Official Game Thread: Hawks - Suns

[lethalweapon3]

The Suns would probably be rising in the East. Alas, Arizona is in the Wild, Wild West. So tonight at the US Airways Center, we get the Atlanta Hawks and the Phoenix Suns (8:00 PM Eastern, SportSouth, FoxSports Arizona), two teams who’ve tumbled down to the same precarious 8^th seed in vastly different ways.

From the outset, no one had high hopes for this Suns team. They were mired in a ruthlessly competitive Western Conference. They were being led by a rookie head coach in Jeff Hornacek, following just three seasons as an assistant with the Utah Jazz.

They were absent any accomplished and healthy frontcourt players after dispatching five of its top seven rebounders in exchange for upstarts and draft picks. Their lottery-pick center was not ready for prime time action and could not develop during the summer due to ankle surgeries.

And they were handing the keys to its future to a perennial backup guard who never exceeded 8.5 PPG in his first three seasons. Never mind the muted expectations for the shuffling Hawks to approach championship contention in 2014: even a low-lottery pick seemed pie-in-the-sky for the Suns.

Last season’s leading scorer, Goran Dragic was supposed to be trade bait once Eric Bledsoe was brought on board to be the Suns’ go-to franchise player. Instead, Hornacek insisted on an aggressive pace pushed by a double-barreled point guard attack. Bledsoe became an 18.0 PPG scorer, and even after he went down with a meniscus tear in December, Dragic resumed the full-time alpha-dog role and became a borderline All-Star, upping his usage and scoring efficiency to average 22.8 PPG since January 1.

Dragic is now among five NBA players (Lebron James, Stephen Curry, John Wall, and Kevin Durant) ranked in the top 20 for per-game points, assists, and steals. One of four NBA players shooting above 50% from the floor and 40% from three-point range (minimum 1.0 three-point attempts per game), Dragic dropped a career-high 40 on the Pelicans to break Phoenix’s three-game losing string on Friday night. His big night against New Orleans topped the previous career mark (35 points) he set five days before.

30-year-old Channing Frye was supposed to ease himself back into Phoenix’s rotation after returning from last year’s season-ending heart defect. Instead, he has started every game, his long-range shot (2.2 3FGs per game, 2^nd most among NBA bigs) too useful to leave on the bench. Second-year center Miles Plumlee seemed like a throw-in after totaling 13 points and 22 rebounds in 14 garbage-time appearances for the Pacers in 2012-13. Instead, he’s started every game as well, still averaging 8.7 RPG and 1.4 BPG despite a swoon over his past 30 games.

Throw in energized power-twin reserves Markieff and Marcus Morris, highlight-reel-maker Gerald Green (career-high 14.8 PPG, 9^th in NBA for three-point attempts), and gritty wing player P.J. Tucker (second on the team with 6.5 RPG and 1.2 SPG), and the Suns came into this season ready to burn one unsuspecting team after another.

Even without Bledsoe, Phoenix (34-24) made it at high as 5^th in the Western Conference (29-18 as of February 1). But while treading water in the East might raise a team up into the 4^th spot, doing the same out West slides teams like the Suns potentially out of the playoffs. Phoenix’s record in the East would have them sitting 2 games above 3^rd-seeded Toronto. Instead, they have 9^th-seeded Memphis just one game behind them out West. To keep the good Cinderella vibes going, they can’t afford slip-ups at home to teams like the Hawks (26-31), losers of ten of their last eleven, including their last six road games.

Yet the Suns are vulnerable. This game pairs up the team with the most assists per game in the league (Atlanta’s 25.2 APG) with the team making the fewest (Phoenix’s 19.1), the latter value inclusive of the absent Bledsoe’s 5.8 APG. Aside from Dragic and Jeff Teague’s former Demon Deacon teammate, Ish Smith (2.6 APG), no Sun averages two or more assists per game.

The Suns will have to step up their aggressiveness on defense to disrupt Atlanta’s ball movement, and then score on the fastbreak. The Hawks have given up 20.3 PPG off turnovers in February (4^th most in NBA).

With the starting frontcourt seemingly on the decline defensively, the Suns’ opponents are attacking inside more (46.4 opponent FG% in February; 46.5 opponent points in the paint in February, second-most in the NBA). Patrolling the paint, Plumlee has to rely on help from a pair of understandably distracted Ukrainian backups in Alex Len and Slava Kravtsov, the latter questionable anyway with an ankle sprain.

Without the Hawks player most suited to piling up points in the paint, Paul Millsap, Atlanta will hope to find Mike Scott and a returning Pero Antić (hopefully, alleviating Elton Brand) at the rim. The Hawks’ point guards should find a steady stream of swingmen cutting to the hoop.

Both teams rely heavily on the three-point shot to open things up on the interior, the Suns’ 25.2 three-point attempts per game exceeded only by the Rockets, and the Hawks’ 24.9 per game the most in the East (4^th in NBA).

Fortunately for the Suns, they have played soundly effective perimeter defense, opponents shooting just 33.0 3FG% (2^nd lowest in NBA) and tied with the foes of Atlanta’s next challenger, Portland, for the fewest three-point makes (6.3 3FGs per game). Phoenix’s chance of winning tonight will hinge on their ability to hold Kyle Korver (NBA true shooting percentage leader, 65.9 TS%) and DeMarre Carroll in check.

Go Hawks!

~lw3

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[Gray Mule]

Is Pero Antić` available?

Also, will our "new" center get any minutes?

[PSSSHHHRRR87]

Is Pero Antić` available?

Also, will our "new" center get any minutes?

Without the Hawks player most suited to piling up points in the paint, Paul Millsap, Atlanta will hope to find Mike Scott and a returning Pero Antić (hopefully, alleviating Elton Brand) at the rim. The Hawks’ point guards should find a steady stream of swingmen cutting to the hoop.

As for Moose, he is on the active roster, but IDK if he'll play or not.

[TheFuzz]

Sick write-up as always. Phoenix is a fun team to watch. Let's beat the tar out of them.

[GrimeyKidd]

Pero is availible but will not start Starters TeagueKorverCarroll ScottBrand

Edited March 2, 2014 by GrimeyKidd

[PSSSHHHRRR87]

And two mins after that tweet he says he will dress and is available wthStartersTeagueKorverCarrollScottBrand

Never use C-Viv as a reliable source... He prolly uses the Squawk as one of his sources. lol

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Edited March 2, 2014 by PSSSHHHRRR87

[GrimeyKidd]

Antić will dress but will be our for emergency break glass player tonight

[MaceCase]

Scotty starting as opposed to Demarre at the 4? Bud, that's just too sensible.

[Dnice]

An all star game pace tonight.

[LamarHampton]

Man, these guys are running! I've been looking forward to this game not only because it's been awhile since the Hawks have played, but i also love Dragic's game. Incredibly fun PG to watch. If what I've seen of this first quarter or should be a great game! And Muscala just came in! Loving it!

[GrimeyKidd]

Brad miller comparison looking very real

[capstone21]

Defensive Juggernaut tonight

[DrReality]

Muscala 4 pt 4 RB

[GameTime]

Muscala balling so far his first game.

[Guest]

Muscala 4 pt 4 RB

And 2 blocks.

[Guest]

Few aspects from tonight thus far...1. It's sad that Elton Brand can't move laterally.2. Muscala is a confident kid, better shooter than I thought.3. Eddie Johnson said his career high was 54 I don't believe it but could find it. 4. I hate having to listen to Suns broadcast.

[DrReality]

7 guys with double points

[HalfHawk]

This is the most competitive tank of all time.

[PSSSHHHRRR87]

[nathan2331]

Few aspects from tonight thus far...1. It's sad that Elton Brand can't move laterally.2. Muscala is a confident kid, better shooter than I thought.3. Eddie Johnson said his career high was 54 I don't believe it but could find it. 4. I hate having to listen to Suns broadcast.

It must have happened in high school or college because it didn't happen in the NBA. According to basketball-reference.com, Eddie Johnson's career high was 45 points against the Clippers (took him 47 minutes to do so).