Hawks Win on the Road, Heat Look for Another Win Against the Lakers
On Wednesday night, the Atlanta Hawks (22-19) narrowly defeated the Orlando Magic (11-32), 112-109. This was an especially sweet win considering the Hawks have continually struggled away from their home court, entering Wednesday’s game with a 6-13 road record.
During the final quarter, Atlanta had a 19-point lead but needed to hit six free throws in the game’s last 40 seconds to get the win.
Paul Millsap
The MVP nod went to Paul Millsap, who scored 24 points (9-for-17 shooting), six rebounds, five assists and blocks and three steals. Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said of Millsap via the Associated Press, “I wish they could put a leadership column on the stat sheet. Tonight when we got down, Paul was the one that pulled them together. All the other stuff is great … but I think it’s his leadership, and I think our group needs that going forward.”
Jeff Teague contributed 23 points and for the night, seven players scored in double-figures. Kyle Korver expanded his league record to 110 straight games with a minimum of one 3-pointer.
As for the Magic, they had hoped to continue their short-lived turnaround. On Sunday, the defeated the Boston Celtics(15-29), 93-91, which ended a 10-game losing streak but now they’re back on a skid as they’ve lost two straight beginning with Tuesday’s 101-90 loss to the Brooklyn Nets (18-22). The Magic have now lost their last 12 of 13 games.
On Wednesday, rookie Victor Oladipo led in scoring with 24 points, followed by Tobias Harris’ 19 points and 12 rebounds. Jameer Nelson added 17 points.
For the Hawks, they’ll take Thursday night off and then play the San Antonio Spurs (32-10) on Friday. They sit at 75/1 to win the 2014 NBA Championship.
Heat vs. the Lakers
On Thursday, the Miami Heat (30-12) will host the Los Angeles Lakers (16-26). In their last meeting on Christmas Day, the Heat won 101-95 with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade each scoring 23 points while the Heat shot 51.3 percent along with a 58-26 advantage for scoring in the paint.
The Heat will enter this matchup confidently as they’ve won three straight against the Lakers with a recent seven of eight win record in this series.
LeBron James
LeBron James said of the game via ESPN.com, “It’s a good test for us. The Lakers are a really good team, too. They’re just in an unbelievable conference,. Obviously we know what the Spurs and OKC are all about. We’re looking forward to playing against these three teams, but it starts with the Lakers, and then we go from there.”
Miami had Wednesday night off but had defeated the Boston Celtics 93-84 on Tuesday. James was the team’s leading scorer with 29 points (11 in the fourth quarter). It was without Dwyane Wade for a third straight game due to knee problems but Chris Bosh added 16 points (7-of-10 shooting).
As for the Lakers, they had a two-game win streak going but lost to the Chicago Bulls (21-20) on Monday in OT, 102-100. They have now gone 3-13 and not helping matters is the number of injured players.
On Monday, fortunately Pau Gasol stepped up for 20 points with a season-high 19 rebounds and five blocks. Over the last five games, he has a 22.0-point average (53 percent shooting) with 12.4 rebounds.
Look for Kobe Bryant to remain on the bench. On Wednesday, ESPN reported that Bryant’s knee will be examined early next week when the team returns from its seven-game road tour.
Xavier Henry will also be out for Thursday’s game. He resumed practice on Wednesday and could return for Sunday’s game against the New York Knicks (15-27).
The Lakers other injured guards, Steve Blake, Jordan Farmar and Steve Nash, remain “status quo” and aren’t scheduled to return soon.
The Heat appear to own the Lakers and will continue to do so on Thursday with another win (-12, 209.5 o/u).
