The Calm Before The Storm: Atlanta Hawks vs. Boston Celtics
Apr 28, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) and Atlanta Hawks guard Dennis Schroder (17) speak during the second half in game six of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports
Tomorrow night the Atlanta Hawks will face their Eastern Conference rivals the Boston Celtics. This will be the first time the Celtics have visited Atlanta since their intense series in the 2016 NBA playoffs, and this will also be Al Horford‘s first time back at Phillips Arena after signing with the Celtics in the off-season.
If you have any plans Friday night that don’t involve ESPN, you may want to cancel them. If not, you might miss one of the most entertaining games of the 2016-2017 NBA regular season. In one corner we have an offensive-minded Boston Celtics team led by Isaiah Thomas.
In the other corner we have a physical defensive team anchored by Paul Millsap, the Atlanta Hawks. Both teams have fiery young point guards in Dennis Schroder and Isaiah Thomas.
Both teams have veteran centers eager to show why their respective teams are better with them on the roster in Al Horford and Dwight Howard.
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The Celtics are currently in third place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 24-15. The Atlanta Hawks are not that far behind them in 4th place with a record of 22-16. The 2015-2016 NBA season ended with both of these teams having the exact same record (48-34).
These two teams also have the best coaches in the Eastern Conference. Both Mike Budenholzer and Brad Stevens are geniuses with a sharpie.
They too will be looking to go at each other. In terms of basketball, these two teams are pretty evenly matched, but this game means way more than just X’s and O’s.
Al Horford’s Homecoming
This summer Al Horford signed a four-year, $113 million contract with the Boston Celtics. This was a shock to Hawks fans, especially after Atlanta beat the Celtics in the playoffs. The Atlanta Hawks drafted Al with the third overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft. Horford had been with the Hawks since then. Some Hawks fans were angry, but some settled with having hometown hero Dwight Howard.
In fact, some fans were ecstatic that the Hawks finally signed a guy that would solve the rebounding problem they suffered from for so long. So far, Al is averaging 15.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 4.9 assists’s. Horford is obviously the more versatile player, but Dwight Howard is destroying Horford on the boards with 13.4 rebounds per night. Howard is also leading the league in offensive rebounds.
Tomorrow will be the first time Horford plays in Phillips Arena in a Celtics jersey, and no one knows exactly how the crowd will react. Will they Boo Al? Will they clap for Al? Will Horford have a good game? Or will the attention be too much for him? According to Horford’s dad in an article from Sports Illustrated, the reason for Horford leaving was because of Atlanta’s attendance at games.
“There wasn’t as much motivation for him when he saw all the empty seats when they were winning,” Tito Horford said. “He said to me, ‘Dad, when we were playing Boston, they were down 15 points and they were cheering their team like they were winning the game. They’re so into the game.’ This is special for us, especially for him. “Ever since Boston, Danny Ainge and the whole organization began to show interest in him, that opened his eyes. He always had a good feel about Boston.”
This statement alone should have the arena loud and packed to capacity in attempt to prove to Horford that signing with Boston was the wrong move.
Isaiah Thomas vs. Dennis Schroder
During the playoffs last year, Dennis Schroder and Isaiah Thomas had words with each other, and illegal contact throughout the series that eventually forced both of them to be restrained from fighting each other at the end of game 6. Dennis is known to be a scrappy trash talker. He’s got into with players that range from Demarcus Cousins, Carmelo Anthony, to a number of Cavaliers players at one time. It also doesn’t help that Dennis plays very aggressive defense. This can be irritating especially to a scorer.
Dennis isn’t scared of anything, and Isaiah Thomas isn’t either. Thomas is only 5″9′, but he’s shown he won’t back down to a challenge. Thomas is currently averaging 27.9 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 6.1 assists. Dennis is averaging 17.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 6.3 assists. Thomas is more experienced and skilled than Schroder is, but Dennis has shown he can hold his own against the leagues elite. This match-up will be fun to watch.
With Horford returning to Phillips, Dennis and Isaiah’s bad blood, and Atlanta’s quest to move up a seed, this game should be good one. This game is also on ESPN which is why both teams will be looking to prove why the Cavalier’s aren’t automatically the favorites to go to the finals this season.
