Who's Playing
Matchup: Toronto Raptors vs. Atlanta Hawks
Records: Raptors (32-14), Hawks (12-35)
Where to Watch
Date: Jan. 28, 2020
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: TSN (Canada), Fox Sports Southeast or NBA League Pass (USA)
Location: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON
Game Preview
After an emotional win over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, the Raptors are back in action as they host the Hawks Tuesday night. Toronto is playing some of its best basketball as of late and looks to extend its win streak to a season-high eight games.
MORE: Raptors, Spurs pay tribute to Kobe
Leading the charge for the Raptors is Pascal Siakam, who, in the past seven days, earned his first All-Star selection, scored a franchise-record 25 points in one quarter and was named Player of the Week for the third time in his career.
After shaking some of the rust off from missing time due to a groin injury, Siakam is back to his MVP form; he's averaging a team-high 20.1 points per game during the win streak.
Siakam is one of six Raptors scoring in double figures during the win streak. Within this same span, Fred VanVleet is averaging 20.0 points (in five games), Norman Powell is averaging 19.9 points and Kyle Lowry has averaged 17.7 points while Serge Ibaka (13.1) and Marc Gasol (12.0) have provided the frontcourt scoring.
MORE: Takeaways from the last meeting between Raptors and Hawks
This is the second meeting between the two teams in the last 10 days, as the Raptors earned a five-point win over the Hawks in a wild Martin Luther King, Jr. Day matinee.
For Toronto, it was Powell who led the way with 27 points on red-hot 6-for-9 shooting from beyond the arc while Atlanta was led by its first-time All-Star in Trae Young, who put up the ridiculous stat line of 42 points, 15 assists and six rebounds.
MORE: Trae Young was Gianna Bryant's favourite player to watch
The second-year guard has proven himself to be more than worthy of the All-Star nod, as he is averaging 37.7 points (on 48.4% shooting), 15.0 assists and 4.7 rebounds over the Hawks' last four games, including Sunday's 45-point, 14-assist performance dedicated to Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna.
Completing Atlanta's one-two punch is third-year big man John Collins, who is averaging 18.7 points and 9.6 rebounds over 21 games this season. Collins is a nightly lob threat and has continued to develop as a perimeter shooter as he's hitting a career-high 1.4 triples per game at a career-best 35.4% clip.
Young and Collins lead the charge for a young core that also includes second-year guard Kevin Huerter and 2019 lottery picks De'Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish.
The Hawks are a young, exciting team that can make things difficult because of their energy and ability to get up and down the floor.
On Tuesday, they'll stand in the way of the Raptors pursuit of a season-long win streak.
Injury Report
Raptors
- Dewan Hernandez (ankle) – Out
- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (ankle) – Questionable
- Patrick McCaw (nose) – Questionable
Hawks
- DeAndre' Bembry (hand) – Out
- Bruno Fernando (calf) – Questionable
- Alex Len (hip) – Out
- Jabari Parker (shoulder) – Out
- Chandler Parsons (concussion) – Out
Game Notes
- The Raptors have won nine straight games over the Hawks, including the first two meetings this season.
- Pascal Siakam, who was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week on Monday, is averaging 26.0 points per game against the Hawks this season.
- Siakam and Hawks point guard Trae Young will both represent the Eastern Conference as starters in the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.
- Kyle Lowry is 10 assists away from passing José Calderón as the franchise's all-time leader.
- Lowry and Young are the only two players in the Eastern Conference that average 20+ points and 7+ assists per game.
- With Friday's win over the New York Knicks, the Raptors have guaranteed a winning record for the month of January. Toronto has finished with a winning record in each of the past 21 calendar months.
Last Time They Played
Date: Jan. 20, 2020
Score: Raptors 122, Hawks 117
Raptors: Norman Powell – 27 PTS (7-14 FG, 6-9 3PM), 2 STL
Hawks: Trae Young – 42 PTS (11-20 FG, 18-21 FT), 15 AST, 6 REB
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