Atlanta Hawks Favored To Snap Phoenix Suns' Winning Run Following Kevin Durant Trade

The Phoenix Suns are under new management and they are hoping that this would help fire them up when they visit the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, Febrary 9 at the State Farm Arena.

In their regular0season series, the Hawks routed the Suns in their first meeting last week, 132-00.

That alone should be added motivation for Phoenix to level the count.

The Suns are on a three-game winning run, their last win of which came at the expense of the Brooklyn Nets, 116-112.

Deandre Ayton led the way for the Suns with 35 points and 15 rebounds, while Mikal Bridges chipped in 21 markers and eight boards.

The game also saw the return of Devin Booker, who finished with 19 points and six assists.

However, the 26-year-old has been listed as out against the Hawks.

But in a recent development, the Suns may have to play without several players following reports that Jae Crowder, Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges plus four first-round draft picks and a 2028 pick swap were sent to the Brooklyn Nets to acquire Kevin Durant.

T.J. Warren was reportedly part of the deal and will be headed to Phoenix as well.

For the Hawks, getting back on the winning track is their prerogative as they dropped their second-straight game against the New Orleans Pelicans with Brandon Ingram call the shots with 30 points and eight assists.

Dejounte Murray manned the offense for the Hawks with 19 points, seven assists, and five rebounds while Trae Young added 16 markers and a game-high 16 dimes.

For Hawks coach Nate McMillan, his wards need to hustle more if they are to break out of their losing spell.

"They won the hustle game," Hawks coach Nate McMillan stated. "Every loose ball, every long rebound, it seemed like they got and we just seemed to be a step slow throughout the night."

Aside from that, it remains to be seen if the Hawks will pull off a last-minute trade with the NBA trade deadline coming to a close.

The name of John Collins has been mentioned in trade rumor talks and has been linked to a potential move to the Utah Jazz.

However, it remains to be seen if the Jazz would still have the same level of interest after participating in a three-team trade that involved the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt are now with the Lakers, two names who were linked to a potential deal for Collins.

The Hawks are slightly favored to prevail and are -1 spread favorites over the Suns.

Moreover, the moneyline is -108 for Atlanta and -109 for Phoenix.

The Hawks vs. Suns game will be shown over Bally Sports SE-ATL at 7:30 PM ET with live streaming also available via the NBA League Pass.