Hawks have the next Jonathan Isaac eagerly waiting to emerge

The Hawks are coming off a sensational offseason, acquiring an absolute avalanche of defensive talent to surround their star Trae Young with.

The titan Kristaps Porzingis, the creme de la creme screen navigator Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and the ludicrously athletic Asa Newell all serve as substantial options for coach Quin Snyder to categorically cover the hardwood. These pieces join Dyson Daniels in what should be an elite defensive team capable of stifling even the strongest defenses.

What if I told you that their greatest defensive add was already on the roster, patiently waiting for his shot to shine?

Look no further than 3rd-year, yet still only twenty-two years of age, defensive playmaker Mouhamed Gueye. The 6'11, 7'5 wingspan, bouncy Washington State product is the Hawks' secret weapon that is just begging to be fully deployed under coach Quin Snyder.

While he's still stuck behind the sensational Kristaps Porzingis, Onyeka Okongwu, Jalen Johnson, and Zaccharie Risacher in the Hawks' ridiculously deep frontcourt, he's already carved out a non-insignificant chunk of minutes that prove Coach Snyder sees something in the young man. Even if it took the Hawks' starting forwards going down with injury for Gueye to see the floor, he has officially entered the full strength rotation after a string of undeniably great defensive performances against good teams.

Gueye has already proven his value just five games into the new season

Fresh into the new season, Gueye has already proved that in limited minutes, he can produce in a big way. Impressive outings against Orlando, Oklahoma City, and now Brooklyn may force Quin Snyder to make some difficult rotation decisions much sooner than he had anticipated.

As Hawks fans are well aware, star big man Kristaps Porzingis hasn't been even close to fully healthy throughout an entire season in quite a while, so the Hawks' frontcourt backups knew that they'd see some extended burn at some point or another during the year. Mouhamed Gueye has unequivocally proven that he's the next man up who deserves those minutes when they're available.

His length, his defensive instincts, his prowess at containing possessions, everything about the youngster screams defensive monster. The stats back it up, too. Last season, lineups featuring Gueye were nearly six points better per 100 possessions on defense.

You be the judge. Watch the possession that Gueye is able to single-handedly shut down, and you tell me. Can he be the next Jonathan Isaac?