The hot Toronto Raptors will take a three-game winning streak into Atlanta on Friday when they begin a five-game road trip against the Hawks.
The Raptors beat the Hawks 138-118 in the season opener and immediately dropped their next four. Since then, they’ve won three in a row, including Tuesday’s 128-100 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Hawks are coming off an impressive 127-112 victory against the Orlando Magic. Atlanta has won three of its last four games, with two coming since the loss of All-Star guard Trae Young for at least four weeks with a sprained right MCL.
The game is part of the NBA Cup. Both teams are 1-0 in the in-season tournament. The Hawks reached the competition’s semifinal round a year ago.
“We’ve got a couple of days of practice to get ready for this weekend,” said Atlanta’s Onyeka Okongwu, whose team has a back-to-back home set against Toronto and the Los Angeles Lakers. “We’ve got a Cup game against Toronto and we definitely want to get back to Vegas.”
Atlanta will need to do a better job defensively on Toronto’s Scottie Barnes this time. He had 22 points, nine assists and six rebounds in the first meeting. It was a sign of good things to come for Barnes, who has scored in double figures in seven of eigh
