Injury Report: Hawks vs Knicks
After losing two games against the Brooklyn Nets, the Hawks head to Madison Square Garden to try and end their two-game losing skid and upset the Knicks.
Ahead of their game tomorrow, the Hawks released their injury report and there is one new addition to it. Onyeka Okongwu (left big toe sprain/sesamoiditis) and Trae Young (left fifth finger torn ligament) are out tomorrow while rookie guard Kobe Bufkin (left big toe soreness) is questionable. Bufkin has been the backup point guard for the Hawks while Young has been out and has played well, especially defensively. Keep an eye on his status tomorrow.
It looked like Knicks guard Jalen Brunson had a serious injury last night in the opening minutes vs Cleveland but Brunson will be listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game with a left knee contusion according to Ian Begley of SNY.
The Atlanta Hawks have been stuck in the 10th spot in the Eastern Conference for what feels like all season, but their grip on that spot is starting to loosen. Despite Trae Young being out for at least four weeks, Atlanta went into their important two-game stretch against the Brooklyn Nets with a four-game lead for the last spot. If they beat Brooklyn in both games, they would have extended the lead to six games, and with the season heading into its final stretch, that might have been big enough to where Atlanta did not have to worry about.
Atlanta lost both games, however, and now their lead for the last play-in spot is down to two games. Not only that but the Nets hold the season series and tiebreaker over Atlanta now. Brooklyn was beginning to look like it had given up on this season, but these two wins over the Hawks give them a little bit of life and hope that they can catch Atlanta.
Young is still three weeks from being reevaluated and Onyeka Okongwu is a week away from being reevaluated, meaning the Hawks are not going to be fully healthy for most of the rest of the season. Atlanta is also entering a tough stretch of its schedule, going on the road to face the Knicks on Tuesday night and then traveling back home to Atlanta and facing the Cavaliers on Wednesday night. Now, the Knicks might be without Jalen Brunson on Tuesday, but Atlanta's offensive problems have made it to where the Knicks might now even need Brunson to win on Tuesday.
Per Tankathon, the Hawks have the 11th-hardest schedule remaining. Atlanta has two games left vs the Celtics (did you see them yesterday?), one vs Denver, one game vs Minnesota, one game vs the Clippers, and one game vs Milwaukee. The Hawks do have two games vs the Hornets, one vs the Pistons, two vs Portland, one vs Memphis, and one vs Utah. It should be noted though that the Hawks are 0-2 vs Charlotte this season and are responsible for being on the other end of the Hornet's biggest win of the season.
It is going to be a tough ask for the Hawks to take down the Knicks, but they are going to have to win some games they are not favored in if they want to stay alive for the play-in tournament.
