Kyle Korver‘s hot shooting Tuesday night helped propelled the Atlanta Hawks to a Game 2 victory in their first-round series with the Boston Celtics.
Kyle Korver, one of the best sharpshooters in the league, had a very inconsistent season from behind the arc. Before the All-Star break, Korver shot 38 percent from three-point range, including 29 percent in the month of December. Following a historic shooting season in 2014-15, this was a major letdown for the Atlanta Hawks and their fans alike.
Down the stretch, however, Korver began to regain his shot. After the All-Star break, he shot 42 percent from long range — including 45.5 percent in the month of March. This directly correlates with Atlanta heating up going into the playoffs and securing the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Atlanta Hawks have become one of the best defensive teams in the league: second to only the San Antonio Spurs in defensive efficiency this season. They have learned to grind out games with shut-down defense; but their offensive inconsistencies prevented them from replicating the success of last year’s team.
Korver is an integral part of Mike Budenholzer’s offensive scheme. His ability to come off of screens and sink an open shots stretches the defense, allowing space for the Hawks guards to attack the baskets and to draw opposing bigs away from the paint.
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The importance of Korver’s shot cannot be emphasized enough. When Korver is making his shots, the offense turns into a well-oiled machine that can put opposing teams away quickly. The threat of a hot Korver alone gives his team the offensive swagger it lacked for much of the season.
Though Korver ended the regular season on a good note, Game 1 of the Hawks’ first-round series with the Boston Celtics was a game that he would like to forget. Korver went 1-for-10 from the field in Atlanta’s 102-101 victory over Boston.
Because of his inability to make any shots, the Hawks offense stagnated, blowing a 17-point halftime lead and allowing the Celtics to give Atlanta a scare.
In Game 2 on Tuesday night, vintage Korver appeared. The Hawks’ starting 2-guard torched the Celtics, going 5-of-6 from beyond the arc and finished with 17 points.
Perhaps this can be attributed to the absence of Celtics’ defensive specialist Avery Bradley; but regardless of the circumstances, the return of Korver’s shot propelled the Hawks to a 2-0 series lead over Boston.
The Hawks shot only 39 percent from the field on Tuesday, but Korver’s first-half barrage gave Atlanta the breathing room to coast to the finish line. His performance underscores his importance to not only the Hawks’ offense, but how he is key to their playoff aspirations.
Atlanta departed from the postseason a year ago with a whimper, getting swept by the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals. Not by coincidence, Korver suffered a season-ending injury in Game 2 of that series, dooming the Hawks to a lackluster end to a historic season.
This postseason though, Korver must remain a threat from beyond the arc in a similar way that Stephen Curry is for the Golden State Warriors. Now, I am by no means comparing Korver to Curry; but merely stating that he has a similar effect on defenses as the MVP does.
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If the Atlanta Hawks want to return to the Eastern Conference Finals, Korver must continue to shoot well. When Korver plays like he did on Tuesday, Atlanta is a difficult team to stop. Combine that with their defense, and watch out.