Atlanta Hawks: 6 Takeaways from Narrow Loss to Wizards

Huerter & Bembry Typify Versatile Lineups

With Taurean Prince out for upwards of 3 weeks with an ankle sprain, Coach Lloyd Pierce will be unable to rely on Prince’s stable presence on the roster and the locker room for the Hawks. In this game, Pierce got some excellent performances from the combo wings Kevin Huerter (aka Red Pepper) and DeAndre’ Bembry.

Bembry, who is experiencing a terrific bounce-back season, was all over the place on defense – jumping passing lanes, bodying up opposing ballhandlers – and had an extremely impactful game highlighted by this sweet steal leading to a nifty breakaway reverse dunk:

https://twitter.com/ATLHawks/status/1070507931509157889

While Bembry’s finishing chops remain unimpressive (4 of 11 shooting on the night), his all-around stat line of 8 points, 6 assists, 4 steals and 3 rebound showcases just how important he is to this Hawks squad.

Similarly, rookie Kevin Huerter did not produce eye-popping numbers (8 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 block), but the team always seems more comfortable when he’s out there, which led to him having one of the two positive box plus/minus numbers on the night. Huerter was a +5 in 27 minutes.

Speaking of minutes, the Wizards clearly wanted this game – as starters Beal and Otto Porter both played upwards of 40 minutes. The Wizards, who have playoff aspirations, were facing a Hawks team with a record of 5-19 coming in. Just sayin’.

The Hawks play next on Saturday against the Denver Nuggets. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m. EST.