Bellissimo tre! Danilo Gallinari, nicknamed the Italian Rooster, came off the bench for the Atlanta Hawks and knocked down 10 3-pointers in a victory over the Boston Celtics.
Gallinari finished the night with 38 points. He shot 10-for-12 from 3-point range and set a new franchise record for the Hawks for the most 3-pointers in a single game.
Gallinari also became the third player in NBA history to come off the bench to connect on 10+ treys in a single game, joining James Harden and Donyell Marshall. Harden pulled off 10+ treys twice with the OKC Thunder.
“Gallinari! Honestly dude is on fire and could not miss,” said teammate John Collins. “We love it. The entire team loves it.”
The Hawks improved to 14-18 on the season and secured a much-needed win with a 127-112 victory over the Celtics. The Celtics’ skid continued with their third loss in a row. The Celtics are now a disappointing 15-17 on the season and slipped to the #9 seed in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt.
🚨 Ten threes. That's a franchise record. 🚨 pic.twitter.com/GIiY1DhRHX
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 25, 2021
Gallinari on Fire
When you’re hot, you’re hot. Trae Young had a large chip on his shoulder after the Atlanta Hawks’ leading scorer was snubbed from the All-Star Game. Young was fired up from the tipoff and scored 25 points in the first half.
If Gallinari wasn’t so hot himself with 24 points off the bench in the first half, Young probably would’ve gone for 50-plus on the night. But like a good teammate, he fed Gallinari the rock in the second half.
“I know what it feels like when you get that feeling, like you can’t miss,” said Young. “We just wanted to get him the ball as much as possible.”
When the dust settled, Young finished the night with 33 points, seven assists, and four rebounds.
Gallinari tallied 38 points off the bench on 13-for-16 from shooting, including a sizzling 83.3% from 3-point range. He didn’t blink when he drilled back-to-back 3-pointers from the Hawks’ MLK-inspired center court logo.
Steve Smith previously held the Hawks’ franchise record with nine 3-pointers in a game back in 1997.
The Hawks set a new team record with 23 3-point shots. Young connected on five treys, while Tony Snell hit 4-for-6 from beyond the arc.
Gallinari, playing in his 12th NBA season, averages 10.4 ppg off the bench for the Hawks. His previous season-high was 20 points.
Who is the Italian Rooster?
The New York Knicks selected the 6-foot-10 Gallinari with the #6 overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. He was playing in Milan when the Knicks drafted him. He spent a couple of seasons with the Knicks before they traded him to the Denver Nuggets in a three-team deal that brought Carmelo Anthony to MSG.
After 5.5 seasons with the Nuggets, Gallinari headed to Los Angeles to play a couple of seasons with the Clippers. He set a career-high averaging 19.8 ppg in the 2018-19 season.
After two seasons with the Clippers, they shipped him out to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a blockbuster trade to acquire Paul George. After a solo season with OKC, he went to the Atlanta Hawks in a sign-and-trade deal.
Coming into this season, Gallinari averaged 16.2 ppg and was a career 38% shooter from 3-point land.
Gallinari holds the record for most points by an Italian-born player in NBA history. He recently passed the 10,000 points mark.
Check out more videos of high-scoring performances with our series titled NBA High Guys.
