Suns at Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks showed off the form that made them the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference on Saturday, but it came at a price. The Hawks will be without All-Star forward Paul Millsap (shoulder) when they host the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.
Millsap was injured while Atlanta was shooting 59.8 percent from the field and draining 17 3-pointers in a 131-99 thrashing of the Brooklyn Nets. Like the Nets, the Suns are struggling to stay in the race in the bottom of their respective conference and are three games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder in the No. 8 spot. Phoenix appeared to be falling out of the race entirely with a five-game losing streak but fought its way to an 87-85 win over Utah on Saturday to stay alive. The challenge only gets more difficult for the Suns, who are beginning a stretch of four straight on the road against playoff contenders.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), SportSouth (Atlanta)
ABOUT THE SUNS (39-38): Gerald Green had been in and out of the rotation and pushed to the end of the bench but got a chance on Saturday and put up 24 points in 22 minutes to spark Phoenix. “Every guy on the team should be (as ready as Gerald was). ... We needed the shooting,” Suns coach Jeff Hornacek told reporters. “That's what Gerald provided.” Phoenix is operating without its starting center in Alex Len (broken nose), leaving Brandan Wright as the lone post threat.
ABOUT THE HAWKS (57-19): Millsap left the court clutching his right shoulder after a collision in the first half on Saturday and will be handled carefully over the last week-plus with Atlanta already ensured of the No. 1 spot in the East. The Hawks got Millsap’s backup back in the win, when Mike Scott returned from an 11-game absence due to a toe injury and contributed two points in 10 minutes off the bench. Atlanta also used forward Mike Muscala in Millsap’s spot to start the second half before emptying the bench.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Hawks G Dennis Schroder (toe) has missed the last two games and is day-to-day.
2. Suns F Marcus Morris is 3-of-16 from 3-point range over the last four games.
3. Millsap had 23 points and nine rebounds in a 96-87 win at Phoenix on March 13.