The Atlanta Hawks show why depth is crucial around playoff time

The Atlanta Hawks had a must-win game against the Brooklyn Nets as they are trying to resurrect their season after a nightmare start. They have managed to work their way into the eighth position meaning that they will have two bites of the play-in cherry.

Thanks to the victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the previous game the Hawks were in a three-way tie for the eighth spot prior to the Nets game. Then, despite Kevin Durant pouring in 55 points and Kyrie Irving scoring 31 points, the Hawks prevailed in the crucial matchup meaning that they have it in their power to finish above both the Nets and the Charlotte Hornets.

The Hawks won the Nets game behind Trae Young collecting another double-double with 36 points and 10 assists. However, it was the supporting cast around Young that made a huge difference in the Nets game. Let’s look at what they were able to achieve.

The Atlanta Hawks’ depth is proving crucial in their push towards the playoffs.

The Nets were competitive when Durant was on the court. Obviously, when your team leader scores 55 points, the team is going to do well. However, when Durant was off the court the Nets were struggling to score. Irving went 12-of-32 so was incredibly inefficient.

On top of this, the Nets were able to get 12 points collectively from their bench. Compare this to the Hawks who had 46 points from their bench. It is easy to see why the Hawks were able to get the crucial win. Bogdan Bogdanovic was probably the most impressive player on the night not named Trae Young.

Also, none of the Hawks starters had a positive impact on the box score. Three of the bench had a plus 13 or more impact on the box score. Now, this is not always the best measure usually, the fact that the entire bench had a positive impact and no starter did, tells a very interesting story.

Where the Hawks were able to win the game was their bench was simply too strong for the Nets. The Nets only had three bench players enter the game meaning that their superstars had to play big minutes. This meant that they were also competing against fresher legs which is tough to do.

Without their depth, the Hawks would not have won the game, meaning that they would not be in the eighth seed right now. This means that they are a good chance to finish above the Cleveland Cavaliers as well, finishing with the best possible seeding they can.