With injuries starting to pile up for star players, an interesting trend has begun: teams have played just as well, if not better, without their franchise cornerstones.

Now, before we go full Bill Simmons and scream EWING THEORY, let’s take a step back and see what the small samples are telling us.

Atlanta, you first.

Is Ice Trae starting to melt?

After starting the season 2-3 with Trae in the lineup, the Hawks have gone 11-6 in his absence. The on/off numbers comparing Atlanta this season without Trae and Atlanta last year with him (the sample size for this year is too small) is exactly what you’d expect: when he sits, the team is worse on offense (117.4 with Trae, 116.2 without) but better on defense (116.8 with Trae, 112.6 without). Overall, the Hawks have a better net rating withou

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