Atlanta Hawks vs Dallas Mavericks: Final Score Predictions For Tonight's Game

The Atlanta Hawks are back in action tonight against the Dallas Mavericks. The Hawks lost last night at home to the Portland Trail Blazers, and now they must go on the road for a back-to-back against a team that is just starting to get healthy (somewhat). Both teams are hoping to improve their standing in their respective conferences with just a handful of games to go, and tonight would go a long way in doing that.

The Hawks were beaten up on the glass last night vs Portland and had a poor three-point shooting night. Can they turn those things around tonight vs Dallas?

Our own Rohan Raman gave an in-depth preview of tonight's game:

"Coming into tonight's game, the Hawks are 5th in the NBA in PPG, 14th in FG%, 15th in 3PA, 20th in 3P%, 2nd in FTA, 26th in turnovers, and 13th in rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 16th in points per 100 possessions, 17th in effective field goal percentage, 22nd in turnover percentage, 12th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 8th in free throw rate.

Currently, the Hawks rank 27th in PPG allowed, 29th in field goal percentage allowed, 15th in three-point attempts allowed, and 28th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 18th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 28th in effective field goal percentage allowed.

Because the Mavericks have gone through so much turnover on offense, it makes more sense to evaluate the offense after the trade deadline. Since then, they're 20th in points per game, 10th in FG%, 28th in 3PA, 13th in 3P%, 14th in FTA, 3rd in turnovers, and 30th in rebounding. For the whole season, per Cleaning the Glass, Dallas is 13th in points per 100 possessions, 13th in effective field goal percentage, 8th in turnover percentage, 22nd in offensive rebounding percentage, and 6th in free throw rate.

Dallas's defense isn't overly impressive, but having Davis in the lineup makes any defense tougher. They are 17th in PPG allowed, 17th in field goal percentage allowed, 4th in three-point attempts allowed, and 17th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, Dallas is 19th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 9th in effective field goal percentage allowed.

Atlanta really struggled on the boards in their game against Portland and that trend cannot continue. Dallas theoretically isn't good at getting to rebounds, but the Hawks have gone into games against weak rebounding teams and lost on the boards. The Mavericks will be without Dereck Lively, which should make it easier to score in the paint in the non-Davis minutes. However, they have to capitalize on that advantage.

After a great game against the Bucks, Risacher looked less comfortable against the Blazers partially due to their defenders being able to keep up with him in transition and close out on his shots. The Mavericks just allowed a rebuilding Nets team to shoot 39% from deep, so it isn't the strongest unit. They do have some length on the perimeter with Kai Jones, Naji Marshall and P.J Washington, as well as a strong backcourt defender in Brandon Williams. Still, I think this is a matchup where Risacher could rebound nicely.

The matchup between Onyeka Okongwu and Anthony Davis should be an interesting watch tonight. Okongwu has been a positive for Atlanta throughout the back half of the season, but it wasn't his finest offensive showing against the Trail Blazers. He did a good job of keeping Donovan Clingan largely in check, holding him to 11 points and only 4 offensive boards. Davis is a more versatile challenge.

Young is coming off of a good game against the Blazers (29 points), but it was on 7-20 efficiency. While the final tally looked strong, he struggled to find his shot and largely relied on racking up free throws to power the Hawks' offense. It'll be important that he delivers a more efficient outing tonight for Atlanta's chances of winning this game."

Prediction

While Dallas has sputtered since the Luka Doncic trade and are possibly going to fall out of the play-in Tournament altogether, they could provide problems for the Hawks tonight. Davis is going to be the best player on the floor and teams with size are going to give the Hawks problems. Portland beat the Hawks badly on the glass last night and Atlanta allowed a season-high in second chance points. Davis and Lively pose big problems for the Hawks and their lack of size and Atlanta is going to need a better night shooting the three, particularly from Zaccharie Risacher, Caris LeVert, and Georges Niang and all struggled last night. Dallas has their own issues, but I think they have advantages over the Hawks and get the win.

Final Score: Mavs 126, Hawks 122

Additional Links

Dyson Daniels Or Cade Cunningham For MIP? Zach Lowe Says, "Nobody Has Made A Bigger Leap Than Dyson."

Hawks Fall to Blazers As Portland Gets Big Nights From Shaedon Sharpe and Deni Avdija

Another Award For The Great Barrier Thief: Dyson Daniels Named Defensive Player of the Month For March