we byke, what a layover...
The Atlanta Hawks had a rather successful preseason opener. Can they take that momentum into another matchup?
They'll have an opportunity to show that they can with tonight's game against the Philadelphia 76ers. Now, this likely will not be a full strength-on-strength matchup. Superstar center Joel Embiid has already been ruled out for the entire preseason by the 76ers. I also would not expect a full game from either of Philly's other stars in Paul George and Tyrese Maxey. Both George and Maxey sat against the Celtics during Philly's most recent preseason game - which led to them getting blown out by Boston.
Given that Maxey and George are reasonably fresh, they could both suit up for this one. If they do, it will give the Hawks a much more legitimate test of how far their rotation is along at this time of the year. They looked comfortable against a Pacers team that gave most of its starters some run.
In particular, there are three players I am very interested in watching for Atlanta tonight.
Can DeAndre Hunter bounce back?
Hunter did not have the best start to the pre-season. In order to hold onto his starting spot, at least early in the year, he will need to have a strong performance against Philly. He'll likely have to matchup with George - can he convert on his open looks? George is not the defender he once was, but he's solid enough to give Hunter a challenge. Hunter also needs to be more confident and effective on catch-and-shoot looks. It will also be interesting to see if the four assists he recorded against the Pacers are a sign of playmaking development or a one-off.
If George doesn't play, any of Kelly Oubre, Caleb Martin, KJ Martin, Ricky Council IV or Guerschon Yabusele are matchups that Hunter should be capable to hold his own against if he's going to be a starter on this team. I think some of Hunter's misses in the preseason opener against Indiana could be attributed to rust or an off night, but he won't have that qualifier against Philly.
How real is Dyson Daniels' offense?
Daniels hit 5-8 of his attempts from the field and one of his three attempts from deep. That three saved the offensive possesion - the ball came to him off a miss, he showed no hesitation and he drained the shot. Hitting his threes has been an issue for Daniels thus far - he's a career 31.2% shooter from three-point range. If he can hit on 34% of his attempts from deep, it will be enough to keep him on the floor as a viable shooter. Philadelphia does not have the best perimeter defense, but it would be good to see Daniels be confident in his shot and make one-two of his attempts from deep.
On defense, I expect Daniels to get a heavy dose of either Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre Jr or Jared McCain. Maxey is arguably the fastest player in basketball, but Daniels is a superb athlete with plenty of length to disrupt Maxey. Now, Maxey had a great performance against a tough Timberwolves perimeter defense in Philly's preseason opener, but it will be interesting to see how much Daniels can slow him down. If McCain ends up playing the majority of minutes, I think this is a matchup Daniels has an advantage in. His combination of active hands, length and strength should make it difficult for McCain to get a clean look from deep or drive through Daniels. I also expect him to handle Oubre rather easily - Oubre is athletic and plays with a ton of energy, but Daniels is well-equipped to handle that.
Does the Zacch Attack continue for another night?
Zaccharie Risacher was widely expected to play a fairly limited role as a rookie as he adjusted to the NBA. However, he looked pretty comfortable against the Pacers, dropping 18 points and dishing out 2 assists to go along with 3 boards on 7-9 shooting from the field and 3-4 from deep.
He's not going to make 75% of his threes every night, but I'm interested in seeing if he can continue to stretch the floor while showing growth as a finisher inside the paint. There were flashes of advanced finishing - he had a nice layup over Tyrese Haliburton in the 1st quarter. He also has a good sense of positioning, as evidenced by his dunk that came as a result of finding a good spot in the post. His best play of the night was a between-the-legs assist to Capela in transition for a layup.
Overall, there were a lot of nice flashes from the French wing and it will be important from an evaluation standpoint to see if he can carry those over into another strong performance against the 76ers. High-level passing is one of the hardest things for a young wing to show, so it would be encouraging for him to continue trying different passes to see what he is comfortable with. I expect he will have plenty of catch-and-shoot opportunities with one of Trae Young, Kobe Bufkin or Jalen Johnson on the floor at all times for Atlanta. If he has another good game, I think it will be increasingly harder to keep Risacher out of the Hawks' starting lineup. I'd be especially focused in on the matchups he gets against George, Yabusele and K.J Martin. All three are big bodies who could give Risacher some trouble.
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