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Atlanta Hawks: 3 secret x-factors to help fuel a huge playoff upset

By Elliot Reeder

Atlanta Hawks Trae Young (Photo by Bryan Cereijo/Getty Images)
Atlanta Hawks Trae Young (Photo by Bryan Cereijo/Getty Images) /
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Atlanta Hawks Bogdan Bogdanovic (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
Atlanta Hawks Bogdan Bogdanovic (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images) /

Bogdan Bogdanovic

He hasn’t had a perfect season, but if Atlanta is going to get the oomph off the bench that they need then they will need Bogdan Bogdanovic to be a big part of that. He has still hit 40.6% from deep this season while averaging 14 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. The Hawks aren’t a great 3-point shooting team (21st in the league in 3P%), but Bogi is a player that can show up and hit some treys at a high mark. In fact, Atlanta is 10-5 this season when Bogi hits four or more threes.

In the play-in victory over the Heat, Bogi put up 14 points as he helped the Hawks bench unit outscore the Heat’s 53-37 (and that’s with Kyle Lowry scoring 33 off the bench for Miami).

Bogi had some big moments in Atlanta’s playoff run back in 2021. He scored 21 and 22 respectively in Game 1 and Game 4 (in the huge comeback) wins over Philly in the Eastern Conference semis. He also scored 20 (on 6 threes) with a +25 plus-minus in the Hawks’ big Game 4 win over the Bucks with no Trae Young after his injury in Game 3. Bogi also put up 18/8/6 in the Hawks’ lone win in the 1st round series last year against Miami.

Simply put, Bogi has had some big playoff moments in his Atlanta career. If the Hawks are going to pull the 1st round upset, then they will likely need Bogi to have some more.