The Atlanta Hawks wrapped up the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference on Friday and then promptly sat all of their starters in the loss on Saturday. Using a lineup completely comprised of the reserves, the Hawks fell by five points to Charlotte. Insisting it was simply to give the backups more playing time in order to prepare for the postseason, the Hawks will look to get back on track as the Milwaukee Bucks come to town on Monday.
The Hawks were led by Kent Bazemore who notched 20 points in the loss while Mike Muscala got a career-high 18 points and 10 rebounds in his most playing time this season. Dennis Schroder also tied a career-high with 17 points and 11 assists. It was certainly not a lineup most people recognized, but head coach Mike Budenholzer believes that extended playing time for the reserves will only make the Hawks that much better for postseason play.
The regular starting lineup is expected against the Bucks while Jeff Teague remains uncertain following a sprained ankle injury. DeMarre Carroll, Kyle Korer, Al Horford and Paul Millsap will all be back in action as they face a Milwaukee team who has lost 10 straight on the road. Having gone 3-7 in their last 10 games overall, the Bucks really need a win at this point in the season.
Milwaukee is healthier than they have been in recent weeks. Jared Dudley and OJ Mayo continue to improve despite the team's loss to Golden State over the weekend. Both players returned from injury to earn 13 and eight points respectively after various injuries. The Bucks are counting on both players to step up towards the end of the season. One thing hurting Milwaukee is the absence of Brandon Knight. Since trading the point guard, the Bucks are 6-14 with Michael Carter-Williams while their shooting percentage has dropped to 43.2 percent from 46.6 percent.
The Bucks are hoping to get to .500 and pick up some winning momentum, but the team has struggled with consistency that might hurt them. Currently sitting in the No. 6 spot in the playoff race, the Bucks would be wise not to let a game slip away from them.
Watch Hawks vs. Bucks live stream, click here.
