Heading into the 2025 season, the Atlanta Hawks have two red flags that could hamstring their postseason potential: their unproven depth at both the point guard and center positions.
At point guard, the Hawks have two obvious backup options: Kobe Bufkin and Vit Krejci. Bufkin is a third-year player who hasn't performed at a high level in his short career, despite promising play in both college and summer league.
Krejci is a fourth-year player and a non-traditional point guard. Standing 6'8, Krejci is a point guard in a wing's body. Unlike many tall "point guards," Krejci is truly a pass-first player, earning the national Spotlight for his wizard-like transition passes before. His greatest pass, and perhaps the best in recent memory across all levels of basketball, came last preseason.
VIT ?!?!?!?! pic.twitter.com/Q584qzA0Ho
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 9, 2024
Krejci, however, struggled in this year‘s EuroBasket, averaging just 4.8 points, 0.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists on 12 minutes a night. While he played on a Czech roster with limited talent, he also faced lower-level competition than he will encounter in the NBA. Krejci was unable to exploit these advantages against the interior competition, which all but confirms Bufkin's spot as the second point guard option.
Bufkin has a lot to prove with his Hawks tenure potentially on the line
The question mark surrounding the backup point guard spot is nothing new in Atlanta, who hasn’t found a backup point guard for Trae Young in his career. This is not due to a lack of trying, however, as the team has spent valuable roster and draft capital in attempts to address this weakness.
The first big swing was for Dejounte Murray. While he was not a backup, the theory of acquiring Murray was that he could fill both the starting shooting guard and backup point guard roles. This theory, however, did not pan out. After two unsuccessful seasons, Murray was traded for Dyson Daniels and two first round picks, a move that arguably saved this era of Hawks basketball.
The second move was to acquire Kobe Bufkin in the 2023 draft. Bufkin was a sophomore shooting guard out of Michigan who displayed exciting two-way potential. He was a remarkable defender, in theory making him a viable option to play alongside Young.
Perhaps most exciting about Bufkin's collegiate performance, however, was his offensive performance. In his sophomore season, Bufkin displayed flashes as both a high-level playmaker and scorer. Most importantly, he increased his three point clip to 35.5% on 3.7 attempts a night, a tremendous leap from his 22.2% mark on 1.3 attempts as a freshman. Standing at 6'5 with this all-around skill set, Bufkin was a perfect fit for the Hawks.
Bufkin, however, has not proven his potential yet, and it's not really his fault. He hasn't played poorly; he just hasn’t played enough. Through two NBA seasons, Bufkin has just 27 games under his belt. He has suffered from what appears to be unfortunate injury luck, though, not an injury-prone body.
His injuries have been to his thumb, toe, and shoulder. These have not been recurring injuries, and they are to body parts that are unlikely to result in long-term trouble. Essentially, Bufkin has been the victim of perhaps the worst injury luck possible without suggesting an injury-riddled future.
Bufkin's statistical profile is on par with almost every point guard with under 30 NBA games played. Point guards notoriously take a long time to develop, as the mental game side of leading an NBA offense is too complex for anyone, even the most elite of prospects, to have an immediate positive impact.
Even though it’s not Bufkin's fault that he hasn’t proven himself in the NBA, his status as the backup point guard was put into question this offseason. The Hawks swung for the fences this offseason, assembling a roster with real short-term playoff aspirations.
Atlanta can no longer afford to wait for Bufkin's development. They need a capable backup point guard now if they plan to make noise in the postseason, so replacing Bufkin with outside talent was an idea that floated around. Even if Bufkin defies career expectations, it is uncertain that he would be ready to play a significant role on a playoff team this season.
Bufkin has clearly impressed the Hawks enough, however, for them to decide to stick with their in-house options at backup point guard. With Krejci underperforming in EuroBasket, Bufkin is the clear option at backup point guard, and the Hawks appeared to have affirmed their faith in him this offseason.