Lamar Patterson, Edy Tavares see D-League season end; Back to Atlanta?

Lamar Patterson and Edy Tavares have been back and forth from the Atlanta Hawks to the D-League on a number of occasions during the 2015-2016 season. Now, it appears that back and forth is over.

The Austin Spurs were eliminated from the D-League playoffs with a 117-104 loss on Wednesday evening, meaning that Patterson and Tavares are now free to return to Atlanta full-time. Patterson has been pinging between Austin and Atlanta in the last few days, as he was active for both games in Atlanta against the Celtics in round one, but with no secondary commitment, there is no barrier for the Hawks in bringing back both youngsters.

Patterson (9 minutes) and Tavares (2 minutes) were not significant factors in Austin's final defeat, but both athletes had strong seasons as the D-League level. In 29 games, Tavares averaged 9.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game in 21.6 minutes per contest, while Patterson put up 12.8 points, 4.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game in 19 appearances.

Because of NBA constraints with the active roster, it is likely that Edy Tavares will remain inactive (along with Tiago Splitter) for the Celtics series barring an unforeseen injury in the frontcourt. Still, having young players in and around a playoff situation can only serve as a positive developmental tool, and it would be a surprise if they were not back with the Hawks in Boston. Stay tuned.