A pair of familiar foes will meet for the third time this season on Friday, as the Atlanta Hawks host the Washington Wizards in NBA Cup pool play.
Washington’s only two wins this season have come against Atlanta, with the Wizards defeating their Southeast Division rivals 121-119 on the road on October 28 and 133-120 at home on October 30. Now, as East Group C opponents in the NBA’s in-season event, Washington will look to end its six-game losing streak.
In their last game, the Wizards fell to the San Antonio Spurs 139-130, despite Jordan Poole’s 42 points being overshadowed by Victor Wembanyama’s career-high 50 points. Washington trailed 122-101 with seven minutes left but closed the gap to six points with 1:40 remaining before ultimately falling short.
Poole’s 42 points were his highest since being traded to Washington in the 2023 offseason. Through ten games this season, Poole has averaged 22.2 points per game, up from 17.4 points last season.
Alongside Poole, Kyle Kuzma is averaging 15.8 points per game, followed by Bilal Coulibaly at 15.3 points per game. Jonas Valanciunas, who plays primarily off the bench, has averaged 12.7 points and a team-best 7.8 rebounds.
The Hawks are coming off their best win of the season, stunning the defending champion Boston Celtics 117-116 on Tuesday in their first NBA Cup group-play game. Atlanta, which had lost three of four games heading into the matchup, defeated host Boston without Trae Young (Achilles tendinitis). Young leads the team with 23.9 points and 11.5 assists per game.
Jalen Johnson stepped up in Young’s absence with an 18-point, 12-rebound, 10-assist triple-double, while Dyson Daniels added 28 points, seven assists, and six steals.
Daniels, acquired from the New Orleans Pelicans in the trade that sent Dejounte Murray to New Orleans, has brought a much-needed defensive mindset to the Hawks. Last season, Atlanta allowed 120.5 points per game, tied for second most in the NBA with Washington. The Hawks added Daniels in hopes of disrupting opposing offenses, and he has delivered 23 steals in his last four outings, increasing his league-leading total to 3.6 steals per game. Poole is second with 2.3 steals.
Offensively, Daniels has seen his scoring increase from 5.8 points to 14.3 points per game this season. Following Johnson’s second-career triple-double, the fourth-year player is averaging 19.0 points and a team-best 10.2 rebounds per game.
