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Atlanta Hawks: Mike Muscala 2013-14 Season Review

By Adam McGee

Mar 26, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Atlanta Hawks center Mike Muscala (31) drives past Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng (5) during the second quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 26, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Atlanta Hawks center Mike Muscala (31) drives past Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng (5) during the second quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports /
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Defensive Effort

Muscala really struggled defensively in his 20 games this season, but it generally didn’t seem to be down to a lack of effort. Muscala had a team worst defensive rating of 114.8, resulting in the Hawks being more than 20 points worse than the opposition per 100 minutes Muscala was on the floor.

Although this paints a very bleak picture of Muscala, it’s probably unfair to make a final judgement on his defense based on such a small sample size. Having arrived at a high pressure time of the season, it’s very possible that Muscala never got to feel completely comfortable with Atlanta’s defensive schemes.

Looking at Muscala’s per 36 minute numbers again, he averaged a solid 1.7 blocks. When he was on the court, Muscala always looked to be active on both ends of the floor, and my guess would be that he will show himself to be a much better defender than his numbers this season indicate.

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