Suns Preview: Phoenix Takes On East-Leading Atlanta

Coming off of a two-point victory over the Utah Jazz, the Phoenix Suns (39-38) will now look to bring the heat to Atlanta in a showdown against the East-leading Atlanta Hawks (57-19).

Playing without Brandon Knight, Phoenix will be facing an absolutely lethal opposing backcourt.

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Jeff Teague has led the Hawks this year with averages of 16.1 points and 7.0 assists per game. Alongside him has been Kyle Korver (who is quickly turning into the best shooter since Steve Nash and may already own that title), shooting 49 percent from the field and shooting over 45 percent from three-point land.

In a way, Atlanta’s backcourt is everything the Suns hope to be. Teague can attack but also knows when to pass the ball, make the right play and DOES NOT TURN THE BALL OVER. Korver, on the other hand, has become so efficient from behind the arc that whoever’s guarding him simply cannot help on defense.

All in all, one word sums up the Hawks backcourt: efficient.

This is without mentioning DeMarre Carroll and All-Star Al Horford.

Carroll has shown he has the ability to morph into the Kawhi Leonard of the Eastern Conference with his defensive abilities, while Horford has proven himself against the top centers in the league this season, averaging 15 points and seven rebounds a night.

Even after these praises it still is shocking to look at the Hawks’ record.

Atlanta is 57-19 with the Eastern Conference regular season crown locked up with a week to play in the season. One year after finishing with the eighth best record in the East, no one saw this coming.

Phoenix will absolutely have their work cut out for them tonight in what should be an extremely entertaining contest.

With both teams wanting to push the ball in transition and hit the momentum-swinging three-pointer, lots of points should and will be scored tonight.

Defensively, the Suns would be wise to combat the Hawks’ larger starting lineup (Korver is their second smallest player at 6’7″) with their wrecking crew of Eric Bledsoe, P.J. Tucker, Markieff Morris, Marcus Morris and Brandan Wright.

This lineup for the Suns will be especially crucial tonight in a game where they MUST rebound and can’t afford to let an extremely efficient Hawks offense get second chance points.

Stopping Korver from hitting early-game shots and settling into a groove will have to be the focus for the Suns. Eric Bledsoe will have a chance to show what he can do against one of the best guards the Eastern Conference has to offer and would be wise not to let that opportunity slip away.

After those two players, the Suns will have to pick their poison with the rest of the Hawks team.

Offensively, ball movement is going to have to be the catalyst for the Suns’ success if they hope to win. The common one-on-one hero basketball that Phoenix has fallen into for most of the season will be rendered ineffective against Atlanta and their top-notch team defense.

On fastbreaks, Eric Bledsoe CANNOT afford to slow down the Suns breakout and dribble the ball back up to half-court. This is a game where he needs to push and attack, hopefully getting Teague into foul trouble and setting the tone for the Suns.

Possible sparkplugs for the Suns in a game that will likely be played in transition for large periods are T.J. Warren (big surprise I know), Archie Goodwin (who is always ready to run up and down the floor) and Gerald Green. Although defensive reasons may keep Green from playing long stretches of minutes (he would be relied upon to guard Kyle Korver, a good way to get down by 10 in a hurry).

All in all, Atlanta is 21-8 against the Western Conference for a reason: they are good. Really good. The Suns are a young growing team, one which may very well resemble the Hawks’ style of basketball and duplicate their success in coming years.

In this present day however, it’s a mismatch on most levels.

Prediction: Atlanta 104, Phoenix 98

Next: Suns 5-on-5: What To Watch In Final Week Of Suns Season

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