While Monday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls was less than ideal, Quin Snyder and the Atlanta Hawks took a step forward by deciding to include Mouhamed Gueye in the rotation.
In the season opener against the Toronto Raptors, Gueye only saw the floor for five minutes of garbage time. This was disappointing to most Hawks fans after Gueye had an intriguing performance at the end of last season and this preseason.
Kristaps Porzingis, however, would miss the next two games, while Jalen Johnson and Zaccharie Risacher missed the team’s October 25th matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder. This forced Gueye to see extended playing time against two teams with real playoff aspirations.
Gueye did not take the opportunity to cement his spot in the rotation for granted, leaving Snyder with a pair of inspiring performances to chew on before having the whole squad healthy for Monday’s game. Gueye played 10 minutes against the Bulls, which bodes well despite a mediocre stat line from the Washington State product.
Gueye’s introduction to the rotation could unlock this team’s potential
The Hawks’ roster is loaded with talent, but the pieces don’t quite fit together yet. Kristaps Porzingis, Jalen Johnson, and Onyeka Okongwu are all exceptionally talented players who should be able to anchor a frontcourt rotation, yet the addition of Porzingis has not yielded the expected response yet.
Part of the problem is that the pairing of Porzingis and Johnson could be an imperfect one. The Latvian seven-footer is an excellent two way player, but only if he is not asked to move laterally. Johnson’s skill set, however, leaves him best equipped to accompany a big like Okongwu, whose defensive profile is the opposite of Porzingis’s. This problem is particularly salient after Monday’s loss, when the defense was simply not good enough to beat a team of lesser talent.
If this proves to be a problem the Hawks must address, the only ostensible in-house solution is finding ways to integrate Gueye into the rotation. Snyder made the first step to achieving this today by including him at all, but even 10 minutes could be too little given his outsized defensive impact.
Perhaps the most intriguing part of Gueye’s game is his love for running the floor in transition. He moves with a purpose in the open floor and never allows fastbreak opportunities to pass without attempting a rim run. With Johnson pushing the pace, a crew of talented wings filling the perimeter, Porzingis trailing, and Gueye cutting to the paint, the Hawks have all of the tools to be a lethal transition team (even if they haven’t shown this yet).
Gueye isn't just a legitimate NBA player; he fits this team like a glove. Snyder must find ways to keep him on the floor as much as possible.