Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas
Atlanta Hawks (18-21) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (21-20)
The 2022-23 NBA season continues Sunday, January 8, with the Atlanta Hawks facing off against the Los Angeles Clippers in the cross-conference showdown at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, and the tip-off is set for 9:00 PM ET.
Atlanta meets LA for the first time this season. The Hawks might miss Clint Capela for the seventh straight game, as the 6-foot-10 center continues to recover from a calf injury. On the other side, the Clippers listed Paul George (hamstring), Luke Kennard (calf), and Nicolas Batum (ankle) as doubtful to play.
After stopping their four-game losing streak with a 120-117 victory at the Sacramento Kings last Wednesday, the Atlanta Hawks returned to losing ways on Friday night. They suffered a 130-114 defeat as 2.5-point road favorites at the Los Angeles Lakers and fell to 18-21 SU and 15-23-1 ATS on the season.
The Hawks trailed the Lakers for all 48 minutes and by as many as 26 points. They played awful defense, allowing the Lakers to score 66 points in the paint and shoot 16-for-35 from beyond the 3-point line. The Hawks went 9-for-31 from deep, and Trae Young led the way with 32 points, nine assists, and three steals.
“We didn't do a good job stopping the ball or protecting the paint,” Atlanta coach Nate McMillan said. “We had some fight in the second half, but just too deep of a hole.”
Final stats ??
Trae: 32 PTS | 9 AST | 5 REB | 3 STL
JC: 16 PTS | 8 REB | 3 BLK | 2 AST
Dre: 16 PTS | 8 REB
DJ: 16 PTS | 6 AST | 1 STL
OO: 10 PTS | 7 REB | 3 STL | 1 BLK
Bogi: 10 PTS | 3 REB | 2 AST | 1 STL— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 7, 2023
Without Clint Capela, the Hawks’ interior defense is a joke. Atlanta yields 30.7 two-pointers per 100 possessions (25th in the NBA) on a 55.7 percentage clip (18th). Also, the Hawks rank 22nd in the league in defensive rebound percentage (75.5%). They allow 113.7 points per 100 possessions (tied-15th) and score 112.5 in return (22nd).
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