Lakers embarrassed in Atlanta: a nightmare start to the road trip

Few teams go through the 82-game grind of the regular season without a night like this—one to forget. The reverse happens too: less than a week ago, the Lakers pulled off a win they had no business getting in Portland against a competitive Blazers side, on the second night of a back-to-back and without Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, or, of course, LeBron James, who still hasn’t debuted (he’s expected back in about two weeks). This time, it was the payback: as if they’d stolen something in Oregon that they had to return sooner or later, the Lakers produced their worst showing of the season so far in Atlanta (122–102). It was pitiful, uninspired basketball—actually, not even basketball. They showed up, stood around, and let it happen. No intensity, no pride, no interest. Nothing worth salvaging.

The Hawks: defining average

The Hawks always seem like the definition of average. Not great, not terrible. Over the last five seasons, they’ve won 50.4% of their games. This year, they’re 5–5 after ten outings. Even so, their start has been disappointing, because at their best they have the tools to contend for a top-four seed in the East. But they lost Trae Young to a knee sprain—thankfully not serious, but enough to sideline him for a few weeks. And against the Lakers, on the second night of a back-to-back, they were also missing Kristaps Porzingis, Jalen Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Luke Kennard. On paper, it looked like a schedule loss for Atlanta. In reality, it was anything but.

The Lakers were still without LeBron and Reaves, whose groin issue—originally described as minor—has dragged on longer than expected. JJ Redick said before the game that Reaves should return at some point during this trip, which couldn’t have started worse. Afterward, Redick’s press conference was over in a flash, a quick burst of frustration in which he said he knew within minutes how the night would go. “It wasn’t our day.” Jake LaRavia agreed: “They punched us in the mouth and we didn’t respond. It’s on us starters to set the tone, and we didn’t.” Deandre Ayton went further: “It’s tough to swallow. They played great, but we didn’t even compete. This is one of those nights where dinner won’t taste good. But that’s the NBA—82 games…” Doncic and Marcus Smart didn’t even speak.

Most nights, these injury-hit Lakers can lean on absences as an excuse. This time, they couldn’t. The Hawks’ depleted roster and the presence of Doncic, Ayton, Smart, LaRavia, and Hachimura seemed to make it a perfect setup for a win after two days off and a five-game winning streak. Instead, that run ended with a thud, dropping them to 7–3 after their first road loss (4–1 away). There’s not much to say—except the obvious: you don’t win in the NBA without effort, interest, or at least a bit of focus. You can’t assume things will fall into place, or that Doncic will fix it all. The tone was set early—a turnover on the first possession, followed by a Zaccharie Risacher layup. That wasn’t a coincidence, it was a preview. The Lakers finished with 20 turnovers, leading to 36 Atlanta points. They were outscored by 16 in the paint (62–46), by 14 in transition (22–8), and by 21 off turnovers (36–15).

Hawks well ahead by halftime

The Hawks hit halftime up 68–54, with 21 assists on 26 baskets—free-flowing basketball against a defense that didn’t even pretend to try. When the Lakers briefly cut it to single digits in the third quarter, it looked like there might be hope for one of those sloppy comeback wins—but no. Atlanta finished the period on a 28–11 run, sealing it. The images were embarrassing: a lifeless, disconnected Lakers team. Midway through the third, Redick pulled his starters for good. Why bother?

Doncic can hit halftime with 22 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists and still be playing poorly. That’s the kind of player he is. On this forgettable night, he finished with 22, 5, and 11—with five turnovers and only 27 minutes on the floor. Redick decided that if his starters wanted rest, they could have it on the bench. Better that than risking a rolled ankle in a lost cause. Nothing to highlight, nothing positive. Just the confirmation that the Lakers’ best version—gritty, defiant—can beat anyone, but their worst can lose to anyone too. And in embarrassing fashion.

Still work to do for the Hawks

The Hawks, meanwhile, still have time to turn things around. They’ve got the talent, and the East offers openings that the West slams shut. Dyson Daniels (10 points, 8 rebounds, 13 assists) exposed the Lakers’ total lack of energy. Onyeka Okongwu (12 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists) and Mo Gueye (21, 7, and 7) brought toughness and smarts, controlling the interior and neutralizing Doncic’s pick-and-roll game that usually unravels opponents. But this just wasn’t the Lakers’ night—in any sense. Risacher finished with 19, Vit Krejci added 17, and Keaton Wallace and Asa Nowell made the most of their minutes. What looked like a routine win turned into a nightmare, a trap for a Lakers team that tarnished what had been a strong start to the season. Next up: Charlotte, tomorrow. Another game that should be winnable—if they’ve learned anything.

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Atlanta Hawks

Stats

18 Mouhamed Gueye
10 Zaccharie Risacher
17 Onyeka Okongwu
5 Dyson Daniels
2 Keaton Wallace
12 N'Faly Dante
33 Caleb Houstan
27 Vít Krejčí
14 Asa Newell
0 Jacob Toppin
30 Eli John Ndiaye

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
18 Mouhamed Gueye	34	21	7	0	7	7	2	2	1	1/1	4/7	4/5	0	2	0
10 Zaccharie Risacher	27	19	1	0	1	4	1	2	0	2/2	4/7	3/7	0	1	0
17 Onyeka Okongwu	32	12	8	2	6	4	2	3	2	0/0	6/11	0/3	0	1	0
5 Dyson Daniels	36	10	8	2	6	13	2	1	0	0/0	5/8	0/0	0	2	0
2 Keaton Wallace	35	14	2	0	2	7	1	1	0	0/0	1/7	4/8	0	2	0
12 N'Faly Dante	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
33 Caleb Houstan	19	8	2	2	0	1	1	0	1	3/3	1/1	1/2	0	1	0
27 Vít Krejčí	24	17	3	0	3	1	1	0	1	3/4	4/5	2/9	0	3	0
14 Asa Newell	26	17	5	1	4	0	1	4	1	1/1	5/7	2/5	0	2	0
0 Jacob Toppin	3	4	2	1	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	2/2	0/0	0	0	0
30 Eli John Ndiaye	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0

Los Angeles Lakers

Stats

28 Rui Hachimura
12 Jake LaRavia
5 Deandre Ayton
77 Luka Dončić
36 Marcus Smart
11 Jaxson Hayes
9 Bronny James Jr.
14 Maxi Kleber
4 Dalton Knecht
3 Nick Smith Jr.
2 Jarred Vanderbilt
10 Christian Koloko
30 Chris Mañon

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
28 Rui Hachimura	23	8	2	1	1	0	1	0	0	0/0	1/6	2/3	0	1	0
12 Jake LaRavia	23	13	5	3	2	2	2	2	1	4/5	3/5	1/2	0	1	0
5 Deandre Ayton	19	11	5	2	3	0	3	0	0	1/1	5/5	0/0	0	0	0
77 Luka Dončić	26	22	5	0	5	11	5	1	0	4/6	3/7	4/10	0	2	0
36 Marcus Smart	20	5	0	0	0	2	2	2	0	1/1	2/3	0/1	0	2	0
11 Jaxson Hayes	16	4	3	1	2	0	0	0	1	0/0	2/4	0/0	0	0	0
9 Bronny James Jr.	18	9	2	1	1	2	1	1	0	0/0	3/4	1/2	0	1	0
14 Maxi Kleber	14	1	2	0	2	1	0	0	2	1/2	0/0	0/1	0	0	0
4 Dalton Knecht	24	14	4	1	3	1	1	0	0	2/2	3/6	2/5	0	1	0
3 Nick Smith Jr.	23	3	1	0	1	2	2	1	0	0/0	0/4	1/4	0	1	0
2 Jarred Vanderbilt	28	12	18	4	14	2	2	1	1	3/3	3/7	1/2	0	2	0
10 Christian Koloko	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
30 Chris Mañon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0