With the 8th playoff spot in the Eastern Conference secured after Saturday night's victory, it was a definite possibility that the Atlanta Hawks could be resting some of their key contributors against the Charlotte Bobcats on Monday night. However, resting three of their starting five players may come as a surprise.
Hawks will rest Paul Millsap, DeMarre Carroll and Kyle Korver tonight vs. Bobcats. #ATLHawks
— Chris Vivlamore (@ajchawks) April 14, 2014
Chris Vivlamore of the AJC indicates that the trio of Paul Millsap, DeMarre Carroll and Kyle Korver will be sitting out on Monday, and in their place, Vivlamore reports that Jeff Teague and a returning Pero Antic (!) will be joined by Lou Williams, Cartier Martin and Mike Scott in the starting five.
On one hand, it is extremely encouraging to see Antic return to the lineup after sitting out Saturday with an ankle issue, but the rest of the roster is severely limited without the three unavailable players. Still, it is virtually impossible to argue with giving these guys some additional rest, and it is a safe bet that there will be considerable absences for Wednesday's road game against Milwaukee as well.
In their absence, we should see plenty of the young guys (Schröder and Muscala), but the real beneficiary of the extra exposure could be Cartier Martin, who is the only active player who can reasonably be called a swingman. Stay tuned.