Going For Three: Hawks 124, Spurs 106

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SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs saw their losing streak continue in a Thanksgiving Eve game against the Atlanta Hawks, falling 124-106 at the AT&T Center on Wednesday night.

San Antonio’s losing woes will continue past the Thanksgiving holiday as their skid has reached six games.

“Tonight, our defense let us down,” Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich said. “We were pretty poor defensively, and Trae Young was super. The Hawks executed. They got everything they wanted. They deserve credit for that. And that’s about it.”

Here are three main takeaways from the Spurs’ loss to Atlanta:

Defense falters 

As Popovich said, San Antonio’s defense let them down. Atlanta scored 38 points in both the second quarter and third quarter, outscoring the Spurs 76-52 in both periods.

Trae Young lit the Spurs’ defense up, posting a double-double with 31 points and 11 assists. San Antonio also had trouble defending the perimeter as the Hawks converted 46 percent (12-of-26) of their three-pointers.

“We had spurts on defense, but that won’t win a basketball game,” Spurs forward Keldon Johnson said. “That’s not how it works in the NBA. Especially with our team, you got to be locked in at all times. We weren’t locked in all times tonight. They got some easy buckets. As you can see from the results, we couldn’t get the win.

Staying mentally tough

With a squad as young as these San Antonio Spurs, staying mentally tough is important when you are going through a losing streak such as this one. These young Spurs have lost six games in a row and the schedule is only going to get tougher following the Thanksgiving holiday.

“Can’t win every game. Can’t lose every game,” Johnson said. “We’re going out there to compete every night and try to get better. We’re shooting ourselves in the foot. It’s things that we can correct and get better at.”

Bryn finds his form

One bright spot of the Spurs’ loss on Wednesday was Bryn Forbes finding his stroke after a series of struggles. Forbes finished with 23 points on 75 percent shooting and went 3-for-6 from three-point range.

“I think with time, with adjusting to how I’m playing, I think I can find it. It’s a little bit harder with fewer minutes, but I always think I can find some rhythm. Things have just been an adjustment period for me,” Forbes said.

UP NEXT:

The Spurs are now 4-13 on the season and will return to the court on Friday when they welcome the Boston Celtics (10-9) to the AT&T Center at 7:30 p.m.

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