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Atlanta Hawks’ Midseason Grades: Brandon Goodwin

By Dallin Duffy

WASHINGTON, DC -  JANUARY 10: Brandon Goodwin #0 of the Atlanta Hawks handles the ball during the game against the Washington Wizards on January 10, 2020 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC -  JANUARY 10: Brandon Goodwin #0 of the Atlanta Hawks handles the ball during the game against the Washington Wizards on January 10, 2020 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Looking at the season thus far for Atlanta Hawks two-way guard Brandon Goodwin.

The Atlanta Hawks play their 41st game of the year on Tuesday night, officially hitting the halfway mark of their season. It’s a good time to stop and look at the season in progress for the players.

Here, we’ll be looking at two-way point guard Brandon Goodwin.

After spending a year with the Nuggets, Atlanta’s own Brandon Goodwin signed with the Hawks on a two-way deal back in August.

Despite the team not really having a true backup point to put behind Trae Young, Goodwin spent most of his time in College Park with the G-League squad.

In 17 games (16 starts) for the Skyhawks this season, Goodwin averaged 19.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game, consistently one of the team’s best players.

He appeared in just two games with the NBA before December 23rd, when he rejoined the team, not yet to leave it again.

It came both with the news of Evan Turner (who had been the backup PG) moving out of the rotation long term, and a nagging string of injuries to Trae Young.

In the Hawks’ final game of the 2019 calendar year, Goodwin put up career highs across the board, appearing in 21 minutes, scoring 20 points and adding six assists.

Since that game, he’s averaged 16.1 minutes for Atlanta, seemingly moving into the rotation full time.

Goodwin has provided an offensive spark, using his speed and touch to score at the rim, and has shown a decent ability to shoot the three with confidence.

https://twitter.com/HawksOnFSSE/status/1215820007768195073

The latter is probably the guard’s best skill at this point, as he doesn’t play like a two-way guard who averages 7.7 career minutes, he plays like he’s a key cog of the team. And while he’s not (yet), it’s the confident mentality that makes him a good offensive player.

He’s a decent passer, although I certainly wouldn’t tab him as a pass-first point. Goodwin really plays more like a two guard who’s stuck in a 6-0 point guard’s body. He can make smart passes when needed, but he’s certainly not Trae Young, or even Evan Turner for that manner.

Unfortunately that’s where his impact ends on the court ends, as he’s been pretty bad defensively. He’s record a plus/minus of -10 or more four times in his last 9 games, and was just torched by Kyrie Irving on Sunday.

Unfortunately, the lackluster D means he fits right in with the rest of the Hawks, espically in the back court.

Verdict/2nd half outlook:

It’s hard to grade Goodwin off of 11 games, but between those and his 19 in the G-League, we can see he’s a good scorer who can occasionally get hot from deep.. PG. Atlanta Hawks. BRANDON GOODWIN. C

The 24-year-old Goodwin will likely be used off the bench at a fairly high clip for the rest of the season. Like Jaylen Adams a year ago, I’d be very surprised if his two-way deal isn’t converted into a fully guaranteed NBA deal soon.

Next. Ranking the Atlanta Hawks by trade viability. dark

Keep it here for more Hawks’ midseason grades for the rest of the week.

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