Season report card for Atlanta Hawks sharpshooter Bogdan Bogdanovic
The Atlanta Hawks had a letdown season after making the Eastern Conference Finals the season before. Part of the reason for this was the injuries to key players at the wrong times. Bogdan Bogdanovic was one of these players, missing 19 games for the season.
His first serious injury came against the New York Knicks where he injured his ankle after just ten minutes on the floor. The Hawks were starting to make some noise, going on a seven-game win-streak before the injury occurred. The Hawks would go 3-4 in games where Bogdanovic was sidelined but the die was set.
Bogdanovic came back to play four games before being forced to miss four more with Covid-19. He would return for the Hawks in the height of their Covid crisis and this stretch would cost the Hawks their chance at a high seed. They went 4-9 during this time which, when you combine it with the other four games lost, means the Hawks were 7-13 for that stretch.
It was not all bad for Bogdan Bogdanovic and the Atlanta Hawks
When Bogdanovic was on the court he was a force for the Hawks. When he came back from his last multi-game absence, Bogdanovic came off the bench which allowed Kevin Huerter to start. This was a real benefit for the Hawks as Bogdanovic took to this role with great endeavour.
To say he was effective is a little bit of an understatement. Bogdanovic was the receipient of two Sixth Man of the Month awards and deserved both of them. His play was a large part of hte reason that the Hawks made it to the play-in tournament which they managed to win both games and qualify for the playoffs.
UNfrotunately for the Hawks the playoffs were a mixed bag for Bogdanovic. He had a 29 point effort in the second game and then an 18 point effort in the Hawks only win for the first-round matchup. Then, in the final game of the series Bogdanovic could not play, forced to miss the game with another bout of knee soreness.
dark. Next. Should the Atlanta Hawks pursue this Raptors free agent?
This is now where the Hawks need to decide what they do with Bogdanovic. He has pledged to have his best season yet but thanks to the knee problems, the Hawks might want to trade for a player who can stay on the court.
Season Grade: B-