With the NBA All-Star break in the rearview mirror, the Atlanta Hawks returned to action Thursday, however would suffer their second straight loss as they fell to the Orlando Magic 114-108. And while the loss dropped the Hawks to a game and a half behind the Magic in the Southeast Division, they remain in playoff contention as they currently hold the ninth-place position in the Eastern Conference, four games ahead of the Chicago Bulls.
Now with 26 games remaining in the regular season, the Hawks will look to keep their postseason hopes alive and on Monday, head coach, Quin Snyder, joined The Steakhouse and explained why the dynamic in their locker room with the addition of new players has been great and brings experience which can help the team with their final push.
“The three guys we got, they’re veterans and that’s real,” Snyder said of the additions of Terrance Mann, Georges Niang and Caris LeVert, who they acquired via trade just ahead of the deadline. “You get guys that have played in this league five, six, seven years and they just have a different perspective,” Snyder said of the Hawks’ newest players and the experience they bring to the locker room.
“They understand what it means to compete every night,” Snyder said of the positive influence Mann, Niange and LeVert can have on their younger players as they head into the last leg of the regular season. “When you see guys that are living it every day, you see guys 28-years old coming to practice ready to work,” Snyder said.