This is the second of a series of roundtable questions I’m asking the staff here at Peachtree Hoops about the Hawks this upcoming season. The first roundtable can be found here. The second question: what
is the best lineup the Hawks could use to close a game?
Wes: I’m going to cheat and give you two lineups. This first one is when you’re up and just need to salt away the game. For me, you can’t go wrong with the likely starting lineup of Young, Daniels, Risacher, Johnson, and Porzingis. The collective length and cohesiveness as the unit plays with each other throughout the season will make it tough to break down in halfcourt defensive sets.
But if the team needs a bucket late, I think a three guard look would suit the team best. Bring in Nickeil Alexander-Walker for Zaccharie Risacher for the extra ball handling and experience, and teams won’t be able to trap Trae Young at halfcourt as easily.
Chase: I won’t get too cute with this answer and leave it at what I think are our five best players: Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, Jalen Johnson and Kristaps Porzingis. You can easily make the argument to put in ‘OO’ if we are in desperate need of a rebound or even get Kennard off the bench for a three-point shooting lineup. The talent Atlanta has this year does make this an intriguing question, and Quin is going to have a lot of fun playing with the lineups this season.
Graham: What I like about this question is that now there’s enough talent in the roster to expand this to when the Hawks need a basket to needing a stop to close a game. For needing a basket, it’s Young, Jalen Johnson, Porzingis, Risacher, and I’d probably actually lean towards Okongwu for crashing the offensive glass.
I’d only be slightly worried about a secondary option if Young is doubled and the ball isn’t able to get to Johnson, it’s missing a third creator in case the play breaks down, but it has a good mix of penetration, shooting, and offensive rebounding potential if the shot is missed. I’d like to see what Daniels’ improvements are shooting the ball and getting by defenders on the drive but he’s definitely an option offensively, and if there’s time coming back on the other end you definitely want him on the floor.
Defensively to close, Daniels, Alexander-Walker, Johnson, Risacher/Okongwu/Porzingis. Sometimes one or both bigs may be called for depending on the matchup, and if not I think Risacher probably squeezes in just as a more mobile body on the perimeter. Still very excited to see Daniels/Alexander-Walker, and Johnson in defensive lineups.
Hassan: The ‘closing five’ will vary from game to game depending on the matchups and situation, but I like the five-man group of Trae Young, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Zaccharie Risacher, Jalen Johnson and Kristaps Porzingis. I believe the Young/Johnson pick-and-roll is going to be one of Atlanta’s most fruitful offensive actions this season, and the three-point shooting talent between Alexander-Walker, Risacher and Porzingis should provide ample spacing for them to exert maximum pressure on the defense if their half-court offense is predicated around Young and Johnson.
While this does leave Dyson Daniels on the bench, if Alexander-Walker can bring 70-80% of what Daniels does on defense, adding in the fact that he is a far better three-point shooter, I think he gets the nod over Daniels if the Hawks are chasing a lead.
As far as a ‘need a stop’ lineup, I think Daniels, Alexander-Walker, Jalen Johnson and Porzingis are locks to play. Then I’d go with either Risacher or Okongwu as the fifth man depending on the matchups.
