Mo Gueye Isn't Just a Gimmick For The Atlanta Hawks

Throughout the Hawks' first three games, Gueye has maintained his defensive excellence. When he was on the court last season, the Hawks' defensive rating improved by 5 points (116.3 to 110.5) and opponents turn the ball over at a slightly higher rate (15.9% to 17.2%). He also affected game as a rebounder, forcing a reduction in offensive rebounding percentage from 26.8% to 24.8%. This season, Gueye's counting stats are up on defense - he's averaging a career-best 1.3 blocks per game and 4.7 rebounds per game. The Hawks are 7.6 points better when he's on the court, but his net plus-minus rating per 100 possessions has taken a huge jump from 10.4 last season to 29.0 this season. It's obviously a small sample size, but Gueye is starting from a much stronger point that he was last season.

The Hawks should turn to Gueye more in order to get him the experience he needs to excel in a variety of different matchups. He was a critical part of holding Paolo Banchero to 11 points on 4/15 shooting from the field. For example, in the first quarter, Banchero drove straight at the rim after getting by Jalen Johnson and Gueye perfectly rotated over in order to swat his shot away. On the perimeter, he had a nice moment guarding Holmgren after Holmgren took him out deep and attempted to burn him with a three. He stifled Holmgren's attempt and stripped him of the ball, running back to start a transition play. Those are two incredibly tough matchups and it's nice to see that Gueye continues to pose resistance despite going against better scorers. He still over helps on certain assignments and needs to build more play strength, but those are fixable with more experience.

A big part of what makes Gueye so unique is that he shows the potential for being able to handle a bigger offensive role with time. Much like Dyson Daniels prior to coming to Atlanta, this part of his game is still holding him back from being a truly impactful contributor. Nevertheless, there's been some positive growth this season. He's averaging a career-best 36.4% from deep on a career-high 3.7 attempts per game. Still, one could argue that's just a victim of small sample size. The encouraging part of Gueye's shot is the frequency with which he's attempting them. He's had back-to-back games with multiple threes made, which has never happened in the 40 other games he's played in his career.

Will Gueye suddenly become a stretch big man? It's probably going to take more time, but he's at least shown the potential to punish a defense that chooses to ignore him. The Hawks haven't been the strongest shooting team - they're 22nd in 3P% and 26th in FG%. Every little bit that Gueye gives them on that end is worth celebrating as he continues to make the argument for more minutes. That's even before mentioning the hustle plays that he makes - the diving offensive rebound and pass back to Luke Kennard for a 2-pointer that tied the Magic game early are just one example of the little sequences Gueye is involved that help win games.

Shooting leaps are becoming more commonplace in the NBA. Aaron Gordon and Brook Lopez are obviously two extreme examples of limited shooters who leveled up into being respectable floor-spacers. Gueye doesn't have to make as incredible of a jump - he just needs to be around league-average and stay on the court enough to exert his incredible defensive gifts. Atlanta's defense is sorely in need of someone of his caliber and that becomes even more important if Kristaps Porzingis is completely unreliable. So far, it seems Gueye is up for handling a bigger role.