5 things to watch: Spurs vs. Hawks

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The San Antonio Spurs (1-2) will continue their preseason road trip with a visit to Atlanta (1-2) to face the Hawks.

The Spurs are coming off a loss to the Nuggets in Denver 94-98. Kawhi Leonard finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Cory Joseph finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists while Tiago Splitter scored 12 points.

The Hawks are coming off a 73-105 loss to New Orleans. Al Horford led the Hawks with 21 points and 6 rebounds.

As the Spurs continue their slate of preseason games, and visit former Spurs coach Mike Budenholzer who is now the Hawks head coach, here are five things to watch for during tonight's preseason contest.

• The continued meshing of Jeff Ayres and Marco Belinelli. The two new Spurs will get another game under their belts which can only help them learn the Spurs' system as the regular season nears.

• Dan Nwaelele and Courtney Fells. The Spurs recently waived Corey Maggette, Marcus Cousin and Myck Kabongo which means the two will have ample time to impress the Spurs in the remaining preseason games.

• The "Big 3" return to preseason action. After sitting out the loss to Denver, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker and Tim Duncan are expected to return to the court tonight. After a few days of rest, it be interesting to see how spry they look.

• Nando De Colo. Much criticism has been heaped on Nando as far as his play on the court. Can he turn the page and be the player the Spurs need? Or will he continue to give Spurs fans a reason to see him out of a Spurs jersey?

• Cory Joseph vs. Patty Mills. Who will back up Parker this season? Cory seems to be the man for the job but can Mills sneak in for the job?