Game Thread: I-85 showdown between CHA and ATL

[Jamaaliver]

(9) Atlanta Hawks vs. (10) Charlotte Hornets



The Winner: Plays the loser of the Brooklyn Nets-Cleveland Cavaliers game for the No. 8 seed in the East

The Loser: Is eliminated

Regular-Season Results: Tied 2-2


Key Matchup:

Trae Young vs. LaMelo Ball

In a battle of All-Star point guards, both Young and Ball surprisingly struggled in the season series.

Young shot just 37.7 percent overall in four games vs. Charlotte compared to Ball's 35.3 percent mark in three games against Atlanta. As the offensive hubs of their respective teams, both will need to do better to pull out a win.

Following a rough 17-25 start to the season, Young led the Hawks to the NBA's third-ranked offense (118.4) and fifth-best net rating (plus-4.7) while going 26-14. John Collins missed 23 of the last 27 games with finger and foot injuries and is unlikely to play, although the Hawks have proven they can win while only going eight deep in the rotation.

Ball will be getting his first taste of the postseason, as will most of his teammates, given that Charlotte hasn't reached the playoffs since 2016. Gordon Hayward, one of the few veterans on the team with postseason experience, will miss the play-in tournament and be out indefinitely because of foot soreness.

X-Factor:

De'Andre Hunter

With Young struggling to shoot the ball during the regular-season series, Hunter helped fill the void.

In two games vs. Charlotte, Hunter averaged 20.5 points on 54.2 percent shooting and 45.5 percent from three. Atlanta always needs his defense on the wing, especially against Miles Bridges and Kelly Oubre Jr. in this game, but any trapping of Young will require other players to hit shots.

Especially with Collins likely out, Hunter will need to have a big game on both ends of the court, something he's proved capable of against Charlotte this season.

Prediction:

Hawks win, 123-114. Atlanta has been one of the hottest teams over the last few months and has the playoff experience edge here. They move on to face the Cavaliers while the Hornets go home.

Bleacher Report

[Jamaaliver]

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[HMFFL]

Talk is cheap. If the regular season is boring to Trae he should score 100pts.

I will settle for the win.

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[jayu70]

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[jayu70]

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[CP War Hawks]

MB has had monster games this season vs. the Hawks. Think Randle from last reg season. Bridges is too athletic for the wings and the 4s can't even keep up. Gotta find a way to contain him and allow Melo to run hot or cold.

[Jamaaliver]

[atlantabbq99]

The key to the game will be Okongwu. With Collins out, Kong needs to show why he was the 6th pick in the draft and the best post player in his draft class.

Hunter has been playing good, but he will need to step it up if he wants to get a big contract extension

[Spud2nique]

[Jamaaliver]

Hornets visit Hawks with their season on the line

This didn’t go so well last time

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The Hornets just wrapped up a respectable 43 win campaign. In true Charlotte sports fashion, that was only good enough to earn them the 10 seed, by far the lowest seed by an Eastern Conference team with that many wins in at least 25 years (I didn’t feel like going back further than that). Thankfully this new play-in tournament gives the Hornets a chance to play their way into the playoffs.

That starts tonight with a visit to Atlanta to take on the Hawks. The Hawks roll into tonight’s game winners of seven of their last nine, though they are 2-2 in their last four. Trae Young has been on fire down the stretch. During the nine game stretch to close the season, Young averaged 30.3 points and 11.4 assists per game. He’s been supported by Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Kevin Huerter all being hot from three while Clint Capela gobbles up rebounds and dunks everything.

The Hornets were able to win their last meeting with Atlanta by pressuring Trae Young and making the rest of the Hawks make plays. Young finished with 15 assists, but he only scored nine points and turned the ball over six times. We’ll likely see a similar approach tonight, though it’ll be more difficult to pull off if the Hawks continue to shoot as well as they have been.

The Hornets will still be without Gordon Hayward, who is still struggling to get back from the ankle he sprained back in February. Otherwise the Hornets are at full strength and are well rested having not played since Sunday. The Hornets are 7-6 with two days rest, while the Hawks are 4-8, so the Hornets seemingly have the advantage there.

Last year, the Hornets collapsed in their play-in game. This group feels better equipped to handle the big moment. LaMelo Ball has shown a clutch gene throughout the latter part of the season, while some of the older vets like Terry Rozier and Isaiah Thomas have shown it throughout their career. This group shouldn’t be caught off guard by the big stage like they seemed to be at times last year.

Charlotte SB Nation

[ducler]

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[Jamaaliver]

Biggest X-Factor in Tonight's Game

Atlanta Hawks: De'Andre Hunter



The Atlanta Hawks always lean on De'Andre Hunter to plug as many leaks in their 26th-ranked defense as possible. However, they might be equally dependent on his offense in the play-in tournament to withstand what could be a lengthy injury report.

John Collins, who pumped in Atlanta's second-most points per game, hasn't suited up since March 11 due to foot and finger injuries. Sparkplug sub Lou Williams missed the last three contests with a back problem. Bogdan Bogdanovic, the Hawks' No. 3 scorer, is playing through knee pain.

For a squad that sometimes struggles to find scoring from players not named Trae Young, that could be a mountain of offense to replace on the fly.

There are nights when Hunter can answer that call and others in which he looks incapable of delivering. To that end, he managed 22 points on 13 field-goal attempts in the regular-season finale but had just 12 points on 4-of-20 shooting across the prior two games combined.

If Hunter's three-ball is in a good place, it can put Atlanta's entire attack in the same. If he can keep the offense going while also capably defending Miles Bridges and Kelly Oubre Jr. (and then Kevin Durant, Caris LeVert or Lauri Markkanen in the next contest), Hunter could prove to be the Hawks' ticket to the actual postseason.

Bleacher Report

[Galloisdaman]

Games on ESPN in 20 minutes.

[DirtybirdGA]

Staying away from this one( kinda)...it'll be tough for them to get to the real postseason.

[Galloisdaman]

Keep passing! Nice job!

[Galloisdaman]

Have to becareful of those long chucks if they lead to fast breaks the other way.

[Jamaaliver]

Now this is what I call home court advantage...

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[HMFFL]

Is Trae justified for complaining so much in the game about contact?

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[HMFFL]

Have to becareful of those long chucks if they lead to fast breaks the other way.

Very much so!

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[Galloisdaman]

There ya go Gallo!