Knicks-Hawks takeaways: New York finds its edge in Game 4, but Jalen Brunson’s dip remains a concern

With the New York Knicks facing the prospect of an unprecedented 3-1 hole against the underdog Atlanta Hawks, Game 4 was a reminder of just how intense and effective they can be by dialing in defensively. The Hawks struggled to score all night in a 114-98 loss, shooting just .415 from the field and committing 18 turnovers.

Karl-Anthony Towns was the difference-maker Saturday putting up a triple double — 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists — and was a +16 while dominating both ends of the floor. OG Anunoby was New York’s other star with 22 points on 56% shooting with 10 rebounds and a +19. CJ McCollum led the Hawks with just 17 points and was 0-for-4 from 3.

Advertisement

On to the takeaways …

Atlanta’s offensive illusion dissipates

At some point, the math had to even itself out. It was nothing short of a miracle that the Hawks, who entered into Saturday’s game with a negative net rating — 12th best out of 20 possible playoff teams — all while scoring at a bottom-six rate, somehow found themselves with a shock 2-1 series lead. If the first three games of this series was the Hawks’ success by the mitigation of their offensive woes, Game 3 was the amplification of their shortcomings. Simply put, Atlanta doesn’t have the firepower and shot-making depth that New York possesses, having to rely on ball movement, physical defense and transition opportunities to potentially muck up the game. In the first half, the Hawks scored a measly 76.7 points per 100 half-court plays, a figure that didn’t improve much in the second half. The lack of spacing Jalen Johnson and Dyson Daniels provide, despite their important defensive contributions, makes New York’s aggressive defensive scheme even easier. This series has been a wonderful redemption arc for residents of CJ McCollum island but outside of his heroics, there’s not much meat on this Hawks’ bone to sustain them in a best-of-3 series.

Knicks’ Karl-Anthony Towns delivered a much-needed triple-double Saturday to even the series against the Hawks.

(Kevin C. Cox via Getty Images)

Knicks remembered how to play Knicks basketball

The Knicks, who established…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/knicks-hawks-takeaways-new-york-finds-its-edge-in-game-4-but-jalen-brunsons-dip-remains-a-concern-011611805.html

Author : Kelly Iko

Publish date : 2026-04-26 01:16:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.