The Atlanta Hawks had just come off winning a game against the Milwaukee Bucks where they dominated from beginning to end. Back-to-backs are not easy, regardless of who the next opponent is. It was the Minnesota Timberwolves the Hawks had to face next, which could be considered an even matchup between both teams.
In the first half of the game, you could tell that the Hawks were just a team that had played the night before. They looked tired and some shots weren't falling, while the opposite happened for the Timberwolves. In fact, if there was ever any game to which you could relate this one, it was the home opener against the New York Knicks where it seemed like they couldn't miss anything.