Can the Atlanta Hawks Fill the Massive Void Left by Al Horford?

With the loss of Al Horford for at least the remainder of the regular season, the Atlanta Hawks have lost a major piece of their team. In fact, it's easily the most impactful injury any team has suffered this season. The question facing the Hawks now is whether they can fill the massive void left by his absence.

Horford was an integral part of the Hawks on both sides of the ball. They are by no means going to be able to maintain the same level of play without him. Furthermore, they aren't going to be able to "fill" the hole completely, either. 

The more realistic question might be to ask whether Atlanta can put enough dirt in the hole to see the surface when standing in it. 

With or without Horford, the Hawks are a playoff team. In the Eastern Conference, where right now the Boston Celtics—at below .500—are holding onto the eighth seed, that's not particularly hard to do. 

The more important question for the Hawks is whether they can do enough to retain a top-six seed and avoid a first-round series against the Bulls or Heat. 

In order to do that, Atlanta will need to have one player in particular step up and perform at another level than he's played in the past. One such player, who has the ability to play at another level, is Josh Smith. 

Last night was the first step in that direction as Smith scored just the 11th 30-point game of his career. For Atlanta to maintain the sixth seed or better, they are going to need to replace Horford's post scoring. 

While Smith did take some outside shots last night, hitting five of his nine long twos, he mostly shot from the paint, going nine of 13 from close range. 

The Hawks have no other player that really is capable of offensively dominating a game from inside. If Smith can do that, they can maintain a level of play sufficient to land a top-six spot and that should give them time for Horford to get back. 

Can the Hawks fill the void? Barely, but it's up to Smith.