It's no secret that Corey Kispert's first few months in an Atlanta Hawks uniform were underwhelming.
Known as a knockdown outside shooter, not only did he not live up expectations from beyond, but his presence left a major hole defensively. It's why he was prioritized less and less in the nightly rotation as the season went on.
This is a common tale with shooting specialists, though.
Success is often determined by situation, and when they spend several seasons with one ball club only to be traded midseason in year five, it can have a negative impact on their production. At least in the immediate.
It doesn't take much, however, for them to find their groove again.
Kispert looked great in his first Hawks preseason game, presenting an intriguing question
Should Head Coach Quin Snyder go back to nightly Kispert minutes?
On the surface, with everyone healthy, it would be understandable to say no.
After all, he fell out of the rotation last season for a reason. It's not always the best decision to look too much into a preseason rotation, but it would be disingenuous to ignore the fact that Kispert played the third-most minutes of any Hawk on Monday night.
In 20 minutes off the bench, he delivered.
He recorded a team-high 19 points, knocking down seven of his 11 shot attempts and four of his seven three-point attempts. He was relied upon to be a second-unit scoring spark and he didn't let the team down.
These weren't simple makes, either. The best way a shooter can enter a night is with unreal confidence. If Kispert's going to be on the floor, he needs to let it fly. Even if it's not falling, he needs to be able to draw defenders.
His consistency from outside should be much better this season. He's done this before.
This situation resembles his first two seasons in Washington
Kispert shot 35% from deep in his rookie season with the Wizards, only to follow it up with a remarkable 42.4% year.
It wouldn't be ridiculous to imagine him getting his percentage back up to that 40% range. He's proven he's capable.
It's difficult to keep someone who's scorching from the outside on the bench.
If some early-season team-wide shooting woes persist, maybe going to Kispert wouldn't be such a bad idea. He knows the system. He knows the team.
He also knows what he's here to do, and that's let it fly.
Add us as a preferred source on Google