Quin Snyder clarified the decision to bench Zachary Rizacher

Atlanta The Hawks changed their starting lineup before the game against the Brooklyn Nets, putting C.J. McCollum in the starting lineup and bringing Zachary Risacher from the bench. Risacher struggled during the season and the head coach Quinn Snyder noticed that when McCollum is in the final lineup with starters, statistics show that good things tend to happen.

“That group of guys that finished the game, their net rating is 10 points above any other combination,” Snyder said. “That’s our best lineup. Not starting CJ gives us some ball handling and some hitting off the bench. But we don’t get that lineup as much.”

While some might see this as a demotion for Rizacher, Snyder believes it could help the second-year player find a spark in his game.

“I think the biggest thing is that it doesn’t reflect in any way on our and my personal belief in Zach,” Snyder said. “I thought it might actually be a positive for him to be in the game in the second phase against different matchups with different guys. And I was happy to see that was the case. He looked relaxed and competed. Zach is doing all the right things. His development is something that will continue to happen whether he’s starting or coming off the bench.”

In their win against the Nets, Rizacher finished with seven points and started his first game strong. For the players, they don’t see much difference in who is in the starting lineup, as long as everyone does their job.

“I think guys just come in and play their roles,” Dyson Daniels said. “Zach was really good coming off the bench. He came in and he was kind of an energy for us. He came in and hit a big shot. Whoever starts, whoever comes off the bench, it doesn’t matter. Guys have to come in and play their roles and guys have to start the right way.”

After averaging 12.6 points per game last season, Rizacher is averaging 10.3 points this season. There were times when he looked good, but there were also times when he struggled to find a consistent rhythm on both sides of the ball.

On the other hand, the lineup of McCollum, Daniels, Nikhil Alexander-Walker, Jaylen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu had a difference of +18.7 points against the Nets.

“In this case, it’s just at the point where it made sense with CJ,” Snyder said. “I think he kind of solves us, too. And the extra ball handling helps us. We’ve had some really tough starts lately, and you get to five, six minutes where you know you’re going to get that lineup.”

With The hawks want to escape in the second half of the season, a lineup change that will help them should come as no surprise.