Hawks vs. Cavaliers Game Preview

John Collins makes his return Monday in Cleveland. What can the Hawks expect from him against the Cavs and beyond?
Hawks vs. Cavaliers Game Preview
Hawks vs. Cavaliers Game Preview /

Few teams in the NBA need a jolt of energy more than the Atlanta Hawks, who have lost seven games in a row and 21 of their last 24. What began as a potentially promising developmental season for a young team has quickly spiraled out of control due to injury, a suspension, and inconsistency. It would take more than one player to cure what ails the Hawks, but John Collins should help steady the team when he returns to the floor on Monday after serving a 25-game suspension.

Atlanta’s struggles without Collins aren’t a direct reflection of his value to the team, but they have highlighted what makes him indispensable. There simply isn’t a player who offers quite the same blend of skills Collins does, which forced Lloyd Pierce to compromise in some form or another while the big man was out. Jabari Parker offers some offensive punch as a scorer and playmaker; Damian Jones has emerged as a vertical threat in the pick-and-roll; despite a poor shooting percentage, Vince Carter at least spaces the floor for his teammates. But none combine the three skills like Collins, and that has left the Hawks vulnerable in the frontcourt for the duration of his absence. Simply replacing inferior players and relegating them back into more suitable roles should make a meaningful difference.

Game Time: Monday, December 23, 2019, 7:00 p.m. ET

Location: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, Cleveland, OH

TV: FOX Sports Southeast, FOX Sports Ohio

Streaming: NBA League Pass, FOX Sports Go

Defensively, the Hawks simply haven’t had a good answer in the frontcourt. Even if Collins doesn’t sustain the lively, alert effort he gave before the suspension, he ought to give the team a boost on that end of the floor at either power forward or center. The balance between the two positions will be perhaps the most fascinating element of his return. Pierce recently moved to a smaller, younger starting lineup, and where Collins fits into it will say quite a bit about how the team wants to play moving forward.

Trae Young, Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish, De’Andre Hunter, and Bruno Fernando have started each of the last two games, and Pierce essentially has two options for how integrate Collins into that group. He could bring Reddish, who has made strides in recent weeks but remains an awful offensive player, off the bench and start two big men, giving Atlanta a stronger interior presence on defense. Or he could pull Fernando and start Collins at center, giving the Hawks a smaller and more dynamic unit that should allow Young to play in more space and Collins to roll unfettered down the lane.

That avenue would come with a defensive tradeoff, especially in the next few games as Collins gets his rhythm and timing back after nearly two months off (which could also affect his chemistry in the pick-and-roll with Young). He may not yet have the strength or awareness to play center on a regular basis, and Hunter isn’t the kind of rangy combo forward that can shore up those weaknesses. Would Atlanta feel comfortable cutting down on Fernando’s opportunity to develop? But the Hawks are desperate, and the benefit of increased floor spacing and developmental opportunity might outweigh the defensive cost of playing a small, inexperienced unit.

Cleveland should be a good testing ground for Pierce and the Hawks. The Cavaliers, at 8-21 with a minus-9.1 point differential, have been only marginally worse than Atlanta this season, and, like Atlanta, are in the midst of a rebuild. Their plan and trajectory, however, isn’t quite as defined. They have neither a foundational piece like Young nor a well-defined cast of young players to surround him, and it’s unclear which of their young players will be around for the long term.

Cleveland has one of the few backcourts in the NBA less experienced than the Hawks’. Rookie Darius Garland and second-year guard Collin Sexton form an inefficient and pass-averse guard tandem while offering little resistance on defense. They have plenty of time to develop into effective offensive players, but both have struggled in the early stages of their careers. Jordan Clarkson provides an efficient scoring lift off the bench, but Cleveland’s strength lies in its frontcourt, where Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson – the only two remaining holdovers from the Cavs’ 2016 championship team – remain capable and reliable contributors.

Love is easily Cleveland’s best player, and therefore may not be long for this team. He averages better than 16 points and 10 rebounds on outstanding efficiency, and should probably be an even more prominent part of the Cavalier offense. What little floor spacing Cleveland has comes from Love, a 38 percent high-volume 3-point shooter who can also act as an offensive hub as teammates orbit him in the high post. Love’s trade market would be robust were it not for his four-year, $120 million contract, but he could help a better team as a complementary piece to a star.

The Hawks would be wise to try Collins at center while Thompson is on the bench, if not more often than that. Cleveland ranks third in the NBA in offensive rebound percentage and Thompson is one of the league’s most tenacious offensive boardsmen. Atlanta remains the worst defensive rebounding team in the league, and playing small won’t help their efforts on the glass. Still, the Hawks have reached a point of embracing experimentation. Collins allows them to do that by choice rather than necessity. 


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Ben Ladner
BEN LADNER

I am a basketball writer focused on both the broad concepts and finer points of the game. I've covered college and pro basketball since 2015, and after graduating from Indiana University in 2019, joined SI as an Atlanta Hawks beat writer.