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The Atlanta Hawks (14-13) have not played a game since last Saturday's NBA Cup Semifinals game vs the Bucks and they should be well rested for tonight's trip to San Antonio. The Spurs (13-13) are a tough team to beat at home and this Spurs team is hoping to build toward a play-in/playoff run. San Antonio is coming off of a 14-point loss to Minnesota earlier in the week.
Coming into tonight's game, the Hawks are 9th in the NBA in PPG, 16th in FG%, 23rd in 3PA, 24th in 3P%, 3rd in FTA, 22nd in turnovers, and 4th in rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 17th in points per 100 possessions, 22nd in effective field goal percentage, 18th in turnover percentage, 6th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 13th in free throw rate.
Currently, the Hawks rank 27th in PPG allowed, 19th in field goal percentage allowed, 30th in three-point attempts allowed, and 30th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 15th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 25th in effective field goal percentage allowed.
The Spurs have a solid team profile on both ends of the court. San Antonio is 19th in PPG, 21st in FG%, 7th in 3PA, 22nd in 3P% 14th in FTA, 10th in rebounding, and18th in turnovers. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Spurs are 19th in points per 100 possessions, 21st in effective field goal percentage, 17th in turnover percentage, 16th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 10th in free throw rate.
Defensively, the numbers are solid and that of course is in large part due to Victor Wembanyama, who is the current favorite for defensive player of the year. San Antonio is 15th in PPG allowed, 16th in FG% allowed,, 10th in 3PA allowed, and 12th in 3P% allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Spurs are 19th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 14th in effective field goal percentage.
Offensively, this is interesting matchup for the Hawks. The Hawks are not a team that shoots a lot of threes and they don't make a high percentage of them, but they will need to be better at that tonight. While Atlanta likes getting to the rim and shooting at the rim, they are facing one of the premier shot blockers and paint protectors in the NBA with Wembanyama. The Hawks have to generate good looks from three and take plenty of them.
Trae Young is leading the Hawks attack and he has had big games vs the Spurs in the past. He is coming off of a 35-point, 10 assist performance vs the Bucks, perhaps his best game of the season. He shot 9-18 from the field and 3-5 from three last Saturday and that is a good sign because while Young leads the league in assists, his shooting numbers are down.
Dyson Daniels spearheads the Hawks defense, but this is a rare matchup where who he guards is not obvious. Daniels is one of the premier perimeter defenders and usually guards the opposing team's best guard, but the Spurs don't have a star player at guard. Daniels is still developing his offensive game, but he is going to be a handful for anyone on the Spurs to deal with tonight.
Zaccharie Risacher is still developing, but the rookie shows flashes when he is on the court. He has not been getting heavy minutes right now and that could be due to his shot not falling. Risacher is solid on defense, but he can be hard to have out there when the shot isn't going in. In 16:50 of game action last Saturday, Risacher scored two points on only three shot attempts. The Hawks have to shoot well tonight from three and he could be a part of that.
Jalen Johnson has had a very good season for the Hawks, but is coming off of a tough game vs the Bucks. He shot only 6-15 from the field and 0-4 in his last game, but still managed to post 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Clint Capela has had a very underrated season as a rebounder and defensive presence. He might not be playing at his level he played during the Hawks run to the Eastern Conference Finals, but he is still good. He is going to have his hands full with Victor Wembanyama tonight and needs to keep him from dominating the glass.
The Hawks bench has a major advantage of the Spurs on paper. De'Andre Hunter is having a season worthy of 6th man of the year consideration. He is currently the Hawks third leading scorer, averaging 19.3 PPG on 47% shooting from the field and 45% from three. He has thrived in his role coming off of the bench and is a huge reason for the Hawks recent surge.
Bogdan Bogdanovic, Larry Nance, and Vit Krejci are the other guys I expect off the bench for the Hawks tonight. Bogdanovic is key for the Hawks in every game because he is one of their best shooters. When he does not perform well, it hurts the Hawks. Krejci's role is probably cemented now that Kobe Bufkin is out for the season. How many minutes he plays though is unclear.
Odds
According to Fanduel Sportsbook, San Antonio is a one-point favorite tonight and the total is set at 233.5
Prediction
San Antonio is a hard place to win and historically has been a tough place for the Hawks to win. This Spurs team plays much better at home than they do on the road and this is going to be a stiff test for Atlanta. Their three-point shooting is going to be vital tonight because Wembanyama does such a great job at protecting the rim and altering shots. After five nights off, the Hawks will be well rested and ready for a tough battle on the road and I think they come out on top.
Final Score: Hawks 115, Spurs 111
Additional Links
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