Atlanta Hawks: 5 players who need to keep producing in John Collins absence

Atlanta Hawks player stepping up No. 1) Solomon Hill

Solomon Hill was a player who signed on at the veteran’s minimum during the last offseason. He showed during the bubble how his defense has the ability to impact games. He also has a solid 3-point shot, which he has deployed at a 33.1 percent effectiveness, slightly down on his 33.6 percent career number.

However, he keeps getting larger chunks of court time than he would normally get on this team given the injury issues. Under McMillan, Hill has slightly improved his shooting, up to 35.7 percent from deep, a small rise but sometimes that is all that it takes.

However, looking at the two games so far that Collins has been out, Hill has stepped into the starting role. This is to keep the Hawks’ potential sixth man of the year, Danilo Gallinari coming off the bench. This is a true McMillan move, he values Gallinari’s bench production so much he is willing to sacrifice a little with his starting unit.

Hill has responded by averaging 5.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.5 assists over the two games, all of which are an increase on his regular-season averages. His rebounding numbers are more than double his season average.

However, Hill is not being overwhelmed, he had a minus five impact on the box score against the San Antonio Spurs and a plus 19 impact against the New Orleans Pelicans. As long as Hill holds his own when he is on the court, he has done his job for the team.