Final: Celtics 126, Hawks 101 - C's roll despite missing Smart, Brogdon, off night from Tatum

Game 15: Celtics (-1) at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m., State Farm Arena, NBCS Boston/ESPN

Injuries: 

Boston - Danilo Gallinari, Robert Williams, Malcolm Brogdon (right hamstring tightness), Marcus Smart (right ankle inflammation)  Atlanta: Bogdan Bogdanovic (knee)

Hawks probable starters: Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, Clint Capela, John Collins, De’Andre Hunter

Refs: Kevin Scott (#24), Eric Dalen (#37), Dedric Taylor (#21)

A little something about the game: This is the first meeting between these two teams. The Hawks are currently 3rd in the East at 9-5, with a 5-2 home record. In a little bit of a twist, the Hawks have a better defense (10th defensive rating) than offense (13th). Some of that is by design with the addition of Murray and a more defense-first attitude. Some of it is by accident, as teams are shooting about 32% from 3 against the Hawks. 

How Boston wins: Bomb away. Let’s test the tensile strength of that 3-point defense and see if some good offense can drop the Hawks defense a few points in the rankings. They are due for a regression, as they give up 3-pointers and rim attempts. However, they do have rim protectors, so funneling help that way makes sense. Still, it feels like luck that the Hawks opponent 3-point percentage is so low. Smart is out, but that doesn’t mean Derrick White and Payton Pritchard can’t handle things when it comes to distributing. A lot more of it will also fall on Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. 

Defensively, stick to Trae Young. He’s had a slow start for his standards. This would be a bad game for him to get going. 

How Atlanta wins: The Hawks love the mid-range shot. They have one of the worst shot profiles in the league, but against Boston’s drop defense, they're going to be stepping into shots they're comfortable taking. The Celtics have to be aware that the Hawks are going to thank them for leaving them too wide open from 17 feet. 

Things I’m looking for:

- Who’s the distributor? Smart’s out. Brogdon’s out. How do the Celtics account for that? Does the ball go back into Tatum’s hands like it did last year? Is this a game where he drops 12 assists and the scoring numbers come down? Can he have a super efficient game where he’s still scoring but taking fewer shots?

- Challenging their bigs: Historically the C’s shy away from attacking the rim against shot blockers. They're not alone, but I’m very pro-attack when it comes to rim protectors. Keep putting the pressure on them, and that comes with multiple paint touches, moving the ball, and drawing them out of position to capitalize on their desire to block shots to draw fouls. 

Follow along below or in the comments during the game, chime in, and let’s have fun.