Hawks vs Clippers: Game Preview, Injury Report, Projected Starting Lineup for Tonight's Matchup

It's hard to find two more disimilar games than the Atlanta Hawks' last two games. In their double OT win, Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker went shot for shot with Tyrese Maxey and the Hawks torched Philadelphia's defense for 142 points. They looked formidable on offense, but they made multiple mental mistakes on defense that kept them from closing out Philadelphia until double overtime.

The Pistons game was completely different - neither team cleared 100 points and Atlanta held the Pistons to 19.2% shooting from deep. However, Detroit beat them up on the boards (60 rebounds to Atlanta's 38) - some clutch shot-making from Cade Cunningham was enough to overcome 22 turnovers and beat Atlanta's defense.

Tonight's game should be a far easier test than either of their two previous opponents. The Los Angeles Clippers have been one of the most dissapointing teams across the NBA this season and they're nursing a five game losing streak. LA just got blown out by the Miami Heat despite getting a 36-point performance from Kawhi Leonard. James Harden has been doing his best to carry the Clippers as a playmaker, but there is just too little talent on this Clippers roster for it to make a difference. It's one of the oldest and slowest rosters in the league while being in a state of disarray. They just sent franchise legend Chris Paul home from their road trip and they're about to give a lottery pick to the OKC Thunder in a loaded 2026 draft class. It's hard to find an opponent that has struggled as much as the Clippers in recent weeks.

By the Numbers

After a tough night from the Hawks on offense against the Pistons, they'll be in search of a big performance tonight to get themselves right. They're 16th in points, 9th in FG%, 9th in 3P%, 20th in FT%, 25th in rebounds (25th in OREB, 18th in DREB), 1st in assists and 18th in turnovers per game. They're 17th in offensive rating on the year.

Even though they didn't win and the Pistons shot themselves in the foot plenty of times on offense, it was still a strong night for the Hawks on defense. On a per-game basis, the Hawks rank 12th in points allowed, 10th in FG% allowed, 6th in 3P% allowed, 24th in rebounds allowed, 5th in steals and 9th in blocks. They're 8th in defensive rating on the year, which is a testament to how well they've been playing overall on defense.

Despite having James Harden and Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers' offense has looked toothless as of late. These two players are completely overtaxed and they aren't receiving much support from anyone on the roster outside of Ivica Zubac. They're 26th in points, 16th in FG%, 16th in 3P%, 1st in FT%, 26th in rebounds (26th in OREB, 24th in DREB), 28th in assists and 21st in turnovers per game. They're 20th in offensive rating this season.

The Clippers have made the playoffs in the past two seasons primarily off the strength of their defense and ability to slow down opposing offenses. That identity has been completely shattered to start the season. They're 22nd in points allowed, 22nd in FG% allowed, 29th in 3P% allowed, 10th in rebounds allowed, 17th in steals and 17th in blocks. Their lack of depth and atheleticism is why they're 27th in defensive rating.

Three Reasons Atlanta Can Win This Game

Clippers, Los Angeles Clippers, Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, Daniels, Dyson Daniel — Nov 10, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) moves to the basket against Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac (40) during the second half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Atlanta completely outclasses LA in terms of their pace and transition play. They're third in the NBA for points off of turnovers and fourth in fast-break points while LA is 26th in points given up off of turnovers and 29th in fast-break points given up. They just don't have a lot of players who can run in transition and they're in the bottom third of the NBA for turnovers. It isn't a great formula for winning games and Atlanta should have a ton of easy buckets by virtue of just being more athletic than LA.

LA particularly struggles to find secondary sources of offense whereas Atlanta's depth has been critical to their wins without Trae Young. James Harden is a good bet for a double-double and Kawhi Leonard is a threat to score 30+ points anytime he's in the lineup. Conversley, the All-NBA season that Jalen Johnson is having is being supported by a career-best season from Nickeil Alexander-Walker and strong complementary seasons from Onyeka Okongwu, Vit Krejci and Mo Gueye. Dyson Daniels hasn't been as good as he was last season, but his two-way impact still far outstrips anyone on the Clippers. That balanced approach to the team's offense is why Atlanta leads the league in assists despite not having the 2024-25 assists leader in their starting lineup.

Atlanta is also uniquely poised to handle the few strengths that the Clippers have on the roster. In their last matchup with LA, James Harden went nuclear and scored 35 points on 12-23 shooting while also dishing out 11 assists. Not a single other Clipper scored over 15 points. Now, the Hawks have Nickeil Alexander-Walker back in the lineup to slow down Harden and their personnel matches up well with limiting Kawhi Leonard. Johnson has frequent mental lapses on defense and gets blown by a good amount of the time, but Leonard isn't necessarily an explosive athlete anymore and the Hawks can match him with the trio of Johnson, Okongwu and Gueye.

Three Reasons Atlanta Might Lose This Game

Atlanta Hawks, Hawks, Risacher, Zaccharie Risacher, NB — Nov 10, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (1) shoots against Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher (10) during the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Kawhi Leonard has played in 11 of a possible 22 games and he's actually looked reasonably healthy in the games he's played. He's averaging 26.4 points, which is his highest average in the last four years on a staggering 64.8 TS%. Leonard's been red-hot from deep, connecting on 43.5% of his threes while taking six of them a night. Even though the Hawks can slow down Leonard, it's hardly a guarantee that they do considering how well he's playing.

One of LA's few strengths is that they lead the league in FT%. They're only 21st in FTA, so it isn't like they can rely on production from free throws in order to make up the gap on offense between them and their opponent. However, if the game gets close, it's hard to see a scenario where the Hawks win because of missed free throws down the stretch like they had against the 76ers. Tyrese Maxey missing two straight free throws was a massive lucky break for Atlanta and it's incredibly unlikely the Hawks win without it. That shouldn't be a factor against the Clippers.

During the Hawks' last matchup against the Clippers, they were incredibly reliant on an outlier shooting performance from Vit Krejci to win. Part of that stems from having to play Keaton Wallace 26 minutes, but it shouldn't be completely dismisssed how badly usual starters like Dyson Daniels and Zaccharie Risacher played against the Clippers. Both of those players need to be more aggressive against LA and capitalize on their open shots.

Injury Report

Atlanta Hawks: Trae Young, Kristaps Porzingis and Jacob Toppin are out.

Los Angeles Clippers: Bradley Beal, Derrick Jones Jr and Bogdan Bogdanovic are out while Jordan Miller is questionable.

How to Watch

Here is how you can watch tonight's game:

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

Location: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA

Where to Watch: FanDuel Sports Network

Projected Starting Lineups

Hawks

G - Dyson Daniels

G - Nickeil Alexander-Walker

F - Zaccharie Risacher

F - Jalen Johnson

C - Kristaps Porzingis

Clippers

G - James Harden

G - Kris Dunn

F - Kawhi Leonard

F - John Collins

C - Ivica Zubac