Hawks vs Suns: Game Preview, Betting Odds, Projected Starting Lineups For Today's Las Vegas Summer League Game

The Atlanta Hawks play basketball today.

After opening up their stint in Las Vegas with a solid win versus the Miami Heat, the Hawks face off against the Phoenix Suns today. Phoenix's SL team dominated the Washington Wizards on Friday, winning by 21 points against a Wizards team that played several starters from their regular roster. They are hoping to secure their second win against the Hawks today, but there's reason to think Atlanta will pose more of a challenge for them. They have two former first-round picks in Bufkin and Newell, both of whom started and played key roles in Atlanta's SL opener. Durisic showed some intriguing flashes during his Summer League time last season and continued that against Miami while forward Jacob Toppin had a strong game as well. Eli Ndaiye and Kobe Johnson, younger brother of Hawks forward Jalen Johnson, also had good debuts for the Hawks.

Game Preview

Third-year guard Kobe Bufkin has struggled to stay healthy throughout much of his early career, but the young point guard made a strong statement as to why he should be in consideration for the backup point guard spot on Atlanta's roster this season. Against a Miami team that prides itself on defense, Bufkin finished with 29 points, including going 15-15 at the free throw line and dropping 17 points in the 4th quarter when Atlanta needed him. While Bufkin could stand to improve his shooting numbers (6-16 from the field, 2-9 from three), he looked excellent in his first appearance and if he continues that today, he'll be quickly pulled from SL action in order to preserve him for the season. Phoenix has a good backcourt - both Koby Brea (19 points, 4/5 from deep) and Boogie Ellis (16 points, 4/6 from deep) are going to be a challenge for Atlanta and they likely will need Bufkin's scoring to keep pace if Brea and Ellis have an encore performance.

Multiple members of Atlanta's frontcourt had great games against Miami. Despite the Heat starting second-year forward Ke'el Ware, who had a strong rookie season, and Summer League standout Keshad Johnson, Toppin racked up 19 points and 10 rebounds while first-rounder Asa Newell had a good all-around debut for Atlanta. He had 8 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. Newell looked very comfortable on defense and formed a nice combo with two-way big man Eli Ndaiye. Ndaiye had a block and steal, making a case to be kept around in the G League so that he can be turned into a future contributor for Atlanta. It also shouldn't be forgotten how well starting center Nelly Junior Joseph acquitted himself on defense - his 2 blocks and seven rebounds made a difference even if his offensive production was pretty limited.

However, things might be a bit tougher against Phoenix today. Against a Wizards frontcourt with second overall pick Alex Sarr, power forward Oso Ighodaro racked up a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Suns wing Ryan Dunn drew rave reviews as a rookie for his defense, but he went 2-5 from deep and scored 17 points to go with two steals, potentially indicating that he could have a big game on both sides against Atlanta. Both Dunn annd Ighodaro got decent run in the NBA last season for a thin Suns frontcourt, so they are going to be a tough duo for a relatively inexperienced Hawks frontcourt to handle. Center Khaman Maluach, who the Suns took with the 10th overall pick in the 2025 draft, had a solid debut as well. He protected the paint well and scored 14 points as a play finisher on offense. In short, this will be a good test for the Hawks to see who can carry over their production from the Miami game into a seemingly difficult matchup with Phoenix.