Hawks to start Lou Williams against Bulls

The Hawks are shaking things up after back-to-back losses by starting Lou Williams at shooting guard against the Bulls along with Jeff Teague, Kyle Korver, Josh Smith, and Al Horford. Williams has yet to start a game for the Hawks, and hasn't started in an NBA game since the 2009-10 season. Larry Drew said that if Devin Harris were available he would have started, but he remains inactive with a foot injury. DeShawn Stevenson will be a game-time decision, and Drew said that if he has it his way DeShawn will not play if possible. With Stevenson's age, Drew is wary of playing him too many minutes in back-to-backs as to keep him fresh for later in the year. Drew wants the team to play up-tempo against the bigger, half-court oriented Bulls and thinks that by starting Lou they will be able to push the pace more.

The concern for the Hawks will have to be on the boards, as Chicago features a few different dominant rebounders, most notably Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson. Al Horford will be tasked with keeping his old college teammate Noah off the boards and it will take a lot of energy from Al as Noah is notorious for having a high-motor. Atlanta is coming off a pair of losses, first a tough loss to the Thunder, and then a bad blowout loss to the Sixers last night. The Hawks want to reestablish themselves tonight at home and head into a three-day break with a victory.