News & Notes: Reddish Remains Questionable as Hawks Prepare For Grizzlies

The Hawks have a chance to win three games in a row for the first time all season tonight, when the Memphis Grizzlies visit Atlanta for what could be an enthralling matchup between two of the NBA's best young point guards. Trae Young and Ja Morant will face off for the first time on Monday evening, and the Hawks will look to carry positive momentum from wins on Friday and Saturday into the new month.

After Atlanta's shootaround Monday morning, Lloyd Pierce and Trae Young spoke with the media about the team's recent play, news on the injury front, and the upcoming matchup with the Grizzlies.

Reddish (back) remains questionable

The latest update on Cam Reddish is that, well, there isn't an update on Cam Reddish. The rookie left Saturday's game with an apparent back injury and has been listed as questionable for the last two days, but Pierce said that he doesn't yet know whether Reddish will be able to play on Monday night.

"Cam worked out [at shootaround]," Pierce said. "But I don't have any real updates in terms of Cam's status."

Reddish has started the last two games, and played his best basketball of the season during the month of February. He has been nicked up with minor injuries at various points throughout the season -- first with a wrist injury, then a concussion, and now with back pain -- but gradually improved during an up-and-down rookie season. Reddish had a career-high 26 points against the Nets last week and has been an important part of Atlanta's best lineup this season (along with Young, Kevin Huerter, De'Andre Hunter, and John Collins).

It doesn't appear that he will miss many -- if any -- games with this current injury, but Atlanta is in position to play things safe if the medical staff feels he is unable to play. Still, his on-ball defense could be a big loss against Morant and the Grizzlies if he's unable to go. Stay tuned.

Dedmon, Capela, Bembry, and Labissière progressing, but still out

While Reddish's status for Monday is still in question, Dewayne Dedmon (elbow), Clint Capela (heel), DeAndre' Bembry (abdomen), and Skal Labissière (knee) will all remain out against Memphis. All four increased their activity level slightly during Monday's shootaround, but haven't made enough progress to update their availability.

Dedmon went through shooting drills after practice (with a sleeve on his right arm) while Capela did individual work with assistant coaches that included limited ball-handling and close-range shooting. Labissière shot around and worked on dribble moves with assistant coaches, and Bembry increased his volume of shooting during the practice.

Dedmon could return as early as Friday against the Wizards, but no timetable has officially been set. He seemed to be shooting the ball normally after practice, but we don't know exactly how his elbow feels, and NBA competition is quite a different intensity level than uncontested spot-shooting.

Previewing the Grizzlies

Both Pierce and Young were excited for the challenge of Morant and the Grizzlies, even if they are slightly beaten up along the front line. Jaren Jackson Jr. and Brandon Clarke -- the team's promising young big men -- will both miss Monday's game due to injury, but Atlanta will still have its hands full with Morant.

"Ja's having a hell of a year so far," Young said. "Been leading his team, doing a great job of it, being a true floor general, and he's playing really well this year."

The two point guards have their own distinct styles of play, but they share some DNA as passers and ball-handlers, finding creative ways to pull defenses this way and that. Morant doesn't have Young's shooting ability, but uses his athleticism to get to the rim effectively. Young, meanwhile, takes a craftier and more versatile approach on offense.

"I think Trae is definitely more of a scorer than Ja," Pierce said. "Ja is a better athlete, kind of an explosive-type player, one of those rare point guards that you've gotta really worry about attacking the rim and what he's capable of doing."

Both players experienced relatively early success in the NBA after dominant college seasons and have quickly risen into All-Star territory (or close to it) despite how much responsibility they carry at such young ages.

"Guys that have done it all of their careers, it translates," Pierce said. "It's nothing different than what they've done, they're just doing against better defenders, better athletes. But in the NBA the spacing allows you, when you play that way and you're used to having the ball, the NBA spacing allows to to kind of flourish even more than the college game does."

Young and Morant have kept up with one another regularly since the Rising Stars game, when they were teammates on Team USA, discussing life in the league and asking questions about each other's games. "Ja knows my line is open whenever he needs me," Young said.

Tonight's game between the two scintillating point guards could be the start of one of the NBA's most fun and long-lasting head-to-head matchups. Young says that, despite playing in different conferences, he hopes he and Morant will have opportunities to play against one another for a long time.

"Obviously we both have a lot to work on an improve to be one of the greats," he said. "But I think this is definitely a snapshot of what could become two of the young, up-and-coming guys."

Young responds to Ariza's comments

Young had a bit of an altercation with Blazers forward Trevor Ariza during Saturday's game when Young tried to dribble the ball between Ariza's legs and the veteran defiantly hip-checked Young into the sideline. After the game, Ariza commented on the play to The Athletic's Jason Quick:

“I told him, ‘Don’t do that shit again; not to me, at least,”‘ Ariza said. “I mean, I’ve never made an All-Defensive team or none of that shit, and he’s an All-Star, so he can be creative by ways to get around me. But all the, like, funnies? I’m not with the funnies. I don’t like the funnies.”

Unsurprisingly, neither Young and Pierce had an issue with the play, and saw it merely as a creative player making an impressive play. Young has been quite successful with the nutmeg move this season, first pulling it in the preseason against J.J. Redick and continuing to fool defenders with it ever since.

"I use it to create space. I use it for my advantage," Young said. "It's not to showboat. It's flair, it's excitement. Basketball's entertainment. It ain't gotta be serious 24/7. You can smile, you can have fun, you can engage with the crowd, you can flex, you can do whatever you want and have fun with it."

Young said that he and Ariza had exchanged words on the play prior to the nutmeg, and that he sensed the forward was frustrated. "When I came back down, I knew what I was about to do," Young said.

When Ariza approached Pierce during the game asking him to tell Young to dial back the theatrics, Pierce backed up his point guard. "I respect Trevor and I respect what he did, but I'm not telling Trae not to nutmeg," Pierce said. "That's his game. He's done it a million times, it gets our fans going, and he creates off of that."

In fact, Pierce says he'd like to see more Hawks play with the type of swagger and joy that Young brings to the game. He has joked with De'Andre Hunter about not having a 3-point celebration, and appreciates it when Young busts out his shiver routine or Reddish flexes after an and-one.

"I've told our guys I want to see them play with the type of swag that they have," Pierce said. "[Trae is] a crafty, 6-foot-1 point guard. Very crafty and creative. He's got to find unique ways to go by guys. Sometimes it's speed, sometimes it's quickness, sometimes it's nutmeg. People weren't complaining about Shaq dunking on them every single day. You've gotta figure out how to stop it."