The Atlanta Hawks are playing their third-to-last game of the regular season on Thursday, a road date against the Brooklyn Nets. They have endured some turmoil in recent weeks, dropping multiple games with a chance to secure a playoff spot.
They must settle for a path through the Play-In Tournament, but they could get some reinforcement if they can make it through.
Hawks veteran Larry Nance Jr. revealed that while nothing is firm, he is close to returning.
“There are some prerequisites that got to be met first, but yes,” Nance told Dominique Wilkins during the broadcast of Thursday’s tilt. “I’m feeling good and really, really enjoying it. Leg’s feeling good, I’m feeling confident. So we’re getting close.”
Nance has not played since February 10 due to a knee injury that threatened to end his season. The Hawks have gone 11-14 in that span, lacking size and versatility in the frontcourt.
“We’re close. We’re close,” Nance said. “I promise, we’re close.”
Hawks fighting for playoffs amid injury-plagued season
In addition to Nance, the Hawks are also without starting forward Jalen Johnson and former starting center Clint Capela. That has left them thin (and undersized) behind Mouhamed Gueye and Onyeka Okongwu, respectively.
The Hawks entered play on Thursday clinging to a slim lead over the Chicago Bulls for the No. 8 seed.
Holding on to it as opposed to sliding to No. 9 is the difference between having two chances to make the playoffs as opposed to just one. They are facing a soft opponent in the Nets, and will face another in the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.
However, the Hawks have a potentially big game against the Orlando Magic on Sunday.
That could be their only chance to secure homecourt advantage in the 7/8 Play-In matchup. Otherwise, it will be a road game against the Magic or possibly the Bulls or Miami Heat.
The Hawks have beaten most preseason predictions for the win total, and they can argue they are ahead of the curve given the level of changes they made during the season. However, they also believed they could be a playoff team coming in.
That they needed to make those changes could be viewed negatively.
Instead, Hawks star Trae Young touted the team’s resolve amid the turmoil as a reason he is excited about the future.
Getting Nance back would hardly guarantee the Hawks anything. They are 10-14 with him in this, his first season in Atlanta. The Hawks have also shown they have strength in numbers, though, so getting someone like Nance back could be more impactful that it might seem.