Atlanta Hawks vs Golden State Warriors: Game Preview, Injury Report, Starting Lineups for Tonight's Matchup

After their first loss in a long time, the Hawks will have to regroup against a Warriors team without Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler.

Jan 11, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) looks for an open teammate as he is double-teamed by Golden State Warriors guard De'Anthony Melton (8) and forward Jimmy Butler III (10) during the fourth quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

It's obvious that the Hawks had to lose at some point, but it's a tough look that they lost to a clearly flawed Rockets team in blowout fashion to break their eleven-game winning streak.

Atlanta was playing a step behind all night and they struggled to slow down the red-hot duo of Kevin Durant and Jabari Smith Jr. Those two players alone combined for 48 points on 16-29 shooting while Tari Eason chipped in with a double-double off the bench. Jalen Johnson really struggled in this one, finishing as a team-worst -27 with 14 points and three assists against four turnovers. The playmaking heartbeat of the Hawks was uncharacteristically bad for Atlanta tonight and it's also concerning that none of Atlanta's other players really stepped up to help. Nickeil Alexander-Walker tried his best with 21 points on only 12 shots, but he and CJ McCollum (17 points and a team-high three blocks) were the only ones who really gave the Hawks a chance in this one.

Fortunately, the task gets a bit easier against the Warriors tonight. Steph Curry is still recovering from a knee injury as he prepares to return at the end of the month. That means the Hawks will avoid him tonight, which is great news for their chances of a bounce-back win. Jimmy Butler is already done for the season with a torn ACL, so the Warriors don't really have anyone who can step up to take on a significant scoring load.

At this time of year, it's a slog to make it into the postseason and the Warriors are going to fight really hard to steal a game from Atlanta. However, the Hawks are clearly better and shouldn't lose this game, especially given the tougher stretch they have coming up.

By the Numbers

Jan 11, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (7) looks to escape a double-team by Golden State Warriors guards Stephen Curry (30) and Gary Payton II (0) during the fourth quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

In their last two games, the Hawks played two of the most productive perimeter defenses in the NBA and produced mixed results. They still hit 40% of their threes against the Mavericks, but slumped in a big way against the Rockets and only shot 25.7% from deep. Still, the overall numbers suggest the Hawks' offense is one of the more productive units in the NBA. They are 7th in points, 13th in FG%, 6th in 3P%, 20th in FT%, 17th in rebounds (22nd in OREB, 12th in DREB), 1st in assists, and 12th in turnovers per game. They're 15th in offensive rating this year.

Yesterday was a reminder that the Hawks' defense still has a lot of room for improvement. They are 20th in points allowed, 18th in FG% allowed, 15th in 3P% allowed, 26th in rebounds allowed, 5th in steals, and 19th in blocks. They're 11th in defensive rating this year.

The Warriors' offense is obviously very different when Steph's in the game, but they're 19th in points, 26th in FG%, 18th in 3P%, 7th in FT%, 22nd in rebounds (14th in OREB, 26th in DREB), 3rd in assists, and 24th in turnovers per game. They're 18th in offensive rating this season.

The Warriors force a lot of turnovers and stifle shots from deep decently well, but this defense just isn't as good as it has been in years past. They are 12th in points allowed, 22nd in FG% allowed, 10th in 3P% allowed, 21st in rebounds allowed, 2nd in steals, and 22nd in blocks. They're 14th in defensive rating.

Three Reasons Atlanta Can Win This Game

Jan 11, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II (0) tries to drive on Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) during the fourth quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

The Warriors' frontcourt has not been a position of strength in a long time and that hasn't changed this season. The trade for Kristaps Porzingis has been decent when he's been on the floor, but Hawks fans know quite well how rare that is. Draymond Green has taken a clear step back on both ends of the floor - the team is a -200 in his minutes since December 1st and he just doesn't have any juice as a scorer anymore. That's a big problem when playing a forward like Jalen Johnson. The Rockets slowed Johnson down because they have tons of athletic, wing-sized defenders who can run with him in transition and close off passing lanes in the halfcourt. Golden State is almost the exact opposite.

It's possible that Jonathan Kuminga plays tonight and it'll be very interesting to see what he has in the tank for his former team. Kuminga's clash with Golden State's coaching staff has been well-documented and it would be massive for Atlanta from a narrative standpoint if he's able to show out against the Warriors while Kristaps Porzingis is sidelined. This is a matchup that actually plays into some of Kuminga's strengths as well. He's shot 68% at the rim and 60% from the field since joining the Hawks - albeit on a small sample size. Kuminga's also been mostly additive over this small sample size since Atlanta is 9.5 points per 100 possessions better with him on the court (91st percentile). Golden State is 22nd in points conceded at the rim, so they haven't been great at stopping players at the cup. If he does play, expect a very aggressive and motivated version of Kuminga tonight.

Dyson Daniels had a rough night against KD on several possessions last night, but tonight should be a great opportunity to bounce back. He'll likely be against one of Brandin Podziemski or De'Anthony Melton, which is a much easier matchup than one of the best isolation scorers the NBA has ever seen. Daniels has been pretty good against the Warriors as well, finishing just shy of a triple-double in both of his last two games against them. It'll be fun to see if he can do it against this diminished version of Golden State.

Three Reasons Atlanta Might Lose This Game

Jan 11, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard De'Anthony Melton (8) and Atlanta Hawks guard CJ McCollum (3) vie for a loose ball during the fourth quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

De'Anthony Melton wasn't viewed as much of a needle-mover when he came back to the Warriors after being shipped out in the Dennis Schroder trade, but he's provided a spark during the second half of the season. A monstrous dunk over Sharife Cooper of the Wizards is a fun moment to see, but he's been more than just a fun highlight lately. Melton's averaging 13.1 points in the 38 games he's played as a Warrior thus far and he's stepped up to shoulder some of the offensive load vacated by Curry's absence. He can guard wings even though he's listed as a guard, so it's likely that he'll take on the Nickeil Alexander-Walker assignment. That might quietly be the best matchup to watch in this game.

Speaking of underrated pieces, it's hard to completely dismiss what Gui Santos has given the Warriors this season. He chipped in 13 points, five rebounds and five assists against the Pistons in their most recent game and he's a great all-around contributor to a team that really needs him right now. I don't think he's going to clamp Jalen Johnson, but he's a player that could swing the game for the Warriors if he gets going.

Rebounding continues to be something that the Hawks struggle with and it showed up against the Rockets. They got out-rebounded by a 51-37 margin and Houston grabbed 11 more defensive rebounds. Since Steph's injury, the Warriors have been a top-ten team in both steals and offensive rebounds. They are going to fight for extra possessions and punish mistakes in order to get an edge in this game. The Hawks need to keep that intensity against Golden State throughout the game and not get complacent even if they have a commanding lead at times.

Injury Report

Atlanta Hawks - TBD as the team is on a back-to-back.

Golden State Warriors - Golden State is also on a back-to-back and they haven't released their injury report yet. However, Steph Curry, Seth Curry, Al Horford, Moses Moody and Jimmy Butler are guarenteed to be out.

How to Watch

Here is how you can watch tonight's game:

Tip-off time: 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Location: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA

Where to Watch: FanDuel Sports Network and NBATV

Projected Starting Lineups

Hawks

G - CJ McCollum

G - Dyson Daniels

F - Nickeil Alexander-Walker

F - Jalen Johnson

C - Onyeka Okongwu

Warriors

G - De'Anthony Melton

G - Brandin Podziemski

F - Gui Santos

F - Draymond Green

C - Quinten Post

Although this Hawks team is fresh off a blowout loss, I don't expect the sting of that to linger. This Warriors team is incredibly beat-up and their offense has been anemic with Steph out. I expect that Steve Kerr will have a plan to keep Golden State in it, but there's a big talent gap between these two teams and I think the Hawks will win this one decisively.