NBA Matchups: March 25

ATL @ DET | LAL @ IND | CHI @ PHI | OKC @ BOS | MIA @ CLE | SAS @ MEM | WAS @ UTA | HOU @ MIN | DAL @ DEN | BKN @ GSW | MIL @ POR | TOR @ LAC

Atlanta Hawks at Detroit Pistons (front end)

Team Totals: Hawks 113, Pistons 115.5

Injury Report: Jalen Johnson (Q, shoulder), Javonte Green (Q, ankle), Marcus Sasser (D, hip)

Hawks projected starters: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, C.J. McCollum, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Onyeka Okongwu

Pistons projected starters: Daniss Jenkins, Duncan Robinson, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren

Snyder quotes: Said McCollum set the tone early and NAW picked it up after that as the “capable scorers” for the team, said they played unselfish basketball against the Grizzlies, said they wanted Dyson to be more aggressive in multiple ways and that can be 3-pointers if they’re there, said they were secure with the ball, said Risacher is doing a much better job at crashing the boards.

Bickerstaff quotes: Said he’s “no longer surprised” that Jenkins played like that against the Lakers, said Ausar is “one of the best defenders in a league” because he can make it “a living hell” for the guy he’s guarding, said Javonte is “consistent at making winning plays,” said the whole team plays within itself, said Jenkins “has found that rhythm” as the lead handler for the team.

Stats and Notes: 

*The Hawks finally get a tough defense here. The only time they faced a defense that was decent in the last month was the Rockets, and they got smacked 117-95 on March 20. The Hawks aren’t a great paint offense, and Jalen Johnson not playing would make it even harder for them to score inside. For the Hawks defensively, they’ve been rebounding the ball extremely well, but they are still getting beaten in the paint some. The environment isn’t great, but at least it should be close. You can’t say that about a lot of games on this slate.

*Jalen Johnson got the Ausar Thompson matchup last time, and he probably gets it again here. If Jalen can’t go, I would expect Nickeil Alexander-Walker to get that assignment. Either way, it’s tough to get excited about either of these guys, but NAW could be in play because he’s gone off in some tougher matchups. I do not like Dyson Daniels in this spot.

*Daniss Jenkins isn’t going anywhere with 38 and 39 minutes in his last two games. He lit up the Lakers for 30, and as noted in the quotes, J.B. Bickerstaff has him locked in. He’s locked in for a huge role despite what will be a tougher matchup. In the last two, he leads the NBA in touch time at 8.2 minutes per game. I’m not as fired up about Daniss in this spot, though.

*Jalen Duren’s matchup is OK with 12 and 14 points in the previous two games. In the last two, he’s up to 14.0 paint touches per game, and that should be a strong trend the rest of the way. The Hawks do rebound it well, but I’d expect him to have more success off the dribble due to the Hawks having excellent guard defense.

*Ausar Thompson didn’t do anything last game, but getting to 36 minutes when guarding Luka Doncic is a big deal. He’s an option today.

Great matchups: Jalen Duren

Good matchups: Tobias Harris, Ausar Thompson

Bad matchups: Onyeka Okongwu, Jalen Johnson

Los Angeles Lakers at Indiana Pacers