No. 2 – The future backcourt battle of the East
Even though we can all agree that Luka Doncic will win Rookie of the Year, and be the Hawk that never was, Atlanta still came away with a nice package in their hopeful backcourt of the future.
Trae Young and Kevin Huerter are the generic brand versions of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, but I think all of Atlanta is fine with that as these two are young rookies looking to grow with one another.
And while Young was struggling throughout the beginning of the season, Hawks head coach Lloyd Piece (assistant coach of Sixers during “The Process”) has taken away a lot of freedom from Young and limited his potential production to increase Young’s efficiency.
And surprise, surprise, it’s worked!
In the past ten games, Young is averaging 14.7 PPG, 8.5 AST, 3.4 TRB, with shooting splits of 45.5/50.0/80.1.
In this micro example of Young, coach Piece has limited Young’s shot attempts from the 3-point line by 2.1, only letting Young shoot around 3.5 a game in the past ten outings, which has incredibly helped the young shooter from taking 30+ foot shots that we see Curry shoot on a day-to-day basis.
As for Huerter, he started off the season timid, and coach Pierce is trying to help that by doing the opposite of the Young experiment, he’s trying to increase Huerter’s production by shooting more shots. And while they haven’t recently been falling at a great mark, this is a fantastic sign for both guards that they have a coach that knows how to use them effectively (or, at least, ATL hopes so).
What does this mean for Miami, who may have the “real” future backcourt?
Justise Winslow and Josh Richardson are having All-Star moments this season, and all of Heat nation can’t do anything but smile for the two best friends. These modern day, 3-and-D, point forwards are hopefully going to take the East by storm fairly soon, and they are proving it with their play all season long.
Point Justise has become an NBA favorite, and Richardson may be an All-Star this season, there is a lot riding on these two young guys who have both been recently signed long term for Miami. Can their length and experience stop the rookie backcourt in Atlanta?
Let’s hope so.
As for our last factor to watch out for in this game, it has to do with a guy that likes fish, A LOT.