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Clippers vs Hawks Preview: A Fun One in Atlanta
The Clippers close out their mini road trip with a visit to Atlanta in what should be a fun game between two teams that swapped notable players for each other at the deadline just over a month ago.
Game
Information
Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
When: 4:30 PM PT
How to Watch: FanDuel Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected
Starting Lineups
Clippers: James Harden – Kris Dunn – Kawhi Leonard – Nic Batum – Ivica Zubac
Hawks: Trae Young – Dyson Daniels – Zaccharie Risacher – Mo Gueye – Onyeka Okongwu
Injuries
Clippers: Norm Powell Out (Hamstring), Ben Simmons Questionable (Knee), Trentyn Flowers Out (G-League), Seth Lundy Out (G-League), Patrick Baldwin Out (G-League)
Hawks: Trae Young Probable (Achilles), Clint Capela Questionable (Personal), Jalen Johnson Out (Shoulder), Larry Nance Jr. Out (Knee), Kobe Bufkin Out (Shoulder)
The Big
Picture
The Clippers
pulled off a big win Wednesday night in Miami, improving to victories in four
of their last five games. On the positive side, that winning streak combined
with a bunch of losses from the Mavericks, Suns, Blazers, and Spurs have more
or less solidified the Clippers as a top-nine team in the West. It would take a
monumental collapse for the Mavericks or Suns to catch the Clips now. The bad
news is that the teams above the Clippers in the standings, in particular the
Timberwolves, Warriors, and Rockets, have all kept winning as well, with those
squads on six, five, and four-game winning streaks respectively. The Clippers’
floor has been raised during this surge, but their ceiling remains
unfortunately low unless they really keep up this level of winning and/or one or
two teams ahead of them fall off. Still, they are doing all they can do, and
that’s all fans can ask for.
The
Antagonist
The Hawks have had a very odd season. They leaped up in the draft lottery to get the first overall pick and took Zaccharie Risacher (having a decent rookie season!). They then traded away Dejounte Murray, who they paid a steep price for in a trade and extension two years and one year prior. Early in the year, star Trae Young was struggling, but fourth-year forward Jalen Johnson was having a breakout season and De’Andre Hunter finally made good on his flashes with a breakout campaign of his own. Then, things shifted, as Johnson went out for the year with injury, and the Hawks traded away Hunter and longtime sixth man Bogdan Bogdanovic at the deadline. That’s a lot of stuff to have happen in less than one year. But here the Hawks are again, still in the play-in race, just like they have been basically every season since the play-in was instituted. It feels like the Hawks are doomed to mediocrity, but they’re a relatively young team, are fun to watch, and don’t have a ton of bad money on their books. There are many, many worse situations in the NBA right now.
Notes
The Return of Bogi: Bogdan Bogdanovic played in Atlanta for 4.5 seasons and was a key piece to their Eastern Conference Finals run in 2021. Bogi was a popular player in the city even though their teams in the years since that run were mostly mediocre, as he was one of the most effective bench players in the league during that time and provided a whole lot of fun moments. My guess is he gets a video montage of some kind, and while I don’t know about a full standing ovation, I think he gets his fair share of applause and cheers. Hopefully he stands out in this one – he’s close with Trae Young and will probably be extra amped for this contest. Bogi probably won’t repeat his 30 point effort from Wednesday night, but a big game would be huge against his former team.
Terance Mann Revenge Game: Terance Mann has been solid for the Hawks since he was traded to Atlanta at the deadline, scoring 9.5 points per game and shooting 64.2% from two (up from 50.8% this season as a Clipper) and 43.9% from three (up from 34.7% on the Clippers) while taking slightly more shots per game. Terance still hasn’t been a big scorer, but his minutes and all of his stats are up, and he’s been a key contributor to several Hawks wins. He will probably be very motivated to play against the Clippers, the only organization he knew until a month ago, and a team that gave him a large extension only to trade him five months later. It might not be a traditional revenge game, but I think Terance will play with some real oomph in this one.