Hawks Land At ACC

The Hawk might not be a rival of the Raptors but they have been annoying over the years. Remember last season and 50 point beat down they laid on the Raptors. One game at the ACC few years ago it was Jose Calderon that took a goon elbow to the back of the head. There was also Al Horford taking out T.J Ford. Oh and who can forget those wacky Atlanta score keepers that had a big role in a couple games down in the ATL. All this on top of the fact that if you built a team in the past designed to beat the Raptors they were it. Athletic and physical with lots of shot blockers and 3 point shooters. If you are a Raptor fan and don't hate the Hawks just a little not sure how that is possible.

The Basics: Atlanta 10-7 (Hawks better on Road at 6-2) Raptors 6-10 ( Home Record 4-3)

When Last We Saw Them: Raptors lost a game to Boston and more importantly lost Reggie Evans to a broken right foot. Raptors were taken to task by Rondo early and never could recover despite a nice 3 point shooting effort.

Key Match-ups: Mike Bibby is one of those players that in his career has been a Raptor killer over the years. He always has to be accounted for. When he lines up against the Raptors he turns into Reggie Miller or Ray Allen in terms of 3 point shooting. Also Al Horford will NEVER get a Christmas card from the Dino Blogger but even I admit he is balling for the Hawks. In last season's playoff when the rest of his team rolled over and played dead it was him still giving 100%. Lastly the Raptors need Amir Johnson to step up starting for an injured Reggie Evans. This is a team match-up but the battle on the glass will be key to watch for the Raptors as they begin life without Reggie for what will be an extended period of time.

Other Things Of Note: All Horford is averaging career highs in points, assists, FG% and FT%. He really has become quite the force for Atlanta. Hawks as a team are shooting lights out at 48% from field and Horford is leading the way shooting 60.6%. Hawks are on a rare afternoon back to back after playing at MSG yesterday and getting a win over the Knicks also with a afternoon tip time. Hawks also have a new head coach in Larry Drew and he sure seems to have a different approach from the Hawks last head coach which is good because it was needed.

In Case You Missed It: Welcome to Year 4 of the Dino Nation Blog. Yesterday was are anniversary and I made a video and wrote a bunch of stuff. Also do something creative and show us why you deserve Raptors and Nuggets Tickets for the MGD best seats in the house. You have till Tuesday at Midnight to get your entry in to DinoNationBlog@Gmail.com. For details on how to win check here.