Hawks struggle offensively, fall to Jazz 72-66 in Summer League opener

The Atlanta Hawks opened up their 2022 Summer League schedule on Saturday evening when they took on the Utah Jazz from Las Vegas. Of note, Jalen Johnson is not with the Summer League team as he is rehabbing from a knee procedure. Rookie AJ Griffin did not appear in this contest but is on the Summer roster.

The Hawks struggled tremendously on the offensive end throughout the first half, scoring just 13 points in each of the first and second quarters. Utah lead end-to-end, never trailing in the 72-66 win.

The Jazz were able to essentially shut down Atlanta’s offense in the halfcourt in this one. They led the Hawks 39-26 at the break and never ceased control of the game. Bruno Caboclo led Utah with 11 points in the first half, going 5-for-5 from the floor.

Sharife Cooper drew the start at the point for the Hawks, but he struggled to get much going early. Here is his lone basket of the first half:

Utah led Atlanta 61-44 after three quarters, maintaining control of the game heading to the final frame. The Hawks’ offense was a little bit better during the third quarter, but they were not able to make up any ground on the Jazz prior to the fourth quarter.

Atlanta started the fourth quarter on a 9-3 run to get back within 11 inside the seven-minute mark. The Hawks were unable to close the gap further from there, however, as the Jazz led 70-55 with 3:18 to go. Atlanta mounted an 8-0 run to cut the margin to single digits, but it was too little to late.

Jared Butler led the way for Utah in this one, as he finished with 15 points and seven assists in the win. Caboclo finished with 11 points and eight rebounds. Chaundee Brown Jr. led Atlanta with 15 points in the defeat.

The Hawks will be back in action on Monday night when they will face the New Orleans Pelicans at 6 pm ET on NBA TV.

Stay tuned.