Thursday, December 30

Game Night # 27 : Atlanta Hawks

The Seattle Sonics face off against the Atlanta Hawks today.
A couple of months ago, it was this same Atlanta team that proved to be the springboard for the Sonics' ascent to the stratosphere. Coming off an embarrassing loss to the the Clippers in the season opener, the Sonics destroyed the Hawks by 21 at Key Arena in game two.

The Hawks have been better of late, but they're still an awful team. Meanwhile, the Sonics have stumbled at the holidays, losing three of their last six after losing only three of their first 20. It remains to be seen if McMillan can find a way to keep his four guards happy, or if Flip Murray will have to be sat in order to preserve the beginning of the season flow.

Good Sign:
Antoine Walker still can't find his conscience; he's hitting only 40% of his shots over the last 10 games.
Bad Sign: With the Sonics traveling across the country to play a bizarre Thursday afternoon game, I just don't like the looks of this one.

Notes: The Sonics have forced 50% more turnovers on bad passes than they've committed ... Allen is rated as the 6th-best player in the NBA by the Roland Ratings ... If Allen continues this pace, he'll be the first Sonic since Dale Ellis to average 23 ppg or more for three consecutive seasons. Of course, Ellis saved alot of energy by not playing any defense ... This is the first of five games in eight days on the road for Seattle ... According to the News-Tribune, Murray is going to see his minutes decrease as McMillan looks for ways to right the ship.

Trivia: Who was the last Atlanta Hawk to average 10 assists per game?

Vegas line: Sonics by 9 1/2
Prediction: Sonics 103 - Hawks 91
Record Against the Spread: 10-5

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