Point guard to avoid No. 2 for the Atlanta Hawks) Elfrid Payton
The Hawks had a close-up look at Elfrid Payton during their five-game first-round playoff series in the postseason which just passed. Well, as close a look as you can get for someone who plays 13 minutes in a five-game series.
This pretty much sums up all that we need to know about Payton. He had no answer to the Hawks backcourt of Young and Bogdanovic and this is exactly the opposite of what the Hawks are looking for in a backup for Young.
While he has averaged 10.9 points, 6.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.3 steals in 28.5 minutes per game, he has only made the playoffs once. As he has been a starter for most of his career, this feels a little like empty numbers, they look good but don’t impact the game enough.
The Hawks are looking for a player who can step up when required. He needs to be able to take control of a game, running the second unit and occasionally being able to run the starting unit successfully. Better still they want someone who is able to perform when required in the playoffs both offensively and defensively. It seems that Payton is not that player.