Boards, boards and more boards.
It's been all glass for Asa Newell this preseason - opponents simply can't find a way to prevent him from generating extra looks for the Hawks night in and night out.
While Asa's rebounding heroics have more than made the case to Coach Snyder to implement him as a core rotation piece this year, something else has gone missing this October. While Newell was a prolific shooter from range during his rookie campaign, his shot seems to have regressed to his collegiate days, where defenses were able to sag off the youngster with far less penalty.
Asa must get back on track from range, or risk another precious year riding the bench.
Newell’s shooting woes this preseason
Asa was a relatively consistent three-point shooter last year. In fact, the young rookie consistently led the NBA in three-point percentage through the first half of last season (albeit on low volume)!
This preseason has been a dark contrast to last year’s pleasant surprise from range - after all, Newell didn't exhibit a prolific shot during his time with the Georgia Bulldogs. Through four preseason showings, Newell is a dismal 2/16 from range, good for a meager 12.5% metric.
While the sample size is certainly small, Newell is trending in the wrong direction - his last game was anything but the adjustment he was hoping to see, ending with a mirror-breaking 1/9 conversion rate from deep against the Oklahoma City Thunder on October 12th.
Without a long-range shot, Newell faces harsh lineup chemistry issues
As Hawks fans are keenly aware, Dyson Daniels isn't the best shot on the court - at least, not last year. Dyson broke all kinds of shooting records - not the sort you'd see Steph Curry or Trae Young earning.
While Daniels was able to be somewhat effective in 2024-2025 en route to earning MIP honors, his shot evaporated last season, allowing defenses to leave him wide open with no consequences.
Should Newell's shot also disappear, trotting out a lineup that features the pair is a death knell in a modern NBA that values court spacing to an extreme. Even without Daniels, Jalen Johnson's outside shot can also falter - a trio of non-shooters is near insurmountable as an offense.
Expect Newell to bounce back from three - if he doesn't, Quin Snyder's frontcourt looks ever slimmer, compounded by the losses of Mo Gueye and Henri Veesaar to offseason injuries.
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