CJ McCollum reveals key to Hawks’ nine-game winning streak

ATLANTA – The Atlanta Hawks came into their game against the Milwaukee Bucks as one of the hottest teams in the league, as they were riding an eight-game winning streak. They made it nine straight after the 122-99 win, and they stuck to the same principles that helped them get the past eight.

It didn’t start with Jalen Johnson’s triple-double. It didn’t start with CJ McCollum’s seven three-pointers.

“I think we’ve been defending at a high level,” CJ McCollum said after the game. “I think that’s the biggest thing. Obviously, offensively, we’re really good offensively. A lot of talent, a lot of shooting, a lot of speed, and a good balance. But I think defensively we’ve been more locked in. We’ve had a lot of energy to play lately, and I think that’s been a huge difference for us.”

It started with their defense, and they’ve leaned on it to help them rattle off nine-straight wins. It’s something Quin Snyder has harped on, and something the team knows where their success starts. In the past two games, they’ve held the Bucks and Brooklyn Nets to under 100 points.

“It starts at the point of attack with Nickeil [Alexander-Walker] tonight, and Dyson [Daniels] as well,” Snyder said. “When you see that, everybody has to raise their level. When you’re looking at a guy working like that, Gabe [Vincent] comes and picks up. Everybody’s trying to be aggressive but also solid at the same time. We don’t want to be gambling; we just want to make people work.”

The Hawks forced 20 turnovers and had 30 points off those turnovers. Alexander-Walker and Daniels made life hard for the opposition, as they had three steals apiece, and then the backline did their jobs as well, denying easy shots in the paint. With that, their rebounding has improved, and more importantly, on the offensive glass.

“I think we’re doing things collectively,” Snyder said. “There’s no one player that’s crashing. It’s multiple guys crashing. There’s no one player rebounding; it’s multiple guys being physical and getting bodies on people. Onyeka [Okongwu] as much as anybody. JJ should take him to dinner because he’s keeping his guy off the glass.”

When teams would get hot in the past, the Hawks would have had a hard time stopping them. Now, they get one stop, and it turns into two. Two turns into three. Then, you get results like the past two games when you look at the scoreboard.

“When guys get hot, and they go on runs, we limit those much more as of recent, and we’ve done a good job just getting stops and converting off them, and continue to play fast,” Johnson said.

The Hawks will have to keep that same defensive mentality in their next game against the Orlando Magic, who have also been hot as of late.

“Winning games in a row is great, but as long as we’re building the right types of habits, I think that’s what’s more important for us heading into April,” McCollum said.

The post CJ McCollum reveals key to Hawks’ nine-game winning streak appeared first on ClutchPoints.