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The Atlanta Hawks head back home on Saturday as they look to save their season in Game 6 against the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals. Atlanta is on the brink of elimination after Milwaukee dominated Game 5 with a wire-to-wire 123-112 victory to take a 3-2 series lead.
It's still unknown whether Trae Young will finally be able to suit up for the elimination game, especially after sitting out Games 4 and 5 with a bone bruise in his foot. Milwaukee executed its adjustments well after getting rattled with Giannis Antetokounmpo's injury scare in Game 4.
The Hawks will undoubtedly need to come up with a counter to the Bucks' current plan of attack, which saw them focus on getting inside the paint. With that, here are three adjustments the Hawks must make to force a Game 7 in Milwaukee.
1. Play better defense
To put it simply, Atlanta will need to play better defense in Game 6 if they want to save their season. It certainly seemed like the Hawks laid out red carpets to the rim for Jrue Holiday to get in the lane. This either resulted in easy layups for the two-way star or easy finishes for Brook Lopez, who exploded with a playoff career-high 33 points.
Atlanta also wasn't sharp with its defensive rotations in Game 5. Lopez benefitted from the Hawks' poor weakside defense with a steady serving of highlight dunks and alley-oops. Overall, they allowed Milwaukee to score 66 points in the paint. This will be a recipe for disaster for them if this continues to be the trend in Game 6. The Hawks will need to bring that number down on Saturday if they want to stay alive.
Overall, Atlanta will need to offer more resistance on the defensive side of the floor. Allowing Milwaukee's two primary playmakers Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton to get into the lane with ease gives them the luxury of making an easier decision with the basketball, depending on the defense in front of them. As a result, this opened up several easy baskets at the cup or wide open threes for the Bucks.
The Hawks will need to be physical with them on the perimeter and prevent their easy drives to the basket. This is obviously easier said than done and Atlanta is now sorely missing its top on-ball defender in Deandre Hunter. Nonetheless, it may need an entire team effort by making the right rotations to slow down the dribble penetration of Milwaukee's guards.
2. Start stronger
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The Hawks looked lethargic to begin Game 5 as Milwaukee raced out to a 30-10 lead in the first period. The Bucks were the more aggressive team on both ends of the floor and it became the difference maker early. Atlanta made their runs eventually and trimmed the lead to as low as seven points in the third quarter. However, they were not able to complete their comeback run and never truly recovered from the early gut punch from the Bucks.
Being on the brink of elimination, the Hawks should come out with a higher sense of urgency and play with more physicality and aggression to make the Bucks feel them early. Atlanta will need to have the same kind of start that they did in Game 4. The home crowd should also play a huge factor in injecting energy into the Hawks as they look to force their second straight Game 7 I these playoffs.
3. Get John Collins more touches early
With Trae Young pretty much a game-to-game status, the Hawks will need to find a way to get John Collins going. Collins finished with just 19 points on 7-of-16 shooting from the field in Game 5.
Collins benefits a lot from Young's presence and playmaking. However, with the All-Star point guard out, he will need others to get him his scoring opportunities.
Collins is more than capable of going off and getting his own as well. Head coach Nate McMillan must make it a point to give the 6-foot-9 forward some more touches and set up a number of plays for him to open the game. Getting Collins going and making him feel good early should establish his rhythm and flow for the rest of the night.
