What a tremendous night from the Atlanta Hawks' alleged best-dressed player in the season opener against the Memphis Grizzlies. Al Horford got into foul trouble early, which brought Zaza Pachulia into the game early. Zaza quickly took control, dominating in the paint, on the boards and taking full advantage of Atlanta's motion offense.
Pachulia leads all Hawks with 13 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and has nine rebounds. He has done just about whatever he wanted to in the paint, pushing Zach Randolph aside to grab an offensive board in the waning minutes of the second quarter.
"I'm just doing my job," Pachulia told the SportsSouth TV crew at the break. "I had opportunity and found position (on the offensive glass)."
Joe Johnson quietly has 11 points for the Hawks, who are connecting on 56-percent (23-for-41) of their shots from the field.
Other notes from the opener:
- The Atlanta bench holds a 31-4 advantage over their Memphis counterparts.
- Memphis, one of the best perimeter teams in the West, didn't connect on a three-pointer until late in the second quarter.
- Atlanta holds a 23-17 edge on the glass.