Hawks’ 2-way players on fire amid historic start for G League squad

The College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s G League hoopers, are on fire this season. They began their 2024-25 campaign with their best start at home in franchise history. For the first time ever, the Skyhawks went 9-1 in their first 10 games at College Park.

To start the G League regular season, the Skyhawks are 6-3 and tied for the third-best record in the East. Atlanta’s two-way studs have been lighting it up in their appearances for College Park. Daeqwon Plowden and Keaton Wallace recently put together career-best efforts on the same night for Atlanta when they were called up for a short-handed Hawks squad.

In his NBA debut on January 15, Plowden nailed the first seven shots of his career against the Chicago Bulls and ended the game with 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field and 5-of-6 shooting from three. Meanwhile, Wallace put together the greatest performance of his career as he led Atlanta with a career-high 27 points, a career-high six rebounds, and a career-high four steals.

Wallace has led the Skyhawks in steals per game, assists per game, and 3-pointers per game. The southpaw point guard is nailing 41.3% of his threes on 7.3 attempts per game. As someone who spent his first three years as a pro in the G League, Wallace brings a deep level of experience and relatability to the younger Skyhawks. 

At a January 7 practice for College Park, Wallace spoke to Soaring Down South about using his NBA experience with the Hawks to help run the Skyhawks offense at a faster pace.

“My experiences up top helped a lot with the pace and things like that,” Wallace said. “I think it’s good for our team. I think it helped us go 9-1 to start (at home).”

Wallace has made a serious case for a standard contract with the Hawks, but he remains focused on performing well day in and day out for both College Park and Atlanta.

“I just take it day by day,” Wallace told Soaring Down South. “You can only control what you can control. That’s not my job to worry about. I’m gonna worry about my job, which is performing on the floor. If my number gets called, I’ve gotta be ready to play. That’s all I’m worried about.”

Eight days later, Wallace’s number was called and he put the Bulls in a blender. Hawks fans should be on the lookout for Wallace to have his two-way deal converted at some point this season. 

Since filling Atlanta’s final two-way spot on December 27, Plowden has cooked to the tune of 15.9 points per game in the G League. The 26-year-old rookie even played for the Skyhawks the night after his NBA debut, scoring 11 points in 22 minutes on 4-of-7 shooting with an understandably lighter workload.

Plowden also spoke to Soaring Down South on January 7, expressing gratitude for his opportunity to play for Atlanta just eight days before his epic debut.

“This has been a really great opportunity for me,” Plowden said. “I’m blessed to have it, to be out here and play this game. Just being here in Atlanta in this organization, it’s been a blessing to me.”

The College Park Skyhawks are getting a lot of help from their young talent

Wallace and Plowden have more experience than most NBA rookies. They played nine years of college basketball between the two of them and multiple years in the G League after that, giving them a veteran edge compared to many of their College Park counterparts.

Several young Skyhawks have made a huge impact as of late. From two-way forward Dominick Barlow and Hawks sophomore Mouhamed Gueye to 2024 draft pick Nikola Djurisic, College Park’s young guns are hitting their stride.

Barlow leads the Skyhawks in scoring with 20.6 points per game on 58.2% shooting. The 21-year-old has also served as College Park’s anchor on defense with 2.0 blocks a night. He leads the Skyhawks in total blocks this season despite playing only 10 games.

Gueye, who turned 22 in November, has led the Skyhawks in offensive rebounds with 4.0 per game. In six regular-season appearances, he has averaged 14.0 points and 8.7 rebounds while nailing an incredible 50.0% of his threes on 4.0 attempts per game. The 6-foot-11 talent still has a lot of work to do as a shot-blocker, but he has established himself as a legitimate stretch big.

In a recent interview with Soaring Down South, Gueye claimed his biggest goal for the season is simply “getting better every day.” The Senegalese standout has multiple double-doubles during College Park’s recent hot streak, and he has shown no signs of slowing down. In his latest contest, he grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds (eight offensive rebounds) to go with 16 points and a steal.

Djurisic went through a putrid shooting slump after he returned from a four-month injury layoff, but the draft-and-stash 20-year-old from Serbia has bounced back over his last two outings. 

In a 123-122 overtime loss to the Maine Celtics, Djurisic poured in a career-high 24 points in 35 minutes off the bench. He also dropped six dimes and grabbed eight boards. The 6-foot-8 point forward had scored 23 points in his previous four games combined.

Two days later, College Park got revenge with an overtime win in Maine. Djurisic followed up his career night with a 16-point performance in 31 minutes of action.

Djurisic is finally putting his versatility on full display, and his increase in playing time has certainly helped. The Skyhawks could have a hidden gem on their hands.

The G League Hawks have taken the basketball world by storm. Led by a healthy mix of youth and experience, College Park has sky-high potential. The Skyhawks will look to build on their recent success behind a defensive-minded culture that continues to mold talent as well as any other team in the G League.