It is not often that teams in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference will get their home-and-home series out of the way in the first four games of the season, but the Atlanta Hawks are going to face Houston tonight and won't see them again until the 2027-2028 season, unless we get a shocking NBA Finals matchup.
The Hawks (2-1) will try to play a more complete game than they did on Saturday night against the 3-0 Rockets and get an impressive road win. The NBA season is still very young, but these are two teams that have big aspirations, especially Houston. Dating back to the end of last season, Houston has been a really tough matchup for the Hawks, and Atlanta is going to have to show that they can go on the road and beat one of the best teams in the NBA.
So in their second matchup in the last 48 hours, what do the Hawks need to do to get a win against Kevin Durant and the Rockets?
Game Preview
Can the Hawks have a better shooting night?
It felt like the Rockets dominated the game in a bigger way than they actually did and the reason that it felt like that is because the Hawks shot terribly from three. Atlanta finished the game 13-for-49 from deep and here is how the shooting breaks down by quarter:
1Q: 4-for12
2Q: 1-for-10
3Q: 5-for-13
4Q: 3-for-14
The shooting aside from the third quarter was just not good enough against an elite defensive team like the Rockets.
Even without Steven Adams, the Rockets are going to have a size and length advantage on Atlanta, giving them an edge on the boards, and the best way to counter that is by having a strong shooting night. Atlanta actually won the possession battle on Saturday night, but lost the game by seven and trailed by as many as 20. Shooting was the main culprit and the Hawks need a better night from Onyeka Okongwu, CJ McCollum, Jalen Johnson, and Lu Dort.
Despite the poor shooting night, head coach Quin Snyder liked the process of the offense and said simply they just need to shoot the ball better:
"You know, it's hard. We know how important the defensive boards are for us to get out and go. And the best way to attack them in space, they're so big and they're spread out. When you get in the half court, it's harder. So you have to take those shots. We can look at them and see how contested they were. But a lot of times, that's the best shot you're going to get in the possession. When we got on the offensive glass, We were able to get another one.
Those are shots that we can rebound. I think we knew the defensive class. I thought early, especially. Sheppard and Bogi's threes, those were some breakdowns we've got to clean up. Those guys are really good shooters. We know that. Someone might have a hot night, but we've got to limit their attempts. We're more solid there in rebound. I think the offense becomes easier. But I thought we got some good stuff at the rim, too. We just weren't able to finish. As I said, we can play better. We'll look at the film and see the things that we didn't do well and try to correct them and continue to improve. But, again, I think the fact that we didn't let up and to get to a point where we got a chance to make it a game, I thought we executed well down the stretch as well."
If the Hawks don't shoot the ball better, the result is not going to be different most likely.
Better bench play
This conversation does not include Aaron Wiggins, who has been one of the best bench players in the league to start the year.
Atlanta simply has to get better play from Lu Dort, Kingston Flemings, and Jock Landale. Those three players combined for 11 points and did not shoot the ball well at all. Against a team like the Rockets, it has to be all hands on deck.
Onyeka Okongwu bounce back?
Through the first three games, it has not been a good start to the season for Onyeka Okongwu. He is averaging 8.7 PPG this season and shooting 15% from three. He had eight points, six rebounds, and shot 0-for-5 from three against the Rockets.
Okongwu is one of the key players for the Hawks because of his ability to stretch the floor and when he is not doing that, it makes things harder for Atlanta. It is jut three games out of 82, but the Hawks need more from Okongwu.
Injury Report
Mo Gueye (left foot) and Henri Veesaar (right ACL) are both out for tonight, while Jock Landale is available (nasal fracture).
Steven Adams is out for Houston, while Marcus Smart is questionable. Fred VanVleet is off the injury report and should be back in the starting lineup tonight.
Projected Starters
Hawks
G - CJ McCollum
G - Nickeil Alexander-Walker
G/F - Dyson Daniels
F - Jalen Johnson
C - Onyeka Okongwu
Rockets
G - Fred VanVleet
G - Amen Thompson
F - Jabari Smith Jr
F - Kevin Durant
C - Alperen Sengun
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