Atlanta Hawks vs Chicago Bulls: Updated Injury Report For Tonight's Game
The Atlanta Hawks got a win vs the Phoenix Suns last night and are on the road for a matchup with the Chicago Bulls tonight, but they are going to be doing so very shorthanded. Trae Young (right rib contusion), Jalen Johnson (right shoulder inflammation), De’Andre Hunter (left foot soreness), and Zaccharie Risacher (left adductor irritation) are all out tonight. Larry Nance, Kobe Bufkin, and Cody Zeller remain out as well.
This is going to be a very challenging game for the Hawks. The players they will have available tonight will be Dyson Daniels, Vit Krejci, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Garrison Matthews, Clint Capela, Onyeka Okongwu, David Roddy, Keaton Wallace, Daeqwon Plowden and Dominick Barlow. They were able to win the game vs the Suns last night without Johnson and Hunter, but now that Young and Risacher are also out, this is going to be the most challenging situation the Hawks have been in all season when it comes to injuries.
For Chicago, Coby White, Ayo Dosunmo, and Lonzo Ball are all questionable.
Ahead of last night's game vs the Suns, Atlanta Hawks head coach Quin Snyder was asked about Johnson's progress and when he might be able to return:
"Yeah, he is progressing and we hope to have him back soon."
It is hard to overstate how much he means to the team. Johnson is a terrific rebounder and helps with rim protection, a good on-ball defender, and is the Hawks' second-best offensive creator. He is making a legitimate case to be an All-Star this season with the numbers that he is putting up. He is averaging 19.8 PPG, 10.1 RPG, and 5.3 APG on 51% shooting from the field and 33% from three. He also has an effective field goal percentage of 56% and a true shooting percentage of 58%.
Atlanta does not have a replacement for Johnson when he is gone and that is one of the biggest holes on the team. Not only do they not have a real backup power forward behind him, one of the Hawks's other weaknesses is that they don't have a reliable backup point guard. When Johnson is out of the lineup, Atlanta loses their best frontcourt player, and one of their best ball handlers as well. He has the highest plus/minus (+2.4) on the team for a reason.
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