Atlanta Hawks: Hawks vs. Blazers Pre Game Report
The Atlanta Hawks, winners of two straight, take their talents to Rip City tonight as they take on the Portland Trailblazers in the final meeting of the regular season between these two teams.
The last two times out, the Hawks have exercised some demons by blowing out to lesser opponents in the Nets and Magic. If only the team could have that same mentality every time out as they seem to struggle against teams they “should” beat. The month of January has been the epitome of this Hawks’ season as they own a 4-4 record and have alternated two game win/loss streaks thus far. The schedule has been on the Hawks’ side thus far as they’ve only played one team that currently sits above .500 so far this calendar year. Yet, the Hawks haven’t been able to take full advantage like they did last January when they finished the month with a perfect record.
Tonight’s game against the Blazers is the first in a four game Western Conference road trip that has stops in Portland, Sacramento, Phoenix and Denver. None of these four teams sport a record above .500 so the Hawks need to finish this trip with a record no worse than 3-1 before returning home next week to host the Clippers.
The last time these two teams met, the Blazers were without both Lillard and McCollum resulting in a 106-97 loss back in late December. Allen Crabbe led the Blazers that evening with 19 points while the Hawks were led by Schroder’s 18. It wasn’t a game the Hawks could hang their hat on as if you have followed the Blazers closely, you know that without those two guys, this team might not win a game all season. Both players will be back in action tonight so the Hawks will need Teague and Bazemore at full strength to try and slow down that two headed attack that are Lillard/McCollum.
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Both squads last played on MLK Day and both came out with a win. The Blazers won at the Wizards and the Hawks were able to run the Magic out of the building. Both teams should be well rested and both will be at full strength for this matchup.
Key to the Game:
One, but not Two: The Blazers rely on Lillard and McCollum for the majority of their scoring, 44.2% to be exact, behind only the tandems of Westbrook/Durant and Curry/Thompson. The two guards are both gifted scorers and will be the main focus on defense for the Hawks tonight. It is almost impossible to shut down both guards on any given night and it is more of a pick your poison type of thing with who you double and who you play straight up. Portland isn’t overly gifted throughout the rest of their lineup, although they have some decent young pieces. The Hawks can afford for one player to go off, but not both. With Teague not playing his best due to a lingering ankle injury, it will be up to Kent Bazemore to slow down McCollum and keep him from getting hot. Lillard doesn’t have the team around him to single handedly win many games anymore and the Hawks know this. Keeping one of those two in check will be huge if the Hawks want to get out of Portland with a win.
Projected Starting Lineups:
Atlanta Hawks
- PG: Jeff Teague
- SG: Kyle Korver
- SF: Kent Bazemore
- PF: Paul Millsap
- C: Al Horford
Notes: No injuries to report
Portland Trailblazers
- PG: Damian Lillard
- SG: C.J. McCollum
- SF: Al-Farouq Aminu
- PF: Noah Vonleh
- C: Mason Plumlee
Notes: No injuries to report
Other News & Notes:
- Paul Millsap leads the team in points, rebounds, steals and minutes
- The Blazers are 5th in the league in rebounding at 45.9 per game
- The Hawks’ next game against a team with a winning record will be on January 27th against the Clippers
- Tonight’s game will be broadcast on Fox Sports South (TV) and 92.9 The Game (Radio)
Next: Atlanta Hawks Trade Targets: Dwight Howard
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