W2W4: Brooklyn Nets vs Atlanta Hawks in London

Posted by Unknown on Thursday, January 16, 2014 with No comments
By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

January 16th, 2014

W2W4: Brooklyn Nets vs. Atlanta Hawks

The Brooklyn Nets will be across the pond playing against the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday afternoon, as the Nets will be looking to bounce back after an exhausting loss in Toronto. Brooklyn is now (15-22) on the season, which is four games behind the Raptors in the Atlantic Division.

- London Calling

Thursday will be the first NBA game of the season in London between the Nets and Hawks, and with the game in London lots of difficulties for both teams. Although they haven’t played since Saturday night, the jet lag maybe in affect for Brooklyn, as traveling overseas and adjusting sleeping schedules is never easy. The Nets have also had to partake in a lot of NBA duties, as they try to build more of a following overseas, and of course the team has been doing sight-seeing.

- Joe Cool

Without Deron Williams on Thursday, once again the Nets will be leaning on Joe Johnson for a big scoring day against his former team. Johnson has found his groove with Williams out, as in his last four games he is averaging 23.2 points per game. Johnson will be going for a nice career milestone, as he can become the 20th player in NBA history to make 1,500 three-pointers. In their most recent game against the Hawks on January 6th, Johnson had a great game scoring 23 points on 10 for 22 shooting. If Johnson can have another game like that on Thursday, the Nets will be in a great position to win.

- Do It Again

In the January 6th win, Brooklyn did a great job slowing down the best three scorers for the Hawks. Without Al Horford the pressure to score has gone up for Jeff Teague, Paul Millsap, and Kyle Korver, but earlier in the month the Nets seemed very well prepared for that. The three Hawks combined for 39 points on 10 for 32 shooting in their loss. If Brooklyn can replicate this defensive performance in London, they should be heading back to the U.S. with a win.