Atlanta Hawks final preseason game against the Dallas Mavericks
The Atlanta Hawks close out their 2017 preseason campaign with one last run out against the Dallas Mavericks at McCamish Pavilion.
Coming off of a spectacular 99-88 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night, the Atlanta Hawks will look to end the preseason with a winning record as they face up against another fellow cultured franchise in the Mavericks.
The dichotomy between the two sides will make for some mouthwatering matchups all over the court. Rookie stud John Collins will get to face off with Mavericks big man Nerlens Noel and Taurean Prince will go head to head with former Golden State Warrior Harrison Barnes.
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The most anticipated matchup, however, will be the battle at point guard. Dennis Schroder vs. Dennis Smith Jr. Both are lightning quick and are in many ways the faces of their respective franchises. Schroder is entering his 5th year in the association, and will be eager to take command over the rookie Smith.
Also featured on the Mavericks’ dangerous roster are wily veterans Dirk Nowitzki and J.J. Barea, both of whom will cause issues for the Hawks’ second unit. That being said, backup point guard Malcolm Delaney will look to continue his rhythm from the previous game and look to upset the Mavericks flow.
Luke Babbitt is another Hawks player that will look for a quick bounce back after a somewhat underwhelming performance against the Grizzlies. Babbitt will want to feature in Coach Bud’s plans for the season and it starts with putting in solid showings in preseason.
Miles Plumlee is still out with an injury, and will cost him another 2-3 weeks, meaning that Collins will likely play the 5 again tonight as possibly start behind Dedmon in the lineup during the regular season. We are still yet to see if Marco Belinelli will feature in this game, as he sat on Monday.
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The game tips off at 7:30pm EST at Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion and will be broadcast on NBA TV and FSSE-ATL. One last curtain call for the Atlanta Hawks before they set off on the much anticipated 2017-18 NBA season!