Atlanta Hawks All-Star guard Trae Young suffered a significant left-hand injury in Friday’s 123-121 loss to the Toronto Raptors at State Farm Arena.
Young, who has averaged 26.4 points and 10.8 assists this season, then underwent an MRI exam on Saturday which revealed a tear of the radial collateral ligament in the fifth finger of his left hand. The team announced on Sunday that his injury will require surgery and at least four weeks of recovery. While many around the league will be wishing Young a speedy recovery in the days ahead, his absence from the Hawks’ lineup for the foreseeable future could offer the Nets the break they have been looking for.
Atlanta (25-32) is currently sitting at 10th place in the Eastern Conference standings, 3.5 games ahead of Brooklyn (21-35) for the final Play-In spot. The teams have 25 and 26 games left in the regular season, respectively, entering Monday’s matchups.
Brooklyn will host the Hawks at Barclays Center on Thursday and Saturday this week, which gives them a prime opportunity to close the gap. Despite all the chaos the Nets have endured in recent weeks, they still have a shot at a postseason berth, and it starts with two wins against an undermanned Atlanta team. Beyond that, Brooklyn has the second-easiest remaining schedule, according to Tankathon.
Still, the Nets are not in a position to take any team for granted. Kevin Ollie has begun his tenure as interim head coach in Brooklyn 0-2 following Saturday’s 101-86 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The team has lost seven of its past eight games and has not eclipsed 100 points since a 118-110 loss to the Boston Celtics at home ahead of the All-Star break.
The Nets are averaging just 89.5 points per game under Ollie and have been outscored in transition 71-16. They still have two more road games against Memphis and Orlando before welcoming the Hawks to Brooklyn for that two-game series.
“Everyone’s focus and effort, I think those are the main two things,” said Ben Simmons, who is listed as questionable with left leg soreness entering Monday’s game in Memphis. “Obviously we got new schemes, new plays, but as long as we got the energy and play hard and focus, I think we will be fine.”
The Hawks improved to 3-3 without Young on the court this season following Sunday’s 109-92 defeat of Orlando. They have an offensive rating of 116.3 with the guard on the court this season versus 114.0 without him. However, their defensive rating improves from 118.9 to 116.1 without Young on the court.
Brooklyn is 1-1 against Atlanta this season. Its most recent matchup against the Hawks came on Dec. 6 at State Farm Arena, a 114-113 Nets win that saw Mikal Bridges pour in a game-high 32 points on 12-of-19 shooting with five rebounds and six assists in 35 minutes of action.
