The Atlanta Hawks have a lot of catching up to do in the last month of the regular season in order to make it to the playoffs and much will depend on their performance against the Golden State Warriors who are playing without their biggest star Steph Curry.
Atlanta Hawks
After miraculously making in to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, it seemed like the Atlanta Hawks will be a legit contender in the upcoming years but things look way different at the moment. The Hawks are currently 10th in the East with a 35-36 record which is way below their expectations.
The Hawks are in the last place that leads into the play-in tournament and even if they hold it, they will need to face the Toronto Raptors or the Brooklyn Nets in a do-or-die game.
Trae Young and John Collins signed a max contract extensions coming into this season but that didn’t bring much success right away. Young is the leader of the squad averaging 28 points per game which ranks him fifth in the league and he also adds 9.5 assists, third-best in the league and 3.8 rebounds with 45.6% shooting from the field and 38% from the three-point line.
John Collins has been struggling with injuries missing 17 games already this season. When he plays he a real force under the rim averaging 16.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game on 52.6% shooting from the field and 36% from deep.
Another player who can make a difference in how far the Hawks will go this season is Bogdan Bogdanovic. The Serbian shooter also had a knee injury which cost him the spot in the starting lineup but he managed to become even more productive coming off the bench. The former EuroLeague MVP is averaging 14.2 points, 4 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game on 42.8% shooting from the field and 35.5% from the three-point line.
The Hawks are 7th in the league scoring 112.9 points per game and are third with 37% shooting from the three-point line.
Golden State Warriors
Everything seemed perfect for the Golden State Warriors at the beginning of the season. They were playing well being on top of the Western Conference, expecting Klay Thompson to be back after missing the previous two seasons.
Steph Curry was playing like in his prime, often going over 35 points per game and the supporting cast grew next to him. Andrew Wiggins, the former no. 1 Draft pick, finally reached his full potential and made his first All-Star appearance. Guard Jordan Poole often was the key man and is one of the favorites to win the Sixth man of the year award.
Draymond Green was also sidelined with an minor injury and when he returned to the floor it was the first game in more than 1,000 days in which Curry, Thompson and Green played together again.
And just when the Warriors started to fire up for the playoffs, Curry went down. In a recent game against the Boston Celtics, curry and Marcus Smart dived in for a ball that cost the Warriors guard an ankle injury which will keep him away from the court by the end of the regular season.
The Warriors recently lost the second place in the Western Conference standings to the Memphis Grizzlies and they will probably not get that back. They are currently third in the West with a 47-24 record, two games ahead of the Utah Jazz.
Their starting position in the playoffs does not make much of a difference as long as Steph Curry is back in full shape for the playoffs. He is averaging 25.5 points and 6.2 rebounds with 38% shooting from the field, an impact that can not be matched by anyone else.
The Warriors are scoring 111.2 points per game which puts them 13th in the league and they are the fifth best defense allowing 105.2 points per game.
Our tip for the Atlanta Hawks vs. Golden State Warriors game
A matchup between Trae Young and Steph Curry is a pleasure to watch but this time that won’t be the case since the Warriors superstar is out with an ankle injury. Curry’s absence certainly will have a major impact on the final outcome.
The Hawks are also a great shooting team that will be able to match the Warriors in that part and certainly will play with a state of emergency since they are a couple of wins away from missing the play-in tournament.
Young will go over 30 points and with a decent shooting performance of Bogdan Bogdanovic and Kevin Huerter the Hawks will win this one.