Quin Snyder Says Hawks 'Didn't Play With Force' Early in Overtime Loss to Bulls

The Atlanta Hawks turned the ball over six times in the first quarter Friday night and trailed the Chicago Bulls 33-24 after 12 minutes at United Center.

Chicago went up 46-28 with 9:25 left in the second quarter. Atlanta tied it in the third, tied it again late in the fourth, and lost 125-117 in overtime.

Hawks coach Quin Snyder went back to the opening minutes.

"I think we didn't play with force at the beginning of the game, and that impacts our defense," Snyder said. "It's kind of the complementary basketball, with how your offense impacts your defense. And when we're not forceful defensively or active, and we're not running, I think. So we know the things we need to have in the front of our minds to focus on, and when we don't do that, we don't play well."

"By the same token, we started to find that, and I think 18 down, but again, it's when you're not shooting the ball well," Snyder continued. "You had a bad shooting night, which is going to happen. Those things become even more important. And then when your opponent is shooting the ball, it compounds itself."

Jalen Johnson scored Atlanta's first 4 points, and Onyeka Okongwu's 3-pointer gave Atlanta a 7-6 lead with 9:11 left in the first quarter. Atlanta did not lead again until overtime.

Chicago scored 12 of the next 14 points. Matas Buzelis hit a 3-pointer, Norman Powell made two 3-pointers in a 57-second span, and Josh Giddey scored on a running layup. Atlanta called timeout down 14-9. Nickeil Alexander-Walker then committed turnovers on back-to-back possessions, and Chicago led 18-9 after an Isaac Okoro free throw with 6:01 left in the quarter.

Kingston Flemings committed the first of Atlanta's six first-quarter turnovers 22 seconds in. Johnson and Alexander-Walker had two each, and Okongwu had one.

Flemings played 17 minutes before leaving with back tightness. He did not return.

From the 9:25 mark of the second quarter through the end of the third, Atlanta outscored Chicago 55-38. Luguentz Dort's steal and layup tied the game at 83 with 40 seconds left in the third.

The Hawks finished with 13 steals and 26 fast-break points on 12-of-16 shooting. Dort had 4 of the steals in 19 minutes and scored 10 points. Atlanta scored 34 points off 25 Chicago turnovers.

Johnson's running dunk off a Dyson Daniels feed tied it at 110 with 1:08 left in regulation. Okongwu's layup to open overtime gave Atlanta a 112-110 lead, its largest of the game.

Powell scored 9 of Chicago's 15 points in overtime, and Atlanta managed 7.

Snyder did not feel the Hawks were tired by the end.

"There's kind of that — that game goes back and forth, and it went back one too many times," Snyder explained.

Atlanta shot 8-of-40 from 3-point range. Chicago made 20-of-50.

Johnson posted his first triple-double of the season with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. CJ McCollum scored 20 off the bench, and Okongwu had 17.

At 7-6, the Hawks have lost two in a row. Before that, they won four straight, the last a 124-121 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Nov. 7, and Snyder talked afterward about roles changing from game to game.

The Hawks visit Milwaukee next, on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET.