Atlanta Hawks Game Preview: Jan. 15 Milwaukee Bucks

The Atlanta Hawks look to start a new winning streak Sunday afternoon as they welcome the Milwaukee Bucks to Phillips Arena.

They say all good things must come to an end. Friday night the the seven game winning streak the Atlanta Hawks had been on came to an end. An Isaiah Thomas pull-up jumper with 2.4 seconds remaining was the knockout blow. The Boston Celtics narrowly escaped with a victory, 103-101.

There’s no time for Atlanta to lick their wounds. After a day of rest, they welcome a tough opponent to Phillips Arena. The Milwaukee Bucks are in town for a Sunday matinee, and beating them is no easy task.

The Bucks have had an up and down season, but they’re an exciting young team that should eventually become a serious contender in the Eastern Conference. They currently have a 20-18 record and are the 5th seed in the Eastern Conference.

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Even if you don’t know anything about the Milwaukee Bucks, you need to know about Giannis Antetokounmpo. He’s a superstar in the making, heck, he’s already a superstar. 2016-17 has been his breakout season.

Through 37 games, Antetokounmpo is averaging 23.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game on 53.3 percent shooting. He’s like nothing this league has ever seen before. Is he a small forward? Is he a point forward? I’m not sure exactly what he is, but he’s really darn good.

Antetokounmpo is Milwaukee’s best player, you likely know that, but another young Buck is also having a breakout season. Jabari Parker has been outstanding this season, filling the scoring void created by Khris Middleton‘s preseason injury.

Parker is averaging 20.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game on 49.7 percent shooting. Parker has always been able to score, that’s his bread and butter, but the development of his outside shot has been most impressive this season.

Three-point shooting was his biggest weakness early in his career. Last season he only attempted 35 threes over 75 games. This season he’s shooting 42.1 percent from outside on 133 total attempts. He’s a versatile offensive player, and he’s just scratching the surface of his potential.

This team has interesting story after interesting story on their roster. Another player that’s having an outstanding season is Greg Monroe. Who saw that coming? Last season Monroe’s contract was laughed at as an immovable albatross. This season, he’s been a solid defender and valuable scorer off the bench.

Monroe is averaging 10.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game on 52.1 percent shooting. He plays just 21.3 minutes per game. Jordan Treske of Behind The Buck Pass recently summed up the way Monroe has excelled in his new role.

"Now in his new role coming off the bench, Monroe has been very effective in limited minutes. Per 36 minutes, Monroe is currently averaging 18.1 points per game, 11.9 rebounds per game and 4.1 assists per game.Add in his efficiency (Monroe’s averaging a true shooting percentage of 56.9 percent), Monroe has been the perfect spark plug for the Bucks when he’s been on the floor. Where the story with Monroe has changed significantly this year lies on the other end of the floor.Still the same burly, bruising presence, Monroe’s notably revamped himself to suit the team’s active and aggressive defensive scheme. Regularly playing with great energy and most importantly, active hands, plays like this have gradually become the norm for Monroe when he defends in space."

Milwaukee’s metrics show a middle of the road team. They’ve got the 8th best offensive rating in the NBA (110 points scored per 100 possessions) and the 15th best defensive rating (107.7 points allowed per 100 possessions) in the league.

They’re a young team. There are going to be wild fluctuations with their performance. Sometimes they’ll knock off a team that’s significantly better than them, sometimes they’ll lose to a team they should have beaten. Khris Middleton’s injury lowered this team’s ceiling, but this season is huge for their development.

These teams have played twice already this season. On Nov. 16 Atlanta won 107-100. On Dec. 9 Atlanta won 114-110. The win in December ended a seven-game losing streak for the Hawks. That game was like two games in one. The Bucks dominated the first half, while the Hawks dominated the second half.

The Bucks held a 20 point lead at halftime, but the Hawks came storming back, outscoring Milwaukee by 12 points in both the third and fourth quarter. Dennis Schroder shined for the Hawks, scoring 33 points on 12-for-19 shooting. Paul Millsap was also huge, scoring 23 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Jabari Parker led the way for the Bucks, finishing with 27 points on 11-for-24 shooting.

Both teams made 12 three-pointers and shot near 47 percent from the field. It was a tight battle in the closing minutes, but the Hawks would eventually complete their furious comeback. It was a game the Bucks let slip away.

Of course, that game was over a month ago. The Hawks are definitely better than they were then, as are the Bucks. This afternoon’s contest should, once again, be a close game. Giannis Antetokounmpo was quiet in that one. Somehow I can’t see that happening again.

Next: Hawks All-1990's Roster

Who: Atlanta Hawks (22-17) vs. Milwaukee Bucks (20-18)

When: 3:00 PM EST, Sunday, January 15th, 2017

Where: Phillips Arena

How: Fox Sports Southeast

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