Usually when the Atlanta Hawks lose a game in the fourth quarter, the problem is on the offensive end. More specifically, their offense turns into a stand and watch someone shoot it type of offense. What makes this so frustrating as a neutral fan (and probably more so as a Hawks’ fan) is that they actually have a fair amount of strong sets they can go to.
Out of the seven halfcourt possessions the Hawks scored on, six of them came off of smart sets with an actual gameplan. My favorite one came with 6:30 left in the game and the Hawks trailing by 8 points:
The play starts with Teague entering the ball to Joe Johnson on the wing and then cutting past Al Horford, who steps up a little past the elbow to receive the basketball. After Teague cuts past Horford, he changes direction and gets in position to set a backscreen for Johnson.
With Teague stepping up to set the backscreen and with Omer Asik up on Horford (because he has to respect Horford’s shooting ability), Johnson has a clear lane to cut backdoor.
Johnson takes advantage of that space and Horford hits him with a very good pass, allowing Johnson to finish before Asik can get there and help. Here is the play in real time:
Is it simple? Sure, but it is extremely effective and it is a possession where you have ball movement and player movement (something that most Hawks’ 4th quarter possessions don’t have) and it results in a basket.
In addition to this set, the Hawks were also successful running pick and pop/roll with Jeff Teague as the ball handler:
Jeff Teague is so quick coming off of screens and Horford is a strong shooting threat that it really puts the defense in a bind. On the first screen and roll, Teague executes a perfect hesitation dribble, forcing Asik to return to Horford and clearing a lane for him to attack to. On the second one, Teague finds Horford who knocks down the pick and pop jumper.
The problem with Atlanta is that these strong sets are mixed in with far too many isolation sets. These isolations not only stifled the momentum of the Hawks on the offensive end, but it allowed the defense to throw doubles at the Hawks as the rest of the team stands around:
For two straight plays, the Hawks tried to get the ball to their bigs in the post (Al Horford once and Josh Smith the other). However, they go away what was working for them, and the result is one player working with the basketball as the other four stand around. This allows the Bulls to throw doubles, forcing a turnover and getting a blocked shot.
