The Hawks may have made the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs three consecutive times, but two players on the roster stand to log significant minutes in the postseason for the first time.
After the Hawks downed the Heat in their play-in game Tuesday, Saddiq Bey and Jalen Johnson realized they were going to the playoffs.
“It felt good because we didn’t have to worry about playing tonight,” Johnson said. “Just getting these extra couple of days to go over (scouting reports). Like, I think that’s going to work to our advantage. We’ve worked hard these past couple of days, just making sure we’re well prepared. And I think everybody’s locked in one through 15 (on the roster).”
Johnson was around the Hawks when they made their brief playoff run last season before the Heat ousted them in the first round. But this year things look different for the 21-year-old, who has played a more significant role for the Hawks this season.
After averaging only five minutes per game with the Hawks last season, Johnson has averaged almost 15 minutes this season. In that, he’s given the Hawks some versatility with his athletic ability and ability to take the ball up the court to push the pace after grabbing a defensive rebound.
He’s averaging 2.2 assists per game since the All-Star break since the Hawks coaching staff has encouraged him to do more. Part of that includes not hesitating when his teammates find him beyond the arc. The Hawks have yelled at Johnson when he does not shoot the ball when open.
“Like when I’m open, shoot it, don’t overthink it,” Johnson said. “If I miss, we got a better chance to offensive rebounding. We’ve been one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the league. So, there’s always opportunities to get rebounds off your misses and make up for it. So I’m going to shoot when I’m open, whether I make all of them and miss all of them. I’m gonna keep shooting because I know the work I put in on it. "
The Hawks will need guys like Johnson, as well as Bey, to knock those shots down from outside. The Celtics have plenty of guys who make 3′s on a regular basis in a variety of ways. So, the Hawks will need as many options available to space the floor to create open looks.
Bey has given the Hawks some long-range firepower since they acquired him from the Pistons in February. In 25 games with the Hawks, Bey has shot 40% from 3 on five attempts per game.
Both Bey and Johnson have bonded over making it to the playoffs for the first time in their careers.
“Me and Saddiq, we’re pretty close,” Johnson said. “So it’s like, we looked at each other out in Miami like, ‘We’re going to the playoffs. We’re in the playoffs like.’ He was in Detroit a couple years. And it’s like they weren’t really winning like this. And now he’s on a playoff team. And he’s playing a huge role for us. So yeah, we’re all just like we’re both excited to get in the playoffs.”
Bey, like Johnson, has been huge on the offensive boards in addition to his ability to shoot the ball coming off the bench. The two, along with the rest of the Hawks’ “Bench Mob” in Bogdan Bogdanovic and Onyeka Okongwu have helped to propel the Hawks into one of the top-scoring benches in the league.
Both know how important it is for the Hawks’ second unit to come out with energy, especially since they’re set to face one of the more experienced benches in the league.
“I try to build habits every day of just playing hard competing at a high level, and obviously, I try to use those habits and try to exceed them and play even harder, and things of that nature,” Bey said. “So, for me just focus on playing hard, compete and play for my teammates, and it’s still the game of basketball the end of the day. So just playing at a high level and trying to be consistent.”
The two also know that they’re set to head into a pretty rabid fan base at TD Garden, site of the first two games. For Bey, he feeds off of the energy of a hostile crowd, channeling his favorite comic character in the Joker.
“It’s great,” Bey said. “One of the best away crowds in the league, man. So, I love playing on the road, you know, being able to, you know, feel like it’s you versus the world. So I’m just excited to get going.”
The Hawks and Celtics tip off at 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
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