Atlanta Hawks vs Phoenix Suns: Game Preview, Injury Report, Projected Starting Lineups for Today's Matchup

The Atlanta Hawks made it a close one, but they finally snapped their four-game losing streak with a win over the Grizzlies. Two massive shots down the stretch from CJ McCollum and Jalen Johnson gave the Hawks enough breathing room to pull out a 124-122 win against Memphis. However, while they now have some positive momentum going into night, they'll need more than momentum to beat a surprisingly good Suns team.

At 27-17, Phoenix is a legitimate top-five seed in the Western Conference and they're currently on a three-game win streak. Coincidentally, the Hawks won their last game against Phoenix by the same exact score of the Memphis game and they were able to out-execute the Suns in the clutch when they last played in November. They'll need to do a lot of the same things when they face off tonight.

By the Numbers

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, NBA, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Suns, Phoenix Sun — Nov 16, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (7) drives against the Phoenix Suns during the second half of play at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Allan Henry-Imagn Images | Allan Henry-Imagn Images

Atlanta's offense has been struggling over the past few games, but they got back on track against Memphis. They are 10th in points, 11th in FG%, 8th in 3P%, 22nd in FT%, 25th in rebounds (25th in OREB, 18th in DREB), 1st in assists, and 15th in turnovers per game. However, they're 22nd in offensive rating this year, which indicates the offense isn't playing as well as some of the surface-level numbers would suggest.

Atlanta's defense continues to be a rough watch for most of the season, and the numbers bear that out. They narrowly got enough stops to win against Memphis and they didn't allow any big performances, but giving up 122 points to a strange Grizzlies offense isn't a definitive win. They rank 25th in points allowed, 23rd in FG% allowed, 13th in 3P% allowed, 26th in rebounds allowed, 5th in steals, and 17th in blocks. They're 16th in defensive rating this year.

The return of Jalen Green to the lineup should be enormously helpful for taking some pressure off of Devin Booker Even so, Phoenix is 21st in points, 23rd in FG%, 11th on 3P%, 9th in FT%, 20th in rebounds (5th in OREB, 29th in DREB), 20th in assists and 24th in turnovers per game. They're 14th in offensive rating.

Dillon Brooks and head coach Jordan Ott have led the charge in transitioning one of the worst defenses in the NBA into a rock-solid unit that's been arguably top five. They're 5th in points allowed, 14th in FG% allowed, 5th in 3P% allowed, 11th in rebounds allowed, 2nd in steals and 26th in blocks. They are 4th in defensive rating.

Three Reasons the Hawks Can Win This Game

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, Onyeka Okongwu, Suns, Phoenix Sun — Feb 2, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) grabs a rebound past Phoenix Suns forward Keita Bates-Diop (21) and forward Drew Eubanks (14) in the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The last time these two teams faced off surprisingly came down to a stellar performance from Onyeka Okongwu. Okongwu was instrumental in erasing a 27-point fourth quarter comeback for the Hawks - he had 27 points by himself with two steals and two blocks. He did an excellent job in the matchup with Mark Williams and the Hawks are going to need a strong performance from their young center if they want to win this one.

The four-game losing streak was marked by poor games from Jalen Johnson in three of them. Fortunately, he got back on track against the Grizzlies. Against a defense anchored by Jaren Jackson Jr, Johnson had 32 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. He was particularly excellent on defense, grabbing 13 of those 15 rebounds to end defensive possessions. Phoenix has a better defense than Memphis, so they'll need a strong performance from Johnson if the Hawks have any chance of winning this game.

Even though Phoenix has gotten strong play out of Williams at the center spot, it doesn't change the fact that they are still a rather small team. That's part of why they rank 27th in points in the paint. They do a good job of protecting the paint (9th in opponents points the paint), but the lack of size from Phoenix's roster has made them a very perimeter-based team. That means that the Hawks are going to have to be extra disciplined when chasing the Suns on the perimeter and tighten up on the easy baskets at the rim. They can win this game if Phoenix is forced to live or die by three-point variance.

Three Reasons the Hawks Might Lose This Game

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, NBA, Booker, Devin Booker, Suns, Phoenix Sun — Nov 16, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) reacts after a foul is call late in the first half during a game against the Atlanta Hawks at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Allan Henry-Imagn Images | Allan Henry-Imagn Images

Last time the Suns played the Hawks, Devin Booker torched a Hawks defense that was actually playing pretty well at the time. He scored 34 points and the Hawks didn't have anyone who could really stop him. They did make him take 25 shots in order to get those points, but there really aren't a lot of ways the Hawks can go about stopping Booker and he's averaging 25.3 points and 6.3 assists on 57.7 TS%. Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels are good defenders and can certainly give him a challenge, but it's always possible that Booker carries Phoenix to a win essentially by himself.

Despite not being a very big team, it won't be as easy to dominate the paint against Phoenix as it might seem. The Suns are 7th in the NBA for second chance points and also concede the ninth-fewest points in the paint, so they compete on the boards and that effort can make up the discrepancy in size between them and most of the NBA. Phoenix also has the fourth-best defensive rating in the NBA, so this is going to be a much tougher matchup for Atlanta's offense from a physicality and effectiveness standpoint.

The Hawks are also going to be without Zaccharie Risacher and Kristaps Porzingis again for this game, which is huge considering that Phoenix isn't a very big team. Those two players have been really important parts of Atlanta's frontcourt - Risacher makes the Hawks much better in transition situations while Porzingis' impact on offense is evident in terms of how much he improves their spacing.

Injury Report

Atlanta Hawks: Zaccharie Risacher, Kristaps Porzingis and N'Faly Dante are all out.

Phoenix Suns: N/A

How to Watch

Here is how you can watch tonight's game:

Tip-off time: 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time

Location: State Farm Stadium, Atlanta, GA

Where to Watch: FanDuel Sports Network

Projected Starting Lineups

Hawks:

G - Nickeil Alexander-Walker

G - Dyson Daniels

F - Corey Kispert

F - Jalen Johnson

C - Kristaps Porzingis

Suns

G - Devin Booker

G - Collin Gillespie

F - Dillon Brooks

F - Royce O'Neale

C - Mark Williams