I'll admit it. I'm nervous about tonight's game. With the league's worst team coming to town and a big game coming up on Thursday against the Mavericks, I'm a little worried that we are in danger of overlooking tonight's opponent, the Sacramento Kings.

For the most part, the Hawks haven't really given much reason to worry this year. With the exception of the Clippers, they haven't lost to a bad team at home*.

*I don't even really include the Clippers, because they were healthy in that game. I know they are the Clippers and all, but if they'd been healthy all season they should have at least been in the mix for the last playoff spot in the West. The Nets beat us too, but they are just a bad match-up for us.

The Hawks have been busting streaks left and right of late, but it would be a bad thing to add to that list tonight.

Sacramento comes to town at 0-26 against the Eastern Conference. No team has ever lost every single game to the opposing conference, and with only 4 games left to avoid that mark, I think the Kings will be playing a bit desperate.

That shouldn't matter due to the difference in talent on the floor for both teams tonight, but if the Hawks don't come with the effort it could spell trouble.

In the meantime, there are a couple games on the NBA slate tonight that bear keeping an eye on. At this point, I think you have to say the Hawks are pretty much locked into the 4-5 match-up for the playoffs. So really, the outcomes you root for will depend on who you'd like to see Atlanta face off against in the first round.

Do you prefer the one-trick pony Heat (though Wade is quite a trick)? Do you prefer the Pistons, who the Hawks beat 3-0 in the season series? Or do you like the Sixers, who lack the kind of explosive point guard that has been the achilles heel for Atlanta all year long? Just some things to keep in mind as we hit the home stretch.

Here are tonight's match-ups:

Pistons at Mavericks
What we'd like to see: For the sake of securing the 4 spot, likely though it is over the Pistons, we should probably continue to root for them to lose until it's guaranteed. Ideally, this game will go several OTs to tire the Mavs out for Thursday's game at Philips Arena.

Sixers at Lakers
What we'd like to see: Is what we'll probably see - the Lakers continuing to run roughshod through the NBA, and the Sixers falling another half-game back of the Hawks.