Injury Report: Atlanta Hawks vs Memphis Grizzlies

The Hawks have released their injury report for tomorrow night's game

Dec 14, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Atlanta Hawks head coach Quin Snyder looks on during the second half against the Atlanta Hawks in a semifinal of the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

After a couple of losses to put a halt to their streak of good play, the Atlanta Hawks will look to get back in the win column tomorrow night, but it won't be easy. The Memphis Grizzlies are coming to town and they are riding high off of a blowout win over the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night. Memphis has been one of the best teams in the league this season, but the Hawks have done well against the better teams in the league. They have two wins against Cleveland, a road win vs Boston, and two wins vs the Knicks. Ahead of the game tomorrow night, the Hawks released their injury report just minutes ago.

Trae Young (right heel contusion) is questionable, Onyeka Okongwu (left knee inflammation) and Bufkin (right shoulder injury management) are out.

Hawks injury report for Saturday against Memphis:

Trae Young (right heel contusion) is questionable.

Onyeka Okongwu (left knee inflammation) is out.

Bufkin (right shoulder injury management) is out.

— Lauren L. Williams (@WilliamsLaurenL) December 20, 2024

Atlanta is currently 14-14 and has won seven of their last ten games and a big reason (though not the only reason) is the play of star point guard Trae Young. Young is currently leading the league in assists and while his shooting numbers are down compared to years past, he is leading the charge for the Hawks on offense and is making strides when it comes to playing defense.

All of this has Trae Young in the top ten of the Kia NBA MVP Ladder. Young had been 10th, but in today's update, he moved up to 9th. Nikola Jokic remained in first and he was followed by Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, Karl Anthony-Towns, Anthony Davis, and Victor Wembanyama. There is a lot of work for Young to do to continue to move up, but he is getting recognized for his strong play this season.

Yesterday, Young was named to the All-NBA Cup Team.

Young appeared in five games (all starts) during Atlanta’s run to the Emirates NBA Cup East Semifinal, averaging 24.2 points, 10.8 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 1.0 steal in 36.3 minutes of action. The seventh-year guard led all players in assists per game during NBA Cup games and was the only player to average at least 20.0 points, 10.0 assists and 1.0 steal.

The three-time NBA All-Star recorded 20-or-more points and 10-or-more assists in each of his last four NBA Cup games, including tallying a near triple-double against the eventual Emirates NBA Cup Champion Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 14, finishing with 35 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds in 40 minutes of action. Young, who leads the NBA this season in 30-point, 10-assist outings (six), owns 83 career such games, the fifth-most in NBA history and one shy of tying Russell Westbrook (84) for the fourth-most games with 30+ points and 10+ assists in league history.

Through 26 games played so far this season, Young has handed out an NBA-best 314 total assists, on pace to lead the league in total assists for the third time in his career. The 6-1 guard is averaging 12.1 assists per game, on pace to become the first player since John Stockton in 1994-95 to average at least 12.0 assists per contest.

Behind Young’s leadership, Atlanta has won seven of its last nine games, the most victories by an Eastern Conference team since Nov. 27, with wins against the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers (twice, one road and one home), the Los Angeles Lakers (Dec. 6) and road victories over the Milwaukee Bucks (Dec. 4) and New York Knicks (Dec. 11, NBA Cup Quarterfinal).

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