The Miami Heat and Hawks are both coming off wins as they meet for the first of four games this season on Saturday in Atlanta.
The Heat defeated the Orlando Magic 89-88 on Thursday, while the Hawks made a dramatic comeback to beat the Chicago Bulls 141-133 after scoring 50 points in the final quarter.
Both teams won on Thursday after facing big deficits. Miami was down 14-0 at the start of its game, and Atlanta trailed by 21 points late in the third quarter.
“That’s why you have to develop grit,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “You have to develop mental toughness, and it has to be collective toughness. Hopefully that’s a lesson, not only for the young guys but for the team in general that the ultimate deal is just find a way to win — and sometimes that gets lost.”
Atlanta’s Trae Young said, “That just shows the resilience we have on our team and how we’re not going to quit and continue to fight. This shows how good our team is when we play the right way.”
Last season, the Heat won three out of four meetings with the Hawks, sweeping both games in Atlanta.
Miami’s Tyler Herro has been a consistent problem for Atlanta. Herro is averaging a career-high 23.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.9 assists this season. He averages 18.0 points in 16 career games against the Hawks, and in three games last season, he scored 30, 25, and 33 points.
Herro hit the game-winning jumper with 0.5 seconds left to beat the Magic on Thursday.
“That just shows how mentally tough he is,” Spoelstra said. “(Orlando) really game-planned to wear on him and get him out of his comfort stuff and you have to give them credit for that. But the shot making was important.”
Miami’s Bam Adebayo has also been a tough matchup for Atlanta. Adebayo averages 17.3 points and 8.7 rebounds in 23 career games against the Hawks. He will face an Atlanta team that has been missing key players, including Onyeka Okongwu, who has missed the last four games due to left knee soreness and will not play on Saturday.
Young, who passed 11,000 career points on Thursday, leads the Hawks in scoring (22.0 points) and is No. 1 in the NBA with 12.1 assists. In 19 career games against the Heat, Young averages 22.2 points and 8.7 assists. He missed two of the four games against Miami last season due to injury but scored 27 and 30 in the games he played.
De’Andre Hunter averages 20.3 points, and Jalen Johnson contributes 19.8 points and 10.3 rebounds for Atlanta.
Besides Okongwu, the Hawks have been without key reserve Bogdan Bogdanovic, who is dealing with a left lower leg contusion. Miami is missing Pelle Larsson (right ankle sprain), and Jimmy Butler’s status is uncertain after missing the last two games due to a stomach illness.
This will be the last game of Atlanta’s four-game homestand before they begin a six-game road trip through the Western Conference.
