10 Games in, what They Lookin' Like?
5-5 through 10 games and that doesn't even begin to tell the story of what these Atlanta Hawks have been through. What a whirlwind of a start for them. They opened up the season with a healthy roster at home against the Toronto Raptors. In a sold-out arena, the Hawks were dominated and lost by 20 points. It was an underwhelming showing that highlighted issues with transition defense, rebounding, and points in the paint amongst other things. With a new starting lineup that saw Kristaps Porzingis in at center and Onyeka Okongwu back on the bench (after some offensively impressive starts for much of the end of last season) and the addition of Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard off the bench, the least surprising aspect was that there would take the team some time to gel. It was more a question of the energy when Toronto's lead once blew to 29 points.
The second game of the season would find the Hawks already hit by the injury bug, with both Kristaps Porzingis (flu-like symptoms) and Zaccharie Risacher (right ankle sprain) missing the contest at Orlando. Atlanta turned it around a bit in this one behind Trae Young's 25 points and six assists with an impactful 13 points and 8 rebounds from Mouhamed Gueye off the bench in nearly 30 minutes of playing time. Hawks outscored the Magic in the paint and held them to 18 fast break points, a stark difference than the 34 in the Toronto game.They beat Orlando 117-100. Then they had to hop on a plane right after the game to face the reigning champions OKC Thunder the following day, this time without Jalen Johnson (right ankle sprain) in addition to Kristaps and Zaccaharie being out. Atlanta went on to lose against the Thunder and at the Chicago Bulls.
And then the biggest blow happened when they made their trip to Brooklyn to face the Nets. Mo Gueye was charged with the foul after contact was made between him and Brooklyn's Noah Clowney (who one can argue actually pushed Mo) and then Mo fell into Trae's leg during the play. Trae attempted to stay in the game but ultimately limped off the court to the locker room. It would later be determined that Trae sustained a right knee MCL sprain with no structural damage. His status would be re-evaluated four weeks from November 1st.
Atlanta was now faced with getting used to playing as a team without their All-Star starting point guard. They went on to defeat the Brooklyn Nets after finishing a noteworthy first half. Onyeka Okongwu's double-double of 12 points and 14 rebounds and Luke Kennard getting hot for 17 points off the bench helped power Atlanta to the dub.
The Hawks would then go 3-2 after that win in Brooklyn, beating the Indiana Pacers, Orlando Magic, and Los Angeles Lakers. Their losses came to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors (yet again). Throughout these games, the Hawks faced injury adversity that placed various lineups on the court that would probably not have seen the light of day had it not been for the injury plague. This adversity allowed us to see more playmaking from the likes of Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels, and Jalen Johnson. We also got to see the energy that Mo Gueye brings to the floor, followed by rookie Asa Newell making his early mark in the league. It even allowed Keaton Wallace to get his shot going in the win over the Lakers. Mo Gueye scored a career-high 21 points and Asa Newell swiped four steals to go along with his 17 points off the bench.
I will look forward to seeing more of the players stepping up in the playmaking role with Trae out, particularly Dyson, who has been tackling the role with necessary unmitigated gall, along with Jalen who started off the season with the intent to show more on that end.
The second game of the season would find the Hawks already hit by the injury bug, with both Kristaps Porzingis (flu-like symptoms) and Zaccharie Risacher (right ankle sprain) missing the contest at Orlando. Atlanta turned it around a bit in this one behind Trae Young's 25 points and six assists with an impactful 13 points and 8 rebounds from Mouhamed Gueye off the bench in nearly 30 minutes of playing time. Hawks outscored the Magic in the paint and held them to 18 fast break points, a stark difference than the 34 in the Toronto game.They beat Orlando 117-100. Then they had to hop on a plane right after the game to face the reigning champions OKC Thunder the following day, this time without Jalen Johnson (right ankle sprain) in addition to Kristaps and Zaccaharie being out. Atlanta went on to lose against the Thunder and at the Chicago Bulls.
And then the biggest blow happened when they made their trip to Brooklyn to face the Nets. Mo Gueye was charged with the foul after contact was made between him and Brooklyn's Noah Clowney (who one can argue actually pushed Mo) and then Mo fell into Trae's leg during the play. Trae attempted to stay in the game but ultimately limped off the court to the locker room. It would later be determined that Trae sustained a right knee MCL sprain with no structural damage. His status would be re-evaluated four weeks from November 1st.
Atlanta was now faced with getting used to playing as a team without their All-Star starting point guard. They went on to defeat the Brooklyn Nets after finishing a noteworthy first half. Onyeka Okongwu's double-double of 12 points and 14 rebounds and Luke Kennard getting hot for 17 points off the bench helped power Atlanta to the dub.
The Hawks would then go 3-2 after that win in Brooklyn, beating the Indiana Pacers, Orlando Magic, and Los Angeles Lakers. Their losses came to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors (yet again). Throughout these games, the Hawks faced injury adversity that placed various lineups on the court that would probably not have seen the light of day had it not been for the injury plague. This adversity allowed us to see more playmaking from the likes of Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels, and Jalen Johnson. We also got to see the energy that Mo Gueye brings to the floor, followed by rookie Asa Newell making his early mark in the league. It even allowed Keaton Wallace to get his shot going in the win over the Lakers. Mo Gueye scored a career-high 21 points and Asa Newell swiped four steals to go along with his 17 points off the bench.
I will look forward to seeing more of the players stepping up in the playmaking role with Trae out, particularly Dyson, who has been tackling the role with necessary unmitigated gall, along with Jalen who started off the season with the intent to show more on that end.