Hawks star Trae Young criticized the referees following his 105-115 Game 2 loss to the Miami Heat.
“If the referees keep going this long, it’s going to be hard for us to get anything,” Young said after the game, in which he scored 25 points (10/20 FG, 2/10 trebles, 7 assists) but did so only awarded four free throws.
As a team, Atlanta reached the line just 14 times (11 goals), well below the regular season average (22.3). The Heat, on the other hand, caught 29 free throws, 25 of which were sunk. In terms of pure fouls, however, the number of fouls by both sides was fairly even (26 Atlanta, 24 Miami), and in Game 1 the Hawks were also much more frequent in the charity range (27-18).
“It’s tough,” Young said, but turned his focus to Game 3, which takes place in Georgia Saturday night at 1 am. “Of course we have the feeling that we didn’t take the opportunity, but we shouldn’t regret it for a long time. The next game is in a few days.”
Trae Young in trouble again
Despite a significantly improved quota compared to Game 1, when he played just 8 points at 1/12 of the field, the defensive physical heat is again causing big problems for the youngsters. The point guard threw the ball away 10 times, in game 1 he already had 6 turnovers.
“You can’t afford 19 turnovers in a playoff game and then expect to win,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said after the game.
After two games, Hawks sees it 0-2 in the series.
heat vs. Hawks: Series Summary (2-0)
| Match | date | Time | home | far away | result |
| 1 | april 17 | 19 hours | Miami heat | Atlanta Hawks | 115:91 |
| two | april 20 | 1:30 | Miami heat | Atlanta Hawks | 115:105 |
| 3 | April 23 | 01:00 | Atlanta Hawks | Miami heat | – |
| 4 | April 25 | 01:00 | Atlanta Hawks | Miami heat | – |
| 5* | april 27 | to be defined | Miami heat | Atlanta Hawks | – |
| 6* | april 29 | to be defined | Atlanta Hawks | Miami heat | – |
| 7* | 1st May | to be defined | Miami heat | Atlanta Hawks | – |
*if necessary