Hawks Rumors: John Collins Out Indefinitely with Foot, Finger Injuries

Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins will be sidelined indefinitely with a plantar fascia tear in his right foot and an injury to his right ring finger, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania and Chris Kirschner. 

Collins "has been playing through pain" for the last several weeks, Charania added. He hasn't played since a March 11 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

The news comes after Hawks head coach Nate McMillan said Thursday that Collins would get a second opinion on both his foot and finger injuries. 

Collins was initially sidelined with the foot injury from February 13 through March 3. He returned to the lineup on March 4 against the Washington Wizards but injured his finger on March 7 against the Detroit Pistons. X-rays on his finger came back negative, so he appeared in Atlanta's next two games but struggled shooting, making just three of 17 shots from the floor. 

The 24-year-old said last weekend that it had been tough to play basketball due to his finger injury and that his ailment has prevented him from putting more pressure on his foot, per Kirschner. 

Collins, for his standards, has underperformed this season, averaging 16.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 52.6 percent from the floor and 36.4 percent from deep in 54 games.

After reaching the Eastern Conference Finals last season, the Hawks entered the 2021-22 season with high expectations. However, the team has struggled to a 34-35 record this year, which is 10th in the East. 

With Collins sidelined, Danilo Gallinari, Solomon Hill and Jalen Johnson are next on the depth chart, and they should see more playing time moving forward.