The veteran depth added by the Atlanta Hawks is starting to pay off, but it is the performance of first-round draft pick Kingston Flemings that has the team most excited.
The Hawks will carry those good vibes into Saturday night’s home game against the Brooklyn Nets in the second part of a back-to-back set.
Atlanta has won three games in a row after defeating Washington 139-132 on Friday in the Hawks’ first game in the NBA Cup.
The Nets, who will begin a four-game trip on Saturday, are coming off a 114-104 win over Charlotte on Wednesday, their second victory this season.
Saturday will mark the first of three meetings between Brooklyn and Atlanta this year. The Hawks swept all four games last year and have a five-game winning streak against the Nets.
Flemings has started the last two games because coach Quin Snyder moved CJ McCollum to a sixth-man role. The decision has given the team additional veteran firepower off the bench and has allowed Flemings a chance to showcase his skills. So far he’s taken advantage of the opportunity.
“It felt great being on the court. I love playing ball,” he said. “So anytime I can be on the court (and) affect the game, I’m going to do that.”
Flemings scored 14 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field on Wednesday in his first start and followed with 11 points on a 5-for-9 effort on Friday. He had six assists and only two turnovers on Friday.
“When we get downhill, we got a lot of great shooting from the team,” Flemings said. “So that’s my job when I get in the game.”
The depth — the Hawks added veterans Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins during the offseason — has stretched the roster. Dort has started the last three games when Jalen Johnson has been out with a sprained ankle, and Wiggins remains a catalyst off the bench.
Dort scored a season-high 25 points and knocked down five 3-pointers on Friday night, and Wiggins added 19 points. They have helped alleviate the pressure on Nickeil Alexander-Walker to score, although he continues to respond and scored 28 on Friday, when the Hawks recorded a season high for points.
For the Nets, Michael Porter Jr. leads the team with averages of 21.4 points and 7.4 rebounds a game. He remains one of the league’s elite 3-point shooters and scored 26 points on Wednesday to help the Nets overcome a seven-point deficit in the fourth quarter vs. Charlotte.
“I told the guys at the beginning of the fourth quarter, let’s be a team and learn from our mistakes,” Porter said. ‘We were in the same position in New York a couple nights ago and fell apart in the fourth quarter. That’s what growing teams do — they learn from their failure. I was proud of everybody.”
Brooklyn’s Julius Randle is having another all-around solid season, averaging 21 points, 7.1 rebounds and 4.8 assists. The veteran has a successful track record against Atlanta, averaging 22.9 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 26 career meetings.
The Hawks are without Jock Landale, who missed his third game with a left hip strain, and Asa Newell, who suffered a hyperextension in his left big toe on Wednesday.
