Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins will play in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat on Sunday barring issues in warmups, sources tell The Athletic. Collins has been out since March 11 due to foot and finger injuries and was sidelined indefinitely last month.
The Hawks announced Collins' status as questionable and listed center Clint Capela as out for Sunday's game.
Capela suffered a right knee hyperextension in Friday night's Play-In Tournament win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. In the second quarter, Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley fell into Capela's knee while it was planted after Capela grabbed Mobley from behind as he was shooting in the paint. Trainers helped Capela to the locker room and he was ruled out for the rest of the game.
Atlanta improved to 43-39 with Friday's win and became the Eastern Conference's No. 8 seed. Miami is the No. 1 seed.
(Photo: Jacob Kupferman / Getty Images)
Collins' impact if he plays
Chris Kirschner, Hawks beat writer: Collins has dealt with both finger and foot injuries over the past several weeks. As of now, it’s his finger that’s still the most bothersome. I’m told that Collins still has difficulty gripping the ball and his shooting isn’t crisp right now because of the pain in his finger.
Because of this, I’m not sure if he’s going to be the offensive threat we’ve come to expect out of the highly efficient Collins. It’s still a significant deal to potentially get him back as soon as Sunday with Capela out.
How do the Hawks adjust with Capela out?
Kirschner: With Capela likely out for several games this series — if not the entirety of the series — Onyeka Okongwu will join the starting lineup. Luckily for the Hawks, Okongwu is one of the best backup centers in the NBA.
The biggest thing the Hawks are going to miss without Capela is his rebounding. Okongwu is just nowhere near as effective on the glass as a Capela, and there will be a noticeable difference. He also doesn’t have the same chemistry in the pick-and-roll with Trae Young as Capela by virtue of not playing with him as often as Capela.