CJ McCollum breaks his silence on changing the starting lineup

The Atlanta Hawks are in the midst of an important homestand that could help them clinch the Eastern Conference. That means they have to play some of their best football, and that comes with it making changes to the composition to put them in the best position to win.

That’s what head coach Quin Snyder did recently, inserting CJ McCollum into the starting lineup and bringing Zacharie Risacher off the bench. This is not new territory for McCollum, as he is was a consistent starter for most of his career. He was recently asked about the lineup change in the Hawks match.

“It’s part of the game. I’ve played in 840 games in my career,” McCollum told reporters. “Obviously I’ve started 10 straight years, and I’m comfortable with that. I told them when I got here, I’ll do whatever you want. I’ve played a lot of different roles in my career. I was a DNP player to start. I was 7th, 8th and 9th. So I was a starter, whatever it takes.”

As for what McCollum has brought to the Hawks since being traded, they’d like to have that in the starting lineup now instead of coming off the bench. At the same time, Risacher did not play particularly well in his second season and it was time for a change.

“That group of guys that finished the game, their net rating is 10 points above any other combination,” Snyder said after the game against the Brooklyn Nets. “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.”

The move should not only help the Hawks get off to a strong start, but could also give Rizacher a chance to regain his confidence in his new role.

“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.”