The Atlanta Hawks soar into the American Airlines Arena to challenge your Miami Heat in a battle of the top two South East division teams. The Heat are in the last game of their first long home stand of the season and hope to finish it off strong. The game is scheduled for Tuesday November 19th at 7:30 PM, so if you live in Miami and are going to the game please don't be late (YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED).
What to watch for:
- These aren't your Tio Juan's Atlanta Hawks. The team went through a lot of changes in the off-season including a brand new head coach and parting ways with franchise cornerstone Josh Smith. The Hawks new head coach Mike Budenholzer, a long time Gregg Popovich assistant, hopes to change the culture in Atlanta and bring winning days back to Atlanta.
- Heat point guard Mario Chalmers returns to the team after a controversial suspension. Chalmers was ejected from Fridays game and suspended a subsequent game for elbowing Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki. Chalmers was not very happy about the suspension voicing his displeasure through twitter and will be looking to take it out on the Hawks.
- The Heat have been without the services of Ray Allen the past couple of days due to Allen having the flu. Although players such as Michael Beasley and Rashard Lewis have stepped up their production during Allen's abcence the Heat are optimistic Allen will make his return to the lineup Tuesday against the Hawks.
Match up of the game:
Al Horford Chris Bosh
VS
The strength of the Atlanta Hawks is their front line. Starting center Al Horford is off to a strong start in the 2013-2014 campaign averaging 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks a game. If their is a weakness to this Miami Heat team it is their size inside and their troubles rebounding the ball. Chris Bosh will have his hands full with Horford and the Hawk front-line but match-ups like these are why he is paid the big bucks.
Wise Guys:
The wise guys in Vegas have the Heat as a 9.5 point favorite against the Hawks. The Heat have looked absolutely dominant at times during the home-stand and Vegas expects the trend to continue. The last game they played was Saturday against Charlotte where they easily handled the Bobcats. Although 9.5 is a lot of points to give up I expect the Heat to come out and handle business.
Prediction time:
As I look into my crystal ball I see a victory for the Miami Heat. Things are finally starting to click for this team and they seem to be focused on getting better every single game. LeBron James has finally shaken his offseason rust off and is starting to play up to his MVP level. I think the Heat struggle to start the game but pull away from the Hawks in the second half. My prediction is Heat 108 - Hawks 94.
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