29-year old shooting guard Joe Johnson struggled earlier this year due to a bad elbow which required surgery.  But he’s back on track now.  He played in 13 games in January for the Hawks and he averaged 36.5 minutes, 26.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game on 50.4% shooting from the floor.  Johnson has now played in 39 games (all starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 36.4 minutes, 20.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game on 44.1% shooting from the floor.  The Hawks’ offense is really purring right now as Johnson’s play has sparked the team.

30-year old shooting guard Jamal Crawford has really stepped up so far in January for the Hawks.  Crawford has played in 5 games so far this January and he is averaging 33.4 minutes, 27.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.  He is shooting 51.2% from the floor, 47.1% from three point range and 91.7% from the free throw line so far this month as he is really excelling offensively.  He has now played in 34 games (0 starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 31.0 minutes, 16.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.  When Crawford gets into one of the grooves he’s in right now the whole Hawks’ offense benefits.

22-year old point guard Jeff Teague has been playing pretty well as of late for the Hawks.  In his last four games, Teague is averaging 16.0 minutes, 8.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steal per game as he is shooting a red hot 63.6% from the floor.  He has now played in 25 games (0 starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 13.6 minutes, 4.6 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.  Teague’s shooting is up from everywhere on the floor in his second season in the NBA.  He is shooting 47.3% from the floor, 36.4% from the three point line and 85.7% from the free throw line this year.  At some point this year, Teague is going to start getting more P.T. for the Hawks if he keeps playing well.

With Joe Johnson out of action the Hawks needed someone to step up.  30-year old Jamal Crawford has played in 5 games so far this December and he is averaging 33.4 minutes, 16.8 points, 1.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game.  He has now played in 22 games (0 starts) for the Hawks overall this year and he is averaging 30.1 minutes, 14.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.  The Hawks hope that his three point shooting starts to heat up as he is only shooting 34.9% fromm three point range.

PF/SF Josh Smith is one of the most underrated basketball players in the entire NBA. He plays hard at both ends of the basketball court which results in his stuffing the stat sheet. Smith has played in 8 games (all starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 34.4 minutes, 14.4 points, 9.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.4 steals and 3.4 blocked shots per game. Smith is also hitting 50% from the floor as his shot selection has been excellent so far this year. One of these days Smith will start getting the respect he deserves around the NBA.

26-year old back up center Zaza Pachulia has been very solid in his limited P.T. so far this season. He has played in all 6 games (0 starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 19.0 minutes, 8.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Pachulia is also shooting 68% from the floor so far this year! The Hawks are thinking seriously about possibly starting Pachulia at center and shifting Al Horford to power forward and Josh Smith to small forward to give themselves a big lineup. In that scenario, Marvin Williams (the current starting small forward) would become the first big man off the bench. That kind of move would make the Hawks a very physical basketball team. But for now they likely won’t make that change as they are 6-0.

32-year old point guard Mike Bibby held off Jeff Teague in the pre-season to retain his starting job and it appears that he wants to keep it a while. Bibby has started 3 games for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 30.7 minutes, 13.0 points, 1.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. He has been shooting the ball well from everywhere on the court so far this year hitting 53.8% from the floor, 53.3% from three point range and 100% of his free throws this year. The Hawks hope the Bibby keeps up the good work because when he’s right they are very hard to defend.

23-year old center Al Horford keeps improving for the Atlanta Hawks. Horford played in 81 games (all starts) last season for the Hawks and he averaged 35.1 minutes, 14.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. I expect that Horford will take his offense to a new level next season if Joe Johnson leaves the Hawks for greener pastures. Horford has now played in 229 games (225 starts) in his three years for the Hawks and he is averaging 33.3 minutes, 12.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. Horford will hopefully have a long career with the Hawks as he is still very young at 23.

Joe Johnson has his eye on free agency this summer. He played in 73 games (all starts) for the Hawks this season and he is averaging 38.1 minutes, 21.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. The Hawks really need Johnson to play well in the playoffs because this is the best team the Hawks have had since Dominique Wilkins played with them. They are legit contenders to win the Eastern Conference this season so they need all hands on the deck.

Starting power forward Josh Smith has been outstanding this season for the Hawks. Smith has played in 71 games (all starts) for the Hawks this season and he is averaging 35.2 minutes, 15.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 2.1 blocked shots per game. Smith hustles at both ends of the court and that’s why he fills up the stat sheet so well. They will likely need him to help out Al Horford a lot on defense when the Hawks tangle with a big center in the playoffs.