Atlanta Hawks have 5 days off, Patterson to D-League

The Atlanta Hawks have a nice break in their schedule, getting 5 days before the Mavericks on the 9th. Lamar Patterson also will do a stint in the D-League.

It has been a grind for the 2015-16 Atlanta Hawks. They have played 22 games already this season, sitting at 13-9 after their 100-87 home victory over Kobe Bryant‘s reeling Los Angeles Lakers. Nobody has played more games than the Atlanta Hawks so far this season, so it seems only fair that the club will get a five-day break before they travel to Dallas to face the Mavericks at the American Airlines Center, Wednesday, December 9th at 9:30 PM ET.

These five days off a crucial for the Atlanta Hawks for many reasons. It allows the tired team to get some well-deserved rest before taking on a familiar Southwestern foe of head coach Mike Budenholzer. Bud is still so magical when leading the Hawks against western teams, boasting a 6-4 record against the West.

-= Related: Mike Budenholzer’s edge versus West key for Hawks =-

This brief break from regular season games allows players that rarely play for the club like shooting guard Tim Hardaway, Jr., small forward Lamar Patterson, and center Walter Tavares the opportunities to play in some D-League assignments.

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Hardaway and Tavares left for the Canton Charge, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ affiliate, earlier in the week. Patterson will briefly go down to the Austin Spurs, San Antonio’s affiliate, before hopefully rejoining the team on Wednesday.

Having a fifth of the team’s roster being able to shake off some rust in D-League matches bodes well for them so that they are ready when Coach Bud needs them for their next brutal grind in their 2015-16 NBA schedule. Will the onslaught ever stop?

Maybe not before 2016, as the Atlanta Hawks will play 12 games in 21 days to close out 2015. The 2015-16 Atlanta Hawks will play 34 of their 82 regular season games before the start of 2016. That’s almost half and the NBA regular season doesn’t end until mid-April.

Atlanta is doing its best to hang tough in the first half of the NBA season, with their respectable .591 wining percentage. To further illustrate how the East is surprisingly better than the West this year, a .591 winning percentage has the Atlanta Hawks 6th in the East, while that would put Atlanta 3rd in the West behind the juggernauts of Golden State and San Antonio.

Next: Atlanta Hawks: Eastern Conference Power Rankings, Dec. 3

I think the Atlanta will use these five days off to their advantage in the film room, hopefully igniting another fiery session by Coach Bud to get the Hawks towards the top part of the Eastern Conference. A strong surge to close out 2015 would make for an easier time navigating the second half of their schedule. Let’s Go Hawks!