Hawks at Pacers
The Indiana Pacers have 24 games remaining in the regular season, starting with Friday’s home contest against the Atlanta Hawks, and the return of Glenn Robinson III should help out a team looking to solidify its playoff positioning. The small forward makes his season debut after missing four months following left ankle surgery, as the Pacers sit fifth in the Eastern Conference just two games behind third-place Cleveland entering Thursday.
“I’m definitely ready to play. I’m excited,” Robinson told reporters after Wednesday’s practice, the 24-year-old reiterating he is anxious to start his season after averaging 6.1 points in 69 games for Indiana in 2016-17. The Pacers entered the break with three consecutive victories and take on an Atlanta team that went into the intermission tied with Phoenix for the NBA’s worst record. The Hawks have five victories away from home, matching Memphis for the lowest total in the league, and have dropped four of their past five overall. “I think we’ve been building and getting better on both ends of the court,” Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer told the media following Wednesday’s practice, adding that he expects to continue mixing veterans with inexperienced players during the Hawks’ final 23 games.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FS Southeast (Atlanta), FS Indiana
ABOUT THE HAWKS (18-41): Atlanta trailed by 30 points in its final game prior to the break at Detroit before a furious rally fell just short in a 104-98 loss. The Hawks played that game without the starting backcourt of Dennis Schroder (back) and Kent Bazemore (rest), but both are expected to return for Friday’s contest. Schroder leads Atlanta in scoring at 19.5 points per game while rookie forward John Collins averages 10.2 points on 58 percent shooting and seven rebounds off the bench.
ABOUT THE PACERS (33-25): Indiana has won nine of its past 12 games and is averaging 108.4 points per 100 possessions, ranking sixth in the NBA. Guard Victor Oladipo (24.4 points per game) comes out of the break 11th in the league in scoring and third in steals (2.1), and averaged 30 points and seven rebounds in his past three games. Second-year center Domantas Sabonis is averaging 12.1 points and 8.2 rebounds in his first season with the Pacers, after averaging 5.9 points and 3.6 rebounds with Oklahoma City as a rookie.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Indiana won the first meeting of the season against the Hawks, 105-95 on Dec. 20 in Atlanta, as Oladipo finished with 23 points.
2. The Pacers are third in the league in shooting from the field (48 percent) and sixth from beyond the arc (37.3 percent).
3. Indiana G Darren Collison, out since Feb. 3 following surgery on his left knee, could return before the end of the month.