Showcase? Or Glass Case?

While the Atlanta Hawks are somewhat refreshed from the All-Star Break, you’re likely to see, and experience, a bit of the Gas Face. This freefalling team will be trudging through an uphill battle with the Indiana Pacers tonight (7:00 PM Eastern, SportSouth, FoxSports Indiana), then will try to fend off Slam Dunk champ John Wall and the Wizards tomorrow.

Lineups can get funky in the days before the NBA’s trade deadline passes, and the next two Hawks games should be no exception. If you’re Head Coach Mike Budenholzer, do you trot out Lou Williams (min. 20 minutes per game last 17 games, 8.3 PPG, 4.2 APG, 36.7 FG%) for even more floor time as a sixth-man point guard? Do you green-light Jeff Teague (13.0 PPG, 5.4 APG since January; February usage down to season-low 22.5%) in the mold of a gung-ho pick-and-roll driver? Or do you give each of them short hooks in an effort to keep them fresh and vacuum-seal their trade value?

If you’re Danny Ferry, do you save Coach Bud the trouble of making those decisions in the first place? Trade value isn’t likely to matter either way, but it would if a player gets hobbled before the general manager can finalize a deal. Pero Antić (ankle) has already been declared out for the Pacer game, while DeMarre Carroll (hammy) is a game-time decision.

Look for someone down on the Hawks bench to have a sudden breakout in offensive touches over the next couple games, much like Gustavo Ayón’s boost in touches (career-high 18 points on 9-for-11 shooting, 10 boards) versus Toronto on the second night of a dreadful back-to-back.

That mystery player might be rookie Dennis Schröder, who couldn’t find his shot against the Raptors but accorded himself well in a short stint against C.J. Watson during the Hawks’ 89-85 loss to Indy on February 4. Or, especially if Carroll’s a no-go, it could be Cartier Martin, who led Atlanta’s bench with ten points against the Raptors despite hitting just one of his four 3-point attempts.

Fresh from his All-Star appearance alongside Pacers Paul George and Roy Hibbert, Paul Millsap may struggle once again to find the basket (3-for-21 last two games vs. Indiana) with David West and Hibbert all over him. Yet he continues to find ways to keep the Hawks competitive on the floor when his shots aren’t falling, contributing 12 rebounds (four offensive) and four steals in the February 4 game at Philips Arena, and chipping in five dimes when the Hawks tipped over the Pacers in Atlanta on January 8.

Sitting pretty atop the East at 40-12, even tonight’s hosts have some intriguing playing-time decisions to mull over. Danny Granger’s $14 million expiring may be in play, although some of that salary may be getting earmarked for NBA All-Contract-Year 1^st-teamer Lance Stephenson. Might Indiana roll the dice and seek out an upgrade at point guard? Or bolster their bench beyond Andrew Bynum?

Pacers Head Coach Frank Vogel is likely to give his All-Stars a break in the middle quarters. If they can secure an early lead, perhaps he’ll unearth Chris Copeland and Ian Mahinmi, lightly-used players with guaranteed contracts next year, or youngsters like Orlando Johnson, rookie Solomon Hill and ex-Hawk Donald Sloan. It would be surprising if they throw Bynum out there right away.

However they play it, the Pacers have no intentions of dropping consecutive games at Bankers Life Fieldhouse (NBA-best 25-3 home record) for the first time this season. Indy started their All-Star break a couple days early, shooting a season-low 32.1 FG% and posting just four second-chance points against Dallas in an 81-73 setback, as George (4-for-17 shooting) left it to Granger and George Hill (combined 6-for-13 on threes) to carry the offense. If those two (and forward Luis Scola) aren’t playing significant minutes tonight, it could signal that Larry Bird and Kevin Pritchard have something cooking on the hot stove.

If the Pacers do slip up again tonight, it’ll be because they got sloppy with the ball and didn’t get back in transition. They’re a pedestrian 5-4 when they commit 20 or more turnovers. On the season, the Hawks’ opponents give up 14.9 turnovers per game (7^th most in NBA), leading to 17.5 points per game for Atlanta (9^th in NBA).

Go Hawks!

~lw3