Report: Hawks' John Collins Will Return from Injuries for Game 1 vs. Heat

Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins will return to the court for Game 1 of the team's first-round playoff series against the Miami Heat on Sunday, barring any setback during warm-ups, according to Shams Charania.

The Athletic and Stadium writer first reported on Saturday that Collins would attempt to play.

Collins has been sidelined since March 11 with finger and foot injuries.

Charania revealed in March that Collins would be out indefinitely with a plantar fascia tear in his right foot and an injury to his right ring finger. He had been playing through pain before being ruled out and told The Athletic's Chris Kirschner that the injuries made it difficult for him to play and that his foot would be in pain any time he put pressure on it.

By his standard, Collins underperformed during the regular 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. 

However, his possible return to the floor couldn't come at a better time for the Hawks as starting center Clint Capela suffered a knee injury in Friday's play-in victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Capela reportedly did not suffer any structural damage to his knee but could miss a large portion of Atlanta's first-round series against the Heat, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

After reaching the Eastern Conference Finals last season, the Hawks were forced to take part in this year's play-in tournament. They defeated the Charlotte Hornets and Cavaliers to clinch the East's eighth seed. 

Trae Young was a driving force to the Hawks' play-in success, but Bogdan Bogdanovic, Danilo Gallinari and Kevin Huerter were also big contributors. 

Atlanta struggled to a 43-39 record this season, and it faces a significant uphill battle in a tough Eastern Conference that saw teams sit tightly in the standings throughout the year.