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Atlanta Hawks vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Game Preview, Prediction

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By @Kramerica100

Getty Images

Getty Images

Atlanta Hawks (24-8) vs.Portland Trail Blazers (26-7)

Game Time: Saturday, Jan. 3, 10:00 p.m. ET

Projected Starting Lineups:

Atlanta Hawks: PG: Jeff Teague, SG: Kyle Korver, SF: Demarre Carroll, PF: Paul Millsap, C: Al Horford

Portland Trail Blazers: PG: Damian Lillard, SG: Wesley Matthews, SF: Nicolas Batum, PF: LaMarcus Aldridge, C: Joel Freeland

The second and third best records in the NBA square off tonight as the Atlanta Hawks face the Portland Trail Blazers. The Eastern Conference-leading Hawks are currently on a short three-game west coast trip. Atlanta beat the Utah Jazz last night to start the road stretch.

The Hawks have proven to be a worthy foe against the superior Western Conference this season. They are 7-2 against the West, including impressive road wins over the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets. A win over the Trail Blazers would be even more of a statement as Portland is 15-2 at home this year.

Tonight’s game is full of interesting matchups. Neither team relies too much on their bench, so there will be a lot of time for each starting unit. The first matchup to watch is between the point guards. Damian Lillard has emerged as one of, if not the best crunch time scorer in the league. He appears to take every game personally as people continue to leave him out of the discussion of best point guards in the league. His counterpart in this game is actually in a similar position. Jeff Teague is trying to make his first All-Star game and it would be unfortunate if he gets left off. He is averaging 17 PPG and seven APG.

Three of the five most prolific three-point shooters in the NBA are in this game — Kyle Korver for the Hawks and Lillard and Wesley Matthews for the Trail Blazers. Matthews leads the league in threes made, but Korver is just behind him and is shooting a ridiculous 52 percent from behind the arc.

Up front, it will be Atlanta’s talented duo of Paul Millsap and Al Horford versus LaMarcus Aldridge. Slowing down Aldridge will be no easy task for the Hawks. Their best bet will be to make him use up energy on the defensive end. The Trail Blazers can usually hide Aldridge on defense since most teams don’t have two quality big men.

It should be a good game to watch since both teams have enjoyable offenses. The Hawks energy level could be somewhat of a concern given that they played in Utah last night. A quick start will be important for Atlanta or else they may fall out of it early. Atlanta should be able to stay in the game as long as they are hitting their open shots. It will be a close game going into the fourth quarter, which is prime time for Lillard. I think Portland will be too much down the stretch and will pull away with some help from the home crowd.

Final Prediction: Portland 105 Atlanta 99

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