In Game 5 against Knicks, Hawks will have to raise their level of intensity
After winning two consecutive games against the Knicks to take a 2-1 series lead in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Hawks did not bring the right intensity to extend their series lead.
Now, they return to Madison Square Garden to take on the Knicks in Game 5 with the series tied 2-2. When they take the court Tuesday night, they’ll look to take their intensity up another level.
That sort of desperation allowed the Hawks to take Games 2 and 3. But the Knicks came out of the gate in Game 4 with physicality, something the Hawks seemed unprepared to meet.
“We know we’re playing on their home floor, so everybody who’s there with Atlanta, our whole team, we just got to bring it from the jump,” Hawks forward Jalen Johnson said Monday. “It’s us against them. So we’re in the right mentality headed in there. So I’m excited to go out there and play.”
The postseason has tested Johnson and the Hawks. They’ve shown they can adjust to the Knicks and will need to do so once again.
“We know that it’s a series,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “It’s going to be hard. I feel like we just need to play to who we are, understanding that that doesn’t always equate to success.
“There’s a level that we have to find, because they clearly are doing the same thing. Another opportunity to play a playoff game on the road against one of the top teams in the league.”
The Hawks also know that they’ll have to show the resilience that helped them win 46 games in the regular season. Throughout the series, the Hawks have struggled to withstand some of the Knicks’ extended runs, especially at the start of the first and third quarters.
“But I think as much as that, understanding that throughout the game, particularly in the beginning of the game, and particularly on the road, you need to be resilient,” Snyder said. “If you take a couple punches, get knocked down, you get back up, continue to compete. I think that’s who we’ve been.”
About the Author
