Atlanta Hawks Return To Action With Los Angeles Clippers In Atlanta
By Deke Lloyd
The Atlanta Hawks will return to action tonight when the Los Angeles Clippers come to Atlanta. In the first meeting, the Hawks faced their most lopsided loss of the season, losing by 49 points.
The last time these two teams met was in mid-November. That game ended in blowout fashion, with the Clippers beating the Hawks 150-101. At that time, the Atlanta Hawks were dealt a big blow by losing John Collins to a suspension around the same time. In tonight’s game, the Hawks will have their full squad back and ready to face off with one of the powerhouse teams from the Western Conference.
Coming into tonight’s game, the Los Angeles Clippers are hobbling. In their past ten games, the Clippers have won eight of ten, including a current four-game winning streak. However, Paul George is sidelined with a hamstring issue and is likely to miss tonight’s game, too. Kawhi Leonard, the other half of the Clippers “Big Two”, has played in the last two games, scoring 30 points in both games. It’s possible, if not very likely, Leonard sits this game out for load management purposes. Even with George and Leonard possibly missing from tonight’s lineup, the Clippers have more than enough firepower to take down the Hawks.
Atlanta, coming into tonight’s game, continues to be unable to find any consistency or momentum. After beating the Spurs in San Antonio over the weekend, the Hawks returned home to get decimated by the Detriot Pistons by 33 points. Then, their next game on Monday, the Hawks pushed the defending NBA Champions, Toronto Raptors, to the brink only to fall short at the end. This Hawks team, despite all their talent, continues to be a disappointment.
As stated above, the Hawks may hit the lottery tonight by missing out on Paul George and Kawhi Leonard. Pat Beverly is listed as day-to-day so it’s possible he could miss tonight’s game, too. With all that star-power missing from the Clippers, the Hawks will have to find a way to win this game. Trae Young, Kevin Huerter, and John Collins should be enough to overpower Montrezl Harrell, Lou Williams, and Landry Shamet. However, this is the same Clippers team, with most of the same roster, that made the playoffs without Paul George and Kawhi Leonard last season. These Clippers will not be walked over. It should be a good contest tonight.
The Clippers and Hawks will face off tonight at 7:30 P.M. in Atlanta. Go Hawks!