The Hawks will be without sharpshooter Kyle Korver for the remainder of the playoffs after he suffered a high ankle sprain during Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The Hawks announced that Kent Bazemore will start in his place for Sunday’s Game 3 in Cleveland:
Bazemore has played limited minutes in each of the first two games against the Cavs. He was expected to be DeMarre Carroll’s replacement in Game 2 after Carroll suffered a knee injury in the first game, but Carroll ultimately played in that game. Bazemore has been productive in his limited time on the court in this series, scoring 10 points on 16 minutes in Game 1 and 7 points in 11 minutes in Game 2.
Kent Bazemore will start in place of Kyle Korver tonight. #TrueToAtlanta
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 24, 2015
Bazemore has played limited minutes in each of the first two games against the Cavs. He was expected to be DeMarre Carroll’s replacement in Game 2 after Carroll suffered a knee injury in the first game, but Carroll ultimately played in that game. Bazemore has been productive in his limited time on the court in this series, scoring 10 points on 16 minutes in Game 1 and 7 points in 11 minutes in Game 2.
Still, without Korver and trailing 2-0 going to Cleveland, a series that was already a longshot for the Hawks to win is becoming a near impossibility. Atlanta is simply too banged up, and it’s tough to recover from losing the first two games of the series at home, especially with LeBron James playing the way he is.