Mavericks at Hawks
The last time Atlanta played at home it suffered a surprising lopsided loss and picked up a second consecutive defeat for the first time in over three months. The Hawks, who still own an NBA-high 25 home wins, will attempt to regain their dominance at Philips Arena when they welcome the Dallas Mavericks to town Wednesday night. Behind 23 points and 16 rebounds from Paul Millsap, Atlanta notched a 97-86 win at Milwaukee on Sunday to avoid its first three-game skid of the season.
The Hawks will have had two full days of rest since that triumph, while the Mavericks will have flown in late after rallying to knock off Toronto by a 99-92 margin on Tuesday night. The second-half charge came after point guard Rajon Rondo was benched following a verbal exchange with head coach Rick Carlisle, a stain on the squad's third straight victory. Rondo's second game with Dallas was a 105-102 loss to Atlanta on Dec. 22.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas), SportSouth (Atlanta)
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (39-20): Dallas has the depth to fill in gaps when they appear, as evidenced by the play of guards J.J. Barea and Devin Harris after Rondo was excused from Tuesday's win. The pair of reserves combined for 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting, eight assists and four steals, with Barea scoring eight points in the final quarter to complete the comeback. Rondo has a total of 17 assists and 14 turnovers in his four games since returning from facial fractures earlier this month.
ABOUT THE HAWKS (44-12): Atlanta ranks last in the NBA in offensive rebounds (8.6), but it has thrived in that category of late. The Hawks had 17 offensive boards in their big loss to Toronto and then grabbed 16 more against Milwaukee, eight by Millsap, which led to a 19-7 advantage in second-chance points. All-Star guard Jeff Teague, who has scored in double figures in a career-high 27 straight games, missed the first meeting with Dallas with a hamstring strain.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Dallas PF Dirk Nowitzki needs two 3-pointers to match Tim Hardaway (1,542) for 20th on the NBA's all-time list.
2. Eleven of Hawks SG Kyle Korver's last 12 baskets have come from beyond the arc.
3. Mavericks SF Chandler Parsons (ankle) is expected to miss his third straight game.