Dejounte Murray Latest Casualty for Banged-Up Atlanta Hawks

Hawks Face Easy Schedule in December

The Hawks are 13-12 this season after losing two games in a row. They began the season 4-1, but went 9-11 since their strong start.

The Hawks are in fifth place in the Eastern Conference playoff standings, and are +5000 odds to win the 2022-23 NBA championship over at DraftKings.

The Southeast Division is split between three teams with playoff aspirations, and two losing teams more focused on securing a high draft pick. The Hawks are in first place in the Southeast with a 1.5-game lead over the Miami Heat (12-14) in second place. The third-place Washington Wizards (11-14) trail the Hawks by two games. The Heat are the favorite to win the division at -115 odds, but the Hawks are not far behind at +115 odds.

The Charlotte Hornets (7-18) and Orlando Magic (6-20) are two of the worst teams in the NBA, and both are basement dwellers in the Southeast Division. The Hornets and Magic hope they can win the draft lottery, and then secure the draft rights to French star Victor Wembanyama to turn around their franchise.

The Hawks will play eight games over the next two weeks without Murray. They have two tough road games against the Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies over the next four games. The good news is that six of those next eight games are against the four worst teams in the Eastern Conference, including the Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls (twice), Hornets, and Magic (twice).