Back to the Atlanta Hawks Newsfeed

Lamar Patterson enjoys breakout game as Tim Hardaway Jr. watches from the sideline

There were individual performances more impressive than Lamar Patterson's on Saturday night, but none were more telling of the team's thought process.

One was a first-round draft pick that required an exchange of another first-round draft pick to be acquired. One was a second-round pick that was effectively shipped off to Europe for a year of seasoning before returning to make a real contribution.

One is cemented in the Atlanta Hawks rotation right now. It isn't Tim Hardaway Jr., and it isn't the former first-round pick with the lofty pedigree.

Of course, none of this comes as a surprise to anyone closely monitoring the Hawks during the 2015-2016 season, as Patterson has appeared in 26 games while Hardaway has seen action on only four occasions while routinely being listed as inactive.