Atlanta Hawks: Is Trae Young back or is it to early to say?
The Atlanta Hawks started out the season on fire. They won four out of the first five games before the wheels fell off a little bit. They won off the back of their great teamwork which allowed their superstar point guard, Trae Young, to start the season so well.
In fact, he averaged 33.0 points, 8.3 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game and shot the ball at 50.7 percent from the floor, 34.8 percent from deep, and 90.3 percent from the line. He orchestrated the offense with precision and the team was in a good place.
Then the injuries came. Kris Dunn and Tony Snell were yet to play but they lost Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Rajon Rondo for chunks of time. The Hawks are unsure when Bogdanovic is going to be able to return.
The Atlanta Hawks struggled when Trae Young struggled
It could also be said that Trae Young struggles when the Atlanta Hawks struggle but they are a symbiotic circle. In the next eight games, the Hawks went 2-6 which bought them back to the pack with a crash.
In this time Young averaged 18.3 points, 8.75 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 0.8 steals per game. Young had a shooting slump for the ages going 32.9 percent from the floor, 22.2 percent from the floor, and 86.3 percent from the line.
He tried to do other things on the floor apart from scoring but the problem was that most other Hawks were missing too many open looks. This allowed the opposition to shrink the floor and life became even harder for Young to facilitate the offense.
There were even two games where Young failed to hit double-figures in points. Usually, when his shot is off he is able to get his teammates involved but he had three assists in one of those games and seven in the other.
The Hawks needed a break and they needed some players to come back from injury. Snell came back first, followed by Rondo. They continued to struggle through the losing stretch which finished with away losses to the Utah Jazz and then the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Atlanta Hawks made it home and MLK Day was a turning point.
The next three-game stand was against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Detroit Pistons at home followed by the Timberwolves away. This stretch could not have come at a better time for the Hawks.
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They lost Cam Reddish for the first two games and then De’Andre Hunter for the Pistons game. Fortunately, the rest of the team were able to rally around Clint Capela as he had historic night after historic night, including a massive triple-double. Then, Reddish, Hunter, and Gallinari came back for the second Timberwolves game.
All through this Young was starting to get his offense back. He struggled in the first game against the Timberwolves but almost collected a triple-double with 20 points, 13 assists, and eight rebounds. He was also struggling for the first half of the Pistons game.
Then came the third quarter of that game where Young remembered how good he was. He had 21 points in the quarter and with the help of Capela and John Collins took the Pistons into overtime before they came away with the win. He would finish with 38 points and ten assists.
Then came the rematch with the Timberwolves. Young looked back to his old self with 43 points, five assists, and four rebounds. During the three-game stretch, Young averaged 33.7 points, 9.3 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game. He shot the ball at 50.0 percent from the floor, 59.1 percent from deep, and 82.1 percent from the line.
So why am I hesitant? Why am I not excited that Young is back to his best? I want to see it against an opponent who is not at the bottom of their respective conferences. He did what he should have against them but if the Hawks are going to make some noise in the playoffs, Young needs to do it over the next three games as well.
Next. Who should start alongside Trae Young?. dark
The Hawks take on the Milwaukee Bucks, LA Clippers, and the Brooklyn Nets who are going to be a much stiffer test than the Pistons and Timberwolves. Let’s hope that they helped get Young’s form back and he continues on a tear.