Atlanta Hawks’ Midseason Grades: Len, Jones, Fernando

 Bruno Fernando:

Bruno was a 2nd round pick in last year’s draft, but still came in with a good amount of excitement around him, as he was pegged by most to be a 1st rounder pre-draft.

The rook has gotten a minutes share more akin to a lottery pick than the 34th pick he was, averaging just under 12 minutes per game and starting eight games. On the court however, the Maryland product has played like a late second-rounder, at best.

The truth is Fernando has not been very good at all, and really doesn’t belong on a NBA roster at the moment. Rather than sending him now to the G-League however, the Hawks have stuck with Fernando, even giving him more chances of late.

He was the everyday starting center when he became inactive with personal reasons, and could be returning to a bench role with the team embracing small ball – Collins starting at the five.

Numbers wise, Bruno has averaged 3.8 points and 3.1 rebounds, shooting 47% from the field. His best game came in late November when he put up 13 points, 4 rebounds and a block against the T-Wolves.

I’d personally like to see Fernando get some run in College Park, but it looks like he’s going to be up with the big club for the rest of the season, which has it’s pros and cons.