The Hawks were in the middle of some controversy with losing slide (six of seven games) and an embarrassing 39-point loss to the Bulls, followed by a suspension of Josh Smith for tonight's game against the Nets.
Thankfully, the Hawks did not let former Hawk Joe Johnson propel the Nets, as the Hawks snapped their slide with a 109-95 victory tonight at Philips Arena. The Hawks' lead was as high as 26 points.
Smith was suspended for one game and fined an undisclosed amount for "conduct detrimental to the team" following an incident in practice Tuesday. With the suspension and an injury to DeShawn Stevenson, there were no other "lineup changes" as Drew had promised after Monday's debacle.
As it was, six Hawks players scored in double figures, including all five starters. Jeff Teague had 28 points and 11 assists, while Al Horford posted 17 points and 13 rebounds. Zaza Pachulia had 13 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists to narrowly miss his first triple-double.
Johnson was horrendous in his return to Philips Arena, making just 4 of 15 shots. He finished with 15 points, thanks to making 7 of 7 from the line. He and the rest of the Nets just could not keep up with the more-up-tempo pace the Hawks had tonight. By the end, the Hawks had made almost 58% of their shots.
The Nets will get a chance at revenge on Friday as the two teams play again at Barclays Arena in Brooklyn.
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