NBA: AJ Griffin Hits Wild OT Buzzer Beater As Hawks Stun the Bulls

NBA: AJ Griffin Hits Wild OT Buzzer Beater As Hawks Stun the Bulls

Edwin Kiplagat
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:19 PM
  • Atlanta Hawks rookie AJ Griffin hit an overtime buzzer-beater to stun the Chicago Bulls
  • The Bulls were close to victory but a series of dramatic events saw the hosts claim a win
  • The Hawks snapped the Bulls' two-game winning run and also ended their losing streak

Atlanta Hawks rookie forward AJ Griffin sunk an overtime buzzer-beater to stun the Chicago Bulls in a dramatic ending to the game.

The Hawks won 123-122 but it was far from a comfortable win, although it ended their three-game losing streak in the NBA.

AJ Griffin, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, DeMar DeRozan, NBA, Trae Young
AJ Griffin of the Atlanta Hawks shoots the game-winner with 0.5 seconds of overtime remaining against the Chicago Bulls. Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE.
Source: Getty Images

The game ended 110 apiece in regulation, but what followed in overtime was arguably the most dramatic ending in the NBA this season.

The Bulls went into the game looking to extend their winning streak to three games. DeMar DeRozan was impressive all night, nearly scoring a triple-double with 34 points, 13 rebounds and 8 assists. Zack Lavine added 21 points for Billy Donovan's side.

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For the Hawks, Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 28 points while All-Star Trae Young added 19 with 14 assists.

AJ Griffin scores game-winner

Overtime was thrilling, going down to the wire. Young hit a three to put the Hawks up by two.

With 0.5 seconds left, DeRozan was fouled at the three-point line and was awarded three free throws. He sank all three to put his team 122-121 up, Fox Sports reports.

However, the drama was far from over. With 0.5 seconds left, the Hawks felt they had a good catch-and-shoot opportunity.

While the Bulls focused their defence on star man Young, AJ Griffin was lurking. Jalen Johnson inbounded the ball to the young forward, who somehow made the buzzer-beater which won the game for the Hawks.

Warriors suffer last-second defeat

Sports Brief earlier reported on Golden State Warriors losing at Utah Jazz after they suffered a last-second collapse.

GSW had a four-point lead in Salt Lake City with 13.3 seconds left on the clock. This was a commendable effort, since they had to fight back after trailing by 12 points in the third quarter.

Jordan Poole's bad turnover resulted in Jazz's Simone Fontecchio dunking on the other end, putting the hosts up one. In a heartbeat, the Warriors had lost.

Authors
Edwin Kiplagat photo
Edwin Kiplagat
Edwin Kiplagat has five years of experience in journalism working as a Sports Editor at Africa Insight Communications and ESPN. Edwin Kiplagat is a Bachelor's Degree holder in journalism from the Multimedia University of Kenya.