After back to back big wins against Eastern Conference opponents the Hawks have sole ownership of the ninth seed in the East. Atlanta is now one win away from getting back to a .500 record on the season. And with four of their next six opponents having losing records the Hawks are primed to make up some more ground in the standings.
Friday nights game against the Wizards was not a pretty one. At times it looked like the Hawks were going to pull out one of their patented late game breakdowns that have been all too familiar this season.
That was not the case however, as the Hawks got big contributions from a number of players not named Trae Young.
De'Andre Hunter lead the way with a 26 point night, 17 of which came in the first half. Bogdan Bogdanovic lead a flurry at the end of the third quarter hitting back to back three pointers. While John Collins was quiet in his return to the lineup, he came up with a crucial block in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter to secure a Hawks win.
The lone negative from their night in Washington was Kevin Huerter's injury, who left the game experiencing some pain in his left shoulder. Coach Nate McMillan said the severity is currently unknown.