Hawks vs. Wizards preview: With Nene out, can Washington win three in a row?

When and where? 7 p.m. EST at the Verizon Center, Washington D.C.

How to watch: The local guys will have this one, so check out Comcast SportsNet. Don't have a TV? Listen live on 99.1 WNEW.

Who's out? Nobody for the Hawks. Nene and Otto Porter are both questionable while Martell Webster is still out for the home team.

Are the Hawks good? Well, they're better than their 6-5 record says. Aside from a 114-109 loss to the Lakers last Tuesday, the Hawks have lost to a batch of pretty good teams - Raptors, Spurs, Hornets, Cavaliers - and lost three of those games by a combined 12 points. The Hawks rank fourth in the NBA in assists at 24.4 per game and point guard Jeff Teague has been playing really well lately; averaging 25.5 points on 58.6 percent shooting from the field, 75 percent on threes and 14-14 on free throws over the last two games against the Pistons and Lakers. Al Horford and Kyle Korver have been playing well too and power forward Paul Millsap is the only player in the NBA averaging at least 17 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and 0.9 blocks per-game.

What happened the last time these teams played? The Wizards won at home, 101-97. Drew Gooden had 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench while John Wall led the way with 25 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals. He also did this:

Who wins? If Nene is out again, the bench bigs will have to step up to defend Millsap and Horford. Wall should take care of business against Teague and I think the Wizards ride their defense again in this one, winning their third in a row before facing the Cavaliers.

UPDATE

According to CSN Washington, Nene is out tonight and likely to miss more than just tonight's game.

Nene didn't practice for the second day in a row, and though the Wizards are listing him as "questionable" he will not play in Tuesday's game vs. the Atlanta Hawks.

"I've got to take care of this thing," he told CSNwashington.com.

Nene is going through treatments for plantar fasciitis, a soft tissue injury that's difficult to remedy, to his right foot. He dealt with it last season, too, as it caused him to miss time and play on a minutes restriction.