Hawks 113, Knicks 96
Suns 100, Lakers 92
Nets 141, Celtics 126
Clippers 106, Mavericks 81
What went down
The Atlanta Hawks now have a 3-1 lead after a 113-96 win over the New York Knicks in Game 4.
The struggles of Most Improved Player Julius Randle in this series continued as he had another bad start to this game. Fortunately, Atlanta shot poorly from the 3-point line (2/12) to keep the Knicks within arms length.
The Hawks opened the second quarter with three triples, but Derrick Rose had 16 points and three assists in the first half to keep the Knicks in the game. But Atlanta opened up a 17-point lead heading into the final frame.
Randle slowly heated up in the opening minutes of the fourth, but it was a little too late to make a comeback as the Hawks eventually secured the win in Game 4..
Trae Young dominated with 27 points and nine assists. John Collins and Danilo Gallinari also had an excellent game with 22 and 21, respectively. Bogdan Bogdanovic ended with 12 points, eight rebounds, and six assists.
Randle still finished with a team-high 23 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, but his inefficient 7-of-19 shooting hurt the Knicks, who is one loss away from elimination.
Big-time baller
Chris Paul did a lot more than scoring in their Game 4 win against the Los Angeles Lakers. He had 18 points, three rebounds, and three steals. However, what mattered most was the nine assists he racked up in the game.
Despite his injury, Paul got everyone involved and the team effort turned into a win for the Suns, who have now tied the series at 2-2.
What he said
There's been a lot of hostility between fans and players since the playoff series began. Another incident occurred, this time between Kyrie Irving and a Boston Celtics fan.
Irving almost got hit on the head by a water bottle thrown by a fan in the stands. Disappointed in the situation, Kevin Durant expressed his dismay with the decorum of the crowd.
"Fans got to grow up at some point … When you come to these games, you gotta realize these men are human. We’re not animals, we're not in a circus.” he said in an interview.
“Have some respect for the game, have some respect for these human beings and have some respect for yourself. Your mother wouldn’t be proud of you throwing water bottles at basketball players, or spitting on players, or tossing popcorn. Grow the f--- up and enjoy the game.”
Did you see that?
Playoff P has arrived, and he’s not going anywhere. Paul George gave the Clippers 20 points, nine rebounds, and three assists. The Clippers successfully evened out the series to two games a piece.
PG is heating up ?? pic.twitter.com/g32o6FuTZu
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 31, 2021
