Los Angeles Clippers visit the Atlanta Hawks with both sides looking to ensure home court advantage in the playoffs...
On Tuesday night at the Philips Arena, it will be a battle between two playoff bound teams as the Los Angeles Clippers pay a visit to their Eastern Conference rivals, the Atlanta Hawks.
For the Hawks it is a must win situation in the remaining game as they hope to chase down the number 4th spot, which will ensure them home court advantage against the Boston Celtics, who are their most likely opponents in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The do have fair chance of achieving that milestone as the Celtics have a tough matchup in their next game against the Miami Heat. However, achieving home court advantage might not be the only thing in the Atlanta`s mind because they would be looking to close out the season on a strong note.
Atlanta`s head coach Larry Drew contemplated on the matter that it is very necessary to close out the season in a winning fashion.
"I'm just looking for just the consistency and for the strong finish," Hawks coach Larry Drew said. "I said before that I think it's important to go into any playoff series with a strong taste in your mouth."
On the other hand, the Clippers find themselves in a similar situation as they absolutely have to win one game to ensure their stand on the number 4th spot in the Western Conference, which would mean that they would start their post season run at home in the Staples Center. In a bigger picture though, the Clips have to play for a lot more if they want to chase down the number 3 spot and clinch the Pacific Division title, putting them in a must win situation in their remaining games.
However for that outcome to take place, Clippers also have to rely a lot on fate as they need their neighbours Los Angeles Lakers to lose their last game against the Sacramento Kings.
On the night it would be an interesting battle between two of Wake Forest`s finest products at the point guard position in Chris Paul and Jeff Teague. In their last meeting, Paul came out on top to help the Clippers record a home win over the Hawks with a score of 96-82 at home back in March. CP3 made nine assists in just a tad over 31 minutes while Teague just managed 5. Paul also came out the winner in the scoring department as he shot the ball 54.3% for 13 points in that game. Teague on the other hand was able to get only 10 points on a 3-of-11 shooting.
Moving on to another interesting matchup that would be between two of the leagues’ extremely exquisite dunkers i.e. Josh Smith and Blake Griffin, it would be interesting to see how the Hawks try and contain the high-flying Griffin with no true big man in their line up. This will certainly be a tough task for Smith and company as they try to contain the extremely highflying Lob City, without their centre Al Horford.
The Clippers would also have the momentum on their side as they come into the game on the back of having won 6 out of their last 7 games. On the other hand, Atlanta, take to the court after a devastating 113-112 loss to the New York Knicks in their last game at home.
Tags: