The Atlanta Hawks are in the middle of a rare five-day break that has allowed the team to hit the reset button. Trae Young is set to be reevaluated for his knee injury soon, and Kristaps Porzingis was benched for the first time of the season in Atlanta’s final game before their mini-break.
The Hawks have survived Young’s absence remarkably well, with offensive contributions from Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Jalen Johnson, Onyeka Okongwu, and Vit Krejci helping the team secure critical wins over this stretch. The team has banded together to form an elite defensive unit that would be championship-caliber if they weren’t in the bottom ten in defensive rebounding.