Hawks vs Raptors: Game Preview, Injury Report, Projected Starting Lineups

Atlanta begins their post-All-Star Break schedule with a home game against the Raptors

The Atlanta Hawks are finally back on the basketball court tonight. 

Atlanta resumes its season tonight with a home game against the Toronto Raptors, the start of a three-game homestand for the Hawks. Toronto is on the second night of a back-to-back, having played the Nets at home last night and winning big. Toronto is behind the Hawks in the standings and they would clinch the season series with a win tonight. 

The Hawks had won six of their last eight games before dropping two straight leading into the All-Star Break. After starting to play well, the Hawks lost to the Bulls and the Hornets, with the Hornets loss the worst among the two. If Atlanta has any hope of moving up the standings, they have to start stringing wins together and they have a favorable schedule to open up the second half of their schedule. 

So who wins tonight's game? Let's preview it all. 

Game Preview

The Hawks statistically have one of the best offenses in the NBA, led by Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, but for the two games before the All-Star Break, the Hawks backcourt duo has not been playing well and the offense has suffered because of it. 

Young had 19 points and Murray had 17, but they shot a combined 10-31 from the field and 4-18 from three against the Bulls. You could make the case that the reason for that was the Bulls have a solid defense, but that is not the case you can make for the game against the Hornets.

Young shot 4-12 from the field and 2-8 from three for 12 points. Murray was 5-15 from the field and 1-7 from three. Against one of the worst defenses in the NBA, the Hawks star backcourt came up short and it was a big reason for the Hawks losing against the Hornets.

Atlanta comes into tonight's game 3rd in PPG, 23rd in field goal percentage, 6th in three-point attempts, 20th in three-point percentage, 4th in free throw attempts, 1st in offensive rebounding, and 14th in turnovers. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Hawks are 11th in points per 100 possessions, 18th in effective field goal percentage, 9th in turnover percentage, 5th in offensive rebounding, and 9th in free throw rate. 

It will be interesting to see the starting lineup for the Hawks. Clint Capela is not on the injury report and seems to be ready to come back from his injury, but he might be on a minutes restriction. With Onyeka Okongwu out with an injury, that will likely mean big minutes from Bruno Fernando. 

Another thing to keep an eye on tonight for Atlanta is De'Andre Hunter. He has been coming off the bench for the Hawks since returning from injury, but Quin Snyder could decide to move Hunter back to the starting lineup at some point. 

The Raptors are 20th in PPG allowed, 23rd in field goal percentage allowed, 22nd in three-point percentage, and 16th in defensive rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Raptors are 22nd in points allowed per 100 possessions and 21st in effective field goal percentage. 

Hawks Head Coach Quin Snyder Says Center Onyeka Okongwu is Out "For the Foreseeable Future"

The last time these two teams played, the Raptors were missing some of their new key pieces. RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley were injured the last time they played, as was starting center Jakob Poeltl. Quickley and Barrett came over in a trade with the Knicks and have made the Raptors a pretty solid offensive team. All-Star Scottie Barnes leads the way for Toronto and it will likely be Jalen Johnson's responsibility to guard him tonight. 

Toronto's offense has improved since acquiring these players, but it is still not one of the league's best, although that tends not to matter when going up against the Hawks's defense. The Raptors are 19th in PPG, 14th in field goal percentage, 21st in three-point attempts, 23rd in three-point percentage, 15th in free throw attempts, 7th in offensive rebounding, and 17th in turnovers. Per Cleaning the Glass, Toronto is 20th in points per 100 possessions, 16th in effective field goal percentage, 12th in turnover percentage, 14th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 22nd in free throw rate. 

The Hawks' defense is right there at the bottom of the league's worst defenses. Atlanta is 29th in PPG allowed, 29th in field goal percentage allowed, 27th in three-point percentage allowed, and 19th in defensive rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 27th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 29th in effective field goal percentage. 

Injury Report

Onyeka Okongwu (Left big toe sprain) and Mouhamed Gueye (right low back stress fracture) are the only Hawks on the injury report and they are both listed as out.

The Raptors are on the second night of a back-to-back so there could be some additions to the injury report today. 

Viewing and Betting Information

Tip-off time: 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time

Location: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA

Where to Watch: NBA League Pass, Bally Sports Southeast

Spread and Over/Under: The Hawks will be favorites at home tonight, as they are currently 6.5 point favorites and the over/under is at 246.5 according to the latest odds from the SI Sportsbook

Projected Starting Lineups

Hawks:

G- Trae Young

G- Dejounte Murray

F- Jalen Johnson

F- Saddiq Bey

C- Clint Capela

Keep an eye on the starting lineup for the Hawks. Capela could start for the Hawks tonight or they may bring him off the bench. If Capela does not start, Bruno Fernando likely will get the start. 

Raptors:

G- Immanuel Quickley

G- Gary Trent

F- RJ Barrett

F- Scottie Barnes

C- Jakob Poeltl

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