The Atlanta Hawks have been without key trade acquisition and trusted veteran Caris LeVert for the past two games as he has navigated knee soreness.
LeVert arrived at the Hawks with Georges Niang in a trade package from the Cleveland Cavaliers for De’Andre Hunter. Since then, LeVert has been the Hawks’ second-leading scorer and is fourth in minutes per game.
He could also make his return today against the Golden State Warriors.
Along with Trae Young, the Hawks listed LeVert as “probable” on the injury report ahead of their Saturday tilt against their Western Conference rival.
LeVert, 30, is averaging 11.9 points, 3.4 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game while shooting 47.3% from the floor, 39.4% from beyond the arc, and 71.8% at the free throw line on the season.
He has a 16.4/3.9/2.5 line while slashing .509/.372/.765 in 14 games with the Hawks.
LeVert has been part of an all-around encouraging effort from the Hawks’ newcomers since their arrival, which has drawn praise from Young as they have worked to build chemistry together
“You definitely see the moments and you feel the connectivity on the court with each other when we play,” Young told reporters on March 6. “It’s not going to be perfect right now. And luckily we still got some games to go to find a rhythm with each other and try to string some wins in a row together and try to find a rhythm at the right time.
“We’ve been playing pretty well with each other and starting to really find a rhythm, especially Caris and Georges. And even Terance, the way he was knocking down shots tonight, has been big for us. So we got a long ways to go, but we’re right there.”
The Hawks are 7-7 with LeVert in the lineup.
That is a modest mark by most standards. However, after a 3-5 start together following the trade deadline, the LeVert’s Hawks have gone 4-2 entering play against the Warriors.
The Hawks boast a plus-5.5 net efficiency differential, per Cleaning The Glass, when LeVert shares the floor with Young. That number drops to plus-0.5 when Young is in the game but LeVert is not.
That is a drop from the 78th percentile to the 57th.
The duo has a much smaller sample size together (550 qualifying minutes) than apart (4,422), but the returns are encouraging nonetheless.
Hawks face quandary with Caris LeVert
LeVert’s play and fit raise an interesting question about what the Hawks do with him after this season. He is on an expiring two-year, $32 million contract and will be an unrestricted free agent this coming offseason.
As part of the trade return for Hunter – a former starter and key member of the best Hawks team in recent memory – it would make sense for the Hawks to at least attempt to retain LeVert.
However, his age and injury history could both work against him in that regard.
The Hawks have been able to be upbeat despite heading for their fourth consecutive appearance in the Play-In Tournament because of hope about their young talent. LeVert is not going to fall off a cliff next season at 31 (August).
However, re-signing him will hinder some of the future flexibility the Hawks were seemingly going for when they initially made the trade.
LeVert will make that decision tougher if he returns today and plays well the rest of the way.