Pistons at Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks led the Eastern Conference with a franchise-record 60 wins last season but were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals and are being overlooked as a possible contender in the East this season. The Hawks will set about proving the doubters wrong when they host the Detroit Pistons in the 2015-16 opener on Tuesday.
Atlanta was considered the underdog in the 2014-15 postseason to LeBron James and the Cavaliers despite its win total and goes into the 2015-16 campaign in the same position. The Hawks lost starting small forward DeMarre Carroll to the Toronto Raptors in free agency and brought in center Tiago Splitter from the San Antonio Spurs, pushing Al Horford and Paul Millsap over one spot in the frontcourt and transforming the team into one of the biggest in the East. The Pistons are entering the second season of the Stan Van Gundy era and built some depth into the roster in the offseason to support budding stars Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson. Ersan Ilyasova and Marcus Morris will start alongside Drummond in the frontcourt and rookie forward Stanley Johnson is expected to log heavy minutes.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Detroit, FSN Southeast (Atlanta)
ABOUT THE PISTONS (2014-15: 32-50): Van Gundy was given control over personnel when he took the job and has spent the last year remaking the roster. Detroit lost veteran forward Greg Monroe in free agency but is building around Drummond, Jackson and Johnson while bringing veterans Anthony Tolliver and Jodie Meeks off the bench. “You never want to read too much – good or bad – into the preseason, but I hope depth will be a big thing,” Van Gundy told reporters. “I go into it thinking that it will. I’ve got confidence virtually in everybody on our roster being able to go in and play.”
ABOUT THE HAWKS (2014-15: 60-22): The key to Atlanta’s offense last season was its ability to spread the floor with the 3-point shot, keyed by Kyle Korver’s 49.2 percent from beyond the arc in the regular season. Korver dipped to 35.5 percent in the playoffs and underwent surgeries to his elbow and ankle during the offseason. “I feel like I still have a little ways to go physically,” Korver, who knocked down 8-of-23 from 3-point range in the preseason, told the team’s official website. “Everything is not quite connected yet in my shooting. Shooting is all about rhythm and confidence, and sometimes those are the last things that get there.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Pistons blasted the Hawks 115-87 at home in the final preseason game on Friday but dropped three of four meetings in the 2014-15 regular season.
2. Atlanta was an Eastern Conference-best 35-6 at home last season.
3. Detroit picked up its 2016-17 team options on G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and F Reggie Bullock.