Atlanta Hawks: Studs and duds from an undefeated homestand

Atlanta Hawks stud from undefeated homestand: Cam Reddish’s defense has been solid

Cam Reddish would likely fall into the ‘dud’ category if this were based solely on the win over the Thunder. On a night when virtually every Hawks player got in on the offensive action, the third-year wing could manage only nine points in a shade under 23 minutes of play on the evening.

Even with his back-to-back games over 15 points coming in, he has now scored fewer than 10 points in three of the last five games.

But his on-ball defense has been stellar in this same stretch.

Opponents are shooting a combined 14-of-39 (35.9%) when guarded by Reddish. Outside of Jayson Tatum and Grayson Allen, who went 6-of-8 combined versus Reddish, they are shooting just 25.8 percent against him.

The Hawks have one fewer perimeter defender out on the floor without Hunter. And he had shown more flashes of his offensive potential before going down with his wrist injury.

It is critical for Reddish to come through as a more reliable two-way player anyway. But even more so now. While the offense hasn’t been there consistently, he is still putting in work on the less glamorous end. With the concerns the Hawks had on that end before going on their run, that needs to be recognized.

Hopefully, the offense comes around more often because, as we saw a few games ago, few players can stay in front of Reddish when he makes up his mind to get to the cup. And when he does, his skillset gives him any number of options with which to attack.