The Atlanta Hawks and Trae Young anticipated that the Los Angeles Lakers would be a little fatigued from their game in Houston the day before.

They wasted little time getting going, and they lost by double digits for the second night in a row to LeBron James and the Lakers.

In Tuesday’s 138-122 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, Young poured in 26 points while making all six of his field goal tries from outside the arc.

“We knew they played last night, so we knew we needed to get up and down and run, play in transition and play fast,” said Young. We anticipated that they would wear down as the game progressed. Indeed, that is their action.

In the first three minutes of the second half, the Hawks scored seven points, putting the Lakers in a bind and necessitating a brief intermission.

 

Nothing changed. In a game between two clubs that have allegedly been in talks leading up to next week’s trade deadline, Atlanta built a 20-point lead and the Lakers never went closer than 10 points the rest of the way.

The Lakers dropped back below.500 at 24-25, playing without Anthony Davis following Monday’s 135-119 loss at Houston. In a dull performance in front of a standing-room-only crowd, Austin Reaves scored 28 points and James contributed 20.

“We could, on any given night, beаt any team in the NBA,” claimed James. However, any NBA club can stomp all over us on any given night. Is this our record? Less than.500? Well, that’s all.

The Lakers’ hopes of mounting a comeback were dashed midway through the fourth quarter when Hawks forward Dejounte Murray, who finished with 24 points, made three consecutive mid-range jump shots.

Despite the Hawks’ second consecutive win, they are still seven games below.500, therefore rumors have circulated that the guard could be traded.

The Hawks’ Jalen Johnson scored 19 points, Bogdan Bogdanovic added 18, and Saddiq Bey added 10. Atlanta finished 52% from the field on 101 attempts and had seven players score in double digits. They made 16 of 38 from beyond the arc.

“We were making shots,” Young remarked. They are able to maintain a rhythm, feel good about themselves, and continue in the game when you don’t make shots. On nights like this one, though, when you Һit your shots, they simply cannot experience that emotion.

Due to what the Lakers said were problems with Davis’s left hip and Achilles tendon, he sat out the third game of the season. In his stead, Jaxson Hayes started and finished with six points and six boards.

Davis, who currently averages 24.9 points and 12.1 rebounds per game, is light years ahead of that.

At the defensive end, Davis was also a miss for the Lakers.

“You’ve got to have more communication through the course of the possession, because you’re gonna have a little slippage,” said James. As our third line of defense, A.D. keeps us safe when he’s out there. Constant communication is required while he is not out there.

Some even wondered if the 39-year-old James would suit up for back-to-back games. However, he was in the starting lineup after completing his warmup routine.

“When I’m healthy enough to go out there and play, I just try to perform at a high level, help my teammates do great things out there on the floor, try to be productive,” said James. “Win, lose or draw, be satisfied with the way I approach the game.”

His 4-for-9 performance from the charity stripe disappointed him.

“I need to step it up,” James stated after racking up nine boards and eight assists.

De’Andre Hunter, a forward with the Hawks, made his return to action since December 20. He played 16 minutes off the bench and scored six points. Inflammation in his right knee caused him to miss 19 games.

The underachieving Hawks are hoping that Hunter’s comeback will bring better days.

A single or consecutive night is no problem for any squad. “Hopefully we can string together some wins that propel us forward to where we want to go and need to be,” Young added, as they emphasized the importance of continuing to be consistent.