Despite Trae Young shooting three-for-13 from the field in the first half of the Atlanta Hawks' win against the Charlotte Hornets, head coach Nate McMillan loved what he saw from his superstar point guard.
With the 132-103 blowout win, the Hawks earned a chance to play against the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Eastern Conference eighth seed on Friday.
Young's shot was not falling early, but his team still put up 60 points in the first half as De'Andre Hunter, Clint Capela and Danilo Gallinari shouldered more of an offensive load.
Speaking to post-game media, McMillan said he was proud of the way Young navigated his early struggles before going on to finish with 24 points and 11 assists.
"I thought [Young] did a really solid job of getting off the ball when [the Pelicans] put two on him, and he got his teammates involved," he said.
"I thought later in the game they went away from that, and he was able to get loose and get some looks at the basket.
"But a real solid job by Trae running the team, managing those guys on the offensive end of the floor, and really getting us organized and attacking."
McMillan admitted his assistant coaches were imploring him to pull the Hawks stars late in the fourth quarter, with a big lead and the win almost assured, and looked forward to the matchup against the Cavs.
"The coaches were yelling at me, screaming at me to get the [starters] out, so that we could get them a rest in," he said. "But it's time to play – it's game time – and we should be ready when we go to Cleveland.
"We don't know if [Jarrett Allen] will be back on Friday – but the size-factor – they do a good job of taking advantage of their size, and their ability to pound you in the paint with post-ups, rebounding and a lot of length.
"[Darius] Garland is an All-Star, playing great basketball for them, so they're a really good team. We'll have our work cut out for us on Friday."
'Sky's the limit' for Coby White as Bulls tee up Miami rematch
Dejounte Murray declared "the sky's the limit" for Coby White after his career-best performance guided the Chicago Bulls past the Atlanta Hawks in the Play-In Tournament on Wednesday.
The Bulls clinched a 131-116 win over Atlanta at a sold-out United Center in their first Play-In game, teeing up a rematch with the Miami Heat – who eliminated them from last year's Play-In Tournament – for Friday.
White had a career-high 42 points, the second-best tally ever recorded in a Play-In contest, after Jayson Tatum's 50 against the Washington Wizards in 2021, and went 15-of-21 from the field.
His stunning performance meant Murray's own 30-point showing counted for nothing, with Atlanta always fighting an uphill battle after going 18 points down in the first quarter.
Asked about White after the game, Murray said: "I root for guys that work hard and are great people.
"[Bulls forward] DeMar DeRozan's a brother to me and he speaks highly of him. He says he works hard, he's a great guy, he's handled his business, he's a professional on and off the floor.
"When I hear those things, I root for guys around the league just to have success.
"I think he's always been good. He never really got the opportunity to showcase what he's showcasing now, and the sky's the limit."
It was something of a breakout performance for White, who averaged just 8.4 points per game in his only previous playoff series, a 4-1 first-round defeat to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2022.
He was also part of the Chicago team beaten by the Heat in last year's Play-In Tournament, and they will get a chance to avenge that loss when they go to Kaseya Center on Friday.
"I'm just grateful to be where I'm at. That first playoff series I ever had in my career didn't go how I wanted it to go," White said.
"Then last year, I played better in the Play-In, but this year, I didn't come into the game saying I was going to put the team on my back.
"I just wanted to be aggressive and take what the defense gave me and try to lead."
DeRozan is glad to have the opportunity to banish the ghosts of last year's loss in Miami, saying: "I remember that plane ride back home vividly, everybody was just frustrated.
"That feeling sucked. I know for me that was one thing that was on my mind once I realised we were going back to Miami, not to have that same feeling."
Hawks won't have injured Johnson, Oknogwu for NBA Play-In Tournament
The Atlanta Hawks' path to reaching the NBA play-offs has become much more difficult.
The Hawks will be without forward Jalen Johnson and centre Onyeka Okongwu for several weeks, meaning they'll miss next week's Play-In Tournament.
Johnson exited Tuesday's loss to the Miami Heat with a right ankle injury, and the Hawks announced Thursday that an MRI revealed a Grade 2 lateral sprain. He'll be re-evaluated in approximately three weeks.
Okongwu, who last played March 21 due to a left big toe sprain, underwent a non-surgical procedure on Tuesday to address inflammation. His recovery time is approximately four weeks.
Atlanta is guaranteed a spot in the Play-In Tournament, and entered play Thursday in 10th place in the Eastern Conference - 1 /2 games behind the Chicago Bulls. The two teams will meet in the Play-In Tournament, with the winner facing the loser of the game between the 7 and 8 seeds for a spot in the play-offs.
Both Johnson and Okongwu have played big parts for the Hawks this season.
Johnson started 52 of the 56 games he played in, averaging career highs of 16.0 points and 8.7 rebounds - the second highest on Atlanta behind Clint Capela's average of 10.6 boards.
Okongwu has appeared in 55 games, with averages of 10.2 points and 6.8 rebounds. In eight starts, he had averages of 16.1 points and 8.5 boards.
One bit of good news for the Hawks is Trae Young returned in Wednesday's 115-114 loss to the Charlotte Hornets after missing 23 games with a torn ligament in his left pinkie.
The three-time All-Star point guard made all five of his field-goal attempts, finishing with 14 points and 11 assists in 21 minutes in his first game since February 23.
NBA: Surging Lakers beat Cavaliers for 4th straight win
D’Angelo Russell scored 28 points and Anthony Davis had 22 points and 13 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers won their fourth straight, 116-97 over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday.
LeBron James added 24 points and 12 assists for the Lakers, who have won nine of 10 to move into eighth place in the Western Conference for the first time since Dec. 29.
Los Angeles is still in position for a play-in tournament spot, but finishing seventh or eighth means it would only need to win one game to earn a playoff spot.
Darius Garland scored 26 points and Caris LeVert added 21 off the bench as Cleveland dropped its third in four games but remained in third place in the East.
The Cavs held a 73-69 lead in the third quarter, but Davis scored nine points during a 19-0 run to give the Lakers an 88-73 advantage. They led by at least 10 the rest of the way.
Nuggets rout Hawks to move atop West
Nikola Jokić notched another triple-double and Jamal Murray scored 16 points in his return as the Denver Nuggets routed the Atlanta Hawks, 142-110 to move atop the Western Conference.
Jokic had 19 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists for his 25th triple-double of the season even though he sat out the fourth quarter.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added a season-high 24 points, Michael Porter Jr. had 20 points and Murray handed out six assists in his first appearance since he was hurt March 21 against the Knicks. Denver moved a half-game ahead of idle Minnesota for the West lead.
Embiid powers 76ers to 4th straight win
Joel Embiid tallied 30 points and 12 rebounds in only 23 minutes and the Philadelphia 76ers rolled to a 116-96 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Embiid was 9 of 13 from the field and hit both of his 3-point attempts before exiting with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter. Philadelphia was never seriously threatened after that, so coach Nick Nurse left his star center on the bench.
Kelly Oubre Jr. added 17 points as the 76ers pulled within a half-game of seventh place in the Eastern Conference and within one game of Indiana for sixth and a guaranteed playoff spot.
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