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Atlanta Hawks swingman Kyle Korver has missed the past four games as a result of reported back spasms, and the team received a bit of poor news on Thursday, as Mike Budenholzer announced that the sharpshooter would still be out of the lineup as the team faces off with the Portland Trail Blazers.
The team is just 1-7 without Korver in the lineup this season, and while it certainly too aggressive to suggest that the losses are all a result of his absence, there is a reasonable argument for correlation. Korver is one of the best floor spacers in the entire NBA with top-5 rankings in true shooting percentage (67%) and effective field goal percentage (64.3%), but more than that, he is a quality team defender who is always in the right place, and that has been sorely lacking on the wing for Atlanta.
Without Korver available, Budenholzer has turned to starting lineups that included Shelvin Mack and even Mike Scott (at the small forward spot), and things get even more interesting with center Pero Antic on the shelf (per Bud's announcement in pregame) as a result of an ankle injury. The starting lineup has yet to be released as of this post, but it is a good bit that we will see a great deal of guys like Elton Brand, Mike Scott, and Cartier Martin. Stay tuned.