BREAKING: Hawks Forward Saddiq Bey Out For The Rest of the Season With Torn ACL
The Hawks received some unfortunate news today.
After being injured early in the fourth quarter of last night's loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, Hawks forward Saddiq Bey has suffered a season-ending torn ACL according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Last night, Hawks head coach Quin Snyder did not have much of an update on Bey, but now the Hawks will be without him for the rest of the season. Bey is going to be a restricted free agent this summer and has been a starter for most of the season for the Hawks. He has been a good rebounder for the Hawks this season and gives them the ability to stretch the floor.
Bey's injury just adds to the long list for the Hawks. Currently, Atlanta is missing Trae Young, Onyeka Okongwu, Jalen Johnson, and rookie Kobe Bufkin.
Atlanta has been starting Vit Krejci in place of Johnson these last two games. The big question is going to be if Johnson has to be out for much longer, who will come into the starting lineup? The easy answer might be De'Andre Hunter, but Snyder has said that he is still on a minute restriction. It will be interesting to see what the team will do until Johnson and Okongwu come back from injury. The Hawks were already a small team and the injury to Bey just makes that problem more apparent.
Other guys who could step into the starting lineup if Johnson is not back for the upcoming five-game West Coast trip include Garrison Matthews and Wesley Matthews. Garrison has started multiple games this year when the Hawks have had injuries and is a 42.3% three-point shooter, but is limited on defense. Wesley Matthews is an older veteran who has not shot well from three this year but has come in to help the Hawks's defense.
The Hawks are currently in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, 3.5 games ahead of the Brooklyn Nets. They begin their road trip with a game at Portland on Wednesday night.
