The Atlanta Hawks welcomed Onyeka Okongwu back into their lineup in the loss against the Denver Nuggets as their injury crisis continues to abate. They welcomed Cam Reddish back a few games ago and are desperately in need of Bogdan Bogdanovic to come back.
Upon his return Okongwu seemed to have a good night. He scored 10 points in his first nine minutes on the court going a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 2-of-2 from the free throw line. Offensively it was a good performance.
There were a number of times that Okongwu was matched up defensively against Nikola Jokic in his first game back which is one reason he only collected two rebounds. He also had five fouls in these nine minutes but that is not a problem as it will take him a couple of games to get back to the speed of an NBA game. He has the same problem in his only G League game prior to his NBA return.
The Atlanta Hawks will improve with the energy Onyeka Okongwu brings
Every time that he hits the court, it feels as though Okongwu has just taken himself of the charger. He is doing the little things but with great energy. One of the reasons he is so good in the pick and roll is his timing, the other is the level of energy he brings to the play, making the roll defender hustle to stay with him.
On top of that he is always battling under the rim. He almost collected a big offensive rebound in this game but was slightly out of position. This did not mean that he did not give himself every chance to get it which is what the Hawks need in the second unit.
He came back on in junk time to get a few more minutes on the court but had to play a little conservatively due to his five fouls. This did not take away from his overall performance though which was a welcome one for fans and coaches alike.
Grade: B+