawks had the ball with 19.6 seconds remaining and was down by a point when Trae Young capped a big night with a three-pointer that gave the home team its sixth straight victory, 134-132.
Seven Hawks players finished the game with double-digits in scoring led by Young with 31 points to go along with a game-high 20 assists. On the offensive balance, Hawks head coach Quin Synder said, “That’s reflective of the unselfishness of this team. That’s really good.”
Synder added that it also says a lot about the trust his players have for one another this season.
With the score 132-131 in favor of the Lakers and 40 seconds remaining in the game, Hawks guard Dyson Daniels got a steal and what looked like a clear path to a dunk that would have given his team a one-point lead. James tracked him back to the rim and blocked the attempt.
Atlanta was back home at State Farm Arena for a two-game swing. The Hawks are now 7-5 at home this season going into their next home game on Sunday.
The Lakers (12-11 overall) came into the game on a two-game losing streak despite Lebron James averaging 22 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists per game in his 21st season. James finished this game with 39 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds.
The Hawks, who have the league leaders in assists (Trae Young) and steals (Dyson Daniels), went back and forth with the Lakers during the first quarter. The teams were tied at 21 with 2:43 remaining in the period when Hawks forward Jalen Johnson made a jumper off of a De’Andre Hunter assist to put Atlanta ahead 23-21. James immediately connected from three-point distance to put the Lakers back in front. Los Angeles led 29-26 at the end of the first quarter after center Anthony Davis’s dunk and free throw with two seconds left.
The start of the second quarter belonged to Hawks center Onyela Okongwu, who scored six of his team’s 12 points. The Hawks saw their lead grow to five points late in the quarter behind strong efforts from Johnson and Hunter, who is averaging just under 19 points per game off the bench. His three-pointer gave Atlanta a 62-61 advantage before Davis put the Lakers back in front 64-62. Davis scored 22 first-half points, many of which came on passes from James, who had seven assists to go with 17 points during the first half.
The second half was a lot like the first half as the two teams traded baskets throughout. Then the Lakers went on a 10-0 run to take a 77-66 lead at the 9:44 mark. Consecutive three-pointers from Hunter kept the Hawks close and cut the Lakers advantage to six points midway through the third quarter.
The game was tied again, this time at 87 after Young and Bogdan Bogdanovic got hot from three. With less than a minute to play in the quarter, James missed a three-pointer, but Lakers reserve Deangelo Russell caught the errant rebound and made a three-pointer of his own to make the score 97-92 in favor of the visiting team.
Bogdanovic’s three-pointer at the eight-minute mark gave Atlanta a 105-102 and forced a Lakers timeout from first-year head coach and former NBA shooting guard JJ Redick. Another Bogdanovic three-pointer off of a pass from Young brought the crowd to its feet and gave Atlanta a 108-104 with just under six minutes in the game. He was 3-3 from the field during that point of the fourth quarter.
A Lakers 7-0 run, capped by a Gabe Vincent baseline jumper, put the Lakers back in front 111-108 with 3:30 remaining in the game.
With the score tied at 119 with 13.9 seconds remaining in the game and the Hawks with the ball, Hawks All-Star guard Trae Young had a three-point attempt blocked at the buzzer to force overtime.
It’s a homecoming, of sorts: Former Atlanta Hawks head coach Nate McMillan, now an assistant with the Lakers, was in the building Friday night. Former Hawks first-round pick Cam Reddish was also back in Atlanta. Reddish is averaging three points and two rebounds per game for the Lakers. This season Reddish has started eight games, but did not start on Sunday.
What’s Next: The Hawks will host the Denver Nuggets on Sunday (6 p.m. tipoff) before traveling to New York City to play the Knicks for a spot in the Emirates NBA Cup Finals in Las Vegas.
