LaMelo Ball's Status Revealed For Tonight's Game vs Atlanta

Our own Rohan Raman previewed the game in-depth today:

"Coming into tonight's game, the Hawks are 5th in the NBA in PPG, 15th in FG%, 15th in 3PA, 21st in 3P%, 2nd in FTA, 26th in turnovers, and 13th in rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 18th in points per 100 possessions, 18th in effective field goal percentage, 21st in turnover percentage, 13th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 5th in free throw rate.

Currently, the Hawks rank 27th in PPG allowed, 28th in field goal percentage allowed, 15th in three-point attempts allowed, and 29th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 17th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 28th in effective field goal percentage allowed.

The Hornets offense is one of the least effective units in basketball. They are 28th in the NBA in PPG, 30th in FG%, 7th in 3PA, 28th in 3P% and 28th in FTA, 23rd in turnovers, and 6th in rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Charlotte is 29th in points per 100 possessions, 30th in effective field goal percentage, 26th in turnover percentage, 6th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 29th in free throw rate.

Surprisingly, the numbers suggest the Hornets' defense is not as bad as the offense. They rank 15th in PPG allowed, 13th in field goal percentage allowed, 27th in three-point attempts allowed, and 6th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Hornets are 22nd in points allowed per 100 possessions and 20th in effective field goal percentage allowed.

In his last game against the Hornets, Trae Young had a hard time getting his shot to go down (7-20 from the field), but was a perfect 21-21 from the free throw line. The 21 attempts for Young were a career high and also more than the entire Hornets team had tonight. Atlanta's offense looked sluggish in the second quarter and Young also had five turnovers against Charlotte. He dished out 12 assists, but the sloppy turnovers have to decrease in order for the Hawks to control the game.

Zaccharie Risacher has been better throughout the second half of the season, but he was quiet against the Hornets. He only put up 8 points and grabbed 4 rebounds against one of the weaker starting lineups in basketball. Josh Green and Miles Bridges did a good job of keeping him in check. That cannot continue tonight as Bridges is out and that severely reduces what the Hornets can throw at Risacher. Green is a solid defender, but it isn't enough to truly make a difference for Charlotte on that end. Risacher needs to be aggressive with his shot tonight and take some creation responsibilities off of Young.

The center matchup between these two teams is one of the more interesting ones. Onyeka Okongwu just posted a 21 point, 15 rebound game with 6 stocks against the Nets and made a massive difference for Atlanta's defense in that matchup. Similarly, Mark Williams is also coming off a big game against the Clippers where he put up 18 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists. Okongwu isn't a big and physical center like Zubac is, which is a archetype that Williams usually struggles with. It will be interesting to see which of these young big men can get the better of each other. Furthermore, Williams is going to be able to dominate Atlanta's backup center minutes and it will be critical that Atlanta scores enough to lessen the impact of that.

As a big-picture outlook, Atanta's defense was excellent against the Hornets in their last matchup. They forced 21 turnovers and LaMelo Ball isn't the most turnover-averse point guard in the NBA. Dyson Daniels will obviously take on the brunt of the work when it comes to slowing down Ball, but this Hornets offense is very short on reliable ball-handlers."

Additional Links

Hawks vs Hornets: Game Preview, Injury Report, Betting Odds, Projected Starting Lineups For Tonight's Game

Three Big Takeaways From Atlanta's Embarrassing Loss to Brooklyn

NBA Trade Rumors: Portland Trail Blazers Center Named As Potential Trade Target For Atlanta This Offseason