When the Atlanta Hawks made the playoffs this season after the struggle they went through in 2021-22, we knew they would put up a fight. It did not matter that they lost Clint Capela during the second play-in game, the Hawks were still going to put up a fight.
In the first game of the series, the Hawks suffered from a play-in hangover, losing by a big margin, Then in the second game, Kyle Lowry got under everyone’s skin and made himself the Hawks’ No. 1 enemy in the process which would have helped focus Trae Young when he knew that the next game was on the Hawks home floor.
When I said earlier that it did not matter that Capela was out, it was only commenting that the Hawks would continue to fight. The fact that he is out is hurting the Hawks as Collins is not a starting center, Onyeka Okongwu is a better option to start but it seems that coach Nate McMillan prefers to use Okongwu to close out games.
The playoffs seem to bring out the best in Onyeka Okongwu for the Atlanta Hawks
Last season the playoffs were the making of Okongwu., especially when he took on the Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo in the Eastern Conference Finals. It was as though Okongwu was the Giannis Whisperer.
Then, thanks to the shortened rotation employed by the Hawks in the third game, Okongwu played all the last period. taking on both Dewayne Dedmon and Bam Adebayo. In the seven minutes he played against Adebayo, the Heat star was only able to collect one rebound. He went scoreless, taking only one shot.
On the other side of the coin, Okongwu was able to score seven points on 3-of-3 shooting as well as converting his free throw. He also collected three rebounds, two on the offensive end which made all the difference at the end of the game. Give Okongwu a challenge and he will rise to it, this is such a tremendous quality in any young player.