A Bum Shoulder and Ankle Halt Atlanta Hawks' Sizzling Start

The Atlanta Hawks, now (6-3), got off to one of the hottest starts in the NBA this year by shooting lights out from beyond the arc playing opportunistic defense and having good play from the bench in crunch time. However, a few key injuries have sent the Hawks on a three game losing skid. During their six games win streak the Atlanta a surprising strength has been their three point shooting.  Marvin Williams and Maurice Evans who are shooting 64.7% and 48.3%, respectively, lead the Hawks in 3pt FG%.  Last year the Hawks shot a reasonable 35.6%, but this year are shooting an astounding 43.%.  Many of these open looks can be credited to the grind it out style defensive they have been playing. The Hawks started off the season with impressive defensive performances against Orlando, Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Oklahoma City, holding them well below their scoring average.  Atlanta used tough, hard-nosed defense to comeback from a huge deficit against the 76ers. They ... (link)