Hawks at Magic
THE STORY: The Atlanta Hawks travel to Orlando to take on the Magic on Friday for the first of three meetings between the clubs this season. It’s also the first contest between the Southeast Division rivals since the Hawks dispatched the Magic in the first round of the playoffs last year. Atlanta can pull within one game of the division lead if it can find a way to slow down an Orlando team which has won five of its last six games.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, SportSouth (Atlanta), SunSports (Orlando)
ABOUT THE HAWKS (17-9): Atlanta snapped its three-game losing streak with a 97-87 win over Indiana on Wednesday. The Hawks begin a stretch where they play six of their next seven games on the road, with the only home contest on Sunday against the Miami Heat. Shooting guard Joe Johnson has led the way for Atlanta this season scoring 18.6 points per game. The Hawks are 13-1 when their leading scorer finishes with at least 18 points.
ABOUT THE MAGIC (16-10): Dwight Howard’s trade value has never been higher than it is right now. Howard has posted massive numbers in his last five games amid intensifying trade rumors. The center is averaging 25.4 points and 16 rebounds over his last five contests, including a massive 25-point, 24-rebound effort against Miami on Wednesday. The Magic play four of their next five games at home, where they’ve posted a 12-2 record. Orlando is a perfect 5-0 against divisional foes this campaign.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Dwight Howard has 20 double-doubles this season and 434 double-doubles during his career, the most in the NBA since he entered the league in 2004-05.
2. Magic forward Ryan Anderson is leading the NBA with 74 3-pointers made.
3 .Joe Johnson is 39 points shy of becoming the seventh Hawk to reach 10,000 points. Having just reached the 2,500 assist mark, Johnson would be the 10th active player to amass 10,000 points and 2,500 assists with the same team, joining Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, LeBron James, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Paul Pierce and Dwyane Wade.