NBA Preview: San Antonio Spurs (18-3) at Atlanta Hawks (15-8)
Date: Friday, December 10, 2010
Stadium: AT&T Center, San Antonio
Previous Game Status: Spurs (Win) vs. Hawks (Win)
The sizzling San Antonio Spurs host the high-flying Atlanta Hawks for a mouth-watering contest. Both of the teams performed fantastically in their previous match-ups and have a good chance at staying
in the win column.
Atlanta Hawks are seeking their first win there since February 1997. This one seems to have a much better chance than the last one.
About the Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs have befuddled the basketball world with the National Basketball Association’s best record this season with eighteen electrifying wins of the season.
The Spurs are 3-0 on a six-game home stand, and the only loss in their last 10 home games came to Dallas. Furthermore, they are fourth in the league in terms of points per game.
"We just try to play well at home, win as much games as we can because we know the second part of our schedule is going to be a lot of games on the road," said Spur’s guard Tony Parker.
The Spurs trounced the visiting Golden State Warriors, 111-94 in their previous match. Six players scored in double-digits and the Spurs solidified their best start in franchise history. Tony Parker
and Manu Ginobili combined for 31 points and 17 assists and DeJuan Blair had a double-double (15 points and 13 rebounds) for the Spurs.
No doubt, Spurs is the best team in the Western Conference and the crown of their outstanding performance goes to their Coach Gregg Popovich. San Antonio was 15th in the league last year in terms
of points per game (101.4 PPG). He is none other than a “Baby Ruth” of Spurs because they way he worked on the team was just fabulous. He has done a great job in reinventing his squad, having a faster-paced offense and generating a 106.9.
Popovich also has a smart game strategy, keeping the minutes of his stars down. Parker leads at just 33 per game and it provides bench players like George Hill, Matt Bonner, Antonio McDyess, and
Gary Neal with an opportunity to serve their team in a better way.
About the Hawks
Currently no East team has a better road record than the Atlanta Hawks, but Atlanta has lost all 12 trips to San Antonio since Tim Duncan left them and joined the Spurs in the 1997-98 season.
Atlanta Hawks stamped their 15th victory of the season by defeating the New Jersey Nets at home, 116-101. Forward Josh Smith had scored a season-high of 34 points and Jamal Crawford followed
him with a season-high of 26. It was Smith’s second game shifting from power forward to the small forward position.
Atlanta’s’ leading scorer Joe Johnson is not a part of the squad as he is nursing an elbow injury. He will be out until the mid of January. Atlanta is 4-1 since Johnson was lost to an elbow injury.
"We're just trying to hold down the fort until Joe returns," said Josh Smith.
Center Jason Collins moved into the starting lineup two games ago and forms a big frontline along with Smith and Al Horford. However, his presence is not that impressive as he is only averaging 17
minutes from the last two games.
The Hawks started this season at 8-7 straight up (SU) and 5-10 assists (ATS). They have gone 7-1 SU and 5-3 ATS since, last beating New Jersey.
Work Out For the Best
The Spurs are relatively healthy, and a good balance offensively has keyed their current three-game win streak. At least five players scored in double figures in each victory. On the other hand,
the Hawks are very solid on the road this year, however the whole team will need to keep playing well to make up for Johnson’s loss.
Do not miss this action-packed match up because we all know that the Hawks vs. San Antonio Spurs match-up is very exciting. So, which team will win this match?
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