Atlanta Hawks: 5 Takeaways from 123-118 Victory vs. Heat

The Rooks are Alright

Omari Spellman got his first professional start tonight, putting up 7 points and 4 rebounds in 20 minutes. While this was a fine performance, Spellman was thoroughly outshined by his fellow first-round picks, rookies Trae Young and Kevin Huerter.

Young attempted 19 field goals tonight, his most since the Hawks’ beatdown of the Cavs when he had 35 points. he made 9 of those 19 tonight, good for 24 points. He was just 2-8 from downtown, including a couple of tough, head-scratching deep triples off the dribble in crucial possessions, but he more than made up for that with his inside scoring and career-high 15 assists.

He connected with Huerter on this absolute bomb, looking like a veteran quarterback:

Speaking of the 19th overall pick, Huerter had himself a nice game off the bench. He trailed just Trae Young in minutes, with a career-high 29 minutes played. Huerter is off to a rather hot start to his rookie season and has been especially good of late.

He looked very timid with the ball early on this season, but has calmed down in a big way. Tonight he shot 5-9 for 12 points, including 2 threes. On one, he came flying around a screen for an off balance, falling-away shot that only a select group in the NBA could hit. Good to see that he is now one of them.

The trio of first rounders continued to show the potential they have produced in flashes all year, and it’s time to start getting excited about Kevin Huerter if you’re an Atlanta Hawks fan.