Saddiq Bey is averaging 13.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists this season.
The Atlanta Hawks’ roster will be thinned as the team pushes for a SoFi Play-In Tournament spot.
Forward Saddiq Bey will be out for the rest of the season after suffering a torn ACL in his left knee, the team announced Monday. He was injured in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 116-103 home loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.
An @emoryhealthcare injury update:
Saddiq Bey left last night’s game vs. New Orleans after hyperextending his left knee. An MRI taken earlier today at the Emory Sports Medicine Complex revealed a torn left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
Bey will miss the remainder of the… pic.twitter.com/KH8VZ0waGH
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 11, 2024
With 10:41 left in the game, Bey slid in pain on the floor after stopping short and getting fouled. Bey stayed in and made one of two free throws, then was removed and went to the locker room with a slight limp. He beat the third-quarter buzzer with a 3-pointer and finished with 14 points and five rebounds.
Impact of Bey’s injury: The versatile Bey, in his first full season with the Hawks, is averaging 13.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 32.7 minutes per game. He has started 51 of 63 games for Atlanta and was acquired by the team as a part of a four-team deal at the trade deadline in 2023.
The Hawks (29-35) are No. 10 in the Eastern Conference and would make the Play-In Tournament if it began today. However, they are only up 3 1/2 games on the Brooklyn Nets and have a five-game road trip ahead that begins on March 13.
Atlanta is already shorthanded as All-Star guard Trae Young is recovering from left hand surgery in late February. Since Young went out of the lineup on Feb. 25, the Hawks are 5-3 and rank fifth defensively (109.1 points allowed per 100 possessions) over this eight-game stretch without Young. They also rank as the most improved defensive team since the All-Star break.
Aside from Bey being out, standout swingman Jalen Johnson has missed the last two games with an ankle injury. His absence combined with Bey’s will mean increased minutes for youngsters such as Vit Krejci, Garrison Mathews and others while the Hawks wait to get a full roster.
Information from The Associated Press and NBA.com’s John Schuhmann was used in this report.
