Terance Mann Discusses Going From Playing Alongside James Harden to Now Playing Alongside Trae Young

The Atlanta Hawks made a few big trades at the deadline a couple of weeks ago. First they sent De'Andre Hunter to Cleveland for Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, and draft picks. Then, they send Bogdan Bogdanovic to the Clippers for Terance Mann and Bones Hyland (who was waived after being acquired). Mann has played in four games and is still finding his role, but one thing that is staying consistent for him is the fact that he gets to play one with one of the leagues best playmakers. Mann played alongside James Harden in Los Angeles and is now playing alongside Trae Young. When talking with the media after practice today, Mann talked about what it has been like for him to go from playing alongside one great playmaker to another:

"I think so, you always gotta be aware, both of those guys see the floor really well, so you have to be aware at all times, but James (Harden) will tell you that he is a shooting guard"

One thing that is certain is that Mann gives the Hawks another versatile defender to help the Hawks defense. Mann has not scored much in his four games with the Hawks, but he has been a very good defender for Atlanta off the bench. Getting to play alongisde Young should mean that he will get to have more looks on offense.

When talking with the media after practice on Saturday, Atlanta head coach Quin Snyder talked about the matchup with the Pistons and the first thing he was asked about was how to slow down Malk Beasley, who has been one of the NBA's best bench players this season. Beasley has scored at least 18 points off the bench in each of the three matchups between the two teams and Snyder talked about how difficult it is to slow him down:

"I think he stays hot. His percentages are around the tops in the league and I think the most important thing is to try and limit his attempts. And then, there is an adjustment when you are on him and it requires a lot of concentration, not just for him, but for the other four guys on the floor because they can be lost in action or transition or switches so it has to be a collective effort."

When it comes to the job that Pistons head coach JB Bickerstaff has done this season, Snyder could not have been more complementary of what they have accomplished so far:

"He has done a terrific job. I think it starts with their mentality defensively, not just in Cade's leadership but JB empowering him to do that. For a coach, anytime that you get a couple of guys that have a knowledge of the league, it can reallly help. They have been playing this way for the whole year and they have gotten better as the year progresses and that is a credit to JB and the job that he has done."

It is safe to say that the first game after the All-Star break did not go the Hawks way and they would love to get a win tomorrow vs Detroit. There are only 26 games left and every one of them counts for a Hawks team looking to get back into the postseason.

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