Atlanta Hawks 2012 Schedule: 10 Must-Watch Games for Fans This Season
The Atlanta Hawks will look to get off to a hot start in the 2011-12 NBA regular season.
After exiting the playoffs in the second round for the third time in consecutive seasons, the Hawks have made a concerted effort at getting a more balanced bench with age and size while trying to develop their young, budding point guard, Jeff Teague.
The Hawks will be focused on getting further through the playoffs than they have in recent years, but their regular-season matchups should be a solid appetizer for what should prove to be a more than filling season.
10. @ Orlando Magic 2/10/12
1 of 10The excitement level for an Atlanta Hawks-Orlando Magic contest will waver on whether Dwight Howard is playing in Orlando or if the most dominant center in the NBA today has been traded to another team.
After Orlando point guard Jameer Nelson guaranteed to beat the Hawks in the first round of the playoffs, Atlanta took six games to send Nelson and the Magic packing for the offseason.
Nelson will be seeking revenge in Orlando's first game against Atlanta since the playoffs, when Hawks management decided it would be funny to leave two tickets for the star point guard at will call.
9. @ Los Angeles Lakers 2/14/12
2 of 10The Atlanta Hawks and Los Angeles Lakers only play once during the 2011-12 season and the two teams will face off on Valentines Day in LA.
The Lakers do not seem to be done in free agency, thus far only moving Lamar Odom, but have been speculated to be strongly pursuing Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard.
Regardless of who is the starting center, whether it be Andrew Bynum or Dwight, this game will not be lacking any star power.
8. @ New Jersey Nets 12/27/12
3 of 10Point guard Deron Williams of the New Jersey Nets against the Atlanta Hawks' Jeff Teague should be a great matchup, but Opening Day for Atlanta should be what excites Hawks fans the most.
It will be interesting to see what Williams and center Brook Lopez can put together in their first full season together. The Hawks should match up well against the Williams/Lopez combination with a Teague/Horford lineup.
Expect much more run-and-gun out of the athletic Hawks early on in the season and an intense contest from two up-and-coming teams.
7. vs. Boston Celtics 3/19/12
4 of 10When the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks get together, all anyone can remember is what put the Hawks on the map.
In the midst of their 2007-08 NBA Championship season, the Celtics were nearly derailed as the no-name Hawks took Boston to seven games. To this day, Atlanta shows the same Zaza Pachulia-Rocky Balboa montage from Game 6 of that series in crunch time.
The rivalry has extended past that, as these teams genuinely don't like each other and Boston's first return back to Atlanta in 2011-12 should bring back old feelings from the Highlight Factory faithful.
6. vs. Oklahoma City Thunder 3/03/12
5 of 10One of the highlights of the 2011-12 regular season for Atlanta Hawks fans will surely be their only contest of the year with the up-and-coming Oklahoma City Thunder.
Hawks fans will get an idea of just how healthy Marvin Williams is returning from back surgery in one of his toughest tests of the year against Kevin Durant. Hawks point guard Jeff Teague against the Thunder's Russell Westbrook will be just another franchise point guard Teague will face in his first year playing significant minutes.
Atlanta will also get to see another unfriendly face as the Thunder's Kendrick Perkins will be acclimated to playing with his new runningmates in Oklahoma City against Al Horford of the Hawks.
5. vs. Dallas Mavericks 4/26/12
6 of 10The defending NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks will close out their regular season against the Atlanta Hawks.
Just how deep the bench is at the end of the season will determine how close this game is, as the Mavericks made the most significant upgrades to theirs by adding Lamar Odom to their already stout bench.
The season-finale against Dallas could also have serious implications on playoff seeding for the Mavericks and the Hawks.
4. vs. Los Angeles Clippers 4/24/12
7 of 10Atlanta Hawks fans should watch this game for one person and one person only- Blake Griffin.
The future of the NBA will be on display as the Hawks attempt to match up with Griffin, and potentially point guard Chris Paul. The Hawks only play the Clippers twice in 2011-12, and their contest in late April is the only game played in Atlanta.
3. vs. New York Knicks 3/30/12
8 of 10Atlanta is somewhat a transplant city and New Yorkers have filled the city, so the resurgence of Knicks basketball and their return to the Highlight Factory should be the perfect recipe for a high-energy game.
Expect the Highlight Factory to be split in half, as Jeff Teague, Al Horford and Joe Johnson attempt to stave off Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and the newly-signed Mike Bibby. Another possible hot matchup is if the Knicks configure a sign-and-trade for Hawks free agent swingman Jamal Crawford.
As the Hawks enter the last month of the season, this game should give some sort of notion in which direction both teams are heading before they enter the postseason.
2. vs. Miami Heat 1/5/12
9 of 10The Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks did not meet in the postseason last year, but rest assured these teams will be out to prove themselves early in the season.
The Hawks have a vicious stretch to begin the month of January, starting in Miami January 2, to Chicago January 3, then back home to play the Heat again January 5.
This stretch will prove if the Hawks belong in the class of the Eastern Conference, or for yet another year, they are just pretenders. A victory against the defending Eastern Conference champions at the end of a tough stretch to start the season is vital to the Hawks confidence moving forward.
1. @ Chicago Bulls 1/3/12
10 of 10For the first time since their demoralizing playoff defeat from the Chicago Bulls, the Atlanta Hawks will have an opportunity to exact revenge.
Jeff Teague will get another shot at shutting down Derrick Rose, Al Horford will have another chance at stopping Joakim Noah and Kirk Hinrich could return against his former team as he attempts to return from shoulder surgery that is expected to keep him out for all of December.
The Bulls team looks dominant, but virtually the same team was pushed to six games by a depleted Hawks unit. Atlanta will also get a look at how much of an impact reserves Tracy McGrady and Vladimir Radmanovich can provide as they face championship contenders in the middle of a brutal road trip.
