Mar 4, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) shoots over Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. (5) during the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

After being listed as probable coming into tonight’s game, Trae Young is available to play tonight vs the Bucks, as is Caris LeVert. Giannis Antetokounmpo is available to play for the Bucks.

Caris LeVert (illness) and Trae Young (right Achilles tendinitis) are both available tonight in Milwaukee.

— Lauren L. Williams (@WilliamsLaurenL) March 30, 2025

After losing to the Houston Rockets and Miami Heat this week, the Atlanta Hawks are looking to end their road trip with a win against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Hawks are currently in a tight battle for the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference and could really use this win tonight on the road. Milwaukee is going to be without Damian Lillard and Bobby Portis for this game tonight, two players who have given the Hawks plenty of problems this season.

Our own Rohan Raman gave an in-depth preview of the matchup tonight:

“Coming into tonight’s game, the Hawks are 5th in the NBA in PPG, 14th in FG%, 16th in 3PA, 18th in 3P%, 3rd in FTA, 26th in turnovers, and 13th in rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 17th in points per 100 possessions, 17th in effective field goal percentage, 21st in turnover percentage, 12th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 10th in free throw rate.

Currently, the Hawks rank 27th in PPG allowed, 28th in field goal percentage allowed, 14th in three-point attempts allowed, and 27th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, Atlanta is 17th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 28th in effective field goal percentage allowed.

The Bucks’ offense is heavily reliant on strong numbers from beyond the arc, but they are a borderline top-10 unit. They are 14th in the NBA in PPG, 5th in FG%, 18th in 3PA, 3rd in 3P%, 8th in FTA, 6th in turnovers, and 11th in rebounding. Per Cleaning the Glass, Milwaukee is 12th in points per 100 possessions, 4th in effective field goal percentage, 6th in turnover percentage, 30th in offensive rebounding percentage, and 7th in free throw rate.

Their defense warrants respect as a challenge for Atlanta to crack. The Bucks are 11th in PPG allowed, 4th in field goal percentage allowed, 22nd in three-point attempts allowed, and 6th in three-point percentage allowed. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Bucks are 12th in points allowed per 100 possessions and 6th in effective field goal percentage allowed.

In the last matchup between these two teams, the Hawks lost the game in the last minute. Caris LeVert hit a massive three-pointer to make it a 121-121 game with 1:02 on the clock before Brook Lopez responded with a dunk to give the Bucks a narrow lead. Lillard then came through with the dagger to make it a 125-121 game with 26.1 seconds left. Importantly, they were able to survive a triple-double effort from Giannis, 23 points from Lillard and a double-double from Kyle Kuzma. Not having Lillard is massive for the Bucks’ chances of winning this one. Even though he was only 2-10 in the game against the Hawks, he is critical for Milwaukee’s spacing. In the five games that he’s missed so far, the Bucks are 16th in 3P% and 19th in 3PA while being 19th in points per game. It’s a small sample size, but one of their biggest strengths essentially vanishes when Lillard is off the court.

Even so, the Hawks are still going to have a big challenge with containing Giannis. While the Bucks have slumped, he has been excellent. Giannis has been a distant third in the MVP race, but the numbers he’s putting up are still incredible. This season, he’s averaging 30.2 points, 12 rebounds and six assists on 60% from the field. He’s been lethal from midrange this year – he’s hitting 47.9% of his shots from 10-16 feet and 44% from 16 feet to three-point range. The Hawks are likely going to try Zaccharie Risacher, Mo Gueye and Georges Niang all on Giannis, but he is going to get his numbers regardless of what Atlanta does.

One area that the Bucks are especially weak in is their offensive rebounding. They’re 30th in offensive rebounding percentage and they showed that during the last Hawks-Bucks game. Milwaukee only grabbed 9 offensive boards, but the Hawks grabbed 11. If they can make that disparity wider, Atlanta could find themselves in a better position late in this game.

With Lillard out, the Bucks are going to have Ryan Rollins in the starting lineup and this is a big disadvantage for them considering how good Dyson Daniels is on opposing ball-handlers. Rollins was great against the Knicks with 20 points on 8-12 shooting, but Daniels is a much better defender than anything he’s faced so far. He’s a limited three-point shooter who takes around 2-3 per game. If he’s taking more than that, it’s a problem for Milwaukee.

Against a Bucks team that doesn’t have a ton of great perimeter defenders, this could be another good game for Niang. Over the last five games, he’s averaged 13.2 PPG on an efficient 59.5% from the field and 58.6% from three-point range. They’ve struggled to match the firepower of opposing teams, but Niang has been one of their few bright spots from a shooting standpoint.”

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