Atlanta Hawks: Trae Young and John Collins a duo for the future

With two immensely talented building blocks in John Collins and Trae Young, the future is looking very bright for the Atlanta Hawks in the present.

There is more to winning games than just talent. Then again, it’s as good a place to start as there is in a league driven by its best players. After years of playoff appearances, the Atlanta Hawks are building from the ground up, and even early on, it looks as though they’ve found themselves two gems with which to build around.

John Collins entered the league the 19th overall pick by Atlanta in the 2017 NBA Draft. At 6’10”, he had tremendous potential as an inside finisher and elite rim runner. But as we’ve seen in the past, there have been athletic outliers who fail to reach their potential because they choose to rely on those gifts and those gifts alone.

Guys like Darius Miles and Derrick Williams could’ve dominated the opposition had they just put in the time to develop actual skills on the court. They didn’t, and it’s why their careers didn’t pan out the way many had hoped. Whereas guys like Amar’e Stoudemire and Blake Griffin honed their outside shots to counteract their battered bodies.

Collins’ inaugural season paled in comparison to that of his rookie cohorts, some of who would go on tremendous playoff runs. It’s been in year two, though, where the former Wake Forest forward has established himself as one of the best young talents in the entire NBA.

After starting the 2018-19 season one the sideline due to an ankle injury, Collins hit the ground running and hasn’t stopped for a breather. Barely old enough to order an alcoholic beverage, he’s averaging 19.7 points and 9.9 rebounds in exactly 30.0 minutes per game.

It is also important to keep in mind that JC isn’t simply putting up empty calorie stats. Atlanta’s offensive rating jumps 11.6 points per 100 possessions with Collins on the floor. So while the Hawks haven’t found themselves on the winning side of most games with a 17-35 record, it’s scary to imagine what their win total would be without the services of their young star.

While some big men find an increased level of efficiency due to the close proximity of their shots to the rim, Collins hasn’t been afraid to expand his offensive arsenal, attempting 3.1 shots from beyond the arc and hitting them at 37.0 percent clip. This, combined with a field goal percentage of 58.6 and free-throw percentage of 73.1, makes him already an incredibly efficient scorer.

Collins’ improvement has been nothing short of remarkable, but like most big men, he has a certain point guard to thank for creating easier looks, one who just so happens to be an up and coming prospect just like him.

Taken 5th overall this past June by the Dallas Mavericks and subsequently traded to the Hawks, Trae Young was the ultimate boom or bust prospect leading up to the draft. With deep range on his jumper and unteachable point guard skills, some had invoked similarities to Stephen Curry. Others suggested Jimmer Fredette. Two guards with comparable skillsets who wound up with vastly different careers. Who could predict where Young’s career would land in comparison?

Like most rookies, Young has seen his fair share of ups and downs. He’s shooting just 41.1 percent from the field and 30.6 percent from downtown. He’s averaging 4.0 turnovers per game and is significantly better in wins compared to losses.

On the flip side, he’s also putting up 16.9 points and 7.4 assists per game, having taken home two of the three Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month awards, including this past January. Through it all, Young continues to flash those same gifts that made him a must-watch prospect at Oklahoma last year on a Hawks team content to let their young floor general learn from his mistakes.

The city of Atlanta had grown accustomed to a certain standard of basketball after its team qualified for the playoffs in 10 straight seasons this century. Moving on from it was necessary, but difficult, as a plan to build through the draft has never proven to be an exact science.

In both Young and Collins, the Hawks appear to be on the right track with one of the most exciting young one-two punches in the league. Their skill-sets even invoke a certain Phoenix Suns duo who terrorized defenses around a decade ago.

They still have a ways to go before they can compare themselves with greats like Steve Nash and Amar’e Stoudemire, but in this their first year playing together, it’s hard not to see the two work a pick-and-roll and become giddy at the thought of what may be to come.