Sacramento Kings: Game 4 Preview at Atlanta Hawks
By Tyler Watts
The Sacramento Kings head east to face the Atlanta Hawks on October 31, 2016. This article examines everything Kings fans need to know about tonight’s game.
The Sacramento Kings travel across the country on October 31, 2016, to face the Atlanta Hawks. This is a Halloween game, so take a look around the crowd for some interesting and inventive costumes during the breaks. The Kings are coming off an exciting win against Karl-Anthony Towns and the Minnesota Timberwolves. The long flight and compressed Kings schedule makes the Hawks seven-point favorites heading into tonight’s contest.
Without further ado, let us get to everything you need to know about tonight’s game.
Injuries
The enter their fourth straight regular season contest without a player on their injury report. Starting point guard Darren Collison will continue to serve his suspension. Expect the rotation to look similar to the first three games at all five positions.
Atlanta Hawks’ Scouting Report
Atlanta enters tonight’s contest undefeated with two wins and zero losses. They are led in scoring by Paul Millsap in the early season averaging 22.5 points per game. Below are the highlights from the Hawks game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday if you want to get a glimpse of the competition.
The Hawks had a fair amount of offseason turnover from last season. They traded away starting point guard Jeff Teague to Indiana to make way for Dennis Schroder. The young former reserve has played well in his new expanded role. Dwight Howard signed this offseason with his hometown club in Atlanta after the departure of Al Horford to Boston.
Expect Coach Mike Budenholzer to start Millsap, Howard, Schroder, Kent Bazemore, and Kyle Korver tonight. That line-up brings some punch and is sixty percent of what lead the Hawks to the playoffs the last three seasons under Coach Bud.
What to Watch for?
DeMarcus Cousins versus Dwight Howard
Dwight Howard may not be known as the best center in the league like he was a few seasons ago, but he is still very good at what he does. Cousins took over that mantle and it will be interesting to see if it adds a little fuel to the fire of Howard. Howard might be on a mission to prove he is still number one and that could make for a very fun match-up.
Snapping the Losing Streak
According to ESPN, the Kings have not defeated the Hawks in Atlanta since March 3, 2006. That is more than a decade of losing in Atlanta and the Kings need to break that streak.
Ty Lawson versus Dennis Schroder
I have mentioned before about how impressed I am with Lawson this season and Schroder is a young up and coming player to watch. At only 23 years old, Schroder is thrust into that starting role and leading the Hawks offense. I am interested to see this match-up and who gets the better of it in Atlanta tonight.
Summary
There you have it, what I am watching in tonight’s contest against the Atlanta Hawks. The Kings can improve to three and one with a victory. That would be a very impressive start in my eyes and I believe through their first three games the Kings have opened some eyes around the league. Here is to hoping that production continues and the Kings find themselves in the playoffs come April.
Next: Sacramento Kings: Kentucky Alumni Wrestling Match
Check back to A Royal Pain for the game recap and everything you need to know about the Sacramento Kings this season. Thank you for reading.