Hawks Injury Report: Josh Smith, who was inactive on Sunday's win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, is expected to play and start tonight. Johan Petro (lower back pain) is still listed as questionable.
Pacers Injury Report: The Indiana Pacers announced today that their All-Star forward, Danny Granger, will be out for the next three months nursing his left knee. Danny Granger was the top scorer (18.7 ppg) for the Pacers' last season and was always the go-to player in late game situations, so this is a crushing blow to the team. Jeff Pendergraph, who sat out in their last game with a headache, is questionable.
Hawks Player(s) to watch: With the Hawks going with the "big lineup" tonight, Josh Smith moves down to the Small Forward spot. The amount of minutes he'll play in that position is still up in the air, but if he plays there for a significant amount, he's the player we have to spotlight. As good of a defender Sam Young is, he doesn't have the size to completely contain Josh Smith one-on-one. Josh Smith should have his way tonight, as long as "Mid-Range Shawty" isn't firing up too many jump shots.
Pacers Player(s) to watch: The Pacers front-court. The Pacers are one of the best rebounding teams in the league due to their size and willingness to crash the boards on seemingly every single play. The Hawks have already shown a weakness in rebounding in their season opener game against the Houston Rockets, so this is something to watch for. The Hawks are pretty undersized on every single position (especially the front-court), so they have to hone in and focus on rebounding tonight.
Additional SB Nation Coverage: SB Nation Atlanta, Indy Cornrows