Atlanta Hawks: John Collins Continues Impressive Stretch Fueling Win Over Washington

The Atlanta Hawks beat the Washington Wizards 137-129 on the road, thanks in part to early contributions from John Collins. Despite leaving the game early with a facial laceration Collins posted yet another double-double.

John Collins may have left the Atlanta Hawks game early, but there is no question he helped fuel their win. Collins continued his impressive stretch grabbing 11-rebounds and scoring 15-points in 17 minutes.

Collins has taken a huge step forward this season making himself an obvious building block for the future.

Averaging 19.6-points per game and 10.0 rebounds Collins is a walking double-double. He consistently hustles and throws down jaw dropping dunks on what seems to be a nightly basis. His hustle and ability to move without the ball pairs perfectly with the Hawks’ new system.

Despite Collins leaving the game early he had a big impact on the outcome and continues to show just how good of a player he can be.  Collins is continuing to show improvement from three-point range as well, already matching his totals from last season. He has hit more than double last season’s total hitting 34-threes so far.

Collins was coming off of a 35-point performance against the Suns and looked to be putting up an impressive total yet again before the injury. An injury Hawks’ fans hope doesn’t keep Collins out of the starting lineup as they return to Atlanta.

John has two more seasons remaining on his rookie deal and is providing the Hawks plenty of motivation to extend him quickly. Signing John to an extension next season seems like an obvious move considering his market is only going up.

He is an important building block for a team who is heading in the right direction. Despite several missteps Atlanta is putting a core in place that will soon bring playoff basketball back to Atlanta once again.