BSJ Game 5 report: Hawks 119, Celtics 117 - Trae Young hands Celtics a costly loss at home

Everything you need to know about the Celtics' loss to the Hawks in Game 5 of their opening-round series, with BSJ insight and analysis

IN A NUTSHELL

Trae Young and Jaylen Brown came out dueling early, and Young was able to fuel some hot Hawks shooting that gave them a first-quarter lead. They turned it up in the second quarter, building a 13-point lead thanks to a 17-5 run powered by Malcolm Brogdon. The third quarter was pretty much even, giving the C’s a 10-point lead heading into the fourth. It looked like Boston was going to close the door but they gave up a 20-6 run to close the game, capped by a Young logo 3, to lose and send the series back to Atlanta.

Box Score 

HEADLINES

Embarrassing: I’ll spend some time on this separately, but this is as bad a loss as any from this season. Considering the stakes and that it is the playoffs, this loss should hurt these guys. I’m sick of talking about them learning lessons from these games, but they should take a strong one from this. They should be embarrassed by how they played down the stretch. 

Trae’s big night: It’s been a while since Young put up a big scoring and assist night like this. When you add it all up, he either scored or assisted on 72 of Atlanta’s 112 points. 

Poor execution down the stretch: Over the last five minutes, the Celtics shot 2-7 (0-2 3pt) from the field, 2-3 from the line, and they turned the ball over four times leading to 8 Hawks points (9 if you count the technical foul on Tatum). The Hawks, meanwhile, were 5-8 over that five-minute stretch (3-5 3pt), 5-5 from the line, and they didn’t turn it over at all. 

“I think it was more we just lost our pace a little bit on the offensive end, partly on me trying to make sure we run a good play,” Joe Mazzulla said. “We talk about playing faster down the stretch and I thought we just lost some of our pace, which allowed them to pressure us and get in the passing lanes.”

TURNING POINT

The Celtics went scoreless between the 5:24 and 2:18 mark, a longer than three-minute stretch late in the fourth quarter, giving up an 11-0 run that got the Hawks back even. The Celtics made only two field goals over the last 5:24, both by Robert Williams. 

THREE UP

Jaylen Brown: He did not play well down the stretch (nobody did), but he was Boston’s best scorer for most of the night. He finished with 35 points on 15-23 shooting with 7 rebounds and 5 assists. On the downside, he was 1-5 from the line, which can’t happen in a close out game, and he disappeared down the stretch.

Derrick White: 18 points on 7-11 shooting. I thought he could have been even more aggressive in this game, especially late when the Celtics' offense was slowing down. He was getting to the rim at will, so I don't know why they got away from that. 

Malcolm Brogdon: He was a huge reason why the Celtics were able to build a big lead in the second quarter. Why not give him some late-game minutes to see if he can break down the defense? 

FOUR DOWN

Jayson Tatum: I don’t know how a superstar on Tatum’s level only takes TWO shots in the fourth quarter. Then again, considering his 8-21 shooting night (1-10 from 3), maybe the Celtics didn't want him shooting after all. 

In all seriousness, Tatum talked the biggest talk about learning lessons from last season about not prolonging a series. Then he lays an egg in a closeout game at home with the other team missing its second-best player. Gotta be better.

Marcus Smart: Smart’s fourth quarter was bad, turning the ball over twice and committing a costly foul trying to make a classic Marcus Smart play. He almost pulled it off, but the risk with that play, especially with Boston a foul away from the bonus, was very high. 

Al Horford: I’m not sure why Horford has been so passive when it comes to shooting. The Celtics have relied on him all season long to hit big shots and he’s not taking nearly as many. He only took 5 in the game. He’s doing other things, but the Celtics have been good this year, in part, because Horford has been a contributor on offense. 

Joe Mazzulla: Why did he play Blake Griffin in this game? And why couldn't he get his team to wake up over the final five minutes? I don’t want to go for the low-hanging fruit because I think the timeout stuff has been overblown, but he called one with 4:31 to go in the middle of Atlanta’s run. Young hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to cut the lead to 6. Boston had 3 timeouts left and NBA rules say teams only get 2 over the final 3:00 of the game. 

Call the use-it-or-lose-it timeout there, give the guys an extra couple of minutes to rest, draw up a play that goes to the basket, and maybe stop the run. That's the play. He didn’t make it. 

TOP PLAYS

ONE TAKE KARALIS WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER

- This was a very costly loss.

I don’t think I can overstate how costly this loss is, even if they win Game 6. 

First, they are playing an extra playoff game. That's miles on the legs, and those add up. It’s another opportunity for an unlucky injury like an errant elbow or foot under someone’s ankle. If someone gets hurt Thursday night and it lingers, that’ll be a devastating blow to their chances, even if they win. 

Second, they are losing a lot of days off. They went from three days off before Game 1 in the next series and three days off before Game 3 to playing every other day. They just punted four rest days while adding two flights into the mix. Those are days to recharge legs, give Horford some extra time off, and game plan for the Sixers. 

Third, they are giving Joel Embiid extra time to heal: Instead of Game 1 being on Saturday, it’s now on Monday. Embiid and his sprained knee have a couple of extra days to heal before taking on the Celtics in this series. 

They are going to regret this loss. 

Next up: Game 6 is Thursday in Atlanta. There is, and I’m not kidding here, a Janet Jackson concert also scheduled for Thursday night in Atlanta. So either that concert is going to be moved, or the Celtics will have to play an early game. Stay tuned, I guess.